Chicago Tap Theatre was founded in 2002 by Artistic Director Mark Yonally, an internationally acclaimed dancer with experience with the Bill Evans Dance Company and E.T.C. Yonally believed that the time was right for tap dance to expand its artistic horizons and formed a company with a mission to innovate tap dance while simultaneously helping preserve its rich history.
During its first three years, Chicago Tap Theatre performed as a guest in numerous Chicagoland productions while also self-producing five full-length shows. CTT quickly showed its unique vision of tap dance as a theatrical and conceptual meduim. CTT also introduced the company's Heritage Series, with a dance choreographed by the late Buster Brown and entitled "Laura".
Chicago Tap Theatre produced its first three-show season in 2004. The season opened with Liaison, a collaboration with Tapage, a tap company from Toulouse, France. The second production used CTT's hallmark format, the story show, to tell the troubled tale of jazz musician Chet Baker. The final show of the season brought several companies together in The Chicago Tap All-Stars.
The 2004-2005 season began with a three city tour of the south of France with sister company Tapage. CTT returned to a holiday iteration of the popular Chicago Tap All-Stars series, which CTT decided to make an annual tradition, although future versions would feature CTT on its own. The second show of the season was the critically hailed Master of Movement: The Legacy of Bill Evans, in which CTT honored dance pioneer Bill Evans. The season closed with The Tell-Tale Tap: Stories of Edgar Allan Poe, which told three of Poe's timeless tales using a capella tapping and poetry read by Poetry Slam originator Marc Smith.
The next year, CTT presented Tidings of Tap, an inclusive, secular holiday show that embraced winter, Christmas and Chanukah. April 2006 saw the return of sister company Tapage for Liaison Deux. The third show of the season was the wildly popular Changes: A Science Fiction Tap Dance Opera, set entirely to the music of David Bowie.
The 2006-2007 season marked several new highs for the company. In addition to a new Tidings of Tap, CTT presented Mixology: A Fizzy Cocktail of Tap Dance and Live Music, selling out every performance. The company also collaborated with comic book artist Andrew Pepoy (Superman, X-Men, Fables) for The Hourglass in the Stop-Time Chronicles, a brand-new tap opera with a comic book/superhero theme.
Though CTT had long starred as a guest on Chicago stages, 2007 brought amazing new successes. First, the company appeared with indie rock band the Polyphonic Spreee at Lollapalooza in front of over 20,000 screaming fans. Later the same day, CTT performed at the Jazz Dance world Congress, one of the dance world's most prestigious events. Soon thereafter, the company made its debut at the Ravinia Festival, in a concert featuring the very best of Chicago dance. In the last two cases, CTT was the only tap group invited to participate. The comany's season closed with another successful tour to France.