Chicago Blog

5 things to do today: Wednesday, May 22

jjohnson — Fri, 17 May 2013 19:02:40 +0000

ART & DESIGN
Lecture: Time Griffin The former editor of Artforum and executive director and chief curator of NYC's the Kitchen delivers a lecture as part of the Elizabeth and Todd Warnock Lecture Series. Mary & Leigh Block Museum of Art. 5pm–6:30pm.

CLUBS
Kastle + XXXY Barrett Richards has dabbled in dead ends like happy hardcore and breaks. Now, as Kastle, he's mining gems of every genre. An eponymous new album, released in April, drifts through shadowy mist of R&B, trap, dubstep (of the preferred U.K. sort), bass, house and garage. Sirens Ayah Marar and Reva DeVito and bedroom crooner JMSN lure you into soulful, crushing grooves. In other words, it's what Burial might sound like if he hung out in strip clubs. Manchester's XXXY is both nostalgic for '90s divas and looking to push house into the future. Lincoln Hall. 9pm. $20, advance $15.

5 comedy shows to see this week

kvire — Tue, 21 May 2013 20:54:22 +0000

1. Michael Palascak
Stand-up Michael Palascak finally moved out of his parents' house in the suburbs—formerly the source of much of his comedy—and all the way to Los Angeles, scoring his first Comedy Central special last year. Head out to Rosemont to find out what he jokes about these days. Zanies Rosemont. May 22, 23. 8pm. $20.

Album of the week | Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

bdicrescenzo — Tue, 21 May 2013 19:35:57 +0000

After a long, long wait, the robots have returned. 2005's Human After All was the automated electronic Daft Punk album. This new record is where Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo show their human sides—their nostalgia for their childhoods.

5 things to do today: Tuesday, May 21

jjohnson — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:53:44 +0000

ART & DESIGN
Amalia Pica In her first major solo museum exhibition (co-organized by the MCA and the MIT List Visual Arts Center), the London-based Argentine artist examines communication—in particular, the act of listening—and civic participation through drawings, sculptures, installations, projections, large-scale photographic prints and live performances. Incorporating simple materials such as flags, banners, confetti and brightly colored drinking glasses, her works are not only thoughtful but beautiful to behold. Museum of Contemporary Art. 10am–8pm.

MUSEUMS
"Welcome to the Universe" The Grainger Sky Theater's second screening to be made in-house takes you a billion light years away and back to Earth, where you can zoom in on landforms rendered with NASA data that's updated weekly. Much like in the domed theater's original incarnation, a live staffer helms the daily presentations. (Screens about five times a day. Price including admission $28, kids $22.) Adler Planetarium. 9:30am-4pm.

Awful former White House Social Secretary Desiree Rogers appointed new Choose Chicago chair

jmalooley — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:38:41 +0000

Mayor Emanuel this morning appointed Johnson Publishing CEO Desiree Rogers chair of the board of Choose Chicago, the city-run marketing tentacle whose goal is attracting tourists and convention business.

Cue boilerplate Rahmbo endorsement: "Rogers is a world-class business executive and a truly proud Chicagoan, and her unique talents and experience are a perfect fit for this important role." Her predecessor in the volunteer post, Bruce Rauner, is mulling a run as a Republican candidate for Illinois governor.

Wake Up! Waltz brings dance to Chicago rooftops

lpearson — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:19:35 +0000

On your commute to work this week, put down your phone for a sec (Words with Friends can wait) to witness flashes of orange and fushcia on a nearby roof—a troupe of vibrantly dressed dancers twirling in the sunshine. No, you haven't landed in a Michel Gondry film; you're seeing Wake Up! Waltz, a performance spectacle where 20-some dancers present variations on the waltz on rooftops visible from th el—from the living "green" roof of the Haas Park Field House to the top of an aromatherapy shop in South Shore.

10 best things to do this week

jmalooley — Mon, 20 May 2013 19:02:39 +0000

1. Navy Pier Fireworks Don't waste gas treking to Indiana or Wisconsin to buy your own (illegal) fireworks. Each Wednesday and Saturday, from Memorial Day to Labor Day (and a special show on July 4), Navy Pier makes the rockets red glare and bombs burst in air. They blowed up real good! Navy Pier. May 22; May 25, 10:15pm. Free.

5 concerts to see this week

bdicrescenzo — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:58:33 +0000

Festival season officially kicks off with the first local edition of the Electric Daisy Carnival, the standard of EDM festivals in America. It's at a racetrack. (RECOMMENDED: 5 best nightlife events this week.)

5 best nightlife events this week

bdicrescenzo — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:58:29 +0000

No work on Monday! You know what that means: an extra night to party. As if things like adult responsibility ever stopped you before.

5 things to do today: Monday, May 20

jjohnson — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:05:02 +0000

ART & DESIGN
"Spectator Sports" Fans' identification with athletes, the experience of watching games live, and the issues of nationality and gender are among the concerns shaping works by Jack Goldstein, Michelle Grabner and nine other artists. Museum of Contemporary Photography. 10am–5pm.

MUSIC
MS MR Kyrie, eleison, down the road that I must travel! Oh, not related to Mr. Mister? Still, this boy-girl duo have a good deal of '80s about them. Lizzy Plapinger floats her soul over echoing percussion and synthetic symphonies on the NYC band's debut, Secondhand Rapture. Think the Eurythmics for Florence & The Machine fans. Schubas. 8pm. $15, advance $13.