Chicago Reader

The ladies who sing from the back

Music

The ladies who sing from the back

These Chicago background vocalists have helped the likes of Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and Otis Clay sound their best. Here their own voices take center stage.

by Deitra Farr

Podcasts

Listen to The Ben Joravsky Show

Listen to The Ben Joravsky Show

Reader senior writer Ben Joravsky riffs on the day’s stories with his celebrated humor, insight, and honesty, and interviews politicians, activists, journalists and other political know-it-alls.

by Ben Joravsky March 9, 2023March 9, 2023

Latest Stories

Organizing the night workers

News & Politics

Organizing the night workers

Employees at Berlin Nightclub seek to form a union.

by Debbie-Marie Brown March 24, 2023March 24, 2023

The city in bloom

Columns & Opinion

The city in bloom

A note from our Theater and Dance Editor for the Reader’s 2023 Spring Theater and Arts Preview issue

by Kerry Reid March 24, 2023March 24, 2023

Steeped in history

Arts & Culture

Steeped in history

S. L. Wisenberg’s essays explore Jewish identity and modern womanhood.

by Emily McClanathan March 24, 2023March 22, 2023

Joliet band Molder dig death metal right down to its bones

Music

Joliet band Molder dig death metal right down to its bones

by Leor Galil March 24, 2023March 20, 2023

Fire sale

Theater Review

Fire sale

Gen Z contemplates the future in The Neo-Futurists Sell Out.

by Dmitry Samarov March 23, 2023March 23, 2023

The pain of history

Theater Review

The pain of history

How Blood Go traces the cycles of racist medical abuse.

by Sheri Flanders March 23, 2023March 23, 2023

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Theater Review

Interactive inclusivity

Filament’s Think Fast, Jordan Chase! helps kids navigate difficult social scenarios.

by Kimzyn Campbell

Music

Improvisers Mats Gustafsson and Joachim Nordwall make blockbuster-worthy music on a new collaborative album

by Bill Meyer

Theater Review

Beckettian summit

Kayla Boye is a force to be reckoned with in Happy Days.

by Jack Helbig

Theater Review

Utopia for two

A Town Called Progress tackles “gender as performance.”

by Marissa Oberlander

Film

The Harper Theater is putting up a fight

Despite the hurdles faced by local cinemas, the Hyde Park institution is remodeling and reopening this spring.

by Jonah Nink

News & INVESTIGATIONS

“Voices from inside”

“Voices from inside”

An oral history of the prison publication Stateville Speaks

by Brian Dolinar

The news in Gary

The news in Gary

Capital B, a Black news organization, establishes a local newsroom.

by Debbie-Marie Brown

Queer gun owners are ‘American as fuck’

Queer gun owners are ‘American as fuck’

A sense of freedom connects Dina Simone’s music and their work as a firearms instructor.

by Katie Prout

Columns & Opinion

Spring awakening

Spring awakening

In a challenging time for opera, a weekend orgy

by Deanna Isaacs

Mr. Self-Promotion

Mr. Self-Promotion

Paul Vallas looks to bring back the bad old days of high-stakes testing.

by Ben Joravsky

Hello, Dalí

Hello, Dalí

The Art Institute mounts its first-ever solo show of the surrealist icon.

by Deanna Isaacs

Film

Review: John Wick 4

Review: John Wick 4

The fourth film in this Keanu Reeves franchise is the best one yet.

by Josh Flanders

Review: Country Gold

Review: Country Gold

This fantasy-comedy freezes country music in its own authentic silliness.

by Noah Berlatsky

Review: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

Review: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

The original film left nothing of substance for this superhero sequel.

by Adam Mullins-Khatib

Arts & Culture

Bed to crime to bed

Bed to crime to bed

Theo’s The Threepenny Opera doesn’t quite add up.

by Kelly Kleiman

Woven tales

Woven tales

The Shroud Maker needs more room to breathe.

by Amanda Finn

Edra Soto’s Graft project comes to the Hyde Park Art Center

Edra Soto’s Graft project comes to the Hyde Park Art Center

The Puerto Rican artist treats her roots as a blueprint.

by Ally Fouts

BCAM brings diversity to the circus

BCAM brings diversity to the circus

“We want to create spaces for artists of color to be at the forefront.”

by Kimzyn Campbell

So you think you know dance

So you think you know dance

DCASE’s Open Studio gives artists and audiences space to reimagine the form.

by Wanjiku Kairu

Music

Ash Dye, music scene photographer

Ash Dye, music scene photographer

“I felt like part of the music community pretty early on. I’m just now starting to feel like I’m part of this photo community.”

by Leor Galil

Algiers bring the sounds of Atlanta’s strident past and joyous present to Sleeping Village

Algiers bring the sounds of Atlanta’s strident past and joyous present to Sleeping Village

by Shannon Nico Shreibak

Acid King return to form with the powerful Beyond Vision

Acid King return to form with the powerful Beyond Vision

by Monica Kendrick

CITY LIFE

Perfection from the pieces

Perfection from the pieces

Offcut turns scrap lumber into custom designs.

by Kerry Cardoza

M is for Mariano’s

M is for Mariano’s

With cheap drinks and familiar company, a grocery store bar is the hidden oasis in downtown’s Lakeshore East development.

by Boutayna Chokrane

Food & Drink

With elegant dumplings and meaty mountains of rice, Helmand channels the cradle of Afghan culture

Food & Drink

With elegant dumplings and meaty mountains of rice, Helmand channels the cradle of Afghan culture

Wahid Tanha’s Albany Park restaurant reintroduces the city to Afghan fine dining.

by Mike Sula March 23, 2023March 23, 2023

Better Boy reveals an easygoing, fine-dining future at the next Monday Night Foodball

Uncategorized

Better Boy reveals an easygoing, fine-dining future at the next Monday Night Foodball

Check out Adam McFarland and Tom Rogers’s nightshade-free menu at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at Ludlow Liquors.

by Mike Sula March 22, 2023March 23, 2023

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Transit 4 All campaigns for equity, accessibility, and improved service for Chicago transit riders

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