It's the final weekend of the Halloween season! So get your best costume on and head out into the city (and beyond) and enjoy the spookiest weekend of the year! Be sure to check out the special events section before the full previews of events as there are tons of fun experiences we wouldn't want you to miss out on!
Now, let's get on with your Chicago Curated Weekend!
- Support Local Venues
- Kingston Mines
- Fitzgerald's
- Evanston Space
- Head over to the Hideout's regular shop and get yourself some great merch! Their 2020 Holiday Sale page is also still up with links to great local artists!
- Metro shop is full of fantastic concert posters from yesteryear and cool merch
- Lincoln Hall/Schubas always has great items in their shop waiting for you!
- Same goes for Thalia Hall's merch store
- Let's not forget Empty Bottle's fantastic merch shop!
ART GALLERIES & SPECIAL EVENTS
- All Star Press is constantly putting up new prints for you to decorate your space with! RIGHT NOW they are showing Chicago Style: Hold The Ketchup featuring everyone's favorite Chicago encased meat: the Hotdog! Plus you can check out some of their prints from their Vertical Gallery collab, which you can purchase here!! There is also a virtual gallery featuring all the works! You can also see "Saturday Morning Fever” featuring the works of Griffin Goodman through their virtual gallery! And don't forget to check out the virtual edition of JC Rivera's new exhibition "Still Undefeated" ! Or the All Decked Out virtual show!
- Chicago Gamespace is the perfect spot to check out the hairy present and future of the gaming realm! Currently they are showing @!#?@!: the Art, Design and Sound of Q*bert
- Galerie F has a fun stock of prints from concert posters, pop culture prints and more!
- Rotofugi is the perfect nexus of art and toys! Head over to see what new pieces of art they have in stocks and on display in their gallery space! Right now they're showing Blessed Blade of the Badlands 2 New Works by Nick & Lindsay DiFabbio!
- WNDR Museum is an ever-evolving immersive art and technology experience designed to ignite your curiosity! See exhibits like the Light Floor, Try to Get Higher, and the Digital Gallery. Plus Keith Haring!
- Garfield Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens safely!
- Lincoln Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens safely
- “Mold-A-Rama™: Molded for the Future” @ Museum of Science and Industry
- Art on the Mart
- NOW - 10/31 Nightmare on Clark Street
- NOW - 10/29 Jack O’Lantern World (Lake Zurich)
- NOW - 10/29 Back 2 The Video Store: A 90s Speakeasy Bar
- NOW - 10/29 Halloween at Chicago Athletic Association
- SUNDAY - 10/29 Wicker Park Farmers Market Series
- SUNDAYS till 10/29 Maxwell Street Market 9am-3pm
- NOW - 10/30 CLUE: A Walking Mystery
- NOW - 10/31 Schaumburg Halloween Carnival
- NOW - 11/5 Jack's Pumpkin Pop-Up
- NOW - 11/12 Mozart Immersive: The Soul of a Genius
- NOW - 12/31 Karen's Diner - A pop-up dining establishment where you get an extra dose of sass with your order
THIS WEEKEND ONLY
- 10/27 House of TAO
- 10/27-10/28 Howlin’ At the Moon (Naperville)
- 10/27-10/31 Schaumburg Halloween Carnival
- 10/28 Día de los Muertos Halloween Party at Time Out Market Chicago
- 10/28 Japanese Horror Halloween Izakaya at Momotaro
- 10/28 BatFest (Batavia)
- 10/28 W5heaton Illinois Haunted Flea Market
- 10/28 Haunted Halloween Ball @ The Congress Plaza Hotel
- 10/28 Haunted Shipwreck at Offshore Rooftop
- 10/28 Bronzeville's Fall Festival.
- 10/28 Haunted Manor at I|O Godfrey
- 10/29 Lincoln Scared (Lincoln Square)
FRIDAY - SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27 - 29 (& BEYOND)
The Neo-Futurists' The Infinite Wrench @ The Neo-Futurist Theater, 5153 N Ashland, Friday and Saturday 10:30pm, Sunday 7:00pm, 16+
WHAT: Quick plays live and online!
SO WHAT: The Neo-Futurists are back! Their Infinite Wrench is an ongoing, ever-changing attempt to perform 30 plays in 60 minutes for a live audience. Now it's actually a live audience that will be enjoying the performance in person! With plenty of COVID precautions in place, you'll be able to enjoy the funny, disgusting, profound, terrifying, irreverent, and downright entertaining show with friends!
