Now in its fourth year, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events’ OnEdge series returns with a month of experimental theater and dance shows that examine the intersections of identity, history, psychology, and more, all through an unconventional lens.
OnEdge kicks off on February 23 with Swiss choreographer Marie-Caroline Hominal’s dance performance The Triumph of Fame, running through February 25 at Dfbrl8r Gallery. Rather than showing the piece before a traditional audience, Hominal pulls one spectator to the stage for 20 minutes at a time, from 5 to 10 PM, for an intimate one-on-one performance. Inspired by “I Trionfi,” a series of poems by the Renaissance Italian poet Petrarch, the allegorical production explores how fame, death, time, and eternity all interact with and battle each other.
The series continues the following month with another standout show as multidisciplinary artist Nic Kay visits Hamlin Park Fieldhouse Theater from March 15 to 17 for a performance of Lil BLK. Functioning as both an autobiographical narrative and a broader celebration of the body, Lil BLK features spoken word, dance, and music to illustrate Kay’s experience growing up black, queer, and gender nonconforming in the Bronx. The show draws influence from New York City’s queer ballroom scene, praise dance, voguing, and more.
The other shows in the series include cabaret and performance artist Erin Markey’s A Ride on the Irish Cream, Berlin-based choreographer Ligia Lewis’s Minor Matter, local performance group Every House Has a Door’s Three Matadores, and Court/Garden by choreographer Yanira Casto (aka A Canary Torsi, an anagram of the artist’s name).
OnEdge Thu 2/23-Sat 3/25, various locations and times, cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/onedge8.html, free.