Interview: Cheech Marin Is a Chicano Progressosaurus
Though Cheech Marin first found fame while partnering with Tommy Chong to create some of the most iconic counterculture comedy of all time, stoner humor won’t be the main focus […]
Review: In Ashland Avenue at Goodman Theatre, We Relive the 1980s at Pete’s TV and Video Store
Goodman Theatre’s new play, Ashland Avenue, is a love letter to 1980s Chicago. The character who epitomizes that era is Pete, proprietor of Pete’s TV and Video, who founded and […]
Review: With Heart and Whimsy, Kogonada’s A Big Bold Beautiful Journey Captures the Head-Spinning Experience of Falling in Love
Hanging on the wall by my front door is a print called “The Big Leap” by an artist from Missouri, Carrie Shryock. I wish I could say I found it […]
Review: The First Lady of Television at Northlight Theatre Is Sitcom History and the Story of the Mid-Century Red Scare
If you have tickets for Northlight Theatre’s The First Lady of Television, you may think you are going to see a comedy about the beloved Molly Goldberg and her 1950s […]
Review: Conrad Tao Opens Season Two of Nova Linea Musica With Echoes and Algorithms
Nova Linea Musica returned for a second season with pianist and composer Conrad Tao leading Echoes and Algorithms on Wednesday night. NLM is a music incubator that provides musicians and […]
Review: Crumbs from the Master’s Table, Crumb: A Cartoonist’s Life, by Dan Nadel
Cartoonist Robert Crumb is, inarguably, a master of his craft. For 60 years he’s created a distinctive style and memorable characters, while inspiring generations of artists. He’s also a polarizing […]
Review: Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Is a Warm and Nostalgic Goodbye to a Series, Family and Grand Estate
When it premiered on PBS in early 2011, Downton Abbey took a certain subset of American audiences—ones who enjoy period pieces, glossy soap operas and all things British—by storm. Set […]
Review: Dame Jane Glover leads Music of the Baroque and Strong Voices Chorus Through Handel’s Water Music on the River
For the second year in a row, Music of the Baroque was blessed with wonderful weather as the orchestra and chorus, led by Dame Jane Glover, cruised down the Chicago […]
Interview: Poet Temperance Aghamohammadi and Her Debut Collection, Battalion Shaped Girl
Last fall, I had the pleasure of organizing a poetry reading with local poets on celebrating transformation, the unknown, and the changing of the seasons. It was then when I […]
Review: Holiday Heartwarmer The Baltimorons Offers a Modern, Understated Story of Unlikely Connection
Though it’s being released in September, The Baltimorons might be the best holiday film of the year; you’ll want to see it in theaters this week, then stream it from […]
Review: Fall in Love with the Cosmic Romantics at the Den Theatre
When Elizabeth Messick, the more attractive half of the magical duo the Cosmic Romantics—that’s straight out of her partner Eric Thirstin’s introduction, not my own editorializing—first appears on stage during […]
Preview: Chicago Welcomes The CheckOut, a New Performance Space for Contemporary Classical Music
This weekend, Chicago’s north side will welcome a new performance space intended for contemporary classical chamber music. Formed by Access Contemporary Music, The CheckOut is turning a long-vacant 7-Eleven into […]