Seldom do Nobel laureates visit Waukegan. One is coming this March.
Bob Dylan brings his “Rough and Rowdy Ways” tour to the Historic Genesee Theatre in downtown Waukegan at 8 p.m. on March 30, 2026. The stop is one in smaller venues on the Midwest leg of the legendary artist’s latest traveling shows, which includes a 23-date European tour. Another show is set for Rockford’s Coronado Theatre on March 28.
Few seats remain for Dylan’s swing through Waukegan, and probably by the date of the concert, it will be a sellout at the comfortable 2,400-seat venue. The cheap seats went fast when ticket sales opened on Friday.
The show, like others on the tour, will be a phone-free experience, with all devices secured in Yondr pouches during the concert. Promoters warn concertgoers that the show will begin promptly on time.
If you hesitated, tickets were still available earlier this week. Prices range from $400 for two tickets in the mezzanine, to $1,821 for two seats in the left pit section. Steep prices for lunch-bucket Waukegan, although only 13 seats were available. Certainly too expensive for lowly scribes.
Those seats may be worth the price, though, seeing the 84-year-old rebel who many say is one of the most influential cultural figures of the 20th century. If you’re a fan, Waukegan could be a stop on his last tour, although other rock-and-roll octogenarians continue to perform with abandon. For example, 92-year-old Willie Nelson seems to be always on the road, again.
Dylan’s concert is one of a strong muster of live shows scheduled at the Historic Genesee, which might pique the interest of area artsy and musical folks. The lineup starts with two Nutcracker holiday performances by DanceCenter North on Thursday and Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Milwaukee rockers The Bodeans take the stage at 8 p.m. on Dec. 26, while John Oates, once part of the hit-making duo Hall and Oates, is slated for March 7. One-time country sweetheart LeAnn Rimes is scheduled for May 8.
Other intriguing acts coming to the Genesee include popular Jay Leno, the former late-night TV host, on Feb. 6, who’s on a stand-up comic tour; “Long Island Medium” Theresa Caputo on Feb. 4; and comedians Aziz Ansari on Jan. 24, and TV personality and comic George Lopez on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day.
Dylan’s appearance, though, is a score for Genesee promoters. Fans know he kept the folk movement alive with his protest songs and political anthems in the early 1960s until he was declared “a traitor” when he decided to “go electric” in 1965 at the famed Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island.
That was a defining moment for the Duluth, Minnesota-born musician. He went on to invent the folk rock genre with two 1965 albums, “Bringing It All Back Home” and “Highway 61 Revisited.” His writing and songs have continued over the decades, a voice of reason and motivation during times of political and national strife.
Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature by the Swedish Academy in 2016, “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” It was the first time the prestigious group named a musician/songwriter as a Nobel winner since the prizes began in 1901.
Besides his Nobel, Dylan was given a special Pulitzer Prize award in 2008, “for his profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power.” No doubt.
Other accolades include being inducted into Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012 from President Barack Obama and becoming a Kennedy Center Honoree in 1997. He has released 40 studio albums, 21 live albums and is a noted author of 10 books of prose, poetry and art.
Dylan continues to be a subject of interest across several platforms since his classic sophomore studio album, “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan” from the spring of 1963 jump-started his career. Forbes reported this week that a special edition reissue of the album unsurprisingly, “has become a quick bestseller throughout the world.”
Dylan was the focus of the 2024 Oscar-nominated biopic, “A Complete Unknown,” which detailed his early and youthful successes as a performer. The movie gave younger audiences a taste of his music and background to what has made him a musical icon in the U.S. and across the globe.
Legends don’t drop anchor in Waukegan often enough. Here’s a chance to see one up close and personal at the Historic Genesee. That is, if you want to pay premium prices for tickets.
Charles Selle is a former News-Sun reporter, political editor and editor.
sellenews@gmail.com
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https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/17/charles-selle-column-bob-dylan/
