The Mercury Theatre in Chicago will not reopen.

Absolutely heartbroken to hear this. I have enjoyed the productions at The Mercury so much and so many promising actors and designers have gone through its doors. Hoping we don’t have to see anymore news like this, but I doubt it. 

It's really the mid-size theaters that are in the most danger. The big and long-established theaters--Goodman, Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, etc.--have enough deep-pocketed donors dedicated to keeping them alive that they're going to weather it no matter what, and the small companies with very few (or all-volunteer) staff renting on a show-by-show basis also are likely to survive. Mercury was a mid-size commercial venue, meaning they can't rely on donations, and I imagine their lease isn't that cheap with no money coming in (compare that to Lookingglass, which famously pays the city of Chicago $1 a year for their performance space). It's very sad to see them close, and I also fear for companies like TimeLine, Steep, Pride, Theo Ubique, Raven, and A Red Orchid.