NOW WHAT: Join the Neo-Futurists this weekend for $15! Head over to their website to see all they have planned now that in-person audiences are a thing again! If you're still a little anxious about going out, The Infinite Wrench Goes Viral will be continuing til February (and possibly beyond) over at their Patreon
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 28 (and Beyond)
36th Annual Streeterville Doggy and Kitty Halloween Party @ Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, 220 E Chicago Ave, 9-11am
WHAT: "Cats and dogs living together, MASS HYSTERIA!" or just a good ole time with your pets!
NOW WHAT: Join MCA for the 36th annual Streeterville Dog (and Cat) Halloween Costume Party and Parade! Get your pets dressed up in their spookiest, funniest, and cutest costumes and celebrate the season with your furry friends! The Doggy Parade kicks off at 9:30 am and will be judged by 2nd Ward Alderman Brian Hopkins and Streeterville resident Maureen Schulman, who will award prizes to every pawtcipant.
NOW WHAT: This event is free to the public. Enter through the museum’s back gate, bordering Lake Shore Park.
Pumpkinfest @ Unity Park Logan Square, 2636 N Kimball Ave., 10:00am - 2:00pm
WHAT: Halloween fun for the whole family!
SO WHAT: This fantastic family event will feature tons of activities to keep everyone entertained this Halloween weekend! You'll get to enjoy a pumpkin patch, face painting, Día de Los Muertos crafts, a spooky photobooth, free popcorn and candy, and a DJ playing some great music.
NOW WHAT: It's free! Have some family friendly fun in the park!
Chicago Humanities: New Talks and Video Archives @ Various Locations & Chicago Humanities Festival YouTube channel, your favorite browser or YouTube app, any time you want some inspiration, All Ages
WHAT: Interesting conversations with interesting people!
SO WHAT: Chicago Humanities Festival always brings some of the best ideas to the surface with entertaining programming that captures your imagination. Be on the lookout for updates to the current season as their website is constantly updated with new talks. Here is a taste of what's coming up!
- 10/30 Chef Eric Ripert and Christopher Kimball
- 11/1 An Evening with Thurston Moore
- 11/4 Henry Winkler
- 11/5 David Brooks in Conversation with Jonathan Capehart
- 12/5 Montgomery and the Blacknificent 7
NOW WHAT: Head over to take a look at their past events here! You should also sign up for their email list to get updates on upcoming talks in 2023
Día de los Muertos Xicágo @ National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W 19th St, 3:00pm – 8:00pm, all ages
WHAT: A Day of the Dead event for your weekend
SO WHAT: Celebrate Día de los Muertos at the National Museum of Mexican Art as they transform the museum and surrounding outdoor area into a beautiful space to remember departed loved ones. Guests will enjoy ofrenda (altar) demonstrations, live musical performances, art activities, and more
NOW WHAT: This event is free and open to the public and will take place rain or shine
Brew-Ja Crawl 2023 @ 1821 South Blue Island Avenue, Noon - 6:00pm
WHAT: A Halloweeny brawl crawl for your weekend
SO WHAT: Wear your horrifying and fashionable Halloween and Day of the Dead costumes as you sip delicious crafted cocktails at ten unique bars and restaurants in Pilsen! There will be DJ’s, live music, drink specials, and colorful personalities at ever turn!
NOW WHAT: Tickets are $50 and include one sample cocktail at each spot!
THE WHOLE CURATED WEEKEND & BEYOND
Weekend Shows @ Lincoln Hall & Schubas, 2424 N Lincoln Ave & 3159 N Southport Ave, various times, 18+
WHAT: A full weekend of amazing shows at Schubas and Lincoln Hall!
