Now Playing
June 20 – July 26, 2026
Men of Soul
A soaring tribute to the men who shaped the sound of soul music, with Robert leading the band.
Bringing stories to life through music.
For more than three decades, Robert Reddrick has helped shape some of Chicago's most celebrated theatrical productions — as an award-winning music director, drummer, arranger, and educator.
Trusted by Chicago's leading stages
Black Ensemble Theater
Porchlight Music Theatre
Chicago Shakespeare
Steppenwolf
Victory Gardens
Mercury Theater
The Story
A life measured in beats and standing ovations.
For more than thirty years, Robert Reddrick has been the pulse behind Chicago's stages. As Music Director of the acclaimed Black Ensemble Theater, he leads the house band and shapes the sound of show after show — soul revues, biographical musicals, and world premieres alike.
Drummer, arranger, bandleader, and teacher, his work has earned Chicago's highest theater honors and moved audiences, students, and fellow artists for decades.
Read the full story
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Years On Stage
2009
Resident Musical Director Since
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Seats a Year
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Shows This Season
The Journey
Decades of accomplishment
A career built one production, one award, and one mentored student at a time.
1990s
Finding the pocket
Trains and works across Chicago's music scene, studying at Columbia College Chicago and building a reputation as a drummer who serves the song.
2000s
Music Director, Black Ensemble Theater
Becomes the musical heartbeat of the Black Ensemble Theater — directing, arranging, and drumming for celebrated musical revues and biographical shows.
2010s
Awards & wider stages
Earns multiple Black Theater Alliance Awards and Jeff Award nominations; music-directs at Porchlight, Chicago Shakespeare, Victory Gardens, and more.
Today
Leader, mentor, endorser
Leads landmark productions, tours with The R2Project, and teaches the next generation while partnering with brands he believes in.
Recognition
An award-winning body of work.
Robert's musical direction has been honored again and again by Chicago's theater community — a record of excellence built over decades of consistent, soulful, standard-setting work.
See all awards & recognition
7×
Black Theater Alliance Award
Recipient — honoring outstanding contribution to Black theater, awarded again and again across his career.
Best Music Director — Black Theatre Alliance
7×
Jeff Award Nominee
Nominated for excellence in musical direction — the Joseph Jefferson Awards are Chicago theater's highest honor.
Best Music Director — Joseph Jefferson Awards
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Porchlight ICONS Honoree
Celebrated among Chicago's "Scene Changers" — artists whose work has lastingly shaped the city's stages.
Also a recipient of the Chicago Award, Certificate of Excellence
A Rare Distinction
A rare seat at the head of the band.
Robert has built a distinguished career in a field where Black musical leadership has long been underrepresented. Industry studies of who runs the room — directors, music directors, composers — consistently find leadership that remains overwhelmingly white. For decades, Robert has helped shape full theatrical productions at the highest professional level.
He does it as the musical anchor of the Black Ensemble Theater — founded in 1976 by Jackie Taylor and now one of the most prominent African American theater companies in the nation.
1976
Black Ensemble Founded
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Patrons Each Year
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Sq. Ft. Cultural Center
Top 25
U.S. Theaters (Britannica Almanac)
Black Ensemble Theater figures, where Robert serves as Music Director.
In Their Words
What the people who work with him say.
Unscripted comments from the musicians, performers, and colleagues who share a stage with Robert.
Colleagues, musicians, and friends — in their own words.
Robert Reddrick is the rare music director who elevates everyone around him — the band, the cast, and the audience.Mark Allen Felton · Saxophonist
Selected Work
Productions & performances
A sampling from a catalog spanning musical revues, biographical musicals, and Shakespeare.
Black Ensemble Theater
The Jackie Wilson Story
The biographical musical that opened the theater's 50th Anniversary Season.
Black Ensemble Theater
Men of Soul
A soaring tribute to the men who shaped the sound of soul.
Black Ensemble Theater
You Can't Fake the Funk
A journey through funk — the grooves, the horns, the pocket.
Chicago Shakespeare
Twelfth Night
Live music and rhythm brought to Shakespeare, free across Chicago.
On Stage
Where to see Robert this season
Robert is music director for all three productions of the Black Ensemble Theater's 50th Anniversary Season.
Up Next
September 5 – October 25, 2026
You Can't Fake the Funk
A journey through funk music — the grooves, the horns, and the pocket that started it all.
Holidays
December 12, 2026 – January 24, 2027
The Other Cinderella
Jackie Taylor's beloved holiday musical returns — a Chicago tradition, told with soul.
Teaching & Workshops
Passing the rhythm forward.
Robert believes the stage and the classroom are the same room. He works with kids and young musicians — teaching not just technique, but musicianship, discipline, and the joy of playing together. From school clinics to hands-on workshops, he brings decades of professional experience to students of every level.
Latest News
Recent headlines
2026 Season
Black Ensemble Theater marks 50 years
The company celebrates its 50th Anniversary Season — and is preparing to open a second theater.
Feb 2026
The Jackie Wilson Story returns to the Black Ensemble stage
Music direction for the landmark biographical musical launching the theater's milestone season.
A Legacy of Excellence
The music outlives the night.
For decades Robert Reddrick has helped shape the sound of Chicago theater — mentoring musicians, lifting performers, and bringing production after production to life for audiences of every age.