SEPTEMBER
Thu13 “Juvenile-in-Justice”
●Visual Art●
Guggenheim fellow Richard Ross presents his series of photos on youths going through the American juvenile justice system. He gives a talk at 6 PM at the reception. Reception Thu 9/13, 5-8 PM. Through 12/15: Mon-Fri 9 AM-5 PM, Sat 10 AM-4 PM, Roosevelt University, Gage Gallery, 18 S. Michigan, 312-341-6458, roosevelt.edu/gagegallery, free.
Fri14 We Won’t Grow Old Together
●Film●
This New Wave feature made a big splash when it came out in France in 1972. It’s only now being released in the U.S., and in a new print, too. For more, see Reader Recommends in Film.
Sat15Sweet Bird of Youth
●Theater●
Diane Lane stars as a faded actress in David Cromer’s revival of the Tennessee Williams play. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Sun16 Imperial Silence: Una Ópera Muerta
●Dance●
Chicago choreographer Joel Valentin-Martinez and his collaborators mix mariachi, blues, hip-hop, and more in this four-part opera about war, death, and Chicago news. For more, see Fall Arts Dance: Best Bets.
Mon17 Nasty, Brutish & Short
●Theater●
A puppet cabaret funded in part by Puppet Slam Network. 7:30 PM, Links Hall, 3435 N. Sheffield, 773-281-0824, linkshall.org, $5-$8.
Tue18 Exploring Moby-Dick
●Lit // Theater●
Blair Thomas & Company, Lookingglass Theatre, and the House Theatre of Chicago perform three theatrical adaptions of that book. 6:30 PM, Logan Arts Center, 915 E. 60th, mobydickatlogan.eventbrite.com, free.
Wed19 Richard Thompson
●Music●
Amy Cook opens for the guitar virtuoso. 8 PM, City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph, 312-733-9463, citywinery.com, $40-$55. Also Thu 9/20, 7 PM, SPACE, 1245 Chicago, Evanston, 847-492-8860, evanstonspace.com, sold out.
Thu20 Bobcat Goldthwait
●Comedy●
We really liked this cat’s newest movie, God Bless America, when it came out in May. 9/20-9/23: Thu-Sat 8 and 10:30 PM, Sun 8 PM, Up Comedy Club, 230 W. North, 312-663-4562, upcomedyclub.com, $25.
Fri21 Carmina Burana
●Music●
Riccardo Muti conducts the CSO in Carl Orff’s arrangement of medieval poems, including “O Fortuna,” which you know as the Latin choral chant from every climactic movie scene ever. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets. Free.
Sat22
Brilliant Corners of Popular Amusements
●Music // Comedy●
John Cale and Bobby Womack headline this festival, which also packs in comedy (Archer‘s Jon Benjamin and Reader One to Watch Brian Babylon—see Fall Arts Comedy—perform) and circus. 9/21-9/23: times varyRiverfront Theater, 650 W. Chicago, brilliantcornersofpopularamusements.com, $25-$30 for bands, $10 for El Circo Cheapo, free for comedy shows.
Sun23
“We the People”
●Visual Art●
Vietnam-born artist Danh Vo exhibits full-scale reproductions of sections of the Statue of Liberty. For more, see Fall Arts Visual Arts: Best Bets.
Mon24 “Building: Inside Studio Gang Architects”
●Visual Art●
MacArthur fellow Jeanne Gang designed downtown’s Aqua Tower; this exhibit looks at the working methods of the group she leads, Studio Gang Architects. For more, see Fall Arts Visual Arts: Best Bets.
Tue25Metamorphoses
●Theater●
Lookingglass Theatre ensemble member Mary Zimmerman won a Tony award in 2002 for directing her own adaptation of Ovid’s stories. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Wed26 World Music Festival
●Music●
Between Melody of China, Slavic Soul Party!, and Ecos del Pacifico Afrocolombia, this festival probably has Uptown beat for diversity. 9/21-9/27: various locations and times, worldmusicfestivalchicago.org, free.
Thu27 Shadow Show: All-New Stories in Celebration of Ray Bradbury
●Lit●
Twenty-six writers contributed to Shadow Show, a tribute to Ray Bradbury in short story form. The book’s editors and some of its authors attend this reading. For more, see Fall Arts Lit: Best Bets.
Fri28 Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall
●Music●
Conflicted by their dueling sets at Pitchfork? Now’s your chance to thrash out to these Bay Area bands without the guilt. Bare Mutants open. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Sat29
“Solidarity: A Memory of Art and Social Change”
●Visual Art●
Jimena Acosta curated this exhibit about the way designers have incorporated the spirit of revolution into their pieces. For more, see Fall Arts Visual Arts: Best Bets.
