Theater 47

Theater 47 is a 200-seat house at 371 Artists Walk in DownTown Park Forest, run by founder and creative director John Ruffin and his wife Tammie Ruffin, who opened the venue about eight years ago. The company’s productions include The Phyllis Hyman Story, Turn Off the Lights: The Teddy Pendergrass Story, Remember the Time: The Michael Jackson Story and The Bobby Womack Story, and Ruffin has secured rights to stage Dreamgirls, The Color Purple and Black Nativity. In July 2026 the Village of Park Forest named Ruffin its 2025 Sam Montella Business Person of the Year, noting a two-day production can bring more than 600 patrons downtown.

What to know

• A 200-seat venue at 371 Artists Walk, the former Illinois Theatre Center building in DownTown Park Forest.
• Opened by John and Tammie Ruffin about eight years before the July 2026 award announcement.
• Founder John Ruffin was named Park Forest’s 2025 Sam Montella Business Person of the Year.
• The hall is available to rent for private and corporate events, and the box office is at the theater.
• The company runs free acting classes for students who cannot afford tuition, according to the village.