The Venue At Horseshoe Casino

When I walked in this place, I was floored.

The place is HUGE. I had NO idea. I kind of expected it was going to be the size of a college auditorium.

We went to see Jason Alexander. He bombed so hard on stage that people were running for the exits. We left when he started putting on a crown made of straws and singing "Jesus Christ Superstar." Poor George.

The staff were very friendly. One star off because the will call window lines are set up POORLY. There are 3 different lines , and you have to place a gamble on which line to pick. No separate line for diamond members.

As a long-time concert-goer, I was excited at the chance to see my favorite band Yes at The Venue in the Horseshoe Casino. I've never seen a show there before, so I was not sure what to expect. I arrived about 30 minutes before the show and found the parking to be most difficult. While it's free to park at the casino, I noticed the upper levels were completely filled. While some cars circled round and round looking for someone to leave, I took the opposite way and went down instead. I actually found a lot of available space on the 2nd and 3rd levels while the upper levels and rooftop parking were at capacity. That is something to keep in mind the next time I come here.

The theatre is on the upper floor of the casino and yes, you do have to walk through the casino the reach The Venue, just as you would in Vegas. A long carpeted stairway leads to the upper floor. While most people took the escalator up, I got my cardio workout running up the stairs.

As for the theatre venue itself, it is excellent in every sense. I would have no problem seeing another show here. Seating, sight and sound are the 3 S's of seeing a show in my book. First, the seating was excellent. Wide aisles, wide seats, each with its own armrests, and plenty of leg room in front of each seat made it one of the most comfortable experiences of seeing a show for me. Sight - with the raised design, it's almost like a theatre style multiplex theatre, so you do not have to peek between the heads of people in front of you. In case you can't see the stage... well there are a pair of giant video screens on either side to give you an even better view. Though I had an aisle seat with an unobstructed view of the stage, my eyes kept drifting to the video screen, where I was able to see things up close and from different angles than from where I was sitting. It's as if the video screen was the stage at times because of its excellent view. Lastly the sound. Not a hiccup in the audio. Vibrant, clear and no feedback or undesirable echoes that you may hear at other venues. Sometimes the sound is problematic just for the first 20-30 minutes before they get it right but not at this show. From what I saw and heard first-hand, Horseshoe made a first class theatre inside the casino. I definitely would come back here to see more shows.

Once inside the auditorium, it was great. Just the right size. Sound was fine to awesome.  Didn't hear an echo other posters mentioned and my husband notices such things. We were on the back row but no complaints at all. Probably no bad seats in the house. We will go again. ...With 3 caveats- all have to do with the place::: Don't come hungry, leave your coat in the car, and park on a lower level even if you have to drive circles until you find a spot. (Didn't check it, but if the angle allows, back the car in to avoid backing into traffic later.)  We enjoyed the great view of Chicago from the top parking deck for more than an hour since we couldn't get our car out of the spot because the line of cars never moved an inch til the floors below emptied out. Inside, the casino is thick with smoke and you have to walk thru it to get to the Venue. The coat check was easy in but took a half hour standing in line with smokers to get it after the show. Leaving the coat in the car solves the problems of waiting and not wanting your coat drenched in smoke. Food was too hard to get and it was also smoke filled. After waiting a half hour in a line that didn't move for the buffet, we opted for UNO pizza and a bottle of water from a cart in the lobby by the ticket window. Found a bench and had a picnic. It was great. As long as we didn't inhale. Discovered after we went in- inside the venue, past the ticket takers, the inner lobby has sofas where people were enjoying their pizzas in a smoke free environment. Beer is expensive but it was in big cups- better deal than ball games. The lobby bar and the stage right service bar had lines. The service bar at stage left had no waiting.