Chicago, IL

Navy Pier is the top tourist destination in Chicago and for good reason. Whether the weather is hot or cold, there is plenty to see and do for young and old alike. There are a wide variety of shops, eateries, and entertainment and you could spend an entire day there and still not experience it all.

Now that winter is here, Navy Pier is about to start their Winter Wonderfest event. It begins this Friday, December 7th, and runs through January 6th. Admission to the event is free, although you have to get a wristband to have access to the rides and activities. There are two different wristbands, one for $15 and one for $18. They both include an unlimited access to the rides and activities. The more expensive wristband allows you ice skating rental.

So what do you get for that money?

Arctic ice rink: A fun indoor ice skating rink which is an alternative to the outdoor skating rink at Millenium Park. The photo above is from the rink.

Ferris wheel: Although Navy Pier is famous for its outdoor ferris wheel, in the cold weather they have a great 50 feet indoor ferris wheel. Although you won’t get the great city views that you would from the outdoor ferris wheel, you will have a great view of the wonderfest.

Rides: There is a matterhorn spider web and a hand gliding ride. Also, there is a reindeer express train which allows you to see the whole fest while saving your energy for ice skating. There is also a carousel, inflatable games, and a ropes course.

Other Activities: You can watch a cabaret show or join your child in decorating holiday cookies.

For more information on attractions, visit the official site.

This post is part of the 12 days of Chicago series, which brings you 12 fun and interesting things that you can do for the holidays in Chicago. In conjunction with the series, this blog is sponsoring a holiday contest, which you can read about here.

Chicago, Navy Pier, Winter Wonderfest

If you are looking for something to do this weekend that will help out some furry friends, consider going the Anti-Cruelty Society’s annual benefit this Friday. The event, called “It’s Raining Cats & Dogs” will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. The benefit will feature food from local chefs, as well as wine and cheese tastings. There will also be dessert and a full bar.

In addition to food, there will be a jazz trio and disc jockey to provide entertainment, as well as a visit from some of the residents of the shelter. Live and silent auctions will also be held raise additional money for the society.

The Anti-Cruelty Society shelter is located at 157 West Grand Avenue in Chicago, which provides temporary homes for cats and dogs. The society also provides lost cost spay and neutering services for the community, as well as a low income veterinarian clinic. The society also provides behavioral classes and dog obedience training.

The mission statement of the Anti-Cruelty Society is “to prevent cruelty to animals and to advance humane education.” It is through benefits like “It’s raining cats & dogs,” as well as donations from the community which allow the society to provide all of the services that it does.

All proceeds from the benefit will go to the services provided by the society. For additional information or to make reservations, contact Kate Anderson at (312) 644-8338 ext. 307.

Additionally, if you are looking for a new kitty or dog to add to your home, I would suggest that you check the shelters in your area before buying an animal. There are a lot of wonderful, well-behaved animals in need of your love. As the “mom” to two shelter cats, I really advocate for this route to getting a new pet.

Chicago, Anti-Cruelty Society, dogs, cats

This weekend will mark the 18th annual African Festival of Arts in Chicago. The event will celebrate the art and culture of Africa. It features three performance stages, including a hip-hop stage and a world music stage. Performers include MC Lyte, Naughty By Nature, and James Cotton.

In addition to music, the African Festival of the Arts will feature cultural programs including fine arts, fashion, a kids pavilion, and food sellers. There will also be a drum village featuring talented percussionists.

The event will take place in Washington Park at 51st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue on Friday August 31-Monday September 3rd from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

For more information, including how to purchase tickets, visit the African Festival of the Arts website.

Chicago, African Festival of the Arts, African Festival, Naughty by Nature, MC Lyte, James Cotton

This weekend, the southside Chicago neighborhood of Bridgeport will host the Southside Arts and Musical Festival. The event will run Saturday and Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 10:00 pm at 35th & Halsted. It will benefit the Valentine Boys and Girls Club.

The organizers of the event, describe it this way:

The Southside Arts and Music Festival is a true celebration of Chicago. The event offers the best of everything that Chicagoan’s love: a wide selection of food offered by some of the south side’s oldest and most popular restaurants, a lineup of the very best of Chicago’s local classic rock and blues bands culminating in national musical headliners each night, and a wide selection of merchandise offered by upscale arts and crafts vendors and local area businesses.

There is quite a wide variety of performers including Motown-inspired Hitsville U.S.A, funk band Lubriphonic, the Jesse White Tumblers, and voodoo blues performer Lonnie Brooks. For a complete list of performers, including their performance day and time, visit the official site here.

