Bret Michaels Sellout, Patti LaBelle Next: Hollywood Casino Joliet Plans 24 Special Events Annually

JOLIET, IL ? Around this city, two main venues come to mind for watching top music performers and national comedians take center stage: the historic Rialto Square Theatre and The Forge ? both in downtown Joliet. Now, the City of Champions has added a third venue, and the new Hollywood Casino Joliet Event Center is off to an impressive start.

Hollywood Casino Joliet booked Bret Michaels, the lead singer of Poison, for its first-ever Joliet Event Center concert, taking place Saturday, Oct. 18. Then, earlier this week, Hollywood Casino Joliet announced that R&B legend Patti LaBelle is booked for a concert Friday, Nov. 14.

LaBelle's tickets just went on sale Friday. The Bret Michaels concert is basically sold out, according to Hollywood Casino Joliet Vice President and General Manager Ruben Warren.

On Friday, Joliet Patch interviewed Warran at his new Hollywood Casino Joliet Event Center for more details about his vision for Joliet's newest indoor entertainment venue.

His new casino opened its doors for business Aug. 11 at the Rock Run Collection. The Culinan Properties Development of 310 acres consists of mixed-use commercial, retail, restaurant, entertainment, hospitality and residential development at the crossroads of Interstate 80 and Interstate 55 in Joliet, near Shorewood.

What Is The Joliet Event Center?

The new Joliet Event Center is 10,000 square feet. Warren told Joliet Patch it's a multi-purpose indoor facility for hosting music concerts and nationally prominent comedy touring acts. It will also be used for banquets, weddings and community events. The concert venue will have a seating capacity of 1,000 people, Warren pointed out.

"There is no bad seating in the house," Warren proclaimed. "We're billing it as an intimate night, which we will have for Bret Michaels. It will be stadium seating, and the high ceilings are going to make you feel like you're right at the stage no matter what seat you purpose.

"There are six different configurations. We can go as small as 40 people and as large as 1,000 people for Bret Michaels and Patti LaBelle."

Warren found out that only about 30 total tickets remained available as of Friday afternoon for Bret Michaels.

"It's sold out," Warren remarked.

PENN Entertainment and its Hollywood Casino Joliet spent August heavily advertising and promoting its new casino gaming floor and all the high-end restaurants that are located near the food court called Boulevard Food & Drink Hall.

"We Have Two Icons, Bret Michaels And Patti LaBelle"

But as Joliet Patch recently realized, the new Joliet Event Center is quickly becoming a major force around Joliet and the Chicago region for attracting big-name, nationally prominent music artists.

"Our start was focused on getting the doors open and we wanted to launch it right after our opening," Warren said of promoting the new Joliet Event Center. "Let the casino settle in and set the exciting energy that we're building in the community. With Bret Michaels, my phone lit up. Thirty messages immediately, so it's been very well-received and when Patti LaBelle launched, it was an even larger response. We have two icons, Bret Michaels, a Pennsylvania native, and Patti LaBelle."

Warren said he's thrilled that PENN Entertainment has partnered with the famous lead singer of Poison. Michaels is a strong advocate of raising money to help fight diabetes, Warren noted.

"He's all about community, and we love his cause. We support him 100 percent," Warren said. "And Patti LaBelle is just a living icon. We knew if we could get her, we'd have big names in our Event Center."

More major announcements of famous entertainers are planned in the coming weeks. Hollywood Casino Joliet plans to host at least one more major event before the end of 2025.

"We will have another announcement this month," Warren teased.

Joliet Event Center Plans 24 Major Events Per Year

The Joliet Event Center may also host major amateur boxing competitions, Warren said. Overall, he intends to book about two dozen major special events at the Joliet Event Center per year.

"Our goal is to have 24. Two times a month, that's our goal. But probably, that's most likely to happen starting in the first quarter of 2027."

Warren wanted to remind everyone that Hollywood Casino Joliet "is still giving away a free $60,000 event to a non-profit organization. Organizations must be Chicagoland non-profits. Applications are being accepted until Sept. 30. "We will not accept out of state," he added.

The winner will be announced around Oct. 14.

Indoor Ice Skating Planned For This Christmas Holiday

The Joliet Event Center will likely put on a Christmas display and festival, and Warren plans to turn his indoor facility into an ice-skating rink.

"It's a controlled environment," he explained. "I tasked my guy with this year. We are pressing the gas now to create exciting events for our community. It's to pull our community together. We wanted to make sure when this was built, we had the community in mind and I think Joliet natives and Joliet residents deserve a place to let their hair down, come and relax without having to drive into Chicago."

And for anyone interested in using the new Joliet Event Center, Warren urged them to contact Daniel McMahon, complex director of sales, for Hollywood Casino Joliet & Aurora, at Daniel.McMahon@pennentertainment.com or by calling 815-274-7790.