Jane Lynch Has A New Role: Illinois Tour Guide

ILLINOIS — The Emmy and Golden Globe winning actress Jane Lynch has taken on a new role: Illinois tour guide.

Lynch is starring in “Middle of Everything,” a new tourism campaign for the state, which features TV ads in eight states and on national cable, as well as digital and print promotions, bus signs, wallscapes and even a digital billboard in Times Square.

Born in Evergreen Park and raised in Dolton, Lynch graduated from Illinois State University, and spent 15 years in Chicago acting in the Steppenwolf Theatre Company and later The Second City comedy club. She has gone on to star in TV hits including “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” and “Glee,” and is currently co-starring in the Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” in New York City.

“Illinois has everything: a big, beautiful lake that’s almost an ocean, untouched prairies and a state capital, Springfield, that is bursting with Abraham Lincoln remembrances,” Lynch told the Washington Post in a recent interview. “Illinois also contains Chicago, one of the most beautiful and cosmopolitan cities on the map. As opposed to New York and Los Angeles, Chicago is known for its down-to-earth people — a small-town feel in a big city.”

Lynch made her directorial debut with the campaign’s TV ads, which are part of a $30.3 million effort by the state to accelerate the recovery of its tourism and hospitality industry in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The campaign highlights iconic Chicago attractions as well as the offerings of Springfield, Historic Route 66 and Shawnee National Forest. Featured locations include Cozy Dog Drive In, the Art Institute of Chicago and a Tall Ship Windy boat.

“I loved every minute of working on this project promoting tourism in my home state and I’m so proud to finally see it come to life,” Lynch said in a news release from the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity.

To watch the ads or learn more, visit the campaign's website.