Review: Storypod Is a Great Interactive Learning Aid for Kids
There are a lot of ways to learn as a kid these days. There’s the things we grew up on like picture book and PBS as well as educational video […]
Review: Lookingglass Theatre Returns with The Steadfast Tin Soldier, a Weighty Holiday Fable Filled with Wonder
For all the theater I’ve attended in Chicago—since childhood, really—I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that this weekend marked my first visit to Michigan Avenue’s Lookingglass Theatre, the 35-year-old ensemble company […]
Review: Steven Spielberg Channels His Own Childhood into Mid-Century Family Drama The Fabelmans
One would assume that a Steven Spielberg film that is a thinly veiled biography of a young Steven Spielberg would feel more personal, and certainly elements of The Fabelmans do. […]
Interview: Filmmaker Elegance Bratton on Unconditional Love, Human Connection and Drawing from His Own Life for The Inspection
Much like his first film, the documentary Pier Kids, writer/director Elegance Bratton’s debut narrative film, The Inspection, is drawn very specifically from his real life, which included being a young, […]
Interview: Star of Nanny, Anna Diop Talks Artistic Collaboration, Channeling Fear into her Performance and Horror That Hits Close to Home
One of the most talked-about film from this year’s Sundance Film Festival (where it won the Grand Jury Prize), Nanny stars the Senegalese-American actress Anna Diop. The actor is probably […]
Review: Amy Wurtz Goes Hybrid–In an Intimate Way
The joys of live music in an intimate setting! Composer/pianist Amy Wurtz hosted American Woman, a livestream, solo recital on YouTube featuring music composed by American women on Sunday night. […]
Review: Chicago in the Rearview, Plains in Our Hearts
Guest review by Lorenzo Zenitsky. It’s official, y’all: Plains, the collaboration between Jess Williamson and Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee, came into Chicago’ the Vic like a cannonball and none of […]
Review: Ship of Fools Is a Chaotic Co-Op Roguelike
While some co-op video games test the boundaries of friendship, playing on the couch with a buddy or significant other is one of my favorite types of video game playing. […]
Review: The Garden’s Giant Jester Helps Local Youth Forget their Frostbite
In my research of The Garden, I found a ton of information regarding their long history and deeply personal inspirations. The more I’ve come to know, the more I appreciate […]
Dialogs: Patti Smith, a Woman of Depth, Artistry, and Love for Humanity, Lights up the Music Box
When I hear the name Patti Smith, so many images are conjured in my mind. The 1970s at Club 950, No Exit, and Neo were teeming with people sporting mohawks […]
Review: Love, Charlie Chronicles the Life, Work and Obsessions of Chicago’s Charlie Trotter
The opening scene of this Charlie Trotter documentary is a bit of a giveaway about the man whose food we loved (if we could afford it). During the sound check […]
Review: King Roger Makes a Spellbinding Premiere at Harris Theater
I was put under a spell on Friday. King Roger by the Chicago Opera Theater (COT) was the spellbinding work that eased my anxiety from sitting in a traffic snarl […]