Sun30
Woyzeck on the Highveld
●Theater●
William Kentridge directs Handspring Puppet Company’s adaptation of Woyzeck, by Georg Buchner, with the protagonist relocated from provincial Germany to 1950s Johannesburg. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
OCTOBER
Mon1 Chicago Sinfonietta
●Music●
It’s Mei-Ann Chen’s second season in charge of the Sinfonietta, and she’s kicking it off with a rendition of Stravinsky and collaborations with a few guests. 7:30 PM, Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan, 312-236-3681, chicagosinfonietta.org, $26-$50.
Tue2 Frankenstein
●Theater●
Bo List’s adaptation of the original horror story opens City Lit Theater’s season. 9/28-11/4: Fri-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, also Tue 10/2, 7 PM, Wed 10/31, 8 PM, and Thu 10/25 and 11/1, 8 PM, Edgewater Presbyterian Church, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr, 773-293-3682, citylit.org, $21.50-$28.50.
Wed3 Adventures in Modern Music
●Music●
Eclectic lineups are this festival’s speciality, and New Hampshire black-metal band Vattnet Viskar, outsider-pop legend R. Stevie Moore, and Manchester-based minimal techno producer Andy Stott prove this year’s to be no exception. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Thu4 Chris Ware
●Lit●
The acclaimed cartoonist presents his new graphic novel, Building Stories, which is about the residents of a Chicago house. Comics expert and University of Chicago professor Hillary Chute moderates. For more, see Fall Arts Lit: Best Bets.
Fri5 Pete Holmes
●Comedy●
This comic mixes the high and the low: drawing New Yorker cartoons and giving voice to the baby in those annoying E-Trade commercials. For more, see Fall Arts Comedy: Best Bets.
Sat6 Harvest Chicago Contemporary Dance Festival
●Dance●
Twenty-eight troupes, including Ology Dance and Khecari Dance Theatre, are slated to perform at this weekend of dance produced by Nicole Gifford. 10/5-10/7: Fri-Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn, 847-864-5323, hccdf.com, $18-$25.
Sun7 “The Neighbor Next Door”
●Visual Art●
Photographer Shimon Attie simulates street views from the perspective of people hiding in Amsterdam during the Holocaust. 9/21-12/9: Tue 10 AM-5 PM, Wed-Fri 10 AM-8 PM, Sat-Sun 10 AM-5 PM, Northwestern University Block Museum of Art, 40 Arts Circle Dr., 847-491-4000, blockmuseum.northwestern.edu. F
Mon8 The Paperboy
●Film●
Solely on the basis of viewing a two-minute trailer, we say the odds are good that in this Lee Daniels-directed story of reporters investigating a murder in a Florida swamp, Zac Efron hooks up with Nicole Kidman. Weird. Opens 10/5.
Tue9 “Awash in Color: French and Japanese Prints”
●Visual Art●
A look at the parallel traditions of woodblock printing in France and Japan. For more, see Fall Arts Visual Arts: Best Bets.
Wed10 Black Watch
●Theater●
The National Theatre of Scotland performs Gregory Burke’s based-on-fact play about an elite British army regiment in Iraq. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Thu11 A$AP Rocky, Schoolboy Q, Danny Brown
●Music●
Three of the hottest up-and-coming rappers in the game. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Fri12 The House I Live In
●Film●
The Wire‘s David Simon discusses the failure of America’s war on drugs in this new documentary, which snagged the jury prize at Sundance. For more, see Fall Arts Film: Best Bets.
Sat13 Trainspotting
●Theater●
A new stage adapation sets Irvine Welsh’s 1993 novel about prolific heroin addicts in Kansas City. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Sun14
Irish Books, Art, and Music
●Lit●
A big slate of writers (including Colum McCann), musicians (like Phil Coulter), and other artists promote understanding of Ireland through the arts. 10/13-10/14: 11 AM-5 PM, Irish American Heritage Center, 4626 N. Knox, 708-445-0700, ibamchicago.com, $5-$15.
Mon15 Nobody Walks
●Film●
Ry Russo-Young and Lena Dunham cowrote this story of a young filmmaker (Olivia Thirlby) who moves into the home of a young couple (John Krasinski and Rosemarie DeWitt) to work on a project and complicates everyone’s lives in the process. Opens 10/12.
