By B O’D advances in accessibility, but a regulatory gray gray but a regulatory in accessibility, advances Chicago’s concert venues have made welcome made welcome have venues concert Chicago’s area lets them fall short of what they should be. should be. what they short of them fall lets area every body every Music is for for is Music
CHICAGO’S FREE WEEKLY SINCE | FEBRUARY THIS WEEK CHICAGO READER | FEBRUARY | VOLUME NUMBER
IN THIS ISSUE T R - ARTS & CULTURE environmental fable the cocreator more this week @ 10 Visual Arts Fashion designer of Russian Doll lands a masterpiece 33 The Secret History of Duro Olowu curates one of the in The Layover and Mlima’s Tale Chicago Music Bluesman Frank P T B MCA’s largest shows ever fi lled with shows the costs of the ivory trade “Little Sonny” Scott Jr gave his all to E C S K K H local treasures Maxwell Street for half a century C LR H M E P M 35 Early Warnings Judas Priest the TD K R Magnetic Fields the Weeknd and C E B W more justannounced concerts A E J L S W M D L G 35 Gossip Wolf Posteverything D I BJ MS fusion band Je’raf celebrate their E A S N L debut album Nicky Flowers G D A H CITY LIFE L C S C -J 03 Transportation Thoughtful resuscitates a Morrisseytweaking C E B N B transportation advocacy requires allsynth Smiths cover project and L C M DL C M intersectionality more C J F S F J H I H C M J M K S K NEWS & POLITICS N DL J L 04 Joravsky | Politics A few 13 Lit Jasmon Drain’s debut collection FILM M M A M-K JRN JN M reasons why Trump released Blago adds him to the ranks of Chicago’s 21 Review Kantemir Balagov solidifi es O M S C S from prison greatest authors his signature style with Beanpole ------14 Listings An emo variety show an 22 Movies of note We Are Not D D J D artistic chili cookoff and more arts Princesses about Syrian refugee D P E &P and culture happenings women rehearsing Antigone K K S M C J G shimmers Brahms The Boy II M P C THEATER nails the porcelain doll’s ability to Y D 15 Dance Preview American Traffi c endear himself to those around him A A T A celebrates the intersection of Irish and Fantasy Island is just another OPINION ADVERTISING and African American dance cautionary tale against remakes 36 Savage Love Dan Savage off ers -- - @ 16 Preview I Am Not Your Perfect advice on how to outsource and still C @ Mexican Daughter follows a Latinx MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE satisfy the sloppy and spitty stuff S D P F teen as she struggles for her own 24 Feature Chicago’s concert venues he likes V P S A M 06 Dukmasova | News As the identity have made welcome advances in C R M T P S A R mayor spotlights the city’s eviction 18 Review In Plano three siblings accessibility but a regulatory gray CLASSIFIEDS L M -H L S problems court data shows little is share lives with messy men in an area lets them fall short of what they 38 Jobs A R changing and Pangea is still fi ling endless loop should be 38 Apartments & Spaces G M F N S C S M WR the most eviction cases in Chicago 20 Plays of note The Ghost in 30 Shows of note Wire Ratboys 38 Marketplace Gadsden’s Garden is a delightful Chicago Flamenco Festival and N A V M G - - - THIS WEEK ON CHICAGOREADER.COM J L SB ------D C [email protected] -- CHICAGO READER L C BP D R L T E R S J S A- S V
C C E B ------R ISSN- R LC SM S C IL --
C ©C R So you want a new A Dusty Groove doc High Fidelity is poised to be P C IL A C R R president? premieres in Chicago an all-time top fi ve RR T ® The Back Room Deal podcast is back! Danielle Beverly’s Dusty Groove: The The TV reboot remixes all the best Listen to Ben Joravsky and Maya Sound of Transition tells intimate parts of the movie into something O I Dukmasova talk Illinois delegate stories about our deep connection to even better. F O F O ’ assignments. music.
2 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll CITY LIFE
The MiCA transit-oriented development near the Christian Diaz is co-chair of Elevated Chica- California Blue Line station JOHN GREENFIELD go, which advocates for equitable transit-ori- ented development (TOD), and is lead housing do a major facelift of a rapid transit station organizer for the Logan Square Neighborhood without making it wheelchair accessible? Association, which fights displacement. In Would increasing taxes on private Uber that swiftly gentrifying northwest side com- and Lyft rides to fight traffic congestion, as munity, green projects like the 606 elevated Chicago recently did, reduce the income of trail, and the many dense, high-end devel- working-class and immigrant ride-hail driv- opments that have sprung up near Blue Line ers, or make it more expensive for women, stations since the City Council passed ordi- trans people, and other at-risk individuals to nances facilitating TOD, have fueled housing feel safe while traveling home at night? If so, speculation. how can we mitigate these things? A study released last month by DePaul Uni- You get the idea. If you’re a livable streets versity’s Institute for Housing Studies found advocate, my advice is to try to avoid having that home prices along the western half of the blinders on about possible unintended conse- 606 have risen by nearly 344 percent since quences, even if they wouldn’t directly a ect 2012. And last week the developer of Logan’s TRANSPORTATION you. The historic failures of privileged deci- Crossing, an upscale TOD that replaced the sion-makers to see this stuff is a big reason Discount Megamall, an indoor fl ea market that why it’s important to have all demographics featured largely Latino vendors, announced Don’t be a livable streets jerk represented in planning and advocacy, as well that studio apartments will rent for a whop- as the community input process. ping $1,895 a month. Thoughtful transportation advocacy requires intersectionality. Chicago leaders who fight for racial and “We can’t just tack on sustainable transpor- economic justice on a daily basis shared some tation amenities to the racist monster that is By J G more thoughts on the subject. Former mayoral gentrification and development in Chicago, candidate and Austin Chamber of Commerce in a neighborhood like Logan Square that has director Amara Enyia, who helped collect been historically redlined,” Diaz says. “We raffic safety and sustainable transporta- to their credit, acknowledged on Twitter that input for Vision Zero in west-side neighbor- have to be mindful of how our work relates to tion boosters like myself like to believe they’d made an error. hoods, notes that the potential for increased that history. If only some neighborhoods get Twe’re on the right side of history. I’m In fairness, I’ve made my share of mistakes police abuse was largely o the radar of trans- amenities like the 606 and nice housing near confident that in the future more people will in covering sustainable transportation issues portation o cials and mainstream advocates. transit, there’s going to be competition for get behind our efforts to reduce driving and over the years. The most important rule I’ve “Nobody thought about the implications for space, and demographics that have been his- crashes, and create better conditions for walk- learned is to always ask myself what the po- communities that are already struggling with torically propped up by government policies ing, biking, transit, and public space. tential impacts of projects and policies may be over-policing.” will have an advantage. Then we’re just rein- On the other hand, urban planning and liv- on people from various marginalized groups. Enyia credits Oboi Reed, who leads the mo- forcing racial injustice.” able streets advocacy have historically been I’m talking about questions like, if we ramp bility justice nonprofi t Equiticity, with being “We need our friends in sustainability dominated by relatively privileged folks, who up tra c policing in lower-income communi- a “crucial voice” for bringing that issue to the advocacy to ask themselves who projects are are typically white, male, middle class or af- ties with high levels of tra c violence as part forefront by convincing the Active Transpor- for, and how we can make sure the benefi ts go fl uent, well-educated, aren’t living with a dis- of Vision Zero—the e ort to eliminate serious tation Alliance to cancel a planned Vision Zero to everyone, including the people who need ability, etc. As such, there have been plenty of and fatal crashes—will that result in more summit with a $50 entry fee and an all-white them the most, not just rich white people,” examples of livable streets advocates having racial profi ling and police abuse of Black and speaker lineup. Diaz says. He credits Active Trans with being blind spots when it comes to issues impacting Brown residents? “It’s important to avoid a narrow view of “a great partner to LSNA” in recent years by marginalized communities. Similarly, if Chicago responds to the recent what safety is,” Enyia adds. She notes that building support for a 100-percent a ordable This has sometimes resulted in policies and wave of violent robberies on the el by deploy- while transportation advocates often focus TOD next to the Logan Square Blue station, projects with unintended consequences, or ing more police o cers in the system, how do on protecting people from dangerous drivers, and helping to pass an ordinance last month transportation advocacy that actually does we make sure that results in a net increase in mobility barriers like street crime and unfair freezing development along the west end harm. So I wanted to take a look at ways that safety and comfort for all riders? enforcement, such as the CPD’s practice of of the 606 for six months so that the city can advocates can be better allies to social justice If we extend a rapid transit line, build a nifty heavy bike ticketing in Black and Brown com- come up with an anti-displacement strategy. e orts, and avoid acting like what I call a liv- new walking and biking path, or make it easier munities as an excuse for searches, are often Diaz has one more piece of advice for livable able streets jerk. to build dense, low-parking transit-oriented overlooked. streets fans who want to be allies, not obsta- I was partly inspired by a New York City col- development (all good things in a vacuum), “I understand that people are passionate cles, to social justice in Black and Brown com- league’s recent tweet complaining about unli- will that jack up property values, property about protected bike lanes and transit-ori- munities. “Listen. Don’t just come into our censed entrepreneurs on the Brooklyn Bridge taxes, and rents, a phenomenon known as ented development,” Enyia says. “But it’s neighborhoods and tell us what we need. Hear blocking bike and foot tra c. They posted a “environmental gentrifi cation”? If so, how can important to think about how these things fi t our concerns. We bring as much to the table as photo of a Black co ee vendor and tagged the we preserve housing affordability and pre- into the existing community and do culturally transportation advocates, because I do think NYPD. After many people pointed out that the vent the displacement of longtime poor and and contextually relevant outreach. That’s we’re on the same team.” v post put the guy in danger of a potentially vio- blue-collar residents? how you get buy-in and support instead of lent encounter with the police, the colleague, Is it ever acceptable for a transit agency to suspicion and pushback.” @greenfieldjohn ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 3 NEWS & POLITICS
POLITICS Who’s next—Burke? Madigan? A few reasons why Trump released Blago from prison. By
t’s not often that I praise Donald Trump, not a Trump thing. but recent circumstances force me to do No, let’s run down a few of the real reasons Ijust that, so . . . Trump commuted Blago’s sentence. Bravo, Mr. President—your release of for- One: Trump wanted to send a big fuck you mer Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich from to the federal prosecutors who are going federal prison is one of the most spectacu- after Michael Flynn, Roger Stone, and other larly brazen acts of shameless chutzpah I’ve miscreants in the presidential universe. ever seen. These prosecutors are not literally one in And I’ve seen lots of shamelessness, hav- the same, of course—but they’re cut from ing covered Chicago politicians for almost 40 the same cloth: Dudley Do-Rights who, after years. a stint with the feds, go to work for corpo- Not that Blago deserved to spend more rate firms, where they get rich defending time in prison. He’d already served eight the same sorts of scoundrels they once years on a 14-year sentence—enough’s prosecuted. enough already. Speaking of shameless cynicism. But don’t kid yourself into thinking Trump Two: it sets a precedent for the liberation released Blago out of compassion for the of Stone and Flynn, et al. Sort of like a trial Blagojevich family. C’mon, people, you’re too balloon—free Blago and see how it plays. And smart for that. As we all know, compassion is so far, it’s playing very well with the Trump 6 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll NEWS & POLITICS
Pre-conviction Blago, approaching sister-in-law criminal justice, while satisfying his white Deborah Mell, at an event celebrating passage of base with endless talk about Jussie Smollett the state’s LGBTQ rights law TRACY BAIM and Kim Foxx and throwing more Black peo- ple in jail. base. As for those Republicans who might Doesn’t get more cynical than that. be enraged? They’re too chicken to raise a Well, all is not lost. At least I can watch fuss—but I’ll get to the Tribsters in a bit. Trump emasculate the Republican establish- Three: Trump wants to legalize extor- ment in Illinois—the editorial writers at the MOBA IseriesL ofI politicalZE tion—at least the extortion he apparently Chicago Tribune included. engagement events by commits all the time. For years, Blago has been their poster the Chicago Reader Clearly, Trump doesn’t view what Blago child for all that’s corrupt with Democratic did as a crime. Blago was found guilty of try- politics. And now Trump releases Blago from ing to strong-arm people into donating to his prison. Come join the Chicago Reader for campaign. It’s funny to watch them struggle with It’s all very transactional—and Trump this. They foam with rage at Blago. But they loves transactions. Blago had something of barely mention the man who sprung him. ELECTION NIGHT value—in one case, Obama’s senate vacan- To read a Tribune editorial or a John Kass cy—and he wanted to swap it for something column on this subject, you’d think Trump WATCH PARTIES of equal value. What, Trump may ask, is played no role in releasing Blago. As though wrong with that? Blago sprung himself from prison. With hosts Ben Joravsky and Maya Dukmasova* Trump was up to the same thing when he A similar thing happened in the 2018 got busted for trying to swap about $400 governor’s race, when the Tribune ran front- million in military aid to Ukraine for an an- page stories about the tapes in which Blago nouncement that Ukraine was investigating chatted with J.B. Pritzker. Joe Biden on corruption charges. Governor Bruce Rauner and his allies were Four: Trump plans to put Blago to use in set to endlessly use those tapes to link one his reelection campaign. And here I’d like with the other—like putting Blago’s head on to pause from my list-making to voice my Pritzker’s body. Live Stream on appreciation at the seamlessness with which But then, Trump sort of turned Blago into Blago burst forth from prison. a folk hero with the MAGA-hat crowd by the Reader’s I mean, the guy’s as fit as a fiddle. You’d talking about commuting his sentence. And facebook have thought he spent the last eight years at just like that, the Blago-Pritzker tapes were page a Canyon Ranch as opposed to federal prison. virtually worthless. Super He reminds me of Steve McQueen’s character It’s like all the other crimes of Trump— in The Great Escape—no matter how many from intimidating witnesses to allegations times the Nazis throw him into the cooler, he of rape. The Republican establishment has comes out looking fresh as a daisy. Doesn’t to pretend they don’t exist. If they complain, Tuesday even have to shave. the president will turn the base against them More to the point, from the moment with one presidential tweet. Trump let him loose, Blago’s been a one-man Hey, Mr. President, if you’re looking for Watch Party Trump commercial, praising the president other ways to intimidate Illinois Repub- for leading the charge for “criminal justice.” licans, why stop with Blago? Chicago has Tuesday, March 3, 6-8 p.m., Free You can expect to hear Blago singing this no shortage of big-time Democrats either Promontory in Hyde Park, song until November. Anything to convince indicted or under investigation by the same voters—especially Black voters—that a vote sorts of federal prosecutors you despise. 5311 S Lake Park Ave W. for Trump is somehow a vote for justice. That would include Alderman Ed Burke, At the same time, Trump and his justice your former property tax lawyer, and House department are resisting efforts by Mayor speaker Michael Madigan. Lightfoot to set standards for police interac- Make corruption o¢ cially legal, Mr. Presi- tion with the public, especially young Black dent—pardon them all! men. Can you imagine Blago, Burke, and maybe Moreover, Trump and his local acolytes even Speaker Madigan, in MAGA hats on *Dukmasova will just co-host the March 3 event. are waging war against Cook County state’s stage at a Trump rally? attorney Kim Foxx, who they think is soft on Man, I’d love to see the Tribsters try to crime. write their way around that. v So, Trump will try to pick up a few Black votes (he only needs a few) for “reforming” @joravben ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 7 NEWS & POLITICS presents:s: FlowerF Powerwer HHappyap Hourur
A SpringSpring Fling Flower & Garden Show after-party
NEWS Navy Pier Thursday, March 19 4-7PM Pangea still reigns After-hours access As the mayor spotlights the city’s eviction problems, 2019 court data shows little is changing. By M D
ore than 17,000 Chicago renters the next four landlords combined, at times wound up in eviction court last accounting for as much as 20 percent of all Featuring: year according to 2019 court data eviction cases fi led in the south and west side obtained by the Reader from the zip codes where its holdings are concentrat- Floral inspired sounds by DJ Tess Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook ed. The company’s founders, who’d made a Cocktail and cider samples by Koval Distillery & Virtue Cider MCounty. The number of cases fi led remains on fortune in payday lending before the fi nancial Panel on growing and harvesting cannabis at home par with city eviction fi lings since 2016, though crisis, took advantage of the avalanche of fore- the data provided by the clerk excludes sealed closures to cheaply acquire apartment build- eviction cases. Pangea Real Estate remains Chi- ings by the block in neighborhoods like South cago’s most prolifi c fi ler of eviction cases, as the Shore, Chatham, and South Austin. Over the company has been since 2012. years, Pangea’s real estate empire has grown According to the data, Pangea filed 1,264 to more than 7,500 units in Chicago, plus thou- cases in Chicago’s eviction courtrooms in sands more in suburban apartment complexes 2019. Of those, 1,083 were against Chicago and in Indianapolis and Baltimore. Recently tenants and an additional 181 cases were fi led Pangea moved to acquire hundreds more dis- in Chicago’s courtrooms against tenants tressed apartment units in Chicago that were in their suburban properties. These cases operated by disgraced (and now bankrupt) represent a slight dip compared to the com- nonprofi t Better Housing Foundation. pany’s fi lings against city renters in 2018, but While for years Pangea was fi ling the most Pangea still filed three times as many cases cases in the 60649 zip code—South Shore— as the next most frequent fi ler, a third-party last year’s data shows its evictions are now property management company called WPD most densely concentrated in the 60644 zip Management. code, which covers the South Austin neighbor- A two-year investigation published by the hood on the west side. Reader last year found that Pangea became In response to a request for comment, Chicago’s most prolific evictor in the wake Pangea’s CEO Pete Martay wrote in an e-mail of the 2008 foreclosure crisis. Since it began that as the “largest owner of privately funded operating in 2009, it has fi led more cases than market rate apartments in Chicago . . . it is un- 6 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll POETRY CORNER NEWS & POLITICS Donny & Minnie on the 66 Bus By Tara Betts