Chicago, Southside Arts and Music Festival, Bridgeport, Chicago festival, Happiness Club , Anne Harris, Hitsville U.S.A., Jesse White Tumblers, Linsey Alexander, Lubriphonic, English Beat, Bernard Alcorn, Alpha & The Princes of Futa, Gizzae, Jesse White Tumblers, Funkadesi, Lonnie Brooks, Chicago music, music

This weekend is the Old St. Pat’s annual block party, which is described as the “world’s largest block party.” The event will take place Friday and Saturday as a fundraiser for Old St. Pat’s church, Chicago’s oldest public building.

Here is what the organizers have to say about the goal of this year’s event:

The Block Party proceeds support the on-going campus expansion. The campus expansion will ensure that the important outreach missions we share such as the Education Center, the Outreach Group, CARA Job Placement and Mentoring Program, Career Transitions Center of Chicago and Global Alliance for Africa will be able to call Old St. Pat’s home for decades to come.

In addition to great food and drink, there are several musical performances during the two day event. Here is the line-up:

Friday, July 20
WXRT Main Stage

* Michael McDermott (5:15–6:30)
* Back Door Slam (7:00–8:00)
* Rusted Root (8:30–10:30)

South Stage

* Weber Band (5:30–9:45)

Bud Light Beer Garden

* DJ music from Fig Media

Saturday, July 21
WXRT Main Stage

* Catchpenny (5:30–7:00)
* Jon McLaughlin (7:30–8:30)
* Big Head Todd and the Monsters (9:00–10:30)

South Stage

* Heligoats (5:30–6:30)
* Hello Dave (7:00–10:00)

Bud Light Beer Garden

* DJ music from Fig Media

The gates to the event are located at Madison and Des Plaines and open at 5:00 pm. both days. The event will run until approximately 10:30 p.m. each night. Cost is $35 in advance, $40 at the door. Tickets can be purchased online at the official website here.

Friday July 13th, the Charter One Pavilion on Northerly Island in Chicago will be host to the “World’s Largest Pajama Party,” brought to you by Victoria’s Secret. A similar event last year in New York city drew 3,000 people. The event will feature DJ AM and a live performance from Fergie.

You can obtain a ticket at www.vspink.com. The doors open at 6:00 p.m and admission will be limited. For more information, visit Victoria’s Secret’s website.

Victoria’s Secret, Fergie, DJ AM, pajama party, world’s largest pajama party, PINK, Chicago, Charter One Pavilion, Northerly Island

The annual L.A.T.E. Ride, hosted by Friends of the Park will take place this Saturday night/Sunday morning. The cycling event runs overnight and allows cyclists to enjoy the streets of Chicago in cooler weather, with less traffic. The events, which is for all ages, kicks off at midnight with a some pre-event activities, with the first wave of cyclists departing Buckingham fountain around 1:30 a.m. This is from the L.A.T.E. Ride site:

Enjoy a 25-mile ride through Chicago’s neighborhoods and along the lakefront. Cycle past skyscrapers, hear “Opaah!” in Greek Town, cruise through the North Side, wave to onlookers, and watch the sun rise over Lake Michigan. Plus, enjoy tons of snacks at the rest stop and breakfast back at Buckingham Fountain.

Last year’s event included over 9,000 participants. If you want to sign-up or for more information, visit the L.A.T.E. Ride site here.

Chicago, L.A.T.E. Ride, late ride chicago, cycling, late ride, bicycling chicago, friends of the parks

Are you curious about the history of blues music in Chicago? You can download a free audio tour on the topic. It is narrated by famed Chicago blues man Buddy Guy. Download the tour to your iPod or MP3 player and take Buddy Guy along with you on a tour of blues in Chicago. The enhanced audio tour also includes “sounds and stories of Sweet Home Chicago.”

To download the audio tour, or to listen on your computer if you prefer, visit this site.

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So, I’m not going to write about the Taste of Chicago. Why? Because everyone else in the entire world is. Instead, I decided to talk about my life. The last few weeks for me have been what I would call…philosophically stretching.

I went to the 6th Annual Lottery Reunion show at iO last week. Basically, the Lottery is a show where iO draws the names of some random students out of a bucket, and they get to perform with amazing and legendary improvisers in a regular show. If that sounds unpredictable to you, you should see the Lottery REUNION show. Sheesh. Each of the last 6 casts did a 10-minute piece. Each team had about 4 people I would call “Headliners” and 2 or 3 students. So, in an hour, I got to see 24 diverse veteran improvisers, and about 15 students trying to keep up. Amazingly, there were students on stage that were performing seamlessly. Others were struggling. But, that’s beside the point. The great part about the show was that each team had their own personality, and it was extremely interesting to see the range of style in such a back-to-back way. One that stood out to me in particular was the “Annoyance” set, starring Mick Napier among others. Now, I have heard of Mick Napier. He is one of the founders of the Annoyance Theater and has essentially achieved Improv God Status. But, I had never before seen him perform. Basically, my brain exploded. In a mish-mosh of intersecting scenes and non-linear storytelling, I realized that I am a very vanilla improv fan. But, I was told not to judge the “Annoyance style” based on that show, because it was done, after all, with students.