Tue16 The Book Thief
●Theater●
A staging of Markus Zusak’s book about a girl whose will to live in Nazi Germany impresses even Death; it’s Steppenwolf’s third adaptation of a One Book, One Chicago book. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Wed17 Joffrey Ballet
●Dance●
The ballerinas and -rinos at Joffrey get their season underway with “Human Landscapes”—pieces by Jirí Kylián, James Kudelka, and Kurt Jooss. 10/17-10/28: Wed-Fri 7:30 PM, Sat 2 and 7:30 PM, Sun 2 PM, no show 10/18 or 10/24, Auditorium Theater, 50 E. Congress, 800-982-2782, joffrey.com, $31-$152.
Thu18 Seamus Heaney
●Lit●
The Nobel Prize-winning Irish poet headlines the 57th annual Poetry Day. 6 PM, Art Institute of Chicago, Rubloff Auditorium, enter at Modern Wing, 159 E. Monroe, 312-787-7070, seamusheaney.eventbrite.com, free.
Fri19 Maribeth Coffey-Sears
●Visual Art●
A solo exhibition by the sculptor/painter/photographer. Reception TK. 10/19-11/10: Mon-Thu 10 AM-1 PM, Fri 10 AM-7 PM, 33 Collective Gallery, 1029 W. 35th, 708-837-4534, 33collective.com.
Sat20
The XX
●Music●
Dubbed “the most exciting quiet band in the world” in an August profile in Grantland, the XX tour in support of their solid sophomore album, Coexist. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Sun21
Butoh Sorbet
●Dance●
Groups from Sweden, New York, and Chicago perform short pieces in the postwar Japanese style. 7 and 8 PM. Links Hall, 3435 N. Sheffield, 773-281-0824, linkshall.org, $10-$15.
Mon22 Poetry Off the Shelf
●Lit●
Poets Valzhyna Mort and Vera Pavlova read their works as pianist Inna Faliks plays pieces by Tchaikovsky, Schumann, and others. Part of the Poetry Off the Shelf reading series. 7 PM, Curtis Hall, Fine Arts Building, 410 S. Michigan, 312-291-0291, poetryfoundation.org, free.
Tue23 The English Beat
●Music●
You may have bought reissues of early albums by this natty, 2 Tone ska band from Birmingham at this past Record Store Day. 8 PM, SPACE, 1245 Chicago, 847-492-8860, evanstonspace.com, $38-$68.
Wed24 “Bivouac”
●Visual Art●
French designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec show everyday objects they designed to be “modular, organic, ephemeral, nomadic, and flexible.” Opens 10/20. Through 1/30/13: Tue 10-8, Wed-Sun 10-5, Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago, 312-280-2660, mcachicago.org, $12, $7 students and seniors, free kids 12 and under and members of the military, free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays.
Thu25 Mike Birbiglia
●Comedy●
The Last Comic Standing winner tours a new show following the release of his Reader-recommended movie, Sleepwalk With Me. For more, see Fall Arts Comedy: Best Bets.
Fri26 Giordano Dance
●Dance●
The company kicks off its 50th anniversary season with a fall concert at the Harris Theater. 10/26-10/27: Fri-Sat 8 PM, 205 E. Randolph, 312-334-7777, giordanodance.org, $15-$60.
Sat27
Mountain Goats
●Music●
John Darnielle and company stop in town the month they drop their 14th album, Transcendental Youth. Matthew E. White opens. 8 PM, the Vic, 3145 N. Sheffield, 773-472-0449, victheatre.com, $21.50.
Sun28
MDW Fair
●Visual Art●
Upwards of 75 grassroots and independent artists and galleries showcase their work. 10/26-10/28: Fri 8-11 PM, Sat-Sun noon-6 PM, the Geolofts, 3636 S. Iron, mdwfair.org.
Mon29 Dances to Songs I Hate
●Dance●
Artists perform moves they choreographed to songs they just don’t like. 7:30 PM, Links Hall, 3435 N. Sheffield, 773-281-0824, linkshall.org, $5-$8.
Tue30 The Loneliest Planet
●Film●
A couple (Gael Garcia Bernal and Hani Furstenberg) go on a tour of the Caucasus, but their hired guide complicates things. For more, see Fall Arts Film: Best Bets.
Wed31 Boobs of the Dead
●Theater●
A scantily clad sheriff fights off a bunch of sexy zombies in this burlesque parody of the TV series The Walking Dead. 10/5-10/27: Fri 9 PM, Sat 11:59 PM, and Wed 10/31, 9 PM, Gorilla Tango Theatre, 1919 N. Milwaukee, 773-598-4549, gorillatango.com, $20.
