(630) 897-9496
11 - 13 S Water Street Mall, Aurora, IL 60505
Celebrating Our 47th Season!
Opening October 24th!
October 24th through November 22nd
Friday and Saturday @ 8pm
Pontypool
by Tony Burgess
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What if the words you speak could kill?
In Pontypool, language isn’t just communication—it’s contagion.
Tense, claustrophobic, and disturbingly relevant, Pontypool is a horror story for the age of information overload. Set in the small town of Pontypool, Ontario, the play (adapted from the film and novel by Tony Burgess) unfolds almost entirely within a local radio station. The story follows Grant Mazzy, a washed-up shock jock, his producer Sydney Briar, and technician Laurel-Ann Drummond as they begin their morning broadcast during a snowstorm. What starts as a routine day quickly spirals into chaos as disturbing reports of riots and bizarre behavior flood in from the outside world. As reality fractures and understanding becomes dangerous, Pontypool asks: how do we survive when our own thoughts betray us? This gripping play turns the power of language against us, transforming everyday speech into a weapon of mass destruction.
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Coming Soon!
2026 Season Announcement
2025 Production of A Christmas Carol
Dec 12-14 & Dec 19-21 Fri & Sat at 8 pm, Sun at 3 pm
The Riverfront Playhouse
Past, Present and Future Fundraiser
Thank You to Our Sponsors
Executive Producer
John F. Byrd
Pat and Tom Krave
Director
Dick and Arlene Hawks
Marissa Amoni and Max Balding
Kathleen and Shawn Dooley
Supporting Actor
Jennifer and Adam Cresse
Bill Burmeier
Samuel Goodman & Elizabeth Eccher
Walk-on
John and Margaret Wilson
Tracey Sherman Falcon and Gandi Falcon
Michael Childress
Patron
Mike & Vicki White
Joe & Eileen Konopacki
Larry & Jean Shepard
Mike Blake
Mary Ingram-Schatz
Sharon & Mark Morris
Dale & Rhonda Roe
Nick Cafaro
Allison Lanthrum
Faith & Matt Greising
The Riverfront Playhouse
Est. 1978
The Riverfront Playhouse is a 501c3 not-for-profit store front theater founded in 1978 and established under the direction of David Morris as a creative outlet for actors of all walks of life and all levels of experience to learn and hone their craft. With the very first show, UNDER THE YUM YUM TREE, which featured the talents of Gary Puckett, Christiane Morris, Dick Hawks, and Barbara Alexander, the playhouse was off and running.
The Riverfront Playhouse has doubled it's size since its inception, and we're constantly looking for ways to make it even bigger. Through the un-flagging loyalty of our personnel and patrons, we've made it to well over 200 mainstage shows, countless children's theatre presentations, and
While performing in the backroom of Max's All-American Bar, which sat on the corner of The Water Street Mall and Galena Boulevard, the actors were all crammed into a coffin-like backstage area, and were forced to do their costume changes out on the Mall behind bedspreads held up by their fellow actors and technical personnel.
we have remained a venue for diverse and exciting entertainment in the Western Suburbs, as well as a sort of blue-collar clubhouse for the artistic types of the Chicagoland area. Our longevity is a tribute, not only to the folks that handle the day to day grind of business, but to the audiences that have kept our doors open since 1978. A debt of gratitude is owed to all.
News & Updates
A message from the Riverfront Board of Directors:
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The November Meeting of the Board of Directors is scheduled for Wednesday, November 19th, 2025,
7:00 p.m. at the Riverfront Playhouse offices.
​Zoom link available on request.
“There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humour.”
Charles Dickens from A Christmas Carol
