Humankind has never lost the wish to understand and explore the unknown. Seared into our genetic code, curiosity has been the motivating force that stimulated the birth of civilizations. Strangely that curiosity does not always include a desire to understand and appreciate each other. Here we continue to see differences in ourselves as threats …
Chicago Theatre Marathon 2017: A Hero with Class Read More »
Using plays as platforms to broadcast social manifestos is not new. The technique often serves to add clarity to the basis of the playwright’s arguments. Such a truth applies to Megastasis; a story about the crushing odds facing young black men now playing at the Athenaeum. Playwright Kia Corthon has certainly done her homework and …
Music lovers have a real treat waiting for them at Navy Pier. After passing under the LSD viaduct and veering a few yards south, you’ll find a little paradise reserved for the celebration of the performing arts. Dance and theater swing in the mix as well as music. The park, whose formal name is the …
Pizzeria Bebu in Lincoln Park has only been around since February but acts and slings pie like a seasoned champ. Chef Jeff Lutzow, a Nico Osteria expat, has an exquisite gift for pairing the perfect toppings and placing them on the ideal dining vehicle; a thin crispy crust. Like everything, your own palette will determine …
In a city of millions, you know there’s gotta be a good laugh to be found somewhere. And you’ll find plenty of them at that burgeoning institution of mirth on Broadway at Belmont. The Laugh Factory’s Wednesday night Supply and Demand show may have had a smallish crowd but the laughs bordered on the obese. …
Could somebody tell me why ribs are so complicated? Why is something so primal held to such scrutiny? The most likely answer to both questions centers on the fact that there are few things that can top a fabulous slab of spare/baby back/St. Louis cut ribs or rib tips. Nothing is more closely tied to …
About to fold camp in one of city’s many unheralded treasures, the Civil Rights Photography of Maria Varela has a mere four weeks left at the National Mexican Arts Museum in Pilsen; ending its five-month run. Varela, a native Chicagoan baptized in activism in high school, captured images that freeze history and drip with intimacy. …
Time to Get Ready: Revisiting Courage Through the Lens of Maria Varela Read More »
Creating something new and different has been consuming a big chunk of the Neo-Futurists’ mission for decades. But something’s changed. Somebody pushed a button and all Hell broke loose. Now they’re as brilliant as they are funny. Riotously clever, frighteningly talented; a perpetual happening. If their July 1st production of Face/Off is any indication …