In “Art and Faith of the Crèche,” creed and creativity go together like Christmas and cookies, but you don’t have to be a believer to appreciate the beauty of the nativity sets on display at Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA).
Stories by Marc Vitali
From ‘Phantom’ to Black Voices in Cabaret, Here Are 5 Musical Performances to Catch This Weekend
This weekend brings an ensemble of enticing musical choices, and it’s not just holiday songs and show tunes. OK, much of it is, but the hardest part will be deciding what to see — and hear.
Brighten Up Your Post-Thanksgiving Weekend With These 5 Holiday Shows
Brighten your Black Friday – and Saturday and Sunday – by taking part in a communal experience in the arts. Here are five picks.
Hot Dogs, Graffiti and Graphic Design: A Fountain of Fonts at the Design Museum of Chicago
“Letters Beyond Form: Chicago Types” is a modestly scaled but ambitious exhibition currently occupying the Design Museum of Chicago on Randolph Street across from the Chicago Cultural Center.
Large-Scale Art Installation Greets Visitors at Shedd Aquarium’s Reimagined Front Entrance
“The idea was to provide this experience of being like a scuba diver — you come in and you’re at the bottom of the lake looking up,” artist David Franklin said. “Then you rise up through the fish into that Grand Hall, which is so fantastic. It had to hold up to that standard.”
Meet Mariam Paré, a Rare Mouth Painter Who Didn’t Let Paralysis Stop Her From Becoming an Artist
Mariam Paré is part of a small community of people who paint with their mouths or feet. Paré was an aspiring art student when a 1996 shooting left her quadriplegic. “I wasn’t ready to change everything that I wanted to be,” Paré said.
A Timely Parable on Stage, ‘Rhinoceros’ Rages Against the Machine of Conformity: Review
If plays were read as commonly as books, “Rhinoceros” would have been banned long ago in those countries that ban books. Imagine such places! First staged in 1959, it was written by the Romanian playwright Eugène Ionesco and has become a classic of the theater of the absurd.
Chicago in Living Color: Photography Book Focuses on Chicago From a European’s Point-of-View
“Chicago in Color,” is a modestly-scaled gem with many facets of lively color. There are views of familiar places seen through fresh eyes, but the book’s strength lies in the smallest of details: minimalist compositions of nature or infrastructure linked by a colorful photographic palette.
Guitarist and Songwriter Ronnie Baker Brooks Embraces His Family Legacy With ‘Blues In My DNA’
Ronnie Baker Brooks, son of blues legend Lonnie Brooks, is a soulful singer and guitarist. He just released “Blues In My DNA” on Chicago’s independent Alligator Records — his father’s home label for many years.
Drag Yourself to the Theater for Cross-Dressing Fun With ‘The Golden Girls’ and the ‘Scooby Doo’ Gang: Review
For 23 years and through more than 80 productions, Hell in a Handbag has brought slightly raunchy but good-humored fun to a variety of stages. They’ve dragged themselves from the tiny space in Mary’s Attic to the mainstage at the Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St.
Love, Lies and Literature – Joffrey Ballet Teams With English Choreographer and Swiss Dance Company to Capture the Story of ‘Atonement’
Joffrey Ballet’s U.S. premiere of “Atonement” tells the impassioned story of a lie that alters the course of love and history. Cathy Marston, the acclaimed British choreographer behind “Atonement,” is best known for narrative ballets.
Historic Witch Trials Influence Modern America in ‘Becky Nurse of Salem’ From Shattered Globe Theatre: Review
Despite its breezy title, “Becky Nurse of Salem” is a full-blown tempest of irony and righteous anger. It ponders the witch as both a powerful being and an object of scorn. Here, witches can be genuine or kooky – sometimes all in the same witch.
13 Chilling Choices for Halloween Arts and Culture in the Chicago Area
Here’s a list of hair-raising reasons to climb out of your casket and explore the necropolis.
George Romero and a Swamp Monster: Evanston Writer Completes Novel by the Reluctant Master of Horror
Visionary filmmaker George A. Romero started the zombie apocalypse genre in 1968 when “Night of the Living Dead” rewrote the rules for horror movies. Romero films featured social commentary, strong minority characters and a cargo of carnage.