A Pangea apartment building at 5018 W. Jackson However, by signing the deals, tenants agree in the 60644 zip code, where Pangea is now fi ling to give up their right to a trial; by the time they Some of the best things in Chicago the most evictions against its tenants. fall behind on these payments (as they often seem almost mythic in existence. TRAVIS ROOZÉE do), they’ve already agreed to be evicted and The Water Tower surviving cow & flame, fortunately unavoidable that our total eviction no longer have an opportunity to present any the steely limbs of Picasso’s sculpture allowing humans to sit at its feet, filings are higher than all of the other large grievances about their landlord or the fairness the blues clubs still stuffed with juke, operators.” Martay underscored Pangea’s sin- of the deal to a judge. smoke,smo slow grind & knife fight, even gularity in providing unsubsidized housing in As has been typical of the company’s Donny Hathaway & Minnie Riperton’s working-class neighborhoods, though about response to questions about its evictions, voices on rainy days ring in headphones, 20 percent of the company’s units are rented Martay emphasized Pangea’s track record of pulsing stars from happier nights. You are to tenants with Section 8 vouchers. investing “more than $350 million of private on the 66 bus again, east from K-town— “We are devoted to working with our res- capital in the past 10 years in [Chicago] with a Karlov, Kedvale, Keeler, Keystone, Kilbourn, Kildare, Kolmar, Kostner, Kilpatrick, avenues idents who have fallen behind on rent, well majority of those dollars directly overlapping withwit reputations fit to kill, but still all history. before it becomes necessary to consider fi ling with Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s new Invest South/ a court case for non-payment of rent,” Martay West Initiative and its 10 target zones.” You think of George’s Music Room, how continued. “Even after an eviction is fi led we Lightfoot spotlighted evictions in her the owner once touched the throat that sung continue to work with our residents, within February 14 City Club address, while making “Loving You”, the throat clenched by deadly the confi nes of the court system. . . . Pangea’s sweeping promises to “end poverty in Chica- cells that possessed the flesh of Minnie’s notes. goal is not, nor has it ever been, for our resi- go in a generation.” She promised to push a You think of applejack hats, how Donny’s voice dents to be physically evicted by the Sheri , “tenant protection package designed to help kept telling you we’ll all be free, your anthem so youy and your brothers could shake-a-hand-shake- nor to damage our residents’ ability to obtain residents by giving them a fair chance to stay a-hand every Christmas, and this Christmas too. housing in the future.” in their home. . . . The fi rst part of this pack- As the buildings outside the bus windows blur The Reader’s investigation found that Pan- age will include an ordinance establishing from speed, drops & fog steaming the windows. gea has developed an aggressive and formu- just cause for eviction.” As she elaborated on You wonder if the ghetto made Donny try flying laic approach to eviction cases, o ering “pay- what that would mean, Lightfoot said that more than depression swelling into that fatal leap. and-stay” deals to many of the tenants it takes “based on a recent study of data from 2010 to to court. While these deals mean avoiding an 2017 approximately 25 percent of all evictions When you count the breaths to your stop, wondering whyw you love the route & find yourself silently pleading immediate eviction for tenants, the Reader are no-fault, meaning the tenant did nothing to stay. You lean deep into your seat, press repeat since found that ultimately Pangea’s eviction rate wrong but had to move anyway. These no-fault nostalgia becomes a contradiction of armor & comfort. refl ected the city’s as a whole, with more than evictions can give tenants as little as 30 days 60 percent of tenants winding up with a judg- notice to move . . . Our new ordinance will ex- ment against them. The pay-and-stay deals, tend the notice period for no-cause evictions.” Tara Betts is the author of Break the Habit and Arc & Hue, a co-editor of The Beiging of negotiated by Pangea’s lawyers with tenants Lightfoot didn’t say how much longer the no- America: Personal Narratives about Being Mixed Race in the 21st Century, and editor of the critical edition of Philippa Duke Schuyler’s memoir Adventures in Black and who rarely have their own attorneys, lock tice period would be. White. She teaches at the Stonecoast MFA program at University of Southern Maine. renters into a contract to pay monthly rent as No-cause evictions often take place in gen- A biweekly series curated by the Chicago Reader and sponsored by the Poetry Foundation. well as regular payments toward their debt. trifying neighborhoods, when developers and This week’s poem is curated by poet Yvonne Zipter. PUNCH Vote March 17, 2020 #187 JUDGE Free events at the Poetry Foundation Poetry & Music: Always Already with Ben Vida World premiere of a hypnotic composition Saturday, March 7, 2020, 7:00 PM
Poetry off the Shelf: Jane Hirshfield JAMEST. T.S. Eliot Prize-winning poet Tuesday,T March 10, 2020, 7:00 PM
Open Door Series: Nathan Hoks & Tara Betts with their students JR. Highlighting Chicago’s outstanding writing programs DERICOO Tuesday, March 17, 2020, 7:00 PM CIRCUITCOURTOFCOOKCOUNTY A.R. Ammons: Watercolors Works of a prolific poet and painter (Coghlan Vacancy) Exhibition open ththrough April 30
Poetry Foundation 61 West Superior Street www.derico4judge.com poetryfoundation.org/events
Paid for by the Committee to Elect Judge James T. Derico, Jr. ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 7 NEWS & POLITICS
continued from 7 role in the cycle of poverty impacting so many landlords serve 30-day notices to existing individuals in our city, particularly in commu- tenants in order to rehab buildings and rent nities of color,” wrote deputy press secretary out units at higher prices. “Just cause” evic- Eugenia Orr. “To ensure that more residents tion laws as they exist elsewhere in the coun- have stable, affordable housing, the admin- try aren’t just designed to give people more istration is working collaboratively with time to move if they’re being evicted simply members of the City Council to bring forward because the landlord wants them gone. These a series of reforms that will allow people— laws typically make it so that landlords can- including [formerly incarcerated] residents not evict tenants unless they have a good rea- who are systematically excluded from secur- son, such as nonpayment of rent, chronically ing housing—to get an apartment, and have a late rent, lease violations, etc. The Reader real chance to stay in their homes so they can asked the mayor’s o ce to elaborate whether provide shelter to their families, keep a job, Lightfoot’s proposal would actually establish and contribute to our economy. The adminis- protections against no-cause evictions or tration wants to fi nd pragmatic solutions to only focus on extending the time people had address the needs of these residents at risk of to move. falling into a cycle of poverty because of hous- In an e-mailed statement, the mayor’s o ce ing instability and discrimination and im- reiterated support for the idea of making prove the city of life for every community.” v landlords give far more advance notice to ten- ants they’re evicting without cause, but didn’t Read Maya Dukmasova's May 2019 cover say Lightfoot would be pushing for a law story “Pangea has taken thousands to eviction Have it delivered, or go to Hell * prohibiting landlords from evicting without court. The story of an apartment empire.” *Hell located at 3028 W. Armitage Ave. cause. “Mayor Lightfoot knows that housing instability and evictions play a significant @mdoukmas
8 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 9 ARTS & CULTURE
VISUAL ARTS The mix master Nigerian-born, London-based fashion designer Duro Olowu curates one of the MCA’s largest shows ever fi lled with local treasures. By I G
useums can often feel like a cold, overly where this came from.’ And it’s been that way formal place. On one hand, that setting ever since. He has a taste level beyond anyone Mpromotes an aura of respect around I’ve ever known.” the artwork; on the other, it can lengthen the Olowu grew up going back and forth be- distance between the art and its viewer. “Duro tween Lagos, Nigeria, and London. His father Olowu: Seeing Chicago” is an antidote to that. was Nigerian and his mother was Jamaican. “You’re going to see color, and patterns, The fourth of six siblings, he was raised in a and texture—not just in the art but in the way large family that encouraged his artistic en- things are presented on the pedestals and deavors. Fashion has been a lifelong interest; on the walls,” says Naomi Beckwith, senior his parents always valued the art of dressing curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art well. His mother taught him early on how to Chicago, which organized the exhibition, one compose a look, mixing high fashion and local West African fabrics. Once it was time to go to college, Olowu followed his father’s footsteps “D O S C ” R / - /, Museum of and studied to be a lawyer at the University of Contemporary Art Chicago, E. Canterbury in England in the 80s. He practiced Chicago, mcachicago.org, $ , $ students law but began designing his own clothing and and seniors, free kids and under and then launched his eponymous brand. He hit members of the military, free for Illinois residents on Tuesdays. the jackpot when Vogue editor Sally Singer loved a dress he designed. Dubbed “The Duro dress,” it is fashioned in Olowu’s signature of the largest show ever put on at the MCA. mix of vibrant prints and features a V-neck, Beckwith didn’t curate it, though; that role was empire waist, and wide sleeves, slightly evoc- undertaken by Duro Olowu, a Nigerian-born, ative of a kimono. That dress led to him being London-based fashion designer. His namesake named the Best New Designer at the British boutique in London was a harbinger of things Fashion Awards in 2005. Since then he’s put to come—a mishmash of his own designs and together two critically acclaimed pop- up a collection of pieces that appeal to his taste. shops/art shows at Salon 94 gallery in New The shop displays traditional and cutting-edge York and a blockbuster exhibit at the London artworks alongside vinyl albums, books, tapes- Camden Arts Center in 2016 entitled “Making tries, and decor objects. Anything goes, as long & Unmaking.” as he likes them. “He’s interested in fl attening Famous for creating unexpected yet har- these distinctions that we may put up around monious combinations of vivid prints, Olowu art,” Beckwith says. “Like, what is fi ne art, and also takes his tailoring seriously. According what is found art, what is inspired versus what to Goldman, what makes his garments special is academic.” is “a lightness in fabrics and extraordinary “It’s like walking into the coolest museum taste in color and print mix.” “He comes from shop with handpicked items that have been a very authentic place and it translates in his curated so perfectly by the master of all mas- collections,” Goldman says. “There is no one I ters,” says Ikram Goldman, owner of the Ikram know who makes clothes that are as fl attering boutique in the Gold Coast and the person who as Duro does. It all seems to fi t beautifully on fi rst brought Olowu’s designs to Chicago. She a body. Clearly [my clients] love him and they met Olowu through a mutual friend in the early treasure his pieces—they come in just to get 2000s before he launched his label in 2004. his things. He’s a treasure.” Olowu presented his collection to Goldman The admiration, Olowu says, is mutual. “The in a hotel she was staying at in New York. “I manner in which the wonderful women of Chi- Duro Olowu, Spring/Summer 2020, Look 7 remember thinking, ‘OK, I know he’s showing cago have supported my career in fashion and CHRISTINA EBENEZE me these, but I know there’s a lot more magic wear my womenswear collections which are 10 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll ARTS & CULTURE
sold there is really inspiring,” he says. “Like beauty of museums is to hold up a mirror to its the city’s museums and private collectors, audience regardless of social standing or class these women are enthusiastic, curious, and and create a unifying experience with local and keen to explore new ideas in their original international art in a way that is a source of form. They also love quality over trend, some- pride for the people of the city. The MCA has thing that is a wonderful and unique trait.” One given me the opportunity to create an exhibi- of those women was Michelle Obama, who fi rst tion that I hope is an example of this.” discovered Olowu’s designs while her husband Some of the featured artists include turn-of- was running for president. She subsequently the-century groundbreakers like Henri Matisse sported many of Olowu’s garments in o cial and René Magritte, and contemporary names engagements and even got him to decorate a such as David Hammons, Barbara Kruger, Ana room in the White House for Christmas in 2015. Mendieta, and Fred Wilson. Even though there Now Chicagoans will have the opportunity will be works from across the world, dozens of to savor Olowu’s vision in a di erent way. “For artists connected to Chicago will be on display. me, both [curating and designing] require an Amongst them are Dawoud Bey, Simone Leigh, intuitive eye and a free hand in order to refl ect and Kerry James Marshall as well as leaders of the real and cosmopolitan world we live in,” local movements AfriCOBRA and the Chicago Olowu says. “I feel very lucky and inspired to Imagists. There will be rare surrealist art books be able to do both.” by Duchamp, Giorgio de Chirico, and Salvador Olowu’s London boutique serves as inspi- Dali. “That kind of international, or what we’ve ration for one of the later sections of “Seeing been calling cosmopolitan and transcultural Chicago.” Some of his designs are displayed view of not only the history of art but also of in that area, but they are far from the central the city, is very important,” Beckwith says. focus. The bulk of the exhibit consists of almost The way Olowu displays his selection is an 350 objects, all borrowed from local public art in itself. Instead of the usual stark white and private collections. Most of them belong cube, artworks are placed against colorful to the MCA, but many come from places such walls in shades of orange, purple, and teal. as the Art Institute of Chicago, Block Museum Paintings and photographs are installed ver- of Art, South Side Community Art Center, the tically, or “salon-style,” in arrangements that National Museum of Mexican Art, the DuSable promote unexpected conversations between Museum of African American History, and In- the pieces. tuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art. “It’s so exciting for me to see a Matisse “I began with the idea of exposing and show- painting mirror an African sculpture. Starting casing the amazing MCA Collection, which to make those kinds of leaps into our imagina- exemplifies this city’s original approach to tion is going to be really incredible,” Beckwith contemporary art and culture,” Olowu says. says. “I don’t think we realize that when we go “But I soon realized that a much more gener- to museums, oftentimes the work that we see ous and open approach to the city’s public and in one specifi c gallery or in one show is usually private collections was necessary to honestly like for like. That is to say that all the works in Magdalene Odundo, Teardrop I, 1996. Collection The Art Institute of Chicago, © Magdalene Odundo and justly convey the unique sensibility of mu- African sculpture are in the African galleries. THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO/ART RESOURCE NY seums and collectors in Chicago. The duty and All the works by French painters of the late SECOND CHANCE PROMOTION Enter eligible tickets into a drawing to win 1 of 10 trips to Las Vegas!
Visit IllinoisLottery.com to learn more ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 11 Henri Matisse, Laurette with a Cup of Coff ee, 1916–17. Collection The Art Institute Chicago, © 2019 Succession H. Matisse / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO/ART RESOURCE NY
continued from 11 for things across cultures to speak to each 19th century are in another gallery by them- other, or things across time periods to live with selves. All the pottery from Asia is either in the each other. Duro kind of ignored those basic Asian gallery or in the decorative arts gallery. art historical claims and just asked us to real- We began to separate things out in ways that ize the a¢ nities that art may have, across the feel logical, but what it doesn’t often allow is country, across the world, across time.” v
12 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll ARTS & CULTURE
she’d grown up. To Tracy, who visits this store only once, it is a world of wonder, but to his mother it is but a tiresome means to an end. The chasm between an adult’s perception and that of a child has rarely been evoked so pre- cisely and heartbreakingly. Tracy’s overriding wish is for his mother to love him and pay him attention, but he observes her with a mixture of fascination and fear: “Mother stood slowly and put both hands to her knees to guide her legs straight. She released a groan while standing, then walked into the hall, past my bedroom, and made the left turn to the bathroom. She didn’t shut the door. She hardly ever shut the door while in there.” Here and through many other moments throughout these stories, Drain nails how strange, even foreign, those closest to us can be. When Tracy and the other boys want to visit other parts of the city, they jump the fence and run across the Dan Ryan Express- way, dodging speeding cars, then vault over the barrier, taking care not to touch the third rail, onto the 35th Street CTA platform. It’s a harrowing way to catch a public train, but these boys have no other means to experience places outside their immediate environment. Everyone in these stories is striving to fi nd a better life, to get out of the projects, to live out their dreams. But it’s not so easy to forget where you come from; nor do you necessarily want to, when being honest with yourself. In the second-to-last story, “Love-Able Lip LIT Gloss,” Jacob, a beautiful cipher for much of the book, tells his story. Now an overweight, Jasmon Drain makes his mark middle-aged man, he can’t let go of his past His debut collection, Stateway’s Garden, adds him to the ranks of Chicago’s as a youthful heartthrob. He carries on an greatest authors. on-again, o -again masochistic a air with his childhood sweetheart, a woman who managed By D S to leave Stateway Gardens behind. But Jacob couldn’t take the leap when given the oppor- tunity and is stuck instead romanticizing the t’s not often that a writer will make me Englewood and now lives in Kenwood—has past and ruing what might have been. Jacob see Chicago in a new way, but with his fashioned an indelible portrait of this city. is but the last of the people Drain describes Idebut collection of interlocking stories, set The looming presence over much of State- in all their complexity. He is not a writer who primarily in Bronzeville’s now-demolished way’s Garden (Random House) is Tracy’s tra cs in caricature or simplifi cation. Stateway Gardens housing project for which mother. She haphazardly raises Tracy and I’ve known of the streets and buildings in the book is named, Jasmon Drain has done his older half brother, Jacob, while focusing this book for decades, but now feel like I’ve just that. A young boy named Tracy is our much of her attention on keeping her looks been there. Through slyly poetic language and primary guide and narrator, but by the end and fi nding a man who will stay. The lessons an absolute grasp on place and description, even the high-rises themselves become fully she imparts to her children are blunt and un- Drain has added to the canon of Chicago liter- fleshed-out characters. Though sometimes sentimental. “Life isn’t about fun. It’s about ature. He belongs on the shelf next to Algren, dreamy with longing for the comforts of a money,” she spits out at Jacob when the boy Brooks, Dybek, and Wright—writers who childhood, which, from the outside, appears tries to refuse to go with her to a short-lived know and love this city in all its magnifi cent fi lled with privation, Drain—who grew up in job at a store back on the west side, where contradictions, its unique, ugly beauty. v ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 13 ARTS & CULTURE
