Auditorium Fracas: The University Strikes Back
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Last week at the council’s first regularly scheduled meeting since the lawsuits were filed, ATC treasurer Tom Kallen read a resolution asking Gross to step aside as ATC chairman for the duration of the meeting. A source present says the resolution passed by a vote of 13 to 9, but when Gross refused to relinquish his post, no further steps were taken to press the point. Later in the meeting ATC members passed a resolution prohibiting Roosevelt from diverting $1.5 million from the Auditorium’s reserve fund to finance its new Schaumburg campus. Eychaner described the passage of that resolution as “one success along the road to a larger victory.”
When the Auditorium has housed long-running hits such as The Phantom of the Opera or Miss Saigon it has generated considerable revenue. Figures for the 1993 fiscal year indicate a surplus of $900,000 in operating revenue. The theater also took in approximately $750,000 in contributions that year for a total surplus of $1.65 million. The 1994 fiscal year was slightly better. A $1.1 million revenue surplus and an additional $600,000 in contributions created a total surplus of $1.7 million.
Bruns did not return a call to his office, but according to one source who spoke with Bruns before he resigned, the departed chairman identified himself as a friend of Arneth; as such he was presumably disinclined to vote for making Jam the Chicago’s new manager. Though Jam’s Jerry Mickelson declined to comment, some sources say Jam is destined to get the job because of its connections in city government. Last spring Jam and Weisberg cohosted a reception for attendees of the NEA’s “Art 21” conference.
