The city was in panic, and the police department had no leads to go on. The cult hunted women in order to rape, torture, murder, and-ultimately-cannibalize them. Countless framed pictures of such shows-including 'My Fair Lady,' 'Oklahoma!' 'Show Boat,' 'Carousel,' 'Fiddler on the Roof,' 'Man of La Mancha' and 'The King and I'-decorated the dining room/theater for years, attesting to that love.Between 19, the city of Chicago and the surrounding suburbs were terrorized by a satanic cult led by ringleader Robin Gecht. Pullinsi made the difficult Broadway show 'Nine' into a palatable wonder.Д¬ompetitors Walker and Pullinsi even teamed up in 1990 to co-produce a version of Sondheim's 'Into the Woods,' which played both theaters.Д«ut even more than enterprise, Candlelight shone in its undying passion for the classic American musical, easily staging every one of them, sometimes repeatedly, most of the time with great style, enthusiasm, choreography and showmanship.

He also took 'Rags,' a Broadway failure, and turned it into a hit. Pullinsi revived Stephen Sondheim's 'Follies' and restored interest in it at a time when it had been all but forgotten. Many aspiring Chicago talents, especially in musical comedy, worked at Candlelight, including Hollis Resnik, Paula Scrofano, Lee Pelty and Dale Benson, the company's resident character actor. Many famous actors have worked at the theaters over the years, including Shelley Long, Mandy Patinkin, John Reilly and Mark Jacoby. From the beginning, Pullinsi maintained a high artistic standard-determined to mount shows as high in quality as Broadway, if not quite as big-and began working with some of the bright young talents of Chicago's theater scene, such as Frank Galati.Д«ig musicals graced the larger Candlelight, while the Forum often took on challenging fare, such as the American premiere of Peter Nichols' 'The National Health.'ДЄt the complex, the anti-war 'Macbird' played to raves and the original musical version of Mike Royko's 'Boss' caused a minor scandal-the Daley family and others were not pleased with its portrayal of the late mayor. Variety and other publications soon touted the phenomenon, and it spread throughout the country.

He soon became fast friends with fellow student D'Angelo and the two joined up, relocating their project to Chicago, first on what was then Archer Road in Summit, and later on the site it occupies today. Pullinsi was a college student at Catholic University in 1959 when he opened the first Candlelight in Washington, D.C.-shrewdly understanding that the old Broadway saw, about 'dinner and a show,' might work well when literally strung together. Whatever the cause, a major force in the cultural life of the Chicago area is shuttered, even if only temporarily. 'My company's not worried, but we haven't enjoyed the growth in the past two years we had been enjoying for a long time prior to that.'

Marriott's has seen subscription numbers grow to record levels in the past decade, but Walker said even his theater has felt a leveling off in the past two years. 'They had Drury Lane on one side, Drury Lane Theatre (in Evergreen Park) on another and the city of Chicago on a third,' Walker noted. 'I doubt that would be suitable for my audiences,' Marriott's Walker noted.Д¬andlelight also saw increased competition, not only from Marriott's, but from Drury Lane Oakbrook.

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