body brings something to the table.” In its Chicago Berlin, 954 W. Belmont, berlinchicago.com. premiere, Goddess, choreographed by Sean Curran, blends Irish and Indian movement traditions. Sat 2/29, Mobilize: Super Tuesday Watch 2 and 7:30 PM, Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells, auditoriumtheatre.org, $35-$78. Party Watch the delegates roll in with the Reader’s own Ben LIT Joravsky and Maya Dukmasova. A livestream will be available to view on our Facebook page. Tue 3/3, 6-8 Colloquium Under a Palm Tree: PM, the Promontory, 5311 S. Lake Park, facebook.com/ A Reading chicagoreader. F A reading responding to writer Gloria Anzaldúa’s text Superhero Fetish After-Hours at “La Prieta” from the 1983 anthology This Bridge Called My Back (1983), and Cuban anthropologist Fernando the LA&M Ortiz’s ideas on “transculturation.” With Minh Nguyen, A&M will be hosting a fetish superhero event which Jacobo Zambrano-Rangel, Andres Hernandez, Natalia coincides with C2E2. Revolution Brewing has donated Piland, and Jeremy Sublewski. Wed 3/4, 6:30 PM, beer for the event (as well as wine, soda, and water). Threewalls, 2738 W. North, three-walls.org. F Superhero or cosplay attire is highly encouraged. Fri 2/28, 6-9 PM, Leather Archives and Museum, 6418 N. My America: Sawako Nakayasu Greenview, leatherarchives.org. F In conjunction with the exhibition, “My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today” artist Sawako VISUAL ARTS Nakayasu will be giving a perspective of writing and translating. Tue 3/3, 6:30 PM, American Writers “Fenestrated Shape” Museum, 180 N. Michigan, second fl oor, americanwrit- Robin Hustle describes her work as “so rock mon- Maya Dukmasova and Ben Joravsky will host Mobilize: Super Tuesday Watch Party ersmuseum.org, $10, free for members. uments,” in ceramic form. She is a community health LENI MANAAHOPPENWORTH nurse, writer, and ceramicist whose work has covered Pecha Kucha Night (Vol. 53) foraging, sex work, emotional labor, health, gender, A dozen presenters from all walks of life are given and nurturance. Opening reception Sat 2/29, 6-9 PM. the chance to explain their work using 20 slides. This 2/29-3/21, Thu 4-7 PM, Sat 1-4 PM, Roman Susan, 1224 edition features photographer Jeff Phillips, artist W. Loyola, romansusan.org. F Shannon Downey, artist Darryl Moody, and Sam and Eli Merritt, cofounders of the Chicago Maker Space. Tue 50th Anniversary Celebration of 3/3, 8 PM, Martyrs’, 3855 N. Lincoln, martyrslive.com, DANCE $12, $10 in advance. John Cage’s HPSCHD Things to do This free multimedia performance takes palce at Pres- Alvin Ailey American Dance Zine Club Chicago: Fascination ton Bradly Hall marking the 50th anniversary of this COMEDY immersive piece by John Cage and computer pioneer Theater Edition Lejaren Hiller. Sat 2/29, 1-4 PM, Chicago Cultural Cen- New Player Has Entered the Four programs from the Ailey repertoire, featuring a Zine Club Chicago meets this month to discuss zines ter, 78 E. Washington, chicgoculturalcenter.org. F mix of ten diff erent pieces, make up this year’s visit that make them excited and happy. Bring your favorite Show to the Auditorium. The pieces include the midwest zine and join the conversation. Snacks are included. “Homo-entanglement” This show that combines video games and stand-up premiere of Jamar Roberts’s Ode, a meditation on the Thu 2/27, 7 PM, Quimby’s Bookstore, 1854 W. North, In galleries one and two, married collaborators Miller comedy celebrates its two-year anniversary. Perform- beauty of life in a time of gun violence; Aszure Barton’s quimbys.com. F & Shellabarger look at romance, physicality, duality, ers include Joe Kilgallon, Samantha Berkman, Skyler BUSK, an ensemble work on “the fragility, tenderness, and time in their work. Utilizing performance, photog- Higley, and Sohrab Forouzesh. Challenge host Dane and resilience that exist within the human experience”; PARTIES raphy, books, and sculpture, the pair focus on queer Arden to game of Mario Tennis 64 a er the show for a revival of Judith Jamison’s 1984 piece Divining, identities and experiences. Opening reception 2/29, a chance to win his Nintendo Switch. Wed 3/4, 8 PM, using dance idioms from across Africa; Donald Byrd’s Charlie & the Hashbrown 5-8 PM. 2/29-3/11, Tue-Sat 11 AM-6 PM, Western Exhi- Emporium Wicker Park, 1366 N. Milwaukee, facebook. Greenwood, exploring the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre; bitions, 1709 W. Chicago, westernexhibitions.com. F com/newplayershow. F Ella, Ailey artistic director Robert Battle’s duet set to Factory: 10th Annual Spudnik music by Ella Fitzgerald; founder Ailey’s masterpiece, Press Chili Cook-Off “Pottery of Protest” So Emo Revelations, which premiered in 1960 and has been The pottery studio hosts its third annual Protest Exhi- Yaz Bat hosts this variety show featuring music, com- the company’s signature work, and more. 3/4-3/8: Spudnik is hosting their unforgettable chili cook-off bition where students and staff will present their work. edy, and drag from past and current emo kids. The Wed-Fri 7:30 PM, Sat 2 and 8 PM, Sun 3 PM, Audito- for their tenth year. Sixteen competing chefs will be The show is inspired by politics, environmentalism, lineup includes Sharron Palm, Elias Rios, Mike Stricker, rium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells, auditoriumtheatre. challenged to make the best chili. Featured galleries racism, sexism, and other sociopolitical concerns. All Fauz Pa, and Emma Grace and the night also includes org, $35-$130. and creative outlets in the cook-off are Candor Arts, proceeds from this opening will go towards Inner-City raffl es and an emo costume contest. Mon 3/2, 8 PM, Chicago Printers Guild, Hyde Park Art Center, Rohner Muslim Action Network. Snacks will be provided. Sat Elixir Andersonville, 1509 W. Balmoral, facebook.com/ Trinity Irish Dance Company Press, and One Design. Sat 2/29, 5-9 PM, Spudnik 2/29, 7-10 PM, Lincoln Square Pottery Studio, 4150 N. soemolol, $10, $5 in advance. Three world premieres and one Chicago premiere Press, 1821 W. Hubbard, spudnikpress.com, $40, $25 for Lincoln, comeplaywithclay.com. F make up this program from Trinity Irish Dance, cele- artists and anyone 21 and under, $8 for kids 6-16, kids VHS: Leap to the Future brating its 30th anniversary this year. Choreographers 5 and under free. Studio MODA: The 2020 Winter Enjoy some of the best Leap Day-themed VHS clips Michelle Dorrance and Melinda Sullivan’s American with stand-up from Tucker Brookshire, Lucia Whalen, Traffi c combines Irish step and American tap. Irish Moans: All Trans Showcase Fashion Show Chris Santiago, and Clare Austen-Smith. Sat 2/29, 10 dancer and choreographer Colin Dunne premieres Featuring an all trans cast of performers, DJs, and ven- MODA’s annual Winter Fashion Show draws more PM, the Lincoln Lodge, 2040 N. Milwaukee, thelincol- Listen, described as “a deconstruction of Irish dance dors, Moans celebrates trans people of all variance. than 1,000 guests from UChicago and beyond. The nlodge.com, $7. with respect for the ancestors.” TIDC founding artistic Tunes by Ariel Zetina, Hinkypunk (Kyah Hawk) as guest show will include a cocktail reception, a runway show director Mark Howard and associate artistic director co-host, and Alex Jenny, Zolita (Zola Chatman), Loki modeling designs by students, and an a er-party. Chelsea Hoy collaborated on the world premiere Loko (Miles Billedo), and vendors Lucy Stoole, JForPay Fri 2/28, 8-10 PM, Zhou B Art Center, 1029 W. 35th, of Home, “a percussive tour de force where every- Designs, and Gnat Glitter Kink. Thu 2/27, 10 PM-1 AM, modachicago.org, $30. v
14 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll THEATER
Trinity Irish Dance Company LOIS GREENFIELD
rance, a MacArthur Fellow and artistic director of Dorrance Dance, and Dorrance artistic as- sociate Melinda Sullivan. “Trinity Irish Dance Company is a contemporary Irish American company rooted in the traditions of Irish step dance,” explains TIDC associate artistic direc- tor Chelsea Hoy. “We push the boundaries of the form through a performing arts lens. One way we do that is by collaborating with mov- ers from di erent genres. Michelle Dorrance’s work bears similarities to ours in the way that it honors the ancestors.” “We were interested in breaking down the rigidity and traditional carriage of Irish step dancing,” says Dorrance. “We wanted to explore a pedestrian quality. The execution of Irish dance is so beautiful but often rigid. The arms are held. In tap, we often have a relaxed upper body and an organic approach.” The title of the work began as a joke, she says—simply a way of organizing the negotiation and explora- tion of space. “The rule was, when they would pass each other, pass on the right—literally ‘American tra c.’ But it became this thing that reflected a culture that has such depth in its DANCE PREVIEW ancestry. Tap is one of the oldest—in terms of immigrated Americans—American dance forms. There’s constant exploration in the American Tra c celebrates the intersection of piece, and exploration of identity. It’s not about some heavy emotional drama, it just lives in the fi ber of the work.” Irish and African American dance The exploration of technique and identity is central to TIDC’s mission of innovation in Irish Trinity Irish Dance Company’s world premiere steps out at the Auditorium. American dance. TIDC was founded in 1990 B I H by Yorkshire-born, Rogers Park-raised Mark Howard, who studied at the Dennehy School of Irish Dance—where fellow Irish American Chi- n the 19th century, amid social unrest, Lane, known as “Master Juba.” Juba roundly and Irish dancers in the 1800s pushed tap and cagoan Michael Flatley also trained. Whereas crime, and infectious disease in the lower triumphed over the ill-tempered Irishman in American Irish dance forward. It’s sewn into Flatley’s Riverdance became a global phenom- IManhattan neighborhood of Five Points in all but one contest, staged in cities nationwide. the history of tap dance. Early tap, then called enon when it premiered in 1995, Howard has New York City, an American dance was brew- Described by Charles Dickens as “the greatest ‘buck dancing’ or ‘buck and wing,’ lives on the refused traditional Irish dance competitions ing. The source of this new creative energy was dancer known,” Juba gained worldwide fame balls of the feet, which is where Irish dance and Broadway-style spectacles. “We’re the a combination of cultures colliding and com- as the only Black dancer in all-white minstrel lives. Juba was able to imitate the Irish danc- only art-driven ensemble repertory Irish dance petition. “Black people and Irish people were companies and the first Black performer to ers’ approach to buck dance. And he would company in the world,” says Hoy. on the street corner together, in the music be billed above a white performer in minstrel imitate them imitating him. Who knows what “How are you still doing what you love when halls together, in the pubs together,” notes shows. kind of masterful mockery that was? He was [Riverdance] turned into this multimillion choreographer Michelle Dorrance. “And Irish “Tap dance was born on the southern slave described as doing things people had never dollar thing?” Dorrance recalls asking Howard. were referred to as Blacks, and Black dancing plantations,” says Dorrance. “A lot of slave seen—he was a masterful innovator. Tap dance “He replied, ‘We just want people to connect was called jigging.” In the 1840s, a series of uprisings were organized by drums, [which is rooted in improvisation. That kind of conver- with what we do.’ And I thought, ‘That’s exactly contests, or “challenge dances,” spearheaded were] central to West African culture.” Body sation with the feet is part of the development what I feel about my art form.’ To exchange by Irish dancer John Diamond (sometimes re- percussion, or “patting juba,” arose as drums of the form. It lives in those early contests.” the roots of our culture, the rhythmic ideas, to ferred to as the “greatest white minstrel danc- were outlawed by plantations. “Tap dance was These thoughts of cultural exchange drove learn more about our techniques, where they er”) brought the blackface performer head- born in that dire need for expression and com- the creation of American Tra c, a new work came from, and why—that’s fascinating.” v to-head with the young man who replaced munication,” she explains. “And those famous commissioned by the Auditorium Theatre for him in P.T. Barnum’s show, William Henry contests between African American dancers Chicago’s Trinity Irish Dance Company by Dor- @IreneCHsiao ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 15 Harold Mendez January 24 — THEATER THE YEARS arts.uchicago.edu/logan/gallery
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter LOWELL THOMAS
PREVIEW Breaking free from the ribbons of grief I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter follows a Latinx teen as she struggles for her own identity.
• Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts • 915 E 60th St Chicago IL 60637 Chicago IL 60637 the Arts • 915 E 60th St for Center Logan and David Gallery • Reva Center Logan By M DL C
March 8 n 2017, young Latinx people entered the the stage adaptation premiering at Steppen- mind of Julia Reyes, the protagonist in wolf, as part of the Steppenwolf for Young IErika L. Sánchez’s New York Times best- Adults series. (Sandra Marquez directs.) NOW selling novel, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican The story follows teenager Julia, an aspir- Daughter. Now through March 21, they can ing writer from Chicago who is often seen as enter her world and serve as her confi dant in rebellious and a nuisance by her family, as she 16 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll R READER RECOMMENDED b ALL AGES F THEATER “ VIGOROUSLY ENTERTAINING!” Chicago Sun-Times grieves the death of her older more tradition- Julia in the play. “Part of her grief and part of al sister, Olga. She also attempts to fi nd her- her struggle is that she is so unabashedly her- self in a world that tries to keep her identity self and won’t let others put her in a box, even confi ned to specifi c boxes of what a Mexican if it comes at great pain and great disconnect “Stick Fly TAKES FLIGHT “OUTSTANDING! American daughter should and shouldn’t be. for her family and friends.” at Writers!” Fast-paced Throughout this path of self-discovery, she Gómez sent her the novel when he had fi rst Chicago Reader and meticulous.” faces adversity in mental health, domestic decided to adapt it into a play. “I read it and I PicksinSix violence, and sexual trauma—topics that are just felt like Julia, Erika, and I were like kin- widely dismissed and seen as taboo in Latinx dred spirits,” Rodriguez says. “There’s some- households. thing about Julia and the way that she talks “[These topics] are what I think has and the way that her mind works that felt like brought the book so much popularity over the projects Isaac and I had worked on before.” last few years,” says playwright Isaac Gómez. Gómez says Rodriguez was a crucial part “It resonates because of all of the various of his adaptation process because of their shared backgrounds. The two are from border
cities between Texas and Mexico (Gómez Michael Brosilow. Eric Gerard and DiMonte Henning. Photo by Bria Bakari, Ayanna Pictured: Jennifer Latimore, grew up in El Paso, Rodriguez in Matamoros, I A N Y P M D / - / : Fri : PM, Sat and : PM; also across the border from Brownsville) and Sun /, PM, Steppenwolf Theatre, N. know what it’s like to feel like they’re from NOW PLAYING Halsted, - - , steppenwolf.org, $ - two places and everywhere all at once. “Every $ , $ students. play I’ve written, except one, has featured SEASON SPONSOR Karen in some capacity because she brings so much energy into everything she does,” 847-242-6000 I WRITERSTHEATRE.ORG intersection points, especially for people who he says. “She brings a piece of home in every- identify as Mexican, Mexican American, or thing she does.” Latinx.” But another aspect of the adaptation Gómez, who says he has read the book process was getting the rights from Sánchez around 18 or 20 times, wanted to embody the herself. Luckily, the author and current Sor world that Sánchez created and include all Juana Inés de la Cruz chair at DePaul Uni- of the central themes that make the protago- versity trusted in Gómez immediately. “As nist’s journey so challenging. This is especial- soon as I met Isaac, I felt like I could trust ly important because although not everyone’s him with the story, and he put so much care in upbringing was the same as Julia’s, a lot of transforming it in a way that was respectful the struggles she faces ring true for many. and very true to the original vision,” Sánchez Gómez, for example, says despite being a man says. raised in a home with four boys “there were Though the material remains the same, some things that Julia said about not being some changes were made to fi t the medium. the perfect Mexican daughter that allowed This includes adding asides, since the novel me to connect with her, especially because is told from the fi rst-person point of view. But I was an aspiring writer who struggled with according to Gómez and Rodriguez, this al- mental health and because I was someone lows the audience to actively serve as Julia’s who just wanted to get out and dream.” confi dant as she fi nds her voice. Similar to Julia, many first-generation More than anything, what Gómez, Sánchez, Americans face this pressure to adhere to and Rodriguez hope audiences gain from the specifi c standards of both their culture and play is a chance to feel seen in a new medium. the American culture while simultaneously “I think it’s really great that so many young having to provide for their families and put people of color are going to see the play. I fi nd their dreams aside. First-generation daugh- that really moving for me because when I was ters, specifi cally, have a harder time shedding growing up, I didn’t really have that,” says these limitations and remain tied down by Sanchez. “I never saw any plays that were re- old-fashioned roles. lated to my communities or who I was, and so This is what makes Julia so inspiring to the fact that so many young people are going many Latinx individuals. “We have this Mex- to have access to it is something that makes ican girl who is 15 and grappling with ribbons me feel really proud.” v of grief,” says Karen Rodriguez, longtime col- laborator of Gómez’s and the actress playing @marndel7 ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 17 THEATER THE I LLINOIS CANNABIS CONVENTION
Plano GRACIEMEIER
APRIL 3-4, 2020 REVIEW Sister acts THE CHICAGO HILTON, IL In Plano, three siblings share lives with messy men in an endless loop. By K R
s one of three sisters, I feel uniquely qual- missed a ping from one of my own two sisters. ifi ed to review the chaotic choreography The Plano sisters’ updates about their lives, THE LARGEST CANNABIS Aof dialogue that constitutes Plano, First all delivered from Genevieve’s front porch, Floor Theater’s presentation of the Chicago are stretched across space and time through CONVENTION FOCUSED premiere of Will Arbery’s play, directed by Au- smart staging and the telltale tones of their drey Francis. iPhones, the trill of FaceTime unmistakable ON ILLINOIS! Plano is a story about Anne, Genevieve, and (kudos to sound designer Eric Backus) as Anne Isabel, three “sisters and friends” with a lot and Genevieve check in with Isabel. She’s fl ed going on, thanks (or no thanks?) to the messy to Chicago to do the Lord’s work with women men in their lives: Juan, Steve, and God (repre- in need, while her two older sisters remain in sented as a “Faceless Ghost” and played by An- Texas, worried about their husbands’ multiple personalities that haunt their homes and the P streets of Plano. There is a sci-fi , futuristic, and R Through / : Thu-Sat PM, Sun 100+ VENDORS : PM; also Mon / , /, and / , impossible wash to this hypermodern produc- 75+ SPEAKERS PM, Steppenwolf Theatre, N. tion that works, despite its abject juxtaposition Halsted, - - , steppenwolf.org, with the pastoral porch setting. There is strobe $ -$ , $ students, $ industry. lighting, modern dance, and honky tonk. “It’s later now,” is a constant refrain slipped drew Lund), respectively. The cadence of con- into the run-on dialogue (fans of Gilmore Girls versation between these three Catholic-raised will love this production’s verbal rhythms), sisters is slapdash but urgent in delivery, while and that refrain is the only true marker of the solutions for what’s discussed are often put o passage of time. The sisters’ exchanges are pro- until “later.” Life passes in a continuous, loop- ductive insofar as they are cathartic—these sis- ing conversational style. ters are close and they care for each other—but As anyone with sisters close in age will tell resolution is fraught, which I appreciated. You necann.com/2020-illinois you, that’s how conversations amongst us go. don’t need sisters to accept that life is messy You listen urgently because you care, but also and men are unmanageable, let alone multiples because you’re perhaps waiting for your turn to of the same disappointing husband. While none Contact [email protected] talk. This dynamic, as demonstrated between of the women are genuinely happy in their re- Anne (Elizabeth Birnkrant), Genevieve (Ashley spective domestic scenarios (is anyone?), they or call 312-392-2934 Neal), and Isabel (Amanda Fink), is so authen- are happy to have each other. v tic that I felt myself getting anxious halfway through the performance, worried I’d perhaps @kaylenralph
18 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll THEATER
Dex & Abby HEATHER MALL