SO WHAT: Lincoln Hall and Schubas are some of our favorite venues in the city and they always have something great going on. Check out what's going this weekend at these great venues
- October 26 - LHST Comedy Presents: Schubas Open Mic HOSTED BY SUZ BALLOUT, Sharron Palm, and Sam Selby @ Schubas
- October 26-Charlie Cunningham + Ethan Tasch@ Lincoln Hall
- October 26- Joey Nebulous Album Release Show + Tenci + Pinksqueeze @ Schubas
- October 27 - Cosmic Country 5 Year Anniversary Showcase Hosted by Andrew Sa Kacy & Clayton + Esther Rose @ Lincoln Hall
- October 27 -MILLY + Rocket + Dearly Somber @ Schubas
- October 27 - Meet Me Upstairs Presents: Ready For The Floor @ Schubas SOLD OUT
- October 28 - grentperez growing up? tour 2023 + Nep @ Lincoln Hall
- October 28 - PVA + Born Days @ Schubas
- October 29- Slow Magic + Beacon Bloom + Conrad @ Lincoln Hall
- October 29 - The Lighthouse and the Whaler + Zorila @ Schubas
NOW WHAT: Head out to Schubas & Lincoln Hall and enjoy this great lineup of shows!
ChiTown Movies @ Pilsen Neighborhood, 2343 S. Throop St, Various Times, All Ages
WHAT: An old school experience for the modern age
SO WHAT: Take a trip back in time and head out to a drive-in movie with ChiTown Movies. Ever since the pandemic started and shut down traditional movie screening, a few pop-up drive-ins have arrived and ChiTown Movies has persevered, offering up modern movies in this retro setting. Check out their lineup below for showings this weekend and in the future!
- 10/26 Hocus Pocus 7pm
- 10/27 Matilda - 6:30pm
- 10/27 Beetlejuice - 8:30pm
- 10/27 Friday the 13th - 10:30pm
- 10/28 Hocus Pocus - 6:30pm
- 10/28 Beetlejuice - 8:30pm
- 10/28 Scream VI - 10:30pm
- 10/29 Matilda - 6:30pm
- 10/29 Hocus Pocus - 8:30pm
- 10/29 Nightmare on Elm Street - 10:30pm
- 10/30 Beetlejuice 7pm
- 10/30 Halloween 1978 - The Original! 9:30 PM
- 10/31 Hocus Pocus 7pm
- 10/31 Halloween 1978 - The Original! 9:30 PM
NOW WHAT: Tickets are $33 per car for these movies, so bring the family for a safe movie watching experience
Movies on the Big Screen and Home @ Music Box Theatre, 3733 N Southport Ave and at your home, any time you want to watch a movie
WHAT: A great way to support a great local theater
SO WHAT: The Music Box Theatre is ready to fill that art house need in you with some excellent movies including Anatomy of a Fall, Cat Person,The Mission, Joan Baez I Am a Noise, Bride of Music Box of Horrors, Killer!, The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Halloween Edition, and more! But if you want to watch some first-run movies at home, you can still watch great movies online! The theater's sister company, Music Box Films, offers a wide range of films available to stream any time via The Music Box Direct series! There are also tons of select titles available on their new platform!
NOW WHAT: Digital subscription is $4.99 a month, $49.99 a year, in person screenings vary, so sit back and enjoy!
University of Chicago Folk Festival @ Your favorite spot in your home, All Ages
WHAT:A fantastic folk festival
SO WHAT: University of Chicago Folk Festival might have come and gone but their digital presence is still around, making sure the wonderful music reaches as many people as possible! You can check out the past few years of performances on their Facebook page and their YouTube channel any time you want! This past year's performers included Balfa Toujours, Donka & Nikolay Kolev, Juan Rivera, Henry Barnes & Conner Vlietstra, Po' Ramblin' Boys, Jerron Paxton; Tim Britton, John Williams and Katie Grennan!
NOW WHAT: Head over to their Facebook page and their YouTube channel and enjoy the show! We highly encourage you to donate to help support this fantastic folk festival!
Masque of the Red Coronavirus! @ Black Button Eyes Productions, Any time on your computer or mobile device. For 18+.
WHAT: Written by Black Button Eyes Productions producing artistic director Ed Rutherford, this short satirical piece is available online free as a combined script-and-video experience.
SO WHAT: In addition to reading the play, you will see various Chicago artists act out portions of the script on video, recorded remotely. The event includes puppets, burlesque, original music, fire dancing and more in a brief, darkly comedic confection.
With the Red Coronavirus running rampant across the countryside and a vaccine still months away, what's a Prince to do? Lock himself in a secure bunker in an undisclosed location along with a cohort of his top donors, of course. To prevent him and his rich supporters from becoming bored, the Prince has also brought a few artists into the bunker to entertain the crowd. But as the hour grows later and the night grows weirder, it's clear that something else has also invaded the party.
NOW WHAT: Settle down watch this fun piece!