NOVEMBER
Thu1 Chicago Humanities Festival
●Lit●
The festival spans a month, but gets going in earnest the first week of November, with monologist/fabricator Mike Daisey, The Daily Show‘s Larry Wilmore, and Grant Achatz stopping by. For more, see Fall Arts Lit: Best Bets.
Fri2 Wake in Fright
●Film●
A digital restoration of Ted Kotcheff’s 1971 drama, in which a young teacher descends into madness during a few drunken days in the Australian outback. Opens 11/2.
Sat3
Squarepusher
●Music●
Frantic, artsy drum ‘n’ bass for the dubstep generation, part of Metro’s 30th anniversary celebration. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Sun4
SOFA Expo Chicago
●Visual Art●
The Sculpture Objects & Functional Art + Design Fair brings galleries to Navy Pier from all over the world. 11/1-11/4: Thu 7-9 PM, Fri-Sat 11 AM-7 PM, Sun noon-6 PM, 600 E. Grand, sofaexpo.com, $15, $25 three-day pass, $50 VIP opening-night preview (Thu 11/1, 5-7 PM).
Mon5 “Graphic Noise: Gig Posters From the Chicago Printers Guild”
●Visual Art●
For art that’s a little more by the people, for the people, look no further than this exhibit of rare concert posters from Chicago Printers Guild members. 11/2-11/25: Mon-Thu 10 AM-7:30 PM, Fri-Sat 10 AM-6 PM, Sun 10 AM-5 PM, Lillstreet Art Center, 4401 N. Ravenswood, 773-769-4226, lillstreet.com.
Tue6 Jack and Diane
●Film●
Two young women (Juno Temple and Riley Keough) meet and fall in love one summer in New York City, but their passion surprises and scares them. Then it becomes a horror movie. Opens 11/2.
Wed7 On Deck With Kim Ng
●Lit●
The MLB’s senior vice president of baseball operations discusses the Moneyball-style quantitative analysis and overseas work that goes into running a team today. 11:30 AM, Thorne Auditorium, Northwestern University, 375 E. Chicago, 312-503-8649, chicagohumanities.org, $5-$10.
Thu8 James Joyce’s “The Dead”
●Theater●
Hot on the (Achilles) heels of An Iliad, Court Theatre adapts another great work of the Dead White Guys canon—maybe the best short story ever—as a musical. 11/18-12/9: Wed-Thu 7:30 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 3 and 8 PM, Sun 2:30 and 7:30 PM, 5535 S. Ellis, 773-735-4472, courttheatre.org, $35-$65.
Fri9 Hellcab
●Theater●
It’s Christmas Eve when one tired cabbie picks up a revelatory assortment of fares. This is the 20th anniversary production of the show, put on by Profiles Theatre. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Sat10 44 Plays for 44 Presidents
●Theater●
Celebrate or mourn the results of the presidential election with this Too Much Light-style revue, which features each of America’s presidents. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Sun11
Umbrella Music Festival
●Music●
A glut of jazz and improvised music, with lots of international collaborations and familiar local musicians in new lineups. For more, see Fall Arts Music: Best Bets.
Mon12 Lari Pittman
●Lit // Visual Art●
A talk by the visual artist and SAIC visiting artist, who once dressed up his pet chicken for a flight, according to the LA Times Magazine. 6 PM, Art Institute of Chicago, Rubloff Auditorium, enter at Modern Wing, 159 E. Monroe, 312-787-7070, saic.edu/vap, free.
Tue13 Potted Potter: The Unauthorized Harry Experience
●Theater●
Ex-BBC hosts Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner condense your favorite kids’ book in the tradition of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged). 11/13-12/16: check with theater for showtimes, Bank of America Theatre, 800-775-2000, pottedpotter.com, $40-$70.
Wed14 Aimee Mann, Ted Leo
●Music●
These two have most forms of rock music covered, from folk to punk. If only a jam band were opening . . . Wed-Thu 11/14-11/15, 8 PM, Park West, 322 W. Armitage, 773-929-5959, parkwestchicago.com, $35.
Thu15 Possession
●Theater●
The fifth installment of Theater Oobleck’s Baudelaire in a Box series consists of 16 new cantastorias, or “sung histories,” based on Baudelaire’s “Le Possédé,” from Fleurs du Mal. 11/14-11/18: Wed-Sat 8 PM, Sun 7 PM, Links Hall, 773-281-0824, theateroobleck.com, $15.
Fri16 Lincoln
●Film●
The first photo of a bewhiskered Honest Abe was taken in Chicago in 1850. Daniel Day Lewis dons a convincing beard of his own in this biopic of our 16th president. For more, see Fall Arts Film: Best Bets.