OPENING Actors Gymnasium primarily functions as a training school in the circus arts, but they put on a full-length A dog’s play show for an extended run every winter. And in the case Dex & Abby is too inane to charm. of The Ghost in Gadsden’s Garden, you’d be a fool to miss it. A reclusive gardener, Gadsden (Adrian Danzig) Normally, in a fantasy life, you obsess over your pets. Dog spends his days tending the beautiful fl owers on the cloning fi gures largely in the mind anytime I think about grounds of an old (and allegedly haunted) mansion. how it would feel to be Barbra Streisand, personally. But And indeed, his interactions with the lovely ghost Vivian th eatre there comes a point in any conversation with a decadent (Hayley Larson) provide the only semi-human contact person—around hour two, perhaps—when you wonder if he enjoys. But when Kid (Grace Sherman) creeps past th ursdays or when this fascinating individual will move on from dog the gate on a dare from classmates, they discover that BREAK THE ROUTINE talk and feed you dinner. That moment never comes in Vivian may not be what Gadsden thinks. with world premiere theatre Dex & Abby, a 130-minute tepid fi asco, written by Allan With echoes of Oscar Wilde’s fable “The Selfi sh Baker and directed by Daniel Washelesky. Giant” mixed with ecology lessons (Lucy Carapetyan Less a play than a live-action doggy-themed greet- plays Kid’s supportive science teacher), writers Chris ing card, this show imagines what it would be like if a Mathews (who also directs) and Sully Ratke incorporate Take pride in the Thursday, March 5 at 5:15pm rich gay couple, Sean and Corey, moved in together, the natural and supernatural with seamless aplomb. and if their dogs, who can talk, took a while to become Larson’s aerial work on the silks is particularly The Secret of My Success: friends. Daniel Vaughn Manasia and Chesa Greene as breathtaking, and Carapetyan joins with acrobatics UNIQUE A New Musical the titular pooch duo can wag those behinds all they creating clever physical metaphors for various scientifi c want: they’re dressed normally, their lines are inane relationships, from symbiotic to parasitic. (Sylvia Her- RISKY PARAMOUNT THEATRE at 23 E Galena Blvd in Aurora garbage, and I just didn’t buy that they were dogs and nandez-DiStasi created the circus interludes, with Kasey BOLD Join the Paramount Theatre for a pre-show reception with drinks neither did anybody else. Sure, they’re cute. But so is Foster choreographing dances to Kevin O’Donnell’s and apps from 5:15-6:45PM in the Grand Gallery Lobby including actual character development. So is costume design. original sound and music.) The teen ensemble plays new work a talk by a member of the production team. Then see the world The overall weakness of the thing turns unsettling various impish garden fl ora and Kid’s Scooby Gang of happening on at times, as when Sean (Josh Pablo Szabo) tries to win tormentors-turned-allies with assured wit and charm. premiere of the hilarious and heartfelt new musical The Secret of an argument with Corey (Jesse Montoya) about whose Danzig, cofounder of the beloved 500 Clown troupe, Chicago stages My Success at 7PM. experience of struggle is more valid by shouting point- brings poignant charm to his lonely aging Gadsden. The year-round ABOUT THE MUSICAL: blank into his partner’s face, “I’m a crack whore’s son!” entire show is a treat for the eyes and heart from begin- After moving to New York City for his dream job, Brantley Foster finds Or when an inexplicable foldout bed emerges from ning to end. —K R T G G ’ himself in a sidesplitting scheme and assumes the identity of a rising the wall, stays in the scene for two quick and vapid G Through 3/22: Fri 7:30 PM, Sat 4:30 and Theatre Thursdays is executive. As he climbs the corporate ladder, Brantley falls in love and cuddle scenes, then retracts once more, never to be 7:30 PM, Sun 3 PM, Noyes Cultural Arts Center, 927 NEW every month! discovers that his definition of success might be all wrong. Will he get the seen again. —M M D & A Through Noyes, Evanston, 847-328-2795, actorsgymnasium. job, win at love, or just get caught? 3/29: Thu-Fri 7:30 PM, Sat 8 PM, Sun 2:30 PM, The com, $28, $18 students. Broadway at Pride Arts Center, 4139 N. Broadway, Tickets are $40 with promo code LEAGUE (3/5 event + show) 800-737-0984, pridefilmsandplays.com, $40 pre- Cleveland rocks Buy Now: Paramountaurora.com or 630.896.6666 mium reserved, $30 general reserved, $25 students R Factory explores the Rust Belt, karaoke- and seniors (not valid Sat). style. MORE EVENTS: bit.ly/theatrethursday Garden of unearthly delights I guess a bad play could be written about the hostile R Actors Gymnasium’s winter show is not to overthrow of a Cleveland Heights karaoke bar at the @ChicagoPlays be missed. hands of a hard-cider magnate named Ethan, whose #TheatreThursday ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 19 THEATER
The Secret of My Success LIZ LAUREN funny, and angry 2018 relationship drama, which, rather than shying away from facing some of the most complex raphies under the tent of this shameful practice, from and systemic issues plaguing this country, takes them police to park rangers to government offi cials to pilots, all head-on. When it’s not dealing with gun violence, it’s Nottage makes the world a bit smaller and the tragedy addressing racism; then, for a breather, it tackles infi del- less abstract. As does her insertion of well-researched ity, abortion, and absent fathers. In less-capable hands, and disturbing facts, like poachers using tourists’ safari this material would have sunk under its own weight, but photos on social media to locate their prey. A er Lee has fashioned three characters who can pick it up, absorbing the question an ivory dealer asks a collec- li it, and keep going. It is a testament to these three tor—What price are you willing to pay for beauty?—you’ll talented actors that no matter how heavy the message walk away questioning the provenance and unknown they’re tasked with delivering, I never felt for a moment costs of any rare valuables you possess. —M that they were less than fully-formed human beings O M ’ T Through 3/21: Thu-Sat rather than conduits for information. 7:30 PM, Sun 3 PM; also Mon 3/16, 7:30 PM, Raven Wilson’s prized chiff orobe—passed down for gener- Theatre, 6157 N. Clark, 866-811-4111, griffintheatre. ations and used at one time to shelter runaway slaves in com, $38, $33 students, seniors, and veterans. its false backing—is the central metaphor and physical manifestation of the warring forces facing African Amer- Death Potion No. 9 icans in this country. It conceals as much as it reveals. It Poison tells the story of lethal women. carries a weighty load, but with its doors fl ung open is ready to take on whatever comes. —D S In 2013, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Deborah Blum R S Through 3/22: Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, wrote an article for Wired magazine titled “The Imper- Sun 3 PM; also Mon 3/2, 7:30 PM (industry), and Tue fect Myth of the Female Poisoner” that dispelled the 3/10, 7:30 PM (understudy), Redtwist Theatre, 1044 persistent cultural assumption that, as far as murder W. Bryn Mawr, 773-728-7529, redtwist.org, $35-$40, business card says, “purveyor of fi ne spirits and sophis- If I would let you ruin my life, I’m obviously looking methods go, homicides-by-poisoning are inherently $5 off for students and seniors. ticated settings.” I don’t see how, though. Some ideas for trouble already. Dex’s engagement to Andrea (Emma ladylike. “It’s not, you see, that poison is a woman’s are just too good. Regardless, Mike Beyer and Kirk Jo Boyden) is over the second he sits down with Shellie weapon,” says Blum. “It’s that it is an evil one.” And yet, Not so successful Pynchon haven’t written that bad play. Factory Theater’s at the bar in O’Hare a er their Thanksgiving fl ight dubiously sourced in historical criminology as they may A Michael J. Fox 1980s fi lm gets a cliched Last Night in Karaoke Town, directed by Kim Boler, is gets cancelled. You get the sense he would have let be, there’s something wickedly satisfying and elegantly musical makeover. a fantastic play, one that gets to the heart of so many anyone ruin his life, given half the chance. Shellie’s life badass about artistic depictions of women dispensing issues that matter, such as what varieties of taxidermy is practically in ruins already—she’s the full-time care- revenge with perfume-like vials of death. This musical version of the 1987 Michael J. Fox vehicle, should be allowed in bars (squirrels? buff alo?), who gets giver to an epileptic father (the amazing Jim Morley), In that respect, in this 90-minute dark dramedy set receiving its world premiere at the Paramount Theatre to sing Natalie Imbruglia’s “Torn” when both Audrey and unhappily married, tied down in every sense. She’s got in 17th century Paris, playwright Dusty Wilson has his in Aurora, tells a sweet, lighthearted story—plucky young Lily claim it as “mine, bitch,” and whether the rusted-out a fair bit of one of Headland’s other protagonists in her: cake and eats it too, indulging in a fantasy of outlaw man climbs the ladder of success from mail room to factory your dad used to work in getting rebuilt as an Natasha Lyonne’s character in the Netfl ix series Russian women paving their own way while also wrestling with executive suite—that feels a lot like an updated version REI is OK if you happen to like shopping at REI. You Doll, which Headland cocreated with Lyonne and Amy the gender and class-based roles that permit justice for of Frank Loesser’s 1961 Broadway hit How to Succeed in know, the important stuff . Poehler. some while dooming others. A talented chemist (Carina Business Without Really Trying, only without the bite or The rainbow of die-hards hanging out at owner Dex, Shellie, and Lyonne’s Nadia Vulvokov are all Lastimosa) and her tarot-card-reading lover (Lynnette wit or heart. Where How to Succeed at least attempted Diana’s joint could carry a production by themselves, alike—deacons in the church of “ruin my life.” But crack Li) create a cottage industry helping wealthy women to satirize American corporate culture (and largely fell so rife are they with quirks and infi ghting and opinions that pained thought open, and you see what it really is murder their plutocrat husbands. Christina Casano’s short), The Secret of My Success is content to tell a story about Van Halen. And then you have Ethan, played by saying: I would let you kindle these dead nerve endings production for The Plagiarists keeps the grisly conse- that would barely sustain one episode in a sitcom. Even Tommy Bullington, who saunters in one fi ne day with again. I would let you see if I’m still here. —M M quences of its protagonists’ actions at arm’s length for though the story touches on some of the more devas- his crates of pear cider and long black shawl to inform T L Through 3/22: Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, the most part, focusing instead on their justifi cations tating aspects of contemporary business (layoff s, plant Diana (Wendy Hayne) that he’s bought the building and Sun 2:30 PM, Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. and nights spent spritzing toxic plants in a sparse but closings, kleptocratic leadership), the show remains intends to refi ne its spirits and sophisticate its settings. Lincoln, 773-404-7336, greenhousetheater.org, $20. romantic hamlet tucked on the outskirts of society. A relatively toothless. What follows is a raucous showdown between the dual framing device featuring an interrogator (Bryan Breau) Part of the problem is the show’s bland, cliche-fi lled opposing forces of innovation and authenticity. I can’t The elephant’s graveyard doesn’t quite reach the emotional contrasts Casano and book by Gordon Greenberg (who also directs) and say who wins. I can say that I laughed so hard at every- R Mlima’s Tale shows the costs of the company seem to be aiming for, but there’s some decent Steve Rosen. You just can’t tell an interesting story if you thing Bullington did that I thought I would be asked ivory trade. fun to be had with a fl amboyant rival poisoner (Julia are content to give us, without irony, a show full of stock to leave the theater. —M M L N Stemper) and a naive woman of leisure (Brittani Yawn). characters and predictable plot twists. The show’s for- K T Through 3/28: Fri-Sat 8 PM, Sun This Lynn Nottage drama is pure kinetic energy, explor- —D J P Through 3/14: Thu-Fri 8 PM, gettable score, by Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler, 3 PM, Factory Theater, 1623 W. Howard, 866-811- ing the illicit ivory trade through the haunting death of Sat 2 and 8 PM; also Mon 3/2 and 3/9, 8 PM (indus- is less shallow than the book, though at times the songs 4111, thefactorytheater.com, $25, $18 students and Mlima, an African elephant. Griffi n Theatre Company’s try performances), Berger Park Cultural Center, o en feel like pastiches of better-known pop tunes of seniors. production, a midwest premiere directed by Jerrell L. 6205 N. Sheridan, theplagiarists.org, pay what you the last 50 years. Still, the tunes are ear pleasing, and Henderson, thrives on its use of movement, sound, and can. the lyrics are frequently playful and witty. Love among the ruins staging to illustrate our shared complicity in the poach- A larger problem though is that the show’s story and R The cocreator of Russian Doll lands a ing of a vulnerable species. Mlima, whose name means Carry that weight message—the vanity of success, the importance of integ- masterpiece. “mountain” in Swahili, is played by a mostly silent David R The a ermath of a police shooting rity and love—is too intimate for the big stage, and gets Goodloe, who looms large, literally, over the entire 90 shatters a picture-book marriage. lost in all the singing and dancing and general Broadway “I would let [insert name here] ruin my life” is a phrase minutes. He’s the show’s emotional canvas, employing glitz. Heidi Kettenring and Sydney Morton, as the two that anyone who’s radiated their eyes with thirsty ethereal, athletic movements and an intense, textured Ruby (Brooke Reams) and Wilson (Kevin Tre’Von Pat- major female characters in the show, do a great job comments online over the past few years will recognize gaze that as reads both accusatory and mournful. As terson) seem to have a picture-book marriage. While bringing heart and fi re to the show. But Billy Harrigan as a hallmark of the genre. What does it mean? If Dex Mlima’s tusks become increasingly objectifi ed, Goodloe their daughter is away at summer camp, they plan on Tighe brings no heat to his portrayal of the lead; again (Michael Vizzi) and Shellie (Allison Plott) feel that way turns his body into a fl oppy piece of meat, resigned and trying for another baby. But when Ruby’s best friend, and again we found ourselves yearning for Michael J. about each other in Leslye Headland’s The Layover—a exhausted. Claire (Deveon Bromby), comes to stay a few weeks Fox’s sly Alex Keatonish charm. —J H T total masterpiece, ultimately just as devastating as it is A tight, propulsive story, this production leverages a while recovering from the loss of a husband shot by a S M S Through 3/29: Wed 1:30 hot—presented by The Comrades under Drew Shirley’s capable ensemble of six to bring to life the entire chain white cop, the couple’s seemingly blissful existence is and 7 PM, Thu 7 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 3 and 8 PM, Sun direction, as I contend they do, what does that feeling of events from Mlima’s death in Kenya to the unveiling shattered. 1 and 5:30 PM, Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena entail? Is it a disease? Is that, heaven help us, what love of an ivory carving in the home of a wealthy collector Christopher Burris directs this midwest Redtwist Blvd., Aurora, 630-896-6666, paramountaurora. is now? across the world. By bringing so many people and geog- premiere of Rabbit Summer, Tracey Conyer Lee’s tense, com, $36-$74. v 20 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll B sss Dir. Kantemir Balagov, min. Playing / - /, Gene Siskel Film Center FILM
Beanpole throughout the fi lm to Masha’s manic twirling during a particularly intense scene; the latter exploit for cinematic tension. This sets the tone moment recalls one from Closeness, in which for the rest of the film, which, in addition to its female protagonist, feeling frustrated, danc- handling the protagonists’ trauma, reveals the es wildly in a nightclub. More minute actions, su ering of those around them. All this mani- like Iya’s hands on a dying soldier’s neck or fests in Masha’s frenzied desire to have another Masha’s elusive smiles, often framed in visceral child, which she convinces Iya to bear for her close-up, draw one into the intimacies of their because she’s now unable to conceive due to being; that both women are played by fi rst-time injuries sustained during the war. Masha’s actresses is extraordinary. desire for new life and Iya’s awkward desire It’s these vagaries that di erentiate Balagov to “master” Masha, as she admits later in the from fi lmmakers who use such idiosyncrasies fi lm (an inclination that could be viewed as a in an almost gimmicky fashion. Contrary to the REVIEW warped romantic overture), speak to how each marketing for the fi lm—such as a teaser trailer is processing her respective trauma. that combines certain scenes and sounds in a The story is compounded by Balagov’s misleading way—Balagov is not mining the sce- Kantemir Balagov solidifi es his imposing visual aesthetic, which was evident nario for its inherent weirdness. It’s there, to be in Closeness but here is on a whole new level. sure, but it’s not meant to shock or awe. Nor is The striking mise-en-scène features intimate the fi lm overtly political—there are oblique ref- signature style with Beanpole handheld camerawork, sullen long takes, bold erences to communism, but there’s no mention lighting, and bright, painterly colors, specifi - of Stalin. If anything, it’s rather plaintive and The Russian fi lmmaker’s second feature explores the atrocities of war. cally red (which signifi es blood and death) and unequivocal, the anomalies of life after trauma. green (which signifi es life). But above these as- “My name is Kantemir Balagov,” I can almost By K S pects, I most admire how Balagov captures the see on the screen, this time at the end of the characters’ physicality, from Iya’s freezing fi ts fi lm. “And it’s as straightforward as this.” v
everal minutes into Kantemir Balagov’s cinematic qualities of image and sound—are first feature, Closeness (2017), the young just as integral as the protagonists’ inner lives. Sdirector makes himself known. “My name Set in Leningrad in the fall of 1945, follow- is Kantemir Balagov,” reads an onscreen text. ing the end of the war, the fi lm considers the THIS WEEK AT “I am a Kabardian.” Set in Balagov’s hometown fraught relationship between the titular Bean- of Nalchik, the capital of the North Caucasus pole, Iya (newcomer Viktoria Miroshnichenko, republic of Kabardino-Balkaria where the fi lm’s a singular presence), and Masha (Vasilisa real-life events took place, Closeness follows Perelygina, a similarly beguiling newcomer), THE LOGAN the family of a young Jewish man who gets both of whom were among the 800,000 women kidnapped and held for ransom against the who served in the Soviet Armed Forces during run-up to the Second Chechen War. The fi lm has World War II. Beanpole opens with a medium little in common plot-wise with Balagov’s sec- close-up of Iya, frozen, while women around ond feature, Beanpole. Still, I was reminded of her go about their daily business. Someone Balagov’s rather bold decision to start his debut attempts to rouse her; the camera pulls back feature with that personal declaration—a new, to reveal her towering height in comparison to young talent (he was then, and is still, in his the other women—hence the nickname “Bean- THE GREAT DICTATOR mid-20s) introducing himself to the world. pole,” which, in Russian, also means clumsy, a Balagov’s sophomore e ort secures his place descriptor Balagov has said represents a post- FEB 28-29 AT 11 PM as an endeavoring auteur. Inspired by Nobel war state of physical and mental unease. At the laureate Svetlana Alexievich’s 1985 oral history beginning, Iya is shown to be a nurse in a vet- of Russian women who fought during World eran’s hospital, taking care of Pashka, a young War II, The Unwomanly Face of War (which boy who seems to be her son. But after she Balagov read while studying under Russian accidentally smothers him during a freezing fi t, filmmaker Alexander Sokurov), Beanpole, Masha comes back from the front, and we learn cowritten by Balagov and Aleksandr Terekhov, that Pashka was actually hers. continues the former’s speculative and near-so- It speaks to the atrocities of war and its DAISIES ciological examination of contiguous su ering. aftermath—and Balagov’s distinctive handling Closeness focuses on the sister of the kidnap- of it—that the boy’s death is not the catalyst MAR 3-5 AT 10:30 PM ping victim, while Beanpole centers around for a pronounced, guilt-ridden breakdown be- two young women soldiers in the aftermath tween the two women, but rather the impetus of World War II. These aren’t mere character of an odd codependent relationship, born of 2646 N. MILWAUKEE AVE | CHICAGO, IL | THELOGANTHEATRE.COM | 773.342.5555 studies, however; what’s on the surface—those immense su ering, that the fi lmmakers don’t ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 21 R READER RECOMMENDED b ALL AGES N NEW F Get showtimes and see reviews of everything playing FILM this week at chicagoreader.com/movies.