Then, on Saturday, I had the extreme pleasure of having Joe Bill, another Annoyance founder and cast member of Bassprov, fill in for another teacher at my improv class. (He. Is. Awesome.) And, at one point, half of the class did a montage of the most obnoxious, irrationally arranged, crazy-person scenes that I have ever seen. Then, Joe starts talking to us about leaving aside our style preferences. Maybe watching improv isn’t about what we “like” or “don’t like,” but maybe it’s about expression and art. Then, he looks at me, and apparently, I had a gross look on my face, because he said, “Ok, Miss Linear Thinker, what was wrong with that?” HA! Then, I debated with him for a few minutes, because that’s what I do. But, really, I’m open to comedy that breaks rules. I’m open to Improv being about art and expression. Maybe I’ll try to not only judge something based on whether I “like” it or not.

Perhaps.

Last night I went to a show at Acme Art Works, and one of the performances was a guy reading screenplay treatments written by a person that was clearly either on drugs or in some other way mentally incapacitated. For all intents and purposes, it was a guy, on stage, reading for half an hour. I LOVED IT. So, in light of all that I have been thinking about for the last few weeks, I’m trying to appreciate it from a non-preferential standpoint, but I’m at a loss. I guess I have a lot to learn.

In any case, I think I’m going to start checking out more things at Annoyance. I still haven’t seen Messing with a Friend, which apparently makes me a horrible person. When people talk something up as much as they talk up Susan Messing, it sort of makes me want to avoid it. And every time I say that to an improviser, they die a little bit inside. Because Susan Messing has also achieved God-Status. Ok. I’ll go. Soon. I promise.

Annoyance Theater, Mick Napier, Joe Bill, Susan Messing, Acme Art Works, Chicago Improv, Comedy

As always, the official Chicago fireworks show will take place tonight, July 3rd at Grant Park. The show is accompanied by classical music by the Grant Park orchestra and will begin at 9:30 p.m. If you plan on going there, be sure to get there long before dark so you can get a good seat. If you can’t get downtown to see the show in person, you can watch it locally on WPWR, which is now called My50. Here is a video of a portion of the fireworks from 2006, including the grand finale.

Chicago, Chicago fireworks, July 3rd fireworks, fourth of July, July 4th, fireworks, you tube

It’s still not too late to do something fun tonight. I was going to go to a Women in Film - ONLY advance screening of Evening, but I don’t have any clean clothes, so it looks like I’m stuck doing laundry! Lame! If you don’t know anything about it, Women in Film Chicago is a great networking organization for women involved in film and television in the area. They put on great events and have a lot of advanced movie screenings. Check out their website: HERE.

If you aren’t a WiF member, you could hit Tuesdays on the Terrace to see free evening jazz concerts on the MCA’s Anne and John Kern Terrace overlooking Lake Michigan. “Enjoy cocktails and light dinner fare while listening to Chicago’s finest jazz musicians, hosted by local radio personalities. In addition to a dinner menu, Puck’s cafe also offers boxed meals and blankets, perfect for those who prefer to relax on the sculpture garden lawn.”
Dinner reservations are recommended, call 312.397.4034
In case of rain, the event takes place in Puck’s.
Check out the website: HERE

Women in Film Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art, Jazz

So, I don’t know how many of you have ever been to a Roller Derby. That’s right. I’m talking about a Roller Derby. Tough, loud and crazy women flinging themselves around a track on rollerskates - smashing into each other - scoring points in an almost indeciferable manner. It’s almost like the illegitimate child of Hockey and Speed-skating…and it’s SUPER FUN!
Chicago is home to several kick-ass teams. You can check out the Windy City Roller’s website here: WHAM!
If you are up for something a little bit crazy and a whole lot of fun, on June 16th, starting at 6pm, you can see two matchups - Hell’s Belles vs The Fury, and Manic Attackers vs. Double Crossers.
They even have a Party Bus that meets at The Cobra Lounge for a pre-party at 4. For $8, you can get transportation to and from the match, and make it back to the Cobra Lounge in time for the after-party.

Admit it, it sounds fun!

