On May 26, 1988, Rev. John T. Richardson of DePaul University announced the purchase of the Blackstone Theatre from the Shubert Organization. In November 1992, the theater was renamed the Merle Reskin Theatre.

The theater was designed by Chicago architects Marshall & Fox in 1910. The stone facade and mansard roof of the French Renaissance-style building have been modified only slightly over the years. The theater seats 1325 patrons including 577 seats on the main floor, 383 seats in the mezzanine, and 365 in the balcony.

On February 7, 1989, seven months and $700,000 after the purchase was announced, the theater reopened its doors to a full house of school children for a Playworks production of THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH. Preliminary renovations to the facility include a 240-dimmer computerized lighting system, more than 300 lighting instruments, a state of the art sound system, Sennheiser Infra-red listening system for our patrons, an orchestra pit with a removable cover, and the complete replacement of the stage floor. The Theatre School brings an audience of more than 50,000 people to the theater each season.

Each year, the proscenium theater provides performance space for the nearly 200 public performances of the Theatre School.