NOW PLAYING are better le unfulfi lled. The problem with Fantasy Island is that it can’t commit. It has scary moments, Brahms: The Boy II but they’re not scary enough to be horror. It has jokes The Boy is back in town. And, oh, how we missed (most of which are told by two of the only interesting Brahms, the porcelain doll with a wardrobe so dandy characters: Jimmy O. Yang as Brax Weaver/Tattoo and he’s able to coax Liza (Katie Holmes) and Sean (Owain Ryan Hansen as J. D. Weaver), but it’s not funny enough Yeoman) into letting their son Jude (Christopher Conv- to be a comedy. There is magic, but we’re led to believe We Are Not Princesses ery) keep him. This is, of course, a huge mistake, which this isn’t magic even though the story makes no sense they may have realized if they considered sooner that in reality. Even the fantasies of each character don’t Brahms was found in a shallow grave outside a dilapi- quite add up. The concept of wish fulfi llment is a com- dated estate watched over by creepy caretaker Joseph pelling one, but the fi lm blows past an opportunity to (Ralph Ineson). Shit inevitably gets weird, working its explore that. By its end, Fantasy Island is just another way to a supernatural crescendo that unfortunately cautionary tale against remakes. —N D L erases the ingenious twist of the third act from 2016’s PG-13, 109 min. Now playing in wide release The Boy. What the fi lm’s director William Brent Bell and writer Stacey Menear do get right, however, is We Are Not Princesses Brahms’s ability to endear himself to those around him. R In most productions of Sophocles’s Antigone, Wait to stream the sequel, but know it’s in preparation the tragedy is blunted by the distance of millennia. The for what’s gearing up to become a full-blown franchise, bridge between the seats of a contemporary theater which promises to give the people what they want— and the landscape where Antigone is murdered by a more Brahms. —B J PG-13, 86 min. Now tyrannical king is thousands of years long. But the shim- playing in wide release mering, fascinating, inherently dramatic documentary We Are Not Princesses, about Syrian refugee women Compensation rehearsing Antigone, closes that distance. Directors R Shot on the cheap in Evanston and Chicago, Bridgette Auger and Itab Azzamby take viewers this 1999 drama by Zeinabu Irene Davis manages to through rehearsals unfolding within a Beirut refugee surmount its budget limitations through the beauty camp, using the play to explore the stark parallels and symmetry of its narrative. In the early 20th century between Sophocles’s tragedy and the refugees’ expe- a deaf black woman (Michelle A. Banks) struggles to riences. Antigone defi ed King Creon by burying her overcome the three strikes against her, even as she rebel brother, despite the king’s order that he be le to falls for a hearing but illiterate stockyard worker (John rot in the streets. For the cast members, there’s nothing Earl Jelks); interspersed with this tale, and starring distant or metaphorical about Antigone’s predicament. the same actors, is a modern story about another deaf “We don’t know if their bodies have been eaten by dogs black woman and her hearing boyfriend. Davis shoots in or what,” says one woman of loved ones lost to the black-and-white, using archival photos to establish the Syrian war, their bodies le to rot, unburied, where they turn-of-the-century setting, but they’re so evocatively fell. For another cast member, Antigone’s imprisonment deployed that you might forget they’re a money-saving and erasure evokes memories of being married as a device. The storytelling is pointedly visual, modeled child and then imprisoned at home for losing her face a er the silent cinema, and the resulting purity of emo- veil. A third woman raps about fl eeing Syria in high tion elevates even the modern-day love story. —JR heels, weeping in pain as she ran. Gorgeous animation J 92 min. Thu 2/27, 7 PM. Block Museum of Art sequences (by Pedro Allevato) are used to protect the identities of cast members who could face brutal Daisies punishments if recognized on screen. The haunting R My favorite Czech fi lm, and surely one of the images seem to capture the intersection between body most exhilarating stylistic and psychedelic eruptions of and spirit as Antigone comes to life. We don’t learn Find hundreds the 60s, this madcap and aggressive feminist farce by much about the organization leading rehearsals, which Vera Chytilova explodes in any number of directions. is fi tting. We Are Not Princesses belongs to the women of Reader- Two uninhibited young women named Marie engage immersed in Antigone, and bears witness to their epic in escapades that add up to less a plot than to a string journeys. —C S 74 min. Sat 2/29, 7 PM. recommended of outrageous set pieces, including several antiphallic Chicago Filmmakers gags and a free-for-all with fancy food (rivaling Laurel restaurants, and Hardy) that got Chytilova in lots of trouble with ALSO PLAYING the authorities; disturbing yet liberating, it shows exclusive video what this talented director can do with freedom. A JCC Chicago Jewish Film Festival major infl uence on Jacques Rivette’s Celine and Julie The annual festival returns with more than 50 fi lms features, and sign up Go Boating, this 1966 feature is chock-full of female featuring Jewish fi lmmakers, writers, and actors screen- giggling, which might be interpreted in context as the ing over three weekends in multiple venues including for weekly news at laughter of Medusa: subversive, bracing, energizing, Logan Theatre, Century 12 Evanston/CineArts 6, Land- and rather challenging to most male spectators. In mark Renaissance Place Cinema in Highland Park, and chicagoreader.com/ Czech with subtitles. —J R 74 min. the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center. For food. Tue 3/3-Thu 3/5, 10:30 PM. Logan Theatre all venues and full schedule of screenings visit jccfi lm- Fantasy Island fest.org. 2/28-3/15. Various venues An interesting premise goes to waste in Blumhouse’s Present.Perfect horror reimagining of the 1977 television series, Fan- SAIC grad Shengze Zhu directed this documentary tasy Island. This adaptation keeps the bones of the about the Internet livestreaming phenomenon in China, original: strangers arrive at a mysterious island run by with a focus on more marginal individuals than those Mr. Roarke (Michael Peña) where they’re told that their who have become celebrities. In Mandarin with subti- wildest fantasies will be brought to life, but as each tles. 124 min. Zhu attends the screening. Fri 2/28, 7 fantasy begins, they quickly realize that some dreams PM. Block Museum of Art v
22 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll 師父SIFU An Evening of Cantonese Opera TICKETS UCHICAGOGlobal bit.ly/sifu_opera Tue, Mar 17 • 7pm / Performance Hall Pre-show talk at 6:30pm; reception following performance General $25; Seniors $10; Students and The tradition of Cantonese opera, with its vivid costumes, distinctive music, and children 5 & under $5 dramatic presentation, has been fostered and developed for over 500 years. Since its inception, this living practice has been carried on by sifu, experienced performers and LOGAN CENTER FOR THE ARTS masters of the form fluent in the narratives of myth and history. For one performance 915 E 60TH ST only, opera sifu will present a collection of these canonical stories through martial Free parking Mon–Fri after 4pm arts, acrobatics, acting, and singing, accompanied by traditional Chinese percussion. loganUChicago ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 23 FRANK OKAY
chair, and second was that free shirt, which I promptly lost. I still haven’t made another trip to Metro, and even now I think about that concert. I probably wouldn’t have attended without the free ticket (nothing against the artists—I just didn’t know them well), and in retrospect I’m thankful I wasn’t hugely into it. If I’d had even a marginally better time, I’d have risked it on the Metro steps again. The Chicago live-music scene is a defi ning feature of the city’s cultural landscape. It’s a wide, diverse, and inclusive space, and over the decades it’s been opened up to more and more voices and audiences—people who were once locked out of the social conversa- tion surrounding music or even locked out of the business of making and performing it publicly. But while it’s certainly good news that the willingness to accept diversity is no longer an overriding concern, the question remains: Is the scene inclusive of everyone? When it comes to accessibility for people with disabilities, the short answer is “It’s complicated.” The long answer is “It’s really complicated.” When the Americans With Disabilities Act passed in 1990, people with disabilities were supposed to be granted an unprecedented level of access, not only to civil rights but also to public spaces and the social inclusion they o er. Language to this e ect appears in every version of the act, from the 1990 orig- inal through the 2015 amendment, as well as in the disability section of the 2017 Chicago Human Rights Ordinance, which regulates accessibility in public spaces (more on that in a moment). This repetition is key, because it indicates that the legislators involved understood the importance of public spaces. Consider the other primary areas covered under ADA, such as employment, education, housing, and access to justice. Access to pub- lic spaces is on the same level—people with Music is for every body disabilities must be able to fully participate Chicago’s concert venues have made welcome advances in accessibility, but a regulatory gray area lets them fall short in culture and commerce in order to integrate of what they should be. themselves into modern life. The ADA will turn 30 on July 26, 2020, and By B O’D during its history tremendous strides have been made for those with disabilities—for an example, look no further than Tammy lmost ten years ago, I was of- two details from the show: the harrowing the fact that Curren$y gave me a T-shirt. I Duckworth’s service in the Senate. At a micro fered a free ticket to see New experience of having my wheelchair pushed go to lots of concerts, but this one stands level, the signs of progress are all around, Orleans rapper Curren$y up two flights of stairs to the theater, then out—and not for good reasons. First was in the ubiquity of basic access features such and Chicago duo the Cool lowered back down in a process that was the venue, which I’d been assured would be as curb cuts and braille signage. It’s getting AKids at Metro. I remember somehow even more grueling and scary, and fully equipped to handle a person in a wheel- better every day, but as with all avenues of 24 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll MUSIC
social progress, the more things improve, the required if a covered structure was built after standard. So let’s step outside the legal disabilities who are simply a ected in their more glaring the remaining failures become. December 31, 2016 (600.401), and if a building framework and look at the practical realities own way by the physical realities of a venue. Given that Chicago’s live-music scene is so predates the 2017 code, then any alterations of engaging with the Chicago music scene. thoroughly enmeshed with the city’s socio- after December 31, 2016, must accommodate What’s it like to actually go to shows with a ARAGON BALLROOM cultural past, present, and future, it’s as good access to the “maximum extent feasible” disability—in my case, using a wheelchair? 1106 W. Lawrence a lens as any through which to examine the (600.402). This includes adding elevators to I try to average a show a week, and that The Aragon regularly plays host to touring remaining gaps in access. buildings taller than three stories or exceed- takes me all across the city and to all sizes and acts just a step below those who can confi- Section 600 of the 2017 Chicago Human ing 1,000 square feet of usable space, exclud- types of venues. If you do anything enough dently book the United Center or Allstate Rights Ordinance is the most applicable legal ing areas such as storage closets (600.404). times, you start to pick up on patterns—and Arena. It’s a magnificent space, with a gor- standard for music venues—in its own words, The “maximum extent feasible“ standard for me, those patterns mostly involve access. geous interior facade, and the great musi- its intent is to “implement the disability applies broadly, though, and there’s also an Why is this venue easier to go to than that cians it attracts make it nearly unavoidable. rights provisions.” Music venues are covered overarching exception that lets businesses o one? How does the accessibility here affect From an accessibility standpoint, the Ara- as public accommodations or commercial the hook if accommodations would impose how I need to plan my night? Why do acts I gon technically has everything, but it also has spaces and thus prohibited from discriminat- an outsize cost or other “undue burden.” To like keep playing Metro? fundamental fl aws that create complications. ing against those with disabilities (section adjudicate claims, the city takes into account I’ve assessed a few prominent venues in The accessible section is on the third-floor 600.202a). This includes but is not limited factors such as fi nancial resources and total terms of accessibility. I’ll default to legal balcony, but the bathrooms (a crucial part to providing physical access to venues, sep- number of employees. standards only when necessary—I prefer to of any night out!) are on the fi rst fl oor. The arate ticketing, accommodations for service At this point, the complexity of the issue simply try to tell you what a night at a show elevator is a rickety old relic that barely fi ts a animals, and, most relevant, the removal of should be more clear. Yes, public spaces are looks like for me. I can only speak to my single wheelchair, so getting to and from the barriers when necessary. required to make accommodations for people specifi c experiences, of course, and how they accessible section—which is spacious, with Among the accommodations covered are with disabilities, but the extent of such ac- relate to my specifi c condition—which means excellent sight lines—is an ordeal. installing ramps, repositioning shelves, commodations can be debated from all sorts I’ll be talking about mobility and wheelchair The Aragon, like every venue I discuss lowering buttons, and including braille trans- of angles, and the diversity within the disabil- accessibility. People with other conditions here, has fulfilled its legal obligations. But lations (600.304). These modifications are ity community makes access an ever-evolving may fi nd some parallels, as may those without on a practical level, can access be considered
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continued from 25 part-time venues, where you can fi nd some of equal when my experience is so much more the most interesting underground or up-and- complicated? This is a small issue, but it illu- coming acts. Of course, house and basement minates the gap between the goal of accessi- shows are great for that sort of thing too, but bility regulations and the real-world result. most DIY venues are outside the scope of this discussion—private residences aren’t cov- ered under the regulations outlined above. Galleries and similar converted spaces are still commercial businesses, though, and thus subject to the code. Is the scene While Co-Pro appears inaccessible, with two steps to enter, the sta have ramps for inclusive of each landing that they’ll bring out. They’re not specialized pieces of equipment—you everyone? can get them at Lowe’s or on Amazon for less than $200, and they’ll support nearly all When it comes wheelchairs. They’re basic, but they make all the di erence. to accessibility The space also has gender-neutral rest- rooms that remove another major barrier for people with for visitors with disabilities. Gender-neutral restrooms are, in my experience, a godsend disabilities, for people like me, who have larger pieces of medical equipment or require assistance. the short They allow for assistants of a di erent gender to help without awkwardness, and they’re answer is “It’s usually larger than gender-specific bath- rooms, with more maneuvering room. It’s a complicated.” perfect example of how working to include one group can open the door to others. The long answer The vast majority of venues can be made accessible, at least for entrance, with simple is “It’s really changes. It comes down to whether or not the people running them care to think about how complicated.” they can include everyone. The Co-Prosperity Sphere puts in that thought. Lots of other venues that I don’t have the space to address in detail also do a fi ne job, among them Thalia Hall, Martyrs’, the Vic, Sleeping Village (though there’s no access to the edge of the BEAT KITCHEN stage), Schubas, and Bottom Lounge. 2100 W. Belmont This throwback watering hole has surprising- EMPTY BOTTlE ly good food and a small venue in the back. 1035 N. Western The issue is with the bathrooms—they’re I need to declare my bias before I proceed. I down a fl ight of steep stairs, and there’s no love the Empty Bottle in a way that I doubt elevator. No getting around that. I’ll ever love a human person. In an increas- ingly homogeneous landscape, the Bottle is a CO-PROSPERITY SPHERE glorious throwback to the days of dives. Low 3219 S. Morgan ceilings, low lighting, surprisingly expansive This Bridgeport gallery, also the home base of bar offerings, an outstanding calendar of Lumpen Radio and Lumpen magazine, hosts local and national acts—this is the purest occasional concerts, including the annual expression of Chicago’s no-bullshit musical Windy City Crash Pop Festival (in conjunction aesthetic. The result is often a tightly packed with Marz Brewing, another related enter- crowd imbued with breathless energy, thanks prise). Co-Pro represents a class of hybrid or to a blast-it-to-the-back-wall sound system 26 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll MUSIC 3730 N. CLARK ST METROCHICAGO.COM @ METROCHICAGO
that’s right at the end of your nose. women’s room in 2020—possibly both rest- The Bottle is older, though, and like many rooms, if its budget permits. He also stresses EOB ARCA older places, it has small bathrooms that that the Bottle is eager to hear ideas from WED MAY 27 TOTAL FREEDOM make it prohibitively di cult for wheelchair patrons about how it can be better about ac- FRI MAY 08 users to have any privacy. You’ve either got to cessibility in other areas as well. The current block the door somehow or use the restroom situation at the Bottle, as with the location more or less in the open. While the statute of the Aragon’s restrooms, doesn’t so much NIGHTMARES requires bathroom access, changes to make exclude disabled people as make things more ON WAX PRESENTS this particular bathroom more accessible complicated for them—it’s one of the many ARMOR SMOKERS DELIGHT would involve at the very least knocking out challenges that remain in this twilight zone FOR SLEEP 25TH ANN. LIVE FRI AUG 14 ORCHESTRA SHOW part of a stall wall, which would be burden- between regulation and reality. SAT APR 18 some. Bottle owner Bruce Finkelman says the I appreciate many things about the Bottle, club plans to improve the accessibility of its but the standout feature is the staff. They
