Arts & Entertainment
A Local Music Photobook and CIFF: 4 Arts Picks for Your Week
"Tender Loving Care" (Bleecker Street / Chicago International Film Festival)
Every Thursday, WTTW News newsletter producer Josh Terry highlights his picks for the week’s must-see cultural events.
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Leaves are falling, and autumn is in full swing. You know what’s also in motion? The fall calendar of local arts events and happenings. The Chicago International Film Festival brings a full slate of cinematic programming, a dance troupe celebrates a milestone and you can even find book parties and theater productions going on in the roundup below.
Theater: “Hayward” — Steppenwolf
A reimagining of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” and Sophocles’ “Electra,” “Hayward” is a Netta Walker-penned play that follows a grieving daughter who begins to see her father’s ghost. A semifinalist for the 2025 Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, this acclaimed story explores generational trauma, family dynamics and more during a run that lasts from now until Nov. 22. Buy tickets here.
Film: Chicago International Film Festival (CIFF) — Multiple Locations
The 62nd Chicago International Film Festival kicked off this week. It runs until Oct. 25 across various venues, including AMC NEWCITY 14, Music Box Theatre, Gene Siskel Film Center and UChicago’s Logan Center for the Arts. Among the 113 feature films and 57 shorts on the lineup, some highlights include screenings of films by Mike Leigh, Hong Sang-soo, James Gray, Paweł Pawlikowski, Cheryl Dunn, Kris Rey and more. For more info, click here.
Literature: “Chicago Music, Seen” — LouLou
Photographer Jim Newberry diligently documented Chicago’s many music scenes for decades. Now, based in Los Angeles, the veteran artist returns to his former home base to celebrate a new portrait book called “Chicago Music, Seen,” which captures musicians like Buddy Guy, Jeff Tweedy, Liz Phair, Frankie Knuckles, Mavis Staples and dozens more. He’ll appear at Lula Cafe’s LouLou arts space Sunday evening to celebrate its release with an interview featuring “Sound Opinions” producer Andrew Gil and a performance by Girls of the Golden West. For more info, click here. He’ll also appear Oct. 24 at the Museum of Post Punk & Industrial Music in Bridgeport from 1 p.m. till 4 p.m. Buy tickets here.
Dance: Identity Performing Arts 5th Anniversary Gala and Performance — Edlis Neeson Theater at MCA Chicago
The contemporary dance troupe Identity Performing Arts celebrates its fifth year in existence with a performance and a gala at MCA Chicago. At the Edlis Neeson Theater show, they will debut a brand-new work along with two additional pieces from the company’s repertoire. Buy tickets here.
WTTW News arts coverage is supported by the JCS Arts, Health & Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation.