Roller Derby, Chicago, Windy City Rollers, Hell’s Belles, The Fury, Manic Attackers, Double Crossers, The Cobra Lounge

Are you one of those people that thinks that there’s nothing fun to do on a Wednesday night? Well, America’s Next Top Model ended weeks ago, it’s time to get out of the house.
Here’s a few things you could be doing tonight…

International Summer Screenings Program
Claudia Cassidy Theatre, Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St

To encouraging a better understanding between cultures through the art of cinema, Cinema/Chicago is collaborating with various consulates and cultural organizations to provide free summer screenings of international films to the public.

Wednesday, at 7:30PM, at the Claudia Cassidy Theatre, Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph Street, Chicago. FREE ADMISSION.

See web details here: TOOT!

The Right-Handed Polar Bear

Gorilla Tango Theater, 1919 N Milwaukee, Chicago

BonusFunTime presents The Right-Handed Polar Bear, a sketch show that dissects the issues of dishonesty and embarrassment with subtle, and sometimes silly, comedy. There’s no agenda here. Think of it as an open dialogue between the truth and what we parade around as the truth every day. The Right-Handed Polar, a show, which if we’ve done are jobs correctly, will have you dropping any façade you had worn previously to let the “real” you shine through.

Produced by Gorilla Tango and BonusFunTime. Starring: (Your’s truly) Peggy Entrop, Nikhil Gahlawat, Leonardo Adrian Garcia, and Courtney Hummel.
Show Rating - PG-13
Every Wednesday in June - 8pm
For online tickets ($10), visit the website here: SMASH!

Rock Culture Music Festival
Logan Square Auditorium, 2539 N Kedzie Blvd, Chicago

Rock Culture Music Festival is a two day music festival that features 8 bands each night (6 local bands, 1 or our artists, and a national headlining act) similar to Vans’ Warped Tour and Oz Fest.
Check out headliners: Before Their Eyes (June 6) and Spitalfield (June 5) with many others! Doors open at 5:30pm at Logan Square Auditorium- tickets are $12 in advance and $14 at the door! ALL Ages!!

www.rockculturemusic.com

America’s Next Top Model, Chicago, International Summer Screening Program, The Right-Handed Polar Bear, Gorilla Tango Theater, Rock Music Culture, Before Their Eyes, Spitalfield

The Grindhouse Double Feature is playing at the Brew & View at the Vic right now. The innovative bar/movie theater, to many people, is the combination of the century. In my opinion, it would take 6 beers to get through Grindhouse (because I thought it was REALLY boring). So, I guess it’s the perfect movie for this theater. I, however, am waiting for something more interesting to come along… Ok, maybe I should just say this - having a gun for a leg is a funny concept, especially for a spoofy-slasher movie like this, but it is really quite impractical. Who points their leg at people?
Try it.
It’s not easy.

You must be 18 or older (21+ to drink, obviously).
Admission is $5.
Get the movie showtimes here: GONK!

The Vic is located on Belmont and Sheffield - right around the corner from the Belmont Brown/Red Line stop.

Brew and View at the Vic, Movie Theater, Grindhouse

Have you been looking for a new painting for your living room? Maybe a sculpture for the hallway near the bathroom? Me too. Clearly, we need to be at the 33rd Annual Wells Street Art Festival this Saturday and Sunday (June 9th and 10th).

I remember going to these art shows as a kid and just wandering through tables and booths filled with photography, glass sculptures and weird abstract paintings. There were always some hippies selling jewelry and a place you could get your face painted. I guess it contributed toward some kind of appreciation for art, but mostly I just remember having a lot of fun.

If you aren’t that interested in art, The Wells Street Art Festival also boasts a main music stage featuring continuous live rock, jazz, and top-name, nationally-renowned headline entertainment. And, of course, you’ll get access to a vast assortment of Chicago’s best food, live musicians along Wells Street, and a silent auction. For the first time ever, there will be an art tent where School of the Art Institute faculty and students offer art advice, lessons and demonstrations.

Entertainment schedule:

Saturday
1:30 p.m.: BMR4
3 p.m.: Linsey Alexander
4:45 p.m.: Jesse White Tumblers
5:15 p.m.: Weber Band
7:30 p.m. American English

Sunday
1:45 p.m.: Happiness Club
3 p.m.: Lisa Rene Band
4:45 p.m.: Jesse White Tumblers
5:15 p.m.: Lynn Jordan & The Shivers
7:30 p.m.: The Buckinghams

Jun. 9: 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Jun. 10: 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.

Price: $7-$10 donation benefits Old Town Merchants and Residents Association
Phone: 773-868-3010

Wells Street Art Festival, Chicago, Art Institute, BMR4, Linsey Alexander, Jesse White Tumblers, Weber Band, American English, Happiness Club, Lisa Rene Band, Jesse White Tumblers, Lynn Jordan & The Shivers, The Buckinghams