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continued from 27 building it occupies went up in 1927. But judg- inaccessibility. The solution, unfortunately, tapping the joystick (which disengages the should be commended for the casual and, ing by its level of accessibility, it hasn’t had to is two ramps laid over those fl ights of stairs. brakes) while sta ers slowly guided the chair dare I say, normal way they treat guests change a thing since the law went into e ect. To clarify why this is a problem, I’ll do down the ramps, stopping on each landing to with disabilities. The staffs at some venues To explain what going to a show there is like, some math. The ADA has guidelines only for catch their breaths. Having the motors en- are unsure or uncomfortable when dealing it’s best to walk through it step by step. new ramps, which state that the maximum gaged allowed the chair to roll but didn’t let with guests with disabilities, but the Bottle’s The Wrigleyville landmark has a second- allowable slope is 1:12 (one inch of rise must it roll freely—if it had, I would’ve been little aren’t—and as a bonus, many of them are also fl oor concert hall that hosts an excellent and have 12 inches of run), or about 4.8 degrees. more than lots of dead weight falling fast, and in good bands. eclectic array of nationally recognizable acts. Other organizations support this standard, those steps leave very little margin for error. No venue is without its flaws, but some But to access that hall, you’ll need to negoti- though in my experience as a frequent ramp My chair weighs three times what I do, and I have more than others. Though the House ate two long fl ights of stairs and a two-step user, anything less than 15 degrees is fi ne. The don’t have the muscular support to manage of Blues has helpful staff and is generally landing at the top. average fl ight of stairs has an incline of 37 de- an accident as opposed to just being crushed. accessible, it doesn’t allow wheelchairs on To its credit, the venue understands that grees. I haven’t measured the stairs at Metro, Thankfully, on the day I went, the sta were the main fl oor, and its accessible section has this might be a problem. It asks disabled but even if they’re not as steep as they feel— incredibly capable and good natured. poor sight lines. SPACE in Evanston likewise people to get in touch in advance of a show: even if they’re merely average—they’d still be Why is this allowed to continue? At this has terrible sight lines for wheelchair users, “Metro is always happy to accommodate well beyond the maximum slope allowed for point, you can probably rattle off a list of unless you manage to get a seat. The Chicago patrons with special needs,” says owner and a new ramp. loopholes that might apply. In this case, Theatre, though it’s gorgeous from the mar- founder Joe Shanahan. “We ask that patrons When you arrive to find these ramps, installing an elevator would probably be quee on down, has a lousy accessible section e-mail with their name, nature of your special you’ll also fi nd Metro’s entire security team deemed prohibitively expensive, if not infea- that makes for a di cult experience in such a need, and date of the show at ask@metro- waiting to push you up the stairs one gruel- sible due to the building’s layout. A smaller big space. And then there’s Metro. chicago.com. Prior notice is preferable as it ing, nerve-wracking inch at a time. This is venue wouldn’t be large enough to trigger the helps in preparation and to ensure we have inelegant and exhausting enough, but then elevator requirement, and a building on the METRO sta ready to assist the patron in the enjoy- they need to manually lift your chair up the National Register of Historic Places (just as a 3730 N. Clark ment of the show.” fi nal two steps. The trip down is every bit as for instance) would have its own exemptions. Metro has been in business about a decade This request for prior notice implies there’s harrowing, but you aren’t being pushed—on Perhaps the most effective barrier to im- longer than the ADA has existed, and the a solution in place for the room’s apparent my wheelchair, I had to engage the motors by proving access is, ironically, the bureaucracy
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designed to protect and uphold access. Not everyone can a ord to hire a lawyer and fi le a compliance claim, even though sometimes such a claim is the only way to push change. Chicago has a stellar reputation when it comes to accessibility and enforcement. But many aspects of accessibility can be defi ned as optional, depending on the circumstances (or whether you’re dealing with someone who sees nothing but the basic necessities for survival as worthy of mandatory protection). SPECIAL GUESTS MARK HAYES Friday, March 6 In those cases, the intransigence of bureau- Park West cracy becomes more of an issue. This Saturday! February 29 This Saturday! February 29 Why would I spend time and money to fi g- Park West Vic Theatre ure out why Metro is like this? Or to deal with a grievance procedure that will simply con- fi rm that the venue is already in compliance? I can just not go there—or adopt the mindset, only half in jest, that I’ll go strictly for shows that I’d be willing to die to see. I’m currently debating this for Drive-By Truckers, Dan Deacon, Pussy Riot, and AJJ. But as with so many other shows, they probably just won’t be worth the risk or the e ort. That’s the real issue, isn’t it? If a venue is accessible to the standard of the law but still excludes certain people under certain cir- cumstances, then for those people the venue is inaccessible. They’re kept out of the space, SPECIAL GUESTS OLD SALT UNION the experience, and the culture. with Saturday, Also annoying is the fact that any time I Saturday, March 7 Special Guests March 7 spend discussing the nuances of regulation is Vic Theatre Riviera Theatre time I can’t spend discussing music. I’d much rather tell you about all the wonderful expe- riences I’ve had at shows or festivals, or talk about Thalia Hall’s In the Round series, or really just address anything about the music. If I didn’t love it so much, I wouldn’t be here saying any of this. It can feel confounding to try to solve the Saturday, June 13 new access issues that have cropped up as old Park West barriers were broken down, but I’m certainly On Sale This Friday at 10am! not advocating defeatism—the first step is to see the issues. Take three seconds and ask yourself if a place is accessible for someone with a disability. Think about what that might entail, outside of “Are there steps?” (though don’t ignore that question either). Progress requires collective effort. You may have a solution or an opportunity that I don’t, or maybe you can see the situation in a di erent Saturday, March 14 • Park West light. The ADA was put in place by a huge group of people working together, all contrib- uting in any way they could, and it’ll surely BUY take the same sort of e ort to fi x the rest of TICKETS these issues. AT Then we can get back to the music. v ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 29 Recommended and notable shows and critics’ insights for the week of February 27
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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY PM Though her work is o en characterized as minimal- ist, composer Éliane Radigue is a category unto her- Sierra Hull self. During the 1950s and ’60s, the Paris resident with special guest Jodee Lewis worked as an assistant to the originators of musique concrète, Pierre Schaeffer and Pierre Henry. But SUNDAY, MARCH PM the music she composed after leaving their orbit employed long tones obtained from microphone JigJam Irish Bluegrass • In Szold Hall feedback, tape loops, and synthesizers, and it’s both quiet and demanding; close listening is necessary to SUNDAY, MARCH & PM perceive the subtle shi s in tonal color that occur as these pitches gradually coalesce and disperse. Just Ladysmith Black a er the turn of the century, Radigue transitioned from playing electronics to composing for acoustic Mambazo performers, and the fi rst instrumentalist she chose was American cellist Charles Curtis. The essence SUNDAY, MARCH PM of their fi rst collaboration, Naldjorlak I (composed between 2005 and 2008), is the wolf tone, which Roberto Fonseca occurs in stringed instruments when the resonant In Armitage Hall, W. Armitage Ave frequency of a bowed string and the resonant fre- quency of the instrument’s body interact with each FRIDAY, MARCH PM other to create a new sound—usually a raw mael- strom of string and wood noise. Cellists generally David Wilcox In Szold Hall do whatever they can to avoid wolf tones, but on Naldjorlak I, Curtis sustains and modulates them for SATURDAY, MARCH & PM GIULIANACOVELLA three quarters of an hour, obtaining rich layers of rasping and resonance that are every bit as entranc- ing as Radigue’s electronics of yore. On Curtis’s Lúnasa three-CD survey Performances & Recordings 1998- 2018, just released by the Saltern label, he exercis- FRIDAY, MARCH PM es similar devotion to the diverse requirements of Wire a piece by 17th-century Scottish composer Tobias Martin Hayes Quartet Wed /, PM, Metro, N. Clark, $, $ in advance. + Hume, another by 20th-century 12-tone composer Anton Webern, a Velvet Underground-steeped orig- THURSDAY, APRIL PM inal named “Music for Awhile,” and a more recent Radigue composition. Curtis will return to Nald- The Secret Sisters jorlak I for this Thursday concert, which is part of with special guest Logan Ledger IN, British punk and postpunk pioneers Wire pulled an unforgettable power move: the Frequency Festival (booked by former Reader After a few years’ hiatus, the band reconvened and announced a comeback tour. However, staff er Peter Margasak). The festival also presents FRIDAY, APRIL PM performances of Radigue’s music by violist Julia they were only interested in their new electronic material and refused to perform any of Eckhardt and trumpeter Nate Wooley on Wednes- Carrie Newcomer their beloved early songs. So they booked a Wire tribute band, the Ex-Lion Tamers (which day, February 26, in the Bond Chapel of Rockefel- included Chicago music critic Jim DeRogatis), to open for them and play their iconic 1977 ler Memorial Chapel. Curtis will make a nonfestival SATURDAY, APRIL PM appearance at the Art Institute that same day, play- album Pink Flag in its entirety. Decades down the line, they’re not so reluctant to revisit ing over prerecorded drones in response to the Julian Lage & Chris their storied history. Wire’s second act (or is it third?) has been under way since 2003, work on display in the Alsdorf Galleries of Indian Art. —B M Eldridge when they regrouped with original drummer Robert Grey (aka Robert Gotobed) following a ten-year break. The new Mind Hive (Pink Flag) is their eighth album since then (and their FRIDAY, APRIL PM 17th full-length altogether), and it showcases much of what still makes the band unlike any Chicago Flamenco Festival See other. Even when the arrangements are full and rich (as on the Krautrock-ish “Hung” and also Friday and Saturday. Tonight’s program Graham Parker features a performance by La Chimi as well as the droney, dreamy “Unrepentant”), their songs retain a distinctive chill austerity. The presentations and an art opening. 5:30-8 PM, dystopian stomp of “Be Like Them” and the understated horror story in “O the Beach” Instituto Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio, $100. b demonstrate that they haven’t lost their dark edges either—there’s an uneasiness lurking WORLD MUSIC WEDNESDAY SERIES Few forms of music and dance embody raw emo- FREE WEEKLY CONCERTS, LINCOLN SQUARE in every corner and in all 35 minutes. And this will continue to be a good year for Wire fans: tion as exquisitely as fl amenco. This formidable and not only is there a new album and tour, but the band are also collaborating with writer Gra- quintessentially Spanish art form fuses elements Caro Piertotto and Farofa present BR ham Du and director Malcolm Boyle on a forthcoming crowdsourced documentary, People from Jewish, Arab, and Roma cultures and distills Flamenco Eñe Series • José del the essence of grief, tragedy, fear, and joy into every Tomate Group • Plaza Vieja in a Film, that spans Wire’s entire career. Footage from the fi lm—including the bandmates note, gesture, and stomp. Hosted principally by the walking around a village, riding a tractor, and collaborating in the studio—can be seen in Instituto Cervantes, the fi rst half of the 18th annu- their video for “Cactused.” On this tour, Wire will also show o their DJ skills; a di erent al Chicago Flamenco Festival (part two is promised OLDTOWNSCHOOL.ORG this fall) consists of ten performances, an art exhib- member will spin an opening set each night. —M K it, workshops, and a wine tasting over the course of 30 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll MUSIC The Unity Tour NORTH AMERICA 2020
Ratboys COURTESY THE ARTIST
a month. The carefully curated events focus on all Guitarist-vocalist Julia Steiner and guitarist David three essential elements of fl amenco: song (cante), Sagan met as first-year students at the University dance (baile), and musicianship (toque). The bill of Notre Dame in 2010, and they’ve since become includes artists from France and Spain as well as the ingrained in Chicago underground rock. Under the U.S., among them local favorites Clinard Dance Fla- name Ratboys, they made themselves a home in the menco Quartet, featuring Wendy Clinard as princi- emo scene in the mid-2010s, playing country-fl ecked pal dancer, Steve Gibons on violin, Marija Temo on indie songs and drawing in a couple prolifi c collab- vocals and guitars, and José Moreno on vocals. San orators to fill out their live sets: drummer Marcus Diego fl amenco dancer La Chimi will perform with Nuccio of Pet Symmetry and Mountains for Cloud- dancer, percussionist, and guitarist Oscar Valero sand bassist Sean Neumann, who makes delightful and guitarist José Manuel Alconchel at the opening- indie pop as Jupiter Styles (he’s also a Reader con- night ceremony on Thursday, February 27, and then tributor). This rhythm section bolsters the Ratboys’ the next night with her ensemble, Luna Flamenca, third album, the new Printer’s Devil (Topshelf), a at the festival’s fi rst full-length performance. Among soothing reflection on growing older and bitter- the other artists are Jose del Tomate, a 21-year-old sweet farewells. Steiner and Sagan wrote it in Stein- guitarist born into a long dynasty of acclaimed fl a- er’s childhood home in Louisville, Kentucky, as her menco musicians, and dancer Niño de los Reyes, parents went through the process of selling the who has performed with international jazz and pop house. When she gently sings, “I just had a thought / superstars Chick Corea and Paul Simon and recently ‘What if I never came home?’” at the beginning of became the fi rst-ever dancer to win a Grammy; he the taut, straightforward single “I Go Out at Night,” contributed rapid-fi re footwork and clapping to the you can feel the thrill and sadness in her voice as 2019 Corea album Antidote (Concord). Rather than she processes her growing sense of dislocation. The showcase the sort of glam-pop flamenco popular- sweet, wordless vocal harmony that rises up in the ized by superstars such as Rosalía, the fest focuses middle of “My Hands Grow” suggests that relief can on straight-to-the- jugular fl amenco whose undiluted be found in the homes we make for ourselves—and power may allow the audience to experience duen- Steiner has thankfully fashioned her own anchor de—the mystical force and passionate, enrapturing with her band. —LG spirit of fl amenco. In either case, these performanc- Friday, September 18 es will undoubtedly heat up Chicago’s winter nights. —C M J SATURDAY29 Huntington Bank Pavilion Chicago Flamenco Festival See Thursday. FRIDAY28 Tonight’s bill is New Moon with Luna Flamenca featuring La Chimi, José Manuel Alconchel, at Northerly Island Chicago Flamenco Festival See Thursday. Briseyda Zárate, and Oscar Valero. 7 PM, Instituto Tonight’s bill is New Moon with Luna Flamenca Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio, 7 PM, $30. b featuring La Chimi, José Manuel Alconchel, GET TICKETS THIS FRIDAY AT 10AM Briseyda Zárate, and Oscar Valero. 7 PM, Instituto Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio, $50. b Cupcakes The Life and Times, Atmospheric AT LIVENATION.COM Audio Chair, and Spies Who Surf open. 8 PM, Metro, 3730 N. Clark, $20, $15 in advance. 18+ Ratboys See also Saturday. Slow Mass and Advance Base open. 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. The alternative-rock boom of the 1990s resulted in Lincoln, sold out. 18+ lots of outre musicians landing major-label deals that would’ve been unthinkable in any decade before or ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 31 Find more music listings at MUSIC chicagoreader.com/soundboard. Less scrolling.
continued from TK
Cupcakes NOELWOODFORD
continued from 31 her own, singing in a mix of English and Tamil, using since. Chicago four-piece Cupcakes, who emerged styles beholden to the tradition of vocal jazz as well in 1996, both exemplify and transcend that era. On as to Carnatic music, and interweaving the mate- their sole album, 2000’s Cupcakes, released on rial with Tamil anticolonial songs and Indian spiri- Dreamworks, they mold arena rock bombast, pow- tuals. The eloquence with which she merges these er-pop hooks, and dance ecstasy into freewheel- systems highlights her interest in addressing caste- More strumming. ing jams whose clean polish glistens even when the based oppression and makes a provocative invita- songwriting doesn’t quite shine. Front man Preston tion for us to consider the commonalities between Graves frequently busts out a show-stopping fal- different cultures. On her 2019 album Of Agency setto that kicks the songs into hyperdrive, a vocal and Abstraction (Biophilia), Swaminathan plays the feat that stood out in a time of postgrunge front mridangam, a traditional double- headed drum, with men who were more likely to bellow than croon. an ensemble that sometimes includes Doraiswamy, But Cupcakes’ idiosyncratic ingenuity comes out creating jazz pieces that draw from Carnatic music most strongly in their blend of rock and electron- to bolster their restless tension and invigorating ic music—every so o en an arpeggiating guitar line energy. At their duo performance at this year’s Fre- that evokes a trance melody cuts through to accen- quency Festival, Doraiswamy and Swaminathan will tuate the interstellar panache in Graves’s lyrics. Cup- fluidly move between their own original composi- cakes have been dormant for most of the past two tions, devotional poems, Buddhist texts, and jazz decades, but they decided to celebrate the 20th standards. Their music tackles historical systems anniversary of their only album with a reunion per- of oppression, and they aim to explore these social formance. Even if Graves can no longer hit the high realities in a manner that provides opportunities for notes on the semi-acoustic ballad “Cosmic Imbecile,” healing. Expect musically and thematically multifac- this is a don’t-miss show. —L G eted works that open up a space for deep contem- plation. —J M K
Ratboys See Friday. Case Oats and Miranda Winters open. 9 PM, Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, Nektar 7 PM, Reggies’ Rock Club, 2105 S. State, $15. 21+ $25. 17+
The history of improbably successful and long- lasting 70s prog band Nektar is a complicated one. SUNDAY1 The story starts in 1968, when four British lads— guitarist- singer Roye Albrighton, keyboardist- Ganavya Doraiswamy & Rajna vocalist Allan Freeman, bassist-singer-Mellotron Swaminathan Part of the Frequency Festival. player Derek Moore, and drummer Ron Howden— 2 PM, Chicago Cultural Center, Claudia Cassidy met at the Star Club in Hamburg (where another Give your digital life a break. Theater, 78 E. Washington. F b group of British lads, the Beatles, famously cut their teeth). They’d been playing in diff erent bands in Ger- Connect over music, dance & more. The works of Ganavya Doraiswamy and Rajna Swa- many since 1965, and they bonded over their mutual minathan offer a highly personal take on Carnatic love of the Fab Four and the new avant-garde direc- music (South Indian classical music) that seamlessly tions rock music was taking. They formed Nektar in Anyone can play! Find your blends ideas from diff erent time periods and genres. 1969, and by the following year they’d added fifth new class at oldtownschool.org On Doraiswamy’s debut album, 2018’s Aikyam: Onnu member Mick Brockett, who operated their heady (Yāttirai), the vocalist and composer suffuses jazz light show and occasionally helped with lyrics and standards such as George Gershwin’s “Summertime” titles. Their fi rst LP, 1971’s Journey to the Center of and Hoagy Carmichael’s “Skylark” with a spirit all the Eye, remains a fi ne example of the psychedelic 32 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll Find more music listings at chicagoreader.com/soundboard. MUSIC
