(Stelo Stories)

“Equiano.Stories” is a new film that can only be viewed on Instagram. It brings to life the story of Olaudah Equiano, who was enslaved at 11 years old in 1756.

(WTTW News)

The virtual concert will feature a number of African songs that explore the history of African American culture in the U.S. They’re taking concert goers on a sankofa journey, a word from Ghana which means to return or retrieve what was lost.

Conductor Marin Alsop leads the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Barber’s Symphony No. 1. (Credit: Todd Rosenberg)

Rachmaninov’s “Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor,” is a nerve-shatteringly difficult work. Backed by the full orchestra, which was in its usual sublime form, Lukas Vondracek rendered the extraordinary work with a superb mix of both titanic power and surprising lyricism.

Omar Nieves, Gary Cooper, Drew Redington (Credit: Liz Lauren)

The Marriott Theatre’s “West Side Story” opened Wednesday night in a production especially notable for its rip-roaring Latin and jazz-infused dance sequences choreographed by Alex Sanchez.

Blues drummer Sam Lay sets up below stained glass where the altar used to be at the former First Christian Church that is now the Blue Heaven Studios in Salina, Kan., Jan. 27, 2000.  (AP Photo / Cliff Schiappa, file)

Alligator Records said Lay was known for his “trademark, hard-to-copy ‘double-shuffle’" drumming, based on double-time hand-clapping in his childhood church.

Funerary Mask, Late Ptolemaic Period–early Roman Period, 1st century BCE. Ancient Egyptian. (Courtesy The Art Institute of Chicago, W. Moses Willner Fund).

Back in 1890, the Art Institute of Chicago began collecting Egyptian art. Much of it has been out of view for years, but the museum spruced up the collection and is about to unveil it in a new gallery. We have a preview of ancient art and artifacts from the Nile Valley in North Africa.

(YouTube)

The decision comes from their conference, the Horizon League, after UIC announced it’ll be leaving the league and joining the Missouri Valley Conference next year. 

(Courtesy of Ballet Folklorico de Mexico de Amalia Hernandez)

Dance performances, ice skating, Valentine’s Day-themed festivities and a classic film in concert usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago this weekend.

Chicago’s Trinity Irish Dance Company returned to the Auditorium Theatre Feb. 5, 2022, for a dynamic and thunderous performance. (Courtesy of Chelsea Hoy)

Chicago’s Trinity Irish Dance Company returned to the stage of the Auditorium Theatre for the first time since the pandemic drove it away two years ago for a thunderous performance.

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores discusses his recent lawsuit against the team and the NFL. (CNN)

The NFL is facing explosive allegations of racial discrimination and corruption made in a class action lawsuit filed by former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores — who was recently fired by the team.

“Women of Soul” runs through March 6 at Mercury Theater Chicago, 3745 N. Southport. (Courtesy of Brett Beiner)

“Women of Soul,” which runs through March 6 at Mercury Theater Chicago, is a powerhouse revue featuring a long list of decades-spanning singers. 

(Courtesy O'Malley Creadon Productions)
Chicago went wild when the Loyola Ramblers played in the final four of the NCAA tournament in 2018. It was the first time the men’s basketball team made it that far since 1963 when the Ramblers won the school’s only championship title and broke racial barriers while doing so.  But the '63 season was groundbreaking for many reasons, as shown in the new documentary "The Loyola Project."
(Courtesy American Institute of Architects)

February is Black History Month and to celebrate, we’ll be spotlighting a Chicago Black history maker every week. This week’s history maker is nationally recognized architect Wendell Campbell. 

(Courtesy Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández)

The Mexico City-based ensemble, Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández, is bringing together audience-favorite dances that traverse the history and culture of Mexico with performances at the Auditorium Theater on Feb. 12 and 13.

Music journalist Sandra Treviño gave us a few recommendations for Afro-Latino artists you may want to add to your next playlist. (WTTW News)

While Afro-Latino musicians have not always been given their due, music journalist Sandra Treviño thinks that the tide is turning. Treviño gave us a few recommendations for Afro-Latino artists you may want to add to your next playlist.

Timi Zajc, of Slovenia, prepares to jump during a men's normal hill ski jumping training session at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo / Matthias Schrader)

Here’s a look at what to watch, starting Saturday when the women go for gold, from the moment ski jumpers sit on a bar about as high as a 40-story building until they glide over machine-made snow and wait to see how far they flew and how the judges scored their performance.