Arts & Entertainment
From the ‘Handmade Market’ to a Lunar New Year’s Celebration, Here Are 5 Arts Picks For Your Week
"Union" (Provided)
Every Thursday, WTTW News newsletter producer Josh Terry highlights his picks for the week’s must-see cultural events.
Daily Chicagoan, the newsletter from WTTW News, sends these picks to your inbox each week along with more essential recommendations from our staff. Sign up here.
It’s Valentine’s Day weekend. As you take time to celebrate your loved one, don’t sleep on the rich bouquet of cultural roses delivered straight to your city. From a documentary screening in Evanston with a director Q&A, a neighborhood craft market in Ukrainian Village, comedy from a regular on “The Daily Show,” to theater and more, make the most of your hopefully romance-filled week.
Film: “Union” — The Block Museum of Art (Evanston)
In 2020, workers at Amazon’s JFK8 Warehouse in Staten Island launched an unprecedented unionization effort and filmmaker Brett Story chronicled the drive in his 2024 documentary “Union.” On Thursday, he’s appearing at the Evanston Art Center for a screening and Q&A. Buy tickets here.
Theater: “Dear Evan Hansen” — Paramount Theatre (Aurora)
A six-time Tony-winning musical is coming to Aurora’s Paramount Theatre for a run that ends March 22. Directed by Jessica Fisch, it promises to be “an honest and original story for all of us who just want to be seen.” Buy tickets here.
Comedy: Josh Johnson — Chicago Theatre
You might recognize this comedian from his work on “The Daily Show” or by his often-viral jokes on the internet. He’s an effortlessly charismatic and perceptive comic who is performing several shows this weekend at the Chicago Theatre from Friday, Feb. 13, through Sunday, Feb. 15. Buy tickets here.
Market: Handmade Market — Empty Bottle
Want something totally unique, handmade, and memorable? Stop by the Empty Bottle on Saturday for the Handmade Market. It runs there every second Saturday from November through April, from noon to 4 p.m. It’s a free event, but you can learn more about it and its vendors here.
Culture: Lunar New Year — Constellation
Head to Bricktown, a cozy pocket of Roscoe Village near the Avondale border, to Constellation for a celebration of the Lunar New Year. It’s the Year of the Horse, so the Chinese Fine Arts Society and Chinese American Museum of Chicago have put on a night of traditional and contemporary dance performances alongside food, drink and a market. Performers include Irene Hsiao, multidisciplinary artist and Chinese Fine Arts Artist in Residence, Menghua Guan, CCCC Lion Dance Troupe and the Yin He Dance Group. Buy tickets here.
WTTW News arts coverage is supported by the JCS Arts, Health & Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation.