concept album: its single epic song, which fi lls both 20 on U.S. charts with 1973’s Remember the Future, sides of the album, is about an astronaut given vast and the following year Down to Earth landed in the BUY TICKETS AT CHICAGOSINFONIETTA.ORG knowledge by aliens (naturally) and verges on what Top 40. The entire band moved to the States in 1976, many would call “experimental Krautrock” these but before and a er releasing their slick 1978 major- OR CALL THE BOX OFFICE AT 312-284-1554 days. The 1972 release A Tab in the Ocean furthered label debut, Magic Is the Child, they underwent a Nektar’s cult appeal while streamlining their sound series of lineup changes, and in the early 80s they into more conventional psychedelic-progressive called it quits. Now fast-forward to the year 2000, rock a la Pink Floyd and Yes. In the mid-70s, as Nek- when Nektar reemerged with a new album, The tar became more melodic—even touching on funky Prodigal Son. The next year, the classic lineup head- rhythms—they found some commercial success while lined the popular prog festival NEARfest. A er a zil- still exploring sci-fi themes. They broke into the top lion more personnel changes and tours with various ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 33 Est.Est.1954 1954 Celebrating over 6165 years of service service to Chicago! 1800 W. DIVISION (773) 486-9862 MUSIC Come enjoy one of Rattleback Chicago’s finest beer gardens! continued from 33 blues and punk until they sound nearly avant-gar- RECORDS FEBRUARYSEPTEMBERJAJANUARYFEBRUARYDECEMBERNUARY 11...... 2023 23 2712 ...... MIKEDA THETHOMASFLABBYVID QUINNRUT FLABBY FELTEN HOFFMAN A MATECKI HOFFMAN SHOW BAND SHOW 8PM 8PM members, Albrighton died in 2016, but Moore and de. Though the Reigning Sound, which Cartwright SEPTEMBERJA FEBRUARYDECEMBERNUARY 12...... 21 2813 .....WAGNER LADY ANDREWSTRAY STARDUST AMERICAN&BOLTS MORSE D HUBER DRAFT AND THE GECKO CLUB Howden (both based in New Jersey) and Brockett launched in 2001, are far more earthbound, they FEBRUARYSEPTEMBERJA JANUARYNUARY 13...... 2224 24 .....THE ..... DJMIKEJEFFDADY BLOTTSKIRKNAMOS ANDFELTEN DJRO SKID MARIOOM LICIOUS MEN SEPTEMBERJANUARYMARCHDECEMBER 1 2325 14 ....WHOLESOMERADIO SCOTTYJIMJOE THELANASA KID“BAD & & BOY”THE SOMEBODY’S DJ NIGHTPAINKILLERS BRADBURY SINS (in Pennsylvania) nonetheless vowed to celebrate also have many dimensions. Where the Oblivians JAMARCHNUARY 2 14...... PROSPECTWHITEWOLFSONICPRINCESSTONY FOUR DO RO 9PMSARIO GROUP MURPHYANDSKIPPIN’ JON THOMPSON ROCKS MCDONALD 9:30PM JAJANUARYMARCH NUARY 4 17...... 26 WHOLESOMERADIOMORSEFOSTERMOJOJA 49&MIE& WAGNERHIGGINSWAGNER WITH DJ & NIGHT FRIENDSFRIENDS 8PM the band’s 50th anniversary. Last year they holed up use the blues as a touchstone, the Reigning Sound MARCH 5 MIKEVIVEK SMILIN’ FELTEN PAUL BOBBY AND THE CLEMTONES RATTLEBACK JAMARCHDECEMBERNUARY 7 18...... 15 CHIDITARODTONY DO MIKE ROSARIO FEL 11AMTON GROUP and tackled some old demos as well as some new draw on Memphis’s soul legacy, and much like the FEBRUARYJANUARYDECEMBER 27 25 16 .....WHOLESOMERADIOTHE RCPROSPECT RON BIG AND BAND RACHELFOUR 7PM 9PM SHOW DJ NIGHT SEPTEMBERJAJANUARY NUARY 19...... 2429 .....RC LEAGUEOFF BIG BANDTHE SITU OFVINE 7PMAT ERICSION 9PMDAVID tunes for a new LP called The Other Side, which suf- garage bands that came from the city in the 1960s RECORDS IS A MARCHDECEMBER 8 18 HEISENBERGMORSEMAXLIELLIAM & WAGNER UNCERTAINTY 6PM ANNA PLAYERS 7PM FEBRUARYMARCH 9 26 .....RCBIRDGANGS RCPHILTHOMAS BIG BIGO’REILLY BAND 9:30PMABA MATECKIND 7PM 7PM BAND fers slightly from overly tasty playing and production (the Gentrys, the Box Tops), they can incorporate JA DECEMBERNUARY 20...... 19 TITTYPROSPECTCHRIS DANNY CITTY FIRSTQUIGLEY DRAHER FOURWARD 9:30PM PROBLEMS UNIQUE MUSIC FEBRUARYJAMARCHJANUARYDECEMBERNUARY 10 21...... 30 28 20 .....PETER DUDE FLABBYDJOBLIQUE SKID SAMETO HOFFMAN CASANOLICIOUSNY STRATEGIES DO ROVASARIO SHOWQUARTET GROUP8PM 8PM but still hints at their monumental past glories. On that infl uence without camping things up. On their MARCHJANUARY 11 31 ELIZABETH’SALISONBAD FORUM GROSS CRAZY LITTLE THING SEPTEMBERJAFEBRUARYNUARY 22...... 26 1 .....PETER AMERICAN CASANOVA RC BIG TROUBADOUR QUARTETBAND 7PM NIGHT their current tour, Nektar are rumored to be revisit- most recent studio album, 2014’s Shattered, Cart- STORE OFFERING A MARCHSEPTEMBER 1...... SMILIN’ 27 .....DORIANFEATURINGNO HEROTAJ BO MICHELLEBBY AND SHAFER THE CLEMTONES 9PM JAMARCH NUARY 12 24...... FLABBYMIKE FELTEN’S PETER HOFFMAN CASONO BIRTHDAY SHOWVA QUARTET SHOW8PM ing sounds from their earliest LPs. With former Fire- wright’s vocals sound like Van Morrison circa 1967, SEPTEMBERFEBRUARYDECEMBER 28 221 ..... TO WELCOMEZ28URS TO THE BIG GAME PARTY! JAMARCHDECEMBERNUARY 13 25...... 22 KENNY’SWHOLESOMERADIO THE 50TH WICK BIRTHDAY DJ NIGHT BASH MYRIAD SELECTION MARCHMARCHFEBRUARY 2...... ICE14 3 BULLY THEPROSPECT PULPITMADBOX POETS AND FOUR BIG 9PM HOUSE ballet guitarist Ryche Chlanda back in the band (he a er he le Them but before the jazzy textures of JAMARCHFEBRUARYDECEMBERNUARY 15 26...... 523 TONYMORSERC BIG DO THE BAND& ROSARIOWAGNER HEPKATS 7PM WITHGROUP FRIENDS 8PM SEPTEMBER 29 .....SOMEBODY’SRICK SHANDLINGSKIPPIN’ SINS RO DUOCK 9:30PM joined briefl y in 1978, as a 21-year-old wunderkind) Astral Weeks. While soul is front and center, a folk- MARCHMARCHFEBRUARY 3...... CHIDITAROD16 6 FEATURING PROSPECTSMILIN’ BOBBY JOE FOUR LANASA ANDAND 9PM THETARRINGTON CLEMTONES 10PM OF NEW AND USED MARCHFEBRUARYDECEMBER 18 728 MORSEMODESTRICKYD &BLUES JOHNSON WAGNER POWER WITH FRIENDS 8PM SEPTEMBERJANUARY 27...... 30 .....OFF THE VINE THE 4:30PM STRAY BOLTS and Brockett resuming his old-school live-light-show rock strain runs through a signifi cant portion of the MARCHJAFEBRUARYMARCHJANUARYNUARY 7...... 21 28...... 1 8 THESMILIN’JAMIE LOCKOUTSPOLKAHOLICS WHOLESOMERADIO WABOBBYGNER AND & THE FRIENDS CLEMTONES DJ NIGHT 3PM VINYL, CDS, FEBRUARYMARCHJANUARY 22 2 9 NUCLEAR HEISENBERGWHOLESOMERADIOAMERICAN JAZZ QUARKTETTROUBADOUR UNCERTAINTY DJ 7:30PM NIGHT NIGHT PLAYERS 7PM duties, this show promises to be once-in-a-lifetime record—and remarkably, it never sinks into lazy intro- EVERYEVERYCHIDITAROD TUESD TUESDAY (EXCEPT MARCH 7, 2ND) 2ND) 11AMATAT8PM8PM heady space-prog trip, so climb aboard while you spection. Cartwright’s message to the world sounds CASSETTES, AND OPENOPENOPEN MIC MIC ON MIC ON TUESDAY TUESDAY HOSTED EVENINGS BY JIMIJON (EXCEPT (EXCEPT AMERICA 2ND) 2ND) can. —S K powerful even confi ned to a record, and he burns MORE. like a candle onstage. —J P Saajtak Cordoba and Not Lovely open. 8:30 PM, Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, $8. 21+ WEDNESDAY4 The members of Detroit art-rock group Saaj- tak met at the University of Michigan in the early Psalm Zero Kayo Dot headline; Psalm Zero, NOW OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK! 2010s, when all four participated in an improvis- Anatomy of Habit, Blktxxth, and Dust Bath open. MON-SAT: 11-7 | SUN: 11-5 ing ensemble called the Creative Arts Orchestra. 8 PM, Cobra Lounge, 235 N. Ashland, $17, $15 in 5405 N. Clark Street, Chicago They’ve since carried the experimental traditions advance. 17+ 773-944-0188 they explored as students into their work in Saaj- tak and into their individual creative pursuits—each Psalm Zero have been playing a hybrid form of www.rattlebackrecords.com has developed such an impressive career that their industrial metal informed by the noisier side of CVs could fill a chapbook. Bassist Ben Willis com- dark and electronic music since forming in New poses music for dancers in a theater troupe called York in 2012. Originally the duo of multi-instru- Nerve; percussionist Jon Taylor reframes ancestral mentalist Charlie Looker (a classical composer and Eastern European Jewish songs in new-music com- cofounder of experimental bands Extra Life and Zs) positions as part of the ensemble Teiku; electronics and guitarist Andrew Hock, the group showcased maestro Simon Alexander-Adams has presented his synth-heavy avant-rock compositions on their first multimedia art at Coachella; and vocalist Alex Koi two albums, 2014’s The Drain and 2016’s Stranger to has performed at the Toronto Jazz Festival. In Saaj- Violence (both on Profound Lore). But shortly a er tak, they build off improvised sessions to create bris- the release of Stranger to Violence, Looker part- tling, quasi-operatic recordings that feel primed to ed ways with Hock a er a female musician accused shi unexpectedly and travel down an entirely dif- Hock of inappropriate conduct of a sexual nature. ferent path at any moment. They’ve made a point of That decision forced Looker to cancel several pre- documenting their creative possibilities and show- viously scheduled tour dates, but he retained the casing their open-minded attitude in the process; Psalm Zero name and continued to write material 2019’s self-released If You Ask EP includes two orig- for the band while occasionally collaborating with inal songs, three remixes, and an acoustic interpre- friends. The band’s new album, Sparta (on Looker’s tation of the title track. On the original “If You Ask,” Last Things imprint), features bassist Ron Varod and Saajtak transform a minimal, undulating rhythm and drummer Keith Abrams, known for their work with an avian vocal harmony into a thunderous, dramat- New York avant-garde/progressive metal group ic rock symphony led by Koi’s acrobatic powerhouse Kayo Dot (who headline this tour in support of their singing; it enlivens the song’s most fragile moments own new full-length, Blasphemy). Sparta feels more with a feral energy that could power a fl eet of lesser clear-hearted and intentional than Psalm Zero’s ear- bands. —L G lier records, perhaps as a result of Looker reassess- ing his approach a er Hock’s departure. Whatever the reason, Sparta is an evolution: though the band’s roots in industrial metal and darkwave are still per- TUESDAY3 ceptible, a stronger sense of story telling comes through on tracks such as “Return to Stone” (with Reigning Sound Skip Church opens. 9 PM, guest vocals from Kristin Hayer, aka Lingua Ignota) Sleeping Village, 3734 W. Belmont, $20, $18 in and “Animal Outside.” Looker’s earnest- sounding advance. 21+ singing on the latter recall Violator-era Dave Gahan, and make me wonder if this could’ve been an alter- Memphis musicians enjoy a well-deserved reputa- native-pop chart hit had it been released in 1990. It tion for having more going on beneath the surface seems likely that Psalm Zero are just going to grow than they initially let on. Alex Chilton, Tav Falco, from here, so this show is a good chance to see and Jim Dickinson are known for putting a trashy them on their way up. —S C-J stamp on roots music in their songwriting, but they also incorporate outside infl uences at unpredictable times. Such is also the case with the Reigning Sound, Wire See Pick of the Week, page 30. Wire DJs led by singer-guitarist Greg Cartwright—a founding open. 8 PM, Metro, 3730 N. Clark, $30, $25 in member of the Oblivians, a trio that deconstructs advance. 18+ v 34 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll CHICAGO SHOWS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT IN THE WEEKS TO COME
b ALL AGES F EARLY WARNINGS WOLF BY KEITH HERZIK Adomeit, Tommy Carroll Never miss 3/28, 5:30 PM, Empty Bottle a show again. F Juana Molina 4/30, 8 PM, Sign up for the Maurer Hall, Old Town School newsletter at of Folk Music b chicagoreader. GOSSIP Music Band 4/9, 9:15 PM, Empty Bottle com/early Ode, Antony & the Tramps, WOLF Glad Rags 3/7, 9 PM, Sleeping Village Yadda 3/29, 9 PM, Sleeping A furry ear to the ground of Omayra Amaya Dance Com- Village pany featuring Roberto the local music scene Castellón & YiYi Orozco 3/13-3/14, 7 PM, Instituto UPDATED FORMED IN , art-rock ensemble Cervantes b Ono 40th Anniversary show Above & Beyond 6/5, 8 PM; Je’raf arrange bits of hip-hop, jazz, funk, with Moor Mother, Buck 6/6, 8 PM, Chicago Theatre, and postpunk into whimsical, progres- Gooter 5/1, 9 PM, Empty 6/6 show added b sive jams. All seven members (they’re split Bottle Pop Smoke 3/21, 8 PM, Bottom between New York and Chicago) play in Anders Osborne 5/14, 6:30 and Lounge, canceled; contact 9:30 PM, City Winery b point of purchase for refund similarly animated, eccentric bands out- Jeff Parker & the New Breed information, 17+ side the group too—bassist and vocalist 3/8-3/9, 8 and 11 PM, Dorian's, PT Bell is in art-punk unit Blacker Face, both 8 PM shows are sold out Candlemass COURTESY THE ARTIST for instance, and vocalist Brianna Tong Brent Penny, 100% Cement, UPCOMING Forced into Femininity, fronts jazz-fusion group Cordoba. On Sat- Stressica 3/16, 8:30 PM, Acacia Strain, Rotting Out, urday, February 29, local labels Amalgam NEW Luke Combs, Ashley McBryde, PM, FitzGerald’s, Berwyn, on Empty Bottle F Creeping Death, Chamber, and No Index release Je’raf’s rambunc- Ray Fulcher 11/5, 7 PM, United sale Fri 2/28, 11 AM Steve Poltz 4/8, 8 PM, SPACE, Fuming Mouth 3/25, 7 PM, tious and politically charged debut album, Oleta Adams 6/12, 8 PM, City Center, on sale Fri 2/28, Ezra Furman 5/30, 9:30 PM, Evanston b Subterranean, 17+ Winery b noon b Empty Bottle, on sale Fri 2/28, Pontac, Lawrence Peters Out- Akalé Wubé & Girma Bèyènè Throw Neck. That night they celebrate Adult, Body of Light 6/12, Cosmic Country Showcase 10 AM fi t, Friends of the Bog 3/19, 3/18, 7 PM, Maurer Hall, Old with a headlining set at Hungry Brain; 9 PM, Empty Bottle, on sale featuring Lavender Country Gashi 3/13, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, 9:30 PM, Hideout Town School of Folk Music Udababy opens, and tickets are $10. Fri 2/28, 10 AM 4/11, 9:30 PM, Hideout, on 18+ Post Animal, Twen, Woongi F b Morrissey’s swerve into reprehensi- AJR, Quinn XCII, Ashe 8/8, 6 sale Fri 2/28, noon Gizzelle, Monica Rocha & Cota 4/23, 8:30 PM, Thalia Hall, 17+ Blunts & Blondes, SubDocta, PM, Huntington Bank Pavilion Daphne 2020: 35/25 featuring 3/13, 7 PM, National Museum Primus, Wolfmother, Battles Bawldy 3/14, 8 PM, Concord ble political gibberish, mediocre albums, b Lady D & Psycho-Bitch 3/14, of Mexican Art F b 7/10, 7 PM, Chicago Theatre Music Hall, 18+ and lackluster live shows over the past 20 Alleys & Gangways, Dead Rest, 10 PM, Smart Bar Habibi, Cam’s Jams 3/13, b Bongzilla, Something is years has le many sweet and tender hoo- Turn N Fire, Hi Water 3/13, Daphne 2020: Defected USA 9:30 PM, Hideout Cal Scruby 3/13, 6:30 PM, Sub- Waiting, Plague of Carcosa, ligans reaching for their Smiths albums far 8:30 PM, GMan Tavern with Sam Divine, Monki, Halestorm 7/13, 7:30 PM, Rialto terranean, 17+ Psychic Nurse 3/12, 8 PM, American Music Festival 7/2- Deepsmith 3/20, 10 PM, Square Theatre, Joliet b Carolyn Sills Combo 4/12, Reggies’ Music Joint less often than they used to. Local elec- 7/5, FitzGerald’s, Berwyn Smart Bar Holy Wave, Les Tropic 3/13, 6 PM, SPACE, Evanston b Jaimie Branch’s Fly or Die 3/15, tronic musician Nicky Flowers has a solu- Audrey Mika, Souly Had 3/10, Daphne 2020: Lake Eff ect with 8:30 PM, Beat Kitchen Terrance Simien & the Zydeco 9:30 PM, Hideout tion: a covers project called the Smynths, 7:30 PM, Schubas b DJ Heather and more 3/13, 10 Ionnalee, Iamamiwhoami, Tun- Experience 3/21, 9 PM, Fitz- Cactus featuring Carmine which recently dropped the charming EP Tab Benoit 6/7, 8 PM, City PM, Smart Bar gorna 5/7, 9 PM, Metro, 18+ Gerald’s, Berwyn Appice 3/14, 7 PM, Reggies’ Winery b Daphne 2020: Niki Kitz, Miss Irreversible Entanglements, Bria Skonberg 4/10, 7 PM, Music Joint The Smynths Return. It seems bound to Best Coast, Mannequin Pussy Scarlett, Delilac, Phox 3/19, Isaiah Collier & Jeremiah SPACE, Evanston b Gordon Lightfoot 3/29, 8 PM, off end the famously synth-averse Mozzer: 3/10, 8 PM, SPACE, Evanston 10 PM, Smart Bar F Collier: Gemini 3/31, 7:30 PM, Dave Specter 3/16, 8 PM, Copernicus Center b Flowers turbocharges Johnny Marr’s mel- b Daphne 2020: Research & Co-Prosperity Sphere, 17+ SPACE, Evanston b Lil Wayne 3/28, 9 PM, Radius odies with a ra of ringing keyboards and Bobby V 3/25, 8 PM, City Development featuring Flow- JoJo 5/27, 7:30 PM, the Vic b Sugarpulp, Safari Room, Ava Chicago, 18+ Winery b er Food, Erika Gluck (live), Judas Priest 9/26, 8 PM, Rose- Lake 3/22, 9 PM, Sleeping Little People, Frameworks, glorious vocoder-assisted crooning. Giv- Bowling for Soup 4/19, 8 PM, Kona FM & Trouble Helix mont Theatre, Rosemont b Village Yppah 3/20, 9 PM, Lincoln ing off ense is the point—the Smynths are Bottom Lounge, 17+ 3/12, 10 PM, Smart Bar F King Buzzo featuring Trevor TC Superstar, Uma Bloo, Nord- Hall, 18+ “dedicated to psychically destroying Mor- Budos Band 4/17, 8:30 PM, EOB 5/27, 7:30 PM, Metro, on Dunn 6/20, 10 PM, Empty Bot- ista Freeze, Nick DeLaurentis Lucki 3/15, 7 PM, Bottom rissey,” Flowers says. “Johnny Marr was Thalia Hall, 17+ sale Fri 2/28, 10 AM, 18+ tle, on sale Fri 2/28, 10 AM 4/23, 9 PM, Sleeping Village Lounge b Candlemass, the Skull, Blood- Etana & Raw-Soul Rebels, Vana Korn, Faith No More, Helmet, Tossers, Avondale Ramblers, Lucky Chops 3/6, 9 PM, Lincoln the Smiths, 100 percent.” Shots fi red! Due iest 4/20, 8:30 PM, Thalia Liya 6/20, 9 PM, Wild Hare ’68 9/15, 6 PM, Hollywood Siderunners 3/14, 8 PM, Reg- Hall, 18+ to prohibitive licensing costs, the Smynths Hall, 17+ Ethers, Fran, Watery Follies Casino Amphitheatre, Tinley gies’ Rock Club, 17+ Mägo de Oz, Liran’ Roll 3/17, aren’t on any streaming services, but the Vanessa Carlton, Jenny O. 4/5- 3/30, 9:30 PM, Sleeping Park b Tú Tocas Tú Cantas Yo Bailo 8 PM, House of Blues, 17+ EP (and a 2018 self-titled full-length) are 4/6, 8 PM, City Winery b Village Lanzón 3/7, 8:30 PM, Constel- featuring Manuel Gutiérrez, Anna Meredith 3/15, 8:30 PM, Case Oats, Tucker Riggleman Fab Faux 5/30, 8 PM, Park lation, 18+ José Cortés & Andrés Vadin Co-Prosperity Sphere, 18+ available via Flowers’s Bandcamp. & the Cheap Dates, Blood- West b Nick Lowe’s Quality Rock & 3/20-3/21, 7 PM, Instituto Michigan Rattlers 3/12, 8 PM, Justin Samuel Martin (of indie-rock shot DJs, Rookie 3/6, 8 PM, Flamenco from Extremadura: Roll Revue, Los Straitjackets Cervantes b Martyrs’ group Automata) makes stylistically loose GMan Tavern Vía de la Plata featuring 6/13, 8 PM, Park West, on sale Vundabar, Boyscott, Ophelias Frank Orrall 3/14, 8 PM, indie-pop as Otherly, with occasional help Chicago Honky Tonk pres- Celia Romero/Andrés Barrios Fri 2/28, 10 AM, 18+ 3/21, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, 18+ SPACE, Evanston b ents A Saturday Special Navarro/Fuensanta Blanco/ Magnetic Fields 6/1-6/4, 8 PM, The Weeknd, Sabrina Claudio, Petrol Girls, Typesetter 3/23, from his friends—Automata front woman featuring Grey Garing & the Sergio García 11/6-11/7, 7 PM, City Winery, on sale Fri 2/28, Don Toliver 6/24, 7 PM, Unit- 9:30 PM, Sleeping Village Rachel Sarah Thomas, for example, adds Cowpokes, Lawrence Peters Instituto Cervantes b noon b ed Center, on sale Fri 2/28, Gregory Porter, Ledisi 3/27, luscious vocals to recent singles “Nadia” Outfi t, Casey James Prest- Flamenco from Extremadura Laura Marling 4/16-4/17, 8 PM, 11 AM b 7 PM, Chicago Theatre b and “Leave.” Both those tracks appear on wood & the Burning Angels, featuring Esther Merino Maurer Hall, Old Town School Winona Forever, Modern Pro-Pain 3/29, 7:30 PM, the Andrew Sa & Kelly Hogan, with Fuensanta Blanco/Man- of Folk Music b Vices, Late Nite Laundry 4/8, Forge, Joliet b Otherly’s debut album, Darkling, which and more 3/28, ual Valencia/Sergio García Midwest Action showcase 8 PM, Schubas, 18+ Pussy Riot, Deli Girls 3/26, drops Friday, February 28. Otherly plays a 4:45 PM, FitzGerald’s, Berwyn 11/13-11/14, 7 PM, Instituto featuring Bev Rage & the Joe Wong & Nite Creatures 7 PM, Metro b free release party that night at the Whis- Chicano Batman, Le Butch- Cervantes b Drinks, Impulsive Hearts, 5/30, 9 PM, Lincoln Hall, on Queers, Dollyrots, Handguns, tler. —JRNLG erettes 5/9, 8 PM, Concord Ivy Ford 3/18, 8 PM, FitzGer- Harvey Fox, Richard Album sale Fri 2/28, 11 AM, 18+ Capgun Heroes 3/20, 7 PM, Music Hall, on sale Fri 2/28, ald’s, Berwyn (solo) 3/19, 8:30 PM, Sleeping Donovan Woods & the Opposi- Reggies’ Music Joint 10 AM, 18+ Free Nationals 3/8, 9 PM, Village tion, Emily Brimlow 5/10, Radio Hate, Cherokee Astro, Got a tip? Tweet @Gossip_Wolf or e-mail Brandy Clark, Kelsey Waldon Chop Shop, 18+ Mirrored featuring Matthew 8 PM, SPACE, Evanston b Smart Shoppers 3/6, 9 PM, [email protected]. 5/8, 8 PM, SPACE, Evanston b John Fullbright Band 6/22, 8:30 Riggen, Will Barnard, River Yomí, Jake Sherman, Yadda Liar’s Club v ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 35 MOBILIZE OPINION A series of political engagement events as curated by
Illinois Supreme Training Class The Personal is Court Justice Forum for Canvassing Political: Storytelling February 27 Newbies & Reproductive 6pm - 8pm March 3 Justice Grace Lutheran Church 5:30pm - 7:30pm March 7 1430 S. Blvd. Hideout Inn 1pm - 4pm Evanston, IL 1354 W. Wabansia Ave. Location TBA
