Art Around Town Fri Mar 30 2012

Art Around Town

Tonight:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Monday:

Thursday:

— Kelly Reaves

Benefit Fri Mar 30 2012

In Full Bloom

The Burlington continues its current line-up of great events with Bloom-n-Boom, hosted by the Subject to Change collaborative which, "aims to create a space of "no shame," when it comes to the music we enjoy and the people we love and care about -- our family (both blood and chosen) and our community." The event celebrates the early arrival of spring and the ongoing blooming of the trans community with the Chicago Women's Health Center's Trans Greater Access Project (TGAP). The project promotes services such as trans-affirming healthcare by providing hormone therapy, trans-sensitive gynecological exams, and counseling.

The night kicks off at 9pm with DJ sets by Josie Blush, Miss Summer Clearance, and Panakin Skywalker. Although no guests will be turned away, patrons are encouraged to give a $5 suggested donation.

In addition to the music, Subject to Change will also be selling a companion zine featuring works from people who have used the TGAP program as well as others who have trans health and affirming-related work to share. Submissions for this zine continue through Sunday, April 1 and acceptable works include prose, essays, photography, drawings, comics, and poetry. Submissions can be sent to subjecttochangezine@gmail.com.

Bloom-n-Boom takes place at The Burlington, 3425 West Fullerton at 9pm.

— Britt Julious

Film Thu Mar 29 2012

Life, Love, Soul in Chicago

Noel Calloway recognizes the long-term effect of the lack of positive on-screen images; with his feature film debut, Life, Love, Soul, winner of the 2011 Urbanworld Film Festival's "Audience Award," the New York-born filmmaker, director and writer tells the story of 17-year-old Roosevelt Jackson (newcomer Robbie Tate-Brickle), who, after the sudden death of his mother, is forced to live with his estranged father. "I felt this was something that should be addressed and writing about it was my vehicle," said Calloway. Recently, at theWit Hotel, 201 N. State St., he, along with cast members Chad Coleman ("I Hate My Teenage Daughter, "The Wire") and Jamie Hector ("The Wire, "CSI: Miami") attended the Chicago screening of the film and addressed the film's motivational messages.

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— LaShawn Williams

Benefit Wed Mar 28 2012

Put Your hArt Into It

LVL3 Gallery presents its 3rd Annual Benefit Auction and Raffle, "hArts For Art" on Saturday, April 7, from 6pm to 10:30pm.

LVL3 is an exhibition space in Wicker Park directed by artist Vincent Uribe. The space welcomes artists, both established and emerging, to create and collaborate, building art and relationships.

The art benefit auction features work from more than 20 artists and a portion of the proceeds go to a local not-for-profit, Yollocalli Arts Reach. This is a youth initiative of the National Museum of Mexican Art dedicated to providing equal access to communal artistic and cultural resources that allow youth to become creative and engaged community members.

Yollocalli provides a similar space to LVL3 that encourages communal art and learning for youth. Originating in Pilsen, it claims a safe space that enables a progressive dialogue in urban and youth culture.

Advanced bids start Saturday, March 31 online and bidding ends at 9:30 pm on April 7. Artwork starts at $20 and raffle tickets will be sold at 1 for $3 or 2 for $5.

— Janna Dons

Art Wed Mar 28 2012

Behold, the Chi-noceros!

Former GB contributor Phineas X. Jones debuted his wