Say you have a yen to spend an evening at the theater or an afternoon meandering through the newest museum exhibition.
Your only problem is you’ve spent all the loose change you scrounged from under the sofa cushions and have returned empty-handed from a search of jacket pockets for an errant five-dollar bill or two.
All is not lost. Even the severely cash-flow impaired can find plenty of opportunities in the Chicago area to take advantage of cultural events and other high-caliber entertainment that is low cost or even free.
What sometimes is required in lieu of cold, hard cash, however, is a commitment of time and energy.
Take, for instance, the Saints, an organization that was founded in 1980 and provides an all-volunteer force of ushers to approximately 40 large and small theaters in the Chicago area.
During his nine years as president of the organization, Jack Meyer of Chicago said he has witnessed some wonderful productions, from Shakespeare at Navy Pier to concerts performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
The 1,400 members of The Saints pay an annual membership fee of $30. In return, they receive a monthly newsletter, free entry to monthly meetings where professionals from the Chicago theater community speak, a phone hotline and e-mail messages detailing last-minute ushering opportunities.
The goal of The Saints is to provide support for Chicago theaters that may struggle against the constraints of limited budgets and staffs to stage their productions.
“We fill a small niche and eliminate a hassle for them. We take the responsibility of scheduling people to usher,” Meyer said.
Each theater has a member of The Saints who is designated as a coordinator responsible for scheduling ushers.
After a call to the coordinator, volunteer ushers are asked to be at a theater an hour in advance and to stay afterward to collect programs or discarded candy wrappers from the theater floor.
To make it easy for patrons to recognize them, they also usually are required to wear a black skirt or pants and a white shirt.
Although members of the Saints often are avid theatergoers who may have season tickets at one or more theaters, Meyer acknowledged that they also enjoy seeing top-rate productions while saving the cost of a ticket which, in many cases, may run $30, $40 or more.
“It’s not guaranteed that you will get to see the show if the show is sold out,” he said. “But that doesn’t happen very often.”
Meyer also explained that ushers are well-advised to book in advance to work at a show on a date they desire.
“Especially for popular shows, they may have to schedule ushering dates a month in advance,” he said.
Anyone interested in joining the Saints should call 773-529-5510.
Rather that seeing live theater, the volunteers at the Field Museum in Chicago are likely to spend their time dusting fossils or guiding people through the skeletons of dinosaurs, mummies and other exhibits. But their volunteer work also translates into plenty of perks.
At the Field, for instance, volunteers and their families receive free museum admittance, do not have to pay for parking at the museum’s lot, get free admittance to other Chicago museums and zoos, and are invited to some fun free events, such as the museum’s annual holiday party.
Volunteers are needed for a variety of jobs, from acting as docents to doing fossil preparation or providing clerical support.
Training is provided and the volunteers, who currently number 600, get a behind-the-scenes look at exhibits that members of the public may not.
“They get to learn a lot about the content of our exhibits and they are trained by experts,” said Nancy O’Shea, the museum’s media relations manager.
The museum requires a commitment of one day per week (about four to six hours) for weekday volunteers and two half-days a month for weekend volunteers.
Similar benefits for volunteers are available at the John G. Shedd Aquarium and at the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum, and at other prominent musuems and zoos.
At the Shedd, for instance, volunteers may do anything from cleaning aquariums to helping at special events or scuba-diving in tanks to feed marine life.
Betty Goldberg, volunteer services coordinator, said the aquarium depends on a crew of 520 volunteers.
“We hope it’s a give and take and that volunteers go away with a lot of knowledge and experiences they wouldn’t have otherwise,” she said.
The volunteer department at the Shedd can be reached at 312-692-3309, the number for the Adler is 312-922-7827, and the Field Museum can be called at 312-922-9410.
Although the Saints and the museums require a donation of time, Chicago’s approximately 200 art galleries do not ask for even that.
The city’s gallery season officially began Sept. 8, said Natalie van Straaten, executive director of the ChicagoArt Dealers Association.
As the season progresses, the first Friday of the month is the evening when people usually take part in gallery walks. These also are free because gallery owners hope that browsers will someday become buyers.
People interested in finding out about gallery happenings should consult newspaper entertainment sections or call the CADA at 312-649-0064.
Meyer and van Straaten agree that Chicago offers a wealth of entertainment opportunities and, often, you do not have to rob the bank to enjoy them.
“Chicago is such a rich city culturally,” van Straaten said. “Much of what is available is free.”
Giving time to support a theater or an important cultural institution also makes volunteers feel good, Meyer said.
“The theaters appreciate us and I like the interaction with the people (in the audience),” he said.