2 Chicagoans Among 2024 MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’ Winners
Chicago has a pair of newly minted geniuses. Multimedia artist Ebony G. Patterson and fiction writer Ling Ma are among 22 scientists, artists and scholars who have been awarded the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowship.
Stephen King Thriller ‘Misery’ Delivers Chills and Uneasy Laughs at American Blues Theater: Review
American Blues Theater sets the bar high for Halloween season, delivering a tightly focused fever dream version of Stephen King’s novel “Misery.” The psychological thriller is made more unnerving by the humorous touches in this stage adaptation by William Goldman (“Marathon Man,” “The Princess Bride”).
Brilliant ‘Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812’ Lights Up the Stage at Writers Theatre: Review
Having missed the opening, I saw the glowing reviews for this Chicago-area premiere and trekked up to Writers Theatre in Glencoe. I went with a skeptic’s eye and my arms folded. “Critics think it’s good, huh? What do they know?” Well, they know enough to have the good sense to embrace this irresistible production.
It’s Good to Be King: New Actor in Town Wears the Crown of ‘Henry V’ at Chicago Shakespeare Theater
Elijah Jones must have impressed Chicago Shakespeare Theater with the same charisma he projects onstage as the titular king in “Henry V,” a lively production of Shakespeare’s history play about war between France and England. WTTW News spoke with the Juilliard-trained actor about his past, present and future.
Riot Fest, Dave Grohl and the World’s Oldest Young Punks: Punk Band Verböten Tells an Amazing Story 41 Years in the Making
It’s a Chicago music story for the ages. In 1983, four friends aged 11 to 15 years old formed a punk band and played the Cubby Bear and a few other shows before amicably breaking up — basically the oldest kid wanted to tour, but the youngest was told that he had to finish 6th grade.
Attention Student Photographers: The National Portrait Gallery Wants Your Picture on the Walls of the Museum
Every picture tells a story, and now there’s a chance for young photographers in Chicago (and elsewhere) to tell their own stories and amplify them to the nation.
As Lyric Opera Launches New Season, Music Director Talks Timeless Appeal of Verdi’s Passionate ‘Rigoletto’
The music is familiar and downright catchy — Verdi famously forbade his cast from singing the songs or even humming the score until after its 1851 premiere in Venice. Acclaimed Verdi specialist Enrique Mazzola conducts.
Queen Elizabeth II and Her Prime Ministers Get the Royal Treatment in ‘The Audience’ at Drury Lane Theatre: Review
Drury Lane Theatre launched its fall season with “The Audience,” a lively and entertaining drama that imagines private conversations between Queen Elizabeth II and the prime ministers who served during her reign. Here, Her Majesty acts as both therapist and sparring partner for the heads of Parliament.
Meet the ‘Great Gatsby of Chicago,’ an Architect Who Designed Classical Comforts in the Early 20th Century
Everyone in Chicago knows the work of architect Benjamin Marshall, even if his name doesn’t carry the weight of Louis Sullivan or Frank Lloyd Wright. It’s hard to imagine the city without Marshall’s enduring contributions — the South Shore Cultural Center, the Drake Hotel and many other historic buildings.
Author, Teacher and Holocaust Survivor Dies at 95. Estelle Glaser Laughlin Found Light in Darkest Days
Estelle Glaser Laughlin carried a lifelong message of optimism despite coming of age during a terrible time in history. She died this week at the age of 95.
Marshall Field’s Holiday Figures Put Nostalgia on the Auction Block
Picture your holiday decorations with an actual figure from the Marshall Field’s window displays — a boy riding an old-fashioned bicycle or Christmas carolers or even a miniature version of the famous Marshall Field’s clock. Thirty mechanized figures can each go to the highest bidder.
Exhibit Looks at Legendary Chicago Journalist Mike Royko and a Changing Media Industry
Mike Royko was Chicago’s Prince of Print. At his peak, he wrote five columns a week that could lift underdogs or level overlords. In 1972, he won a Pulitzer Prize for Commentary at the Chicago Daily News, and he later wrote for the Sun-Times and the Tribune. Royko was also complicated.