Policy Solutions Clean Energy Recognition to Lower Rx Lobby Day 2020 Delayed: The March 4 Drug Costs Contributions of 10am - 2pm February 27 Illinois State African American 7pm Capital Building Suffragists and Why Immanuel Hall 301 S. 2nd St. Their Stories Matter SAVAGE LOVE 302 Grant St. Springfield, IL March 8 Hinsdale, IL 1pm - 3:30pm Outsource the sloppy and spitty stu he likes Brewery Tasting UIC Richard J. Daley Indivisible Evanston with Indivisible IL9 Library Plus, a man who misses when the only beards dudes had were metaphorical Book Club: March 4 801 S. Morgan St. By DS “Don’t Think of an 7pm - 9pm 1st Floor Conference Elephant!“ My Buddy’s Room March 3 4416 North Clark St. : I’m a 31-year-old cis little insecure about being through-to-completion 7pm-9pm 2020 Candidate bisexual woman. I’m inadequate in this area, but blowjobs he likes. Do you Page 1 Books March Hyde Park Night hetero-romantic and in a then I decided to do some have any advice? —S (Central Street Rent Control Action March 9 monogamish relationship research, because I honestly O A K Business District) March 6 7pm - 9pm with a man. We play with thought it wasn’t just me E D other people together. I’ve and most women don’t like 1808 Central St. 2pm - 4pm Zoe’s Patio Nichols Park never liked giving blowjobs giving blowjobs. (Because a: You play with other Evanston, IL 5518 S. Archer Ave. 1355 E. 53rd St. because I was taught that how could they? It’s so people together, SOAKED, girls who give blowjobs are demeaning!) But I learned but have you tried “sluts.” Phrases that are lots of my female friends observing—by which I mean Super Tuesday African American ACLU Lunch 2020 Watch Party March 27 meant to be insulting like enjoy giving blowjobs—they actively observing, by which I Women & The “You suck,” “Suck it,” “Go like being in control, giving mean actually participating— March 3 11am - 1:30pm Vote: A Centennial suck a dick,” etc. created a partner pleasure, etc.—so I while your husband gets 1:30pm - 3:30pm Review Hilton Chicago a strong association in my googled ways to start liking a sloppy blowjob from Emmett’s Palatine March 6 720 S. Michigan Ave. mind between blowjobs blowjobs and I’ve started someone who really enjoys 110 N. Brockway St. 5:30pm - 8pm and men degrading women. to get into them! It’s great! giving them? If someone (Men take what they want, Except I still don’t like when else was blowing your Palatine, IL Chicago Public Library and women get used and he comes in my mouth or husband while you made out 400 S. State St. called sluts.) As such, I never if a blowjob gets super with him or sat on his face sucked much dick—and if I spitty. But my husband loves or played with his tits or For more information of listed events please visit persistlist.org did, it was only briefl y and sloppy blowjobs; he says the whatever might enhance the never to completion. I also lubrication feels good and experience for him . . . and fi nd spit and come kind he enjoys the “dirtiness” you watched another woman M I L I Z sponsored by of gross. Even when I get of it. If I know he’s getting choke that dick down . . . you OB E really wet during sex, it’s a close to coming or if it gets might come to appreciate bit of a turnoff , and I hate super wet and I have spit all what’s in it for the person GREEN that it makes me feel gross over my face, my gag refl ex giving the sloppy blowjob. e l e m e n t RESALE and wish I could change my activates and it’s hard to Most people who were www.big-medicine.org thinking around it. Early in continue. I feel like I’m at taught that girls who give our relationship, my husband an impasse. I want to give blowjobs are sluts were noticed the lack of blowjobs him the blowjobs he wants, also taught that open rela- and confronted me, saying but I don’t know how to get tionships are wrong and they were really important around (or hopefully start women who have sex with to him. At fi rst I felt a enjoying!) the super-sloppy- other women are going to
36 CHICA O READER - FEBRUARY ll OPINION
JAKOB OWENS / UNSPLASH smell—and I miss the good I masturbate frequently, old days when the only but when I think about hell. You got over what you beards gay dudes had were playful/romantic sex, the were taught about monoga- metaphorical. When I got only memories I have are mish relationships and being back from a long business with the ex, which makes bisexual years ago, SOAKED, trip, my hot, sexy, previously me sad. So I watch rough and recently got over what smooth husband of many porn, which keeps me from you were taught about years was sporting a beard. thinking about the ex. But women who enjoy sucking Unsurprisingly, I hate it and watching bondage videos cock. While some people fi nd it to be a complete alone isn’t the sex life I want. have physical limitations turnoff . However, he says Should I Tinder or Lex up they can’t overcome—some this is controlling behavior some rough casual sex? Get gag reflexes are unconquer- on my part, it’s his body and drunk and get some more able—watching someone his choice, and he’s hurt that memories in the mix? (I enjoy something you don’t I’m rejecting him. He also don’t think I could get out of can make you want to experi- says I’ll get used to it and my head enough to do this ence it yourself. he doesn’t plan to keep it sober.) Assuming I minimize But even if your observa- forever. I agree that it’s his the risks of pregnancy and tions don’t trigger a desire body and his choice, but I STIs and partners that are to get down there and get think he should still take bad at consent, what’s the sloppy and swallow his load me into consideration, and risk of going for it? How yourself, your husband would that it’s actually him who’s does it compare to the be getting the kind of blow- rejecting me, by choosing risk of getting stuck in this jobs he enjoys most and you the beard over me. What’s nowhere land and never would be an intrinsic part your take? —S ’ fi nding a new love/sex of them. If you set up the H A V buddy? Or maybe I need date, you’d be making them E to get drunk and jerk off happen, even if you weren’t alone without the porn and doing them. And if you were a: I’m with you, SHAVE, but just feel all my feelings and into the scenario and/or the I’m also with him. It is his avoid any risk of crying on other woman—if the whole body, and growing a beard is some poor stranger? thing got you off, not just off something he can choose to —INAPT the hook—then there would do with the face section of Never be something in it for you, his body. But that my body/ A: Do it all, INAPT. too. my choice stuff cuts both Masturbate to kink porn miss a And take it from me, ways: Your body is yours, and and feel dirty, masturbate SOAKED, to be kissed with what you do with your body to your memories and feel show both passion and gratitude is your choice. And you can sad, and put yourself out by, say, a husband (ahem) choose not to press your there on Tinder and Lex and again. who’s really enjoying some- body against his—or press see if there isn’t someone REAL PEOPLE thing someone else is doing your face against his—while who intrigues you. But stop REAL DESIRE for/to him—whether or not he’s got a beard. If long telling yourself you can’t REAL FUN. that something is something business trips are a regular fi nd romance with a partner you also enjoy doing for/ part of your life, maybe you fi rst met up with for to him from time to time—is he could grow his beard rough sex. I know lots of really fucking hot. So even out in your absence and people who fi rst met up EARLY if you never come around— shave when you get home. with someone for rough Try FREE: 773-867-1235 even if sloppy blowjobs are (Full disclosure: I have a sex, clicked on a deeper More Local Numbers: 1-800-926-6000 WARNINGS something you have to out- pronounced anti-beard bias, level, started dating, and source permanently—you which means I’m not exactly have since enjoyed years of chicagoreader.com/early and your husband can enjoy impartial.) sex that’s both rough and Ahora español years of sloppy blowjobs loving. Finally, booze has a Livelinks.com 18+ together, with the assistance : I’m a 30-year-old way of intensifying feelings of a series of very special queer cis woman and a of sadness—so if you don’t (and very slutty) guest stars. late bloomer. My fi rst want to wind up sobbing on And you can always get relationship—with a hetero the shoulder of some poor those blowjobs started—the cis man—began when I was stranger, don’t get drunk non-sloppy, non-spitty initial 28. He was my fi rst sexual before that hookup. v phase—before passing the partner. I fell in love hard, baton off to your guest star. but he broke up with me Send letters to mail@ a er almost two years. savagelove.net. : Married 40-year-old gay Months later, I know I’m not Download the Savage guy here. I hate beards— ready to fall in love again, Lovecast Tuesdays at the look, the feel, the but I have a high sex drive. savagelovecast.com. ll FEBRUARY - CHICAOREADER 37 positions. exp. w/high volume, Job ID TM-SCD012020. requirements gathering 2. C++ Gateway high concurrency sw 100-year-old Evanston and design discussions Developer, Mid-Level applications; Java, data publisher seeks ThoughtWorks Inc. and managing Must have BS in Compu Spring, Git, Maven, a full-time Call Center seeks Lead Consultant project deliverables Sci, Eng or related & Jenkins, Confluence, Specialist. No sales. No Developer to work in and timeframes; (7) 5 yrs exp as Software SonarQube, SQL, PL/ weekends. Duties consist Chicago, IL & various Working on projects Developer in C++ and SQL, Unix Shell Script, of placing outbound calls unanticipated locations with distributed teams, Python. In lieu of BS & JavaScript. Send resume to collect and verify data. throughout the U.S. including managing 5 yrs exp will accept MS to: R. Harvey, REF: SKP, Some data entry. Entry- to lead large-scale, coordination across in stated fields & exp 555 W Adams, Chicago, level. Will train. M-F custom-designed, countries and time as Software Developer IL 60661 8:00am-4:30pm.$12.00/ enterprise-level software zones; and (8) Coaching Intern or coursework in hr. Send resumes to development projects and mentoring junior the cannabis software development TransUnion, LLC seeks [email protected] that use object-oriented developers in all that used C or C++ Sr. Developers for technologies, such as aspects of software and Python languages. Chicago, IL location to Northwestern University, Java, Ruby, or .NET. development, including Coursework must have design & develop sw Department of French Requires Bachelor’s Agile development included operating applications. Master’s & Italian, Evanston, IL. degree in Computer methodologies. systems, algorithms, in Comp Sci/Eng/any Tenure-track Assistant Science, Computer Willingness to travel at data structure, and Eng. field + 2yrs exp. Professor of Medieval Engineering, Information least 80% across US. computer networks. or Bachelor’s in Comp Italian/Dante Studies; Systems, Engineering Send resume to ijobs@ Must pass coding exam. Sci/Eng/any Eng. fi eld + teach, advise students, or related field. The thoughtworks.com w/ Multiple positions. 5yrs exp. req’d. Req’d conduct & publish applicant must have 5 Job ID YH-SCD12020. 3. Mid-Level C++ skills: Ab Initio (GDE), research. Required: PhD yrs exp. in job offered, platform Developer, Automation Metadata Hub, Plan>IT, in Italian Literature, Italian Consultant, Developer, Chamberlain Group Must have BS in Teradata, Ab initio Studies or related area, or related IT position. in Chicago, IL seeks Computer Science, Continuous Flows, Toad, outstanding research, Must have 12 mo. exp. Lead Developer, .Net to Eng or related field & 5 Control Center, Ab Initio teaching ability. AA/EOE. in: (1) Participating at all develop and maintain a Reader resource for the canna curious yrs exp as Developer, Data profiler, Oracle, Send CV and 3 reference stages of the software Chamberlain’s MyQ IoT Engineer, or related role DB2, Unix/Linux, Shell letters to elizabeth. delivery life-cycle, middleware system. that included developing scripting, Agile, Autosys, murray@northwestern. including analysis, Must have Bach degree applications in C++. In Express>IT (BRE & ACE edu development, testing and or foreign equiv in Comp lieu of BS & 5 years development). Send deployment; (2) Leading Sci or rltd field, plus exp, will accept MS and resume to: R. Harvey, ThoughtWorks Inc. a team of software 5 years exp in the job coursework in C++. REF: SKT, 555 W Adams, seeks Senior Consultant/ engineers to oversee offered or in a software Must pass coding exam. Chicago, IL 60661 Developer to work in project activity, manage development-related Multiple positions. Chicago, IL & various project deliverables and role Must have following ILLINOIS CANNABIS CONVENTION Direct resumes to: TransUnion, LLC seeks unanticipated U.S. progress, prioritize plans skills: (1) Developing, Megan Suerth, Akuna Solution Architects for locations to work for future iterations, implementing and April 3-4, Chicago Hilton Capital LLC 333 S various & unanticipated on large-scale, and manage team maintaining solutions Wabash, Suite 2600, worksites throughout custom-designed, performance; (3) Utilizing using Object Oriented Chicago, IL 60604. If the U.S. (HQ: Chicago, enterprise-level software Agile development programming concepts Presentations include: CLASSIFIEDS hired, must provide IL) to develop, analyze, development projects methodologies including such as VC++/C#, TCP- document confirming & maintain tools that that use object-oriented Continuous Integration, IP Socket Programming authorization to work support & automate technologies, such as Extreme Programming, and MS SQL Server How to Start a Cannabis Business JOBS legally and permanently processes for sw product Java or Ruby. Must Continuous Delivery, for data storage; (2) in the U.S. Employment releases & confi guration. have Bachelor’s degree Test-Driven Development Working knowledge Social Equity in the Cannabis Industry is at its offi ces in Chicago Master’s in Comp. Sci./ in Computer Science, and pair programming; of AMQP for loT ADMINISTRATIVE at 333 S Wabash Ave. Comp. Eng. + 2yrs exp. Computer Engineering, (4) Using test automation systems; (3) Distributed Mind, Body, Cannabis or Bachelor’s in Comp. Information Systems, frameworks to test at Computing (Decoupled SALES & Network Engineer – Sci./Comp. Eng. + Engineering or related diff erent levels, including Architecture) system Clinical Role of Medical Cannabis Schaumburg, IL. Seeking 5yrs exp. req’d. Req’d fi eld. The applicant must unit, functional and knowledge; (4) Object MARKETING MS in Electrical Engg., skills: must incl. 1yr w/ have 3 yrs exp. in job integration testing; (5) oriented Programming Cultivation & Processing & Seed Genetics Comp. Engg., or closely Java/J2EE; product offered, Consultant, Developing software and concepts (SOLID FOOD & DRINK rel. Travel req’d. Mail CV release & configuration; Developer, or related applications using Java, principles, Design Illinois Cannabis Laws to Attn: HR/Job #0211, test strategy; Oracle; IT occupation. Must Ruby or .NET; (6) Serving patterns); (5) Entity SPAS & SALONS D&D Internetworking, Unix/Linux; Perl have 12 mo. exp. in: (1) as a liaison between Framework, Data Compliance for Retailers and Cultivators Inc., 2385 Hammond Dr. Scripting; Docker; Analyzing, developing, client and development Modeling, Domain BIKE JOBS #8, Schaumburg Kubernetes; CI/CD; designing, and testing team to define scope Model; (6) TFS, VSTS, ...and lots more! IL 60173. AWS. Telecommuting object-oriented and and technical direction GIT, PowerShell permitted. Send resume full life-cycle software of the project including scripting; and (7) GENERAL iManage LLC seeks to: R. Harvey, REF: VKN, development projects requirements gathering SQL Server and in Chicago, IL: Senior 555 W. Adams, Chicago, using Java, Ruby, and design discussions Micro services. Apply Support Engineer with IL 60661. JavaScript, Junit, Spring, and managing online at http://www. 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Bob Morgan RENTALS or iManage LLC, Attn: and resilient networks. and pair programming; and mentoring junior resp for deliver Linear Recruiting, 540 West Up to 10% domestic (3) Performing developers in all Automate prduct. Req Madison St, Ste. 300, travel required. Mail automation test aspects of software Bach in CS, Engin, or FOR SALE Chicago, IL 60661. resume referencing frameworks, including development, including rltd & 5 yrs exp dvlp SW Limited booths remaining. Job Code 540392 to unit, functional, and Agile development app use these: NUnit &/ NON-RESIDENTIAL iManage LLC seeks in Rosemary Carlson, INTL integration testing; (4) methodologies or MSTest, Agile dvlp Tickets on sale now: $25/day, $40/2 day pass (in advance) Chicago, IL: Technical FCStone Inc., 1251 NW Developing software Willingness to travel at method, Visual Studio, ROOMATES Consultant with BS Briarcliff Parkway, Suite applications using least 80% across US. C#, JavaScript, HTML, degree in Comp Sci, 800, Kansas City, MO Java or Ruby; (5) Send resume to ijobs@ CSS, jQuery, SQL Server, www.necann.com/2020-illinois Mgmt Info Sys, or Elec 64116. EOE. Working on projects thoughtworks.com w/ .Net Framework, ASP. Eng, plus 2 yrs of exp with distributed teams, Job ID XL-LCD012020 NET MVC, ASP.NET Web as a Support Engineer Reporter: Collect, including coordinating API & NuGet. Apply to: or sub sim pos. Send analyze news. Report, across countries and ThoughtWorks Inc. Denise_Mapes@cable. MARKET- resume to Peopleops@ write stories for TV time zones; and (6) seeks Lead Consultant/ comcast.com. Ref Job imanage.com (ref. no. programs/broadcasting. Coaching and mentoring Developer (Professional ID# 1798 L0342) or iManage LLC, Receive assignments, junior developers in all Services) to work in PLACE Attn: Recruiting, 540 evaluate leads to develop aspects of software Chicago, IL & various Social Justice Reporting West Madison St., Ste. stories. Research development, including unanticipated locations Fellowship 300, Chicago, IL 60661. background info. Read Agile development throughout the U.S. The Chicago Reader, GOODS news fl ashes. 2 yrs exp. methodologies. leading large-scale, the city’s illustrious free Chicago’s friendliest Strike Social seeks Media Must speak Romanian. Willingness to travel at custom-designed, alt-weekly, is hiring a SERVICES Supervisor in Chicago, Res: Credo Ministries, least 80% across US. enterprise-level software Social Justice Reporting cannabis shop IL to rvew media briefs 4850 N Bernard, Chicago Send resume to ijobs@ development projects Fellow to continue our HEALTH & and set planning IL 60625 thoughtworks.com w/ that use object-oriented award-winning news and processes in motion. BS Job ID OF-SCD22020. technologies such as investigative coverage. WELLNESS in marketing, advertising, Transmarket Operations Java, Ruby, or. NET. The ideal candidate will communications or LLC seeks Quantitative ThoughtWorks Inc. Master’s degree in have news reporting INSTRUCTION closely related field & 3 Traders for Chicago, seeks Senior Consultant/ Computer Science, experience, a nuanced yrs. of exp. Req 3 yrs of IL to analyze & dev Developer II to work in Computer Engineering, understanding of the MUSIC & ARTS exp. in a marketing or quantitative trading Chicago, IL & various Information Systems social justice issues our advertising position or strategies by dev unanticipated locations or related field. The city confronts, and a digital media planning/ electronic trading apps. throughout the U.S. applicant must have 2 commitment to social SHARE YOUR CANNA NOTICES buying across various Bachelor’s in Math/ Work on large-scale, yrs exp. in job offered, impact journalism. types of digital media: Statistics/related field + custom-designed, Consultant, Developer, The yearlong, full-time BUSINESS HERE MESSAGES Facebook ads manager, 2 yrs exp req’d. Req’d enterprise-level software or related IT position. fellowship will be twitter, YouTube Skills: Python, C++, development projects Must have 12 mo. exp. based out of our office LEGAL NOTICES TrueView, google ads, Linux, VBA, Matlab, that use object-oriented in: (1) Participating at all in Bronzeville. Please Dispensary, Medical Practice, snapchat, Pinterest, Volatility Modeling, technologies, such as stages of the software send a resume, cover or LinkedIn. Req. KPI Black-Scholes Pricing, Java, Ruby, or .NET. delivery life-cycle, letter summarizing ADULT SERVICES performance forecasting Factor Models, Derivative Requires Bachelor’s including analysis, your experience and Educational Program, In-Home based on campaign Data Theory, Portfolio Risk degree in Computer development, testing and what makes you the analysis and budget Management, TT Science, Computer deployment; (2) Leading ideal candidate, and allocation. Req. any amt sw platform, market Engineering, Information a team of software clips—either as links nuMed.com | 1308 W. North Ave Chef, Home Grow, & More of exp. w/ data analysis. fundamentals. Apply Systems, Engineering engineers to oversee or attachments—to Knowledge of any data online: http://www. or related field. The project activity, manage careers@chicagoreader. JOBS visualization platforms transmarketgroup.com/ applicant must have 5 project deliverables and com. 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Mail resume Please call designing, and testing Continuous Integration, creating a collaborative Python/FPGA Must to Jerry Rinard 125 South 1-773-487-9900. object-oriented and Extreme Programming, environment that have BS in Compu Sci, Clark Street 17th Floor full life-cycle software Continuous Delivery, celebrates the diversity Conversations Chicago, IL 60603 Seeking college development projects Test-Driven Development of our staff. We are Engineering, Math or related fi eld & 5yrs exp educated for permanent using JavaScript, Junit, and pair programming; proud to be an equal chicagoreader.com/joravsky as Developer or related TransUnion, LLC seeks part-time employment in Spring, MySQL, Oracle, (4)Using test automation opportunity employer. role that included C++, Lead Developers for Evanston working with and Selenium; (2) frameworks to test at Python and FPGA. 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This timeless story of a man torn between love and virtue is “probably on MAR & more lists of the greatest films of all time than any other single title,” critic Roger Ebert once observed. Performing Max Steiner’s Oscar-nominated Richard Kaufman score and the memorable classic, “As Time Goes By,” the CSO brings this enchanting masterpiece to life.
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