Sat17
Kyle Kinane
●Comedy●
Chicago comedy misses Kinane, who left for LA—where, judging by his Tumblr, he mostly posts pictures of BMX bikers. For more, see Fall Arts Comedy: Best Bets.
Sun18
Heads or Tails
●Lit●
Illustrator-about-town Lilli Carré (you’ve seen her work on Reader covers) releases her fifth book, a collection of her short story comics. Heads or Tails comes out 11/15. For more on Lilli Carré, see Fall Arts Lit: Best Bets.
Mon19 Anna Karenina
●Film●
Director Joe Wright (Atonement, Pride and Prejudice) and screenwriter Tom Stoppard adapt Tolstoy’s classic novel, with Keira Knightley and Aaron Johnson starring as the doomed Anna and Vronsky. Opens 11/16.
Tue20 Unspeakable
●Theater●
Isaiah Washington appears in the role he originated at the New York Fringe Festival for this retelling of comedian Richard Pryor’s life. For more, see Fall Arts Theater: Best Bets.
Wed21 Paul Cowan
●Visual Art●
The recent UIC MFA grad explores “mark making, composition, and artistic authorship” in his work, according to the MCA. 11/6-1/22/13: Tue 10 AM-8 PM, Wed-Sun 10 AM-5 PM, Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago, 312-280-2660, mcachicago.org, $12, $7 students and seniors, free kids 12 and under and members of the military, free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays.
Thu22 Thanksgiving
●Comedy●
There’s an art to spending quality time with your friends and family, too.
Fri23 It’s a Wonderful Life
●Theater●
Every year, American Blues Theater puts on a radio-style performance of a movie that, let’s face it, can probably use a bit of freshening up. 11/23-12/30: Thu-Fri 8 PM, Sat 5 and 8 PM, Sun 2:30 PM, Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln, 773-871-3000, americanbluestheater.com, $19-$39.
Sat24 A Beer Carol
●Theater●
Drinking & Writing Theater’s live radio play about the CEO of a corporate brewery who’s haunted by the ingredients of a beer. 11/4-12/22: Sat 4 PM, Wed 8 PM, Haymarket Pub & Brewery, 737 W. Randolph, drinkingandwriting.com, $15.
Sun25
ScrapArtsMusic
●Dance●
This Vancouver percussion-performance group makes its kinetic instruments from industrial scrap. The show is presented by the Chicago Human Rhythm Project. 11/24-11/25: Sat 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph, 312-334-7777, chicagotap.org, $15-$55.
Mon26 Life of Pi
●Film●
Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Brokeback Mountain) directed this adaptation of Yann Martel’s 2001 novel about an Indian boy who must share a lifeboat with a full-grown tiger after the ship carrying his family and their zoo sinks in a storm. Opens 11/23.
Tue27 Billy Martin & Wil Blades
●Music●
Jazz drummer Martin of Medeski, Martin & Wood and blues organist (and Chicago native) Blades stop by SPACE. 8 PM, 1245 Chicago, Evanston, 847-492-8860, evanstonspace.com, $18, $15 in advance.
Wed28 “From the Streets to the Cloud”
●Visual Art●
Work from the last 15 years by the renowned ex-street artist Chaz Bojorquez; it’s his first exhibit in the midwest. Reception Fri 11/9, 6-8:30 PM. Through 6/30/13: Tue-Sun 10-5, National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W. 19th, 312-738-1503, nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org.
Thu29 The Who
●Music●
Roger Daltry and Pete Townshend are playing Quadrophenia on this year’s tour. Hopefully the drummer can perform his duties for the whole show, unlike that one time Keith Moon got all quadrophenic. 7:30 PM, Allstate Arena, 6920 Mannheim, Rosemont, thewho.com, $40-$130.
Fri30 Marketing Beauty: Reading Pictures of the Yoshiwara Courtesans in Context
●Visual Art●
Learn about the ukiyo-e images of feudal Tokyo at this lunchtime talk given by U. Penn. professor Julie Nelson Davis. Noon, Smart Museum, 5550 S. Greenwood, 773-702-0200, smartmuseum.uchicago.edu, registration required, free.
DECEMBER
Sat1
A Christmas Carol
●Theater●
For the 35th time, the Goodman puts on the only story whose adaptations have featured Bill Murray, Alec Guinness, and Vanessa Williams. 11/17-12/29: check with theater for showtimes, Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn, 312-443-3800, goodmantheatre.org, $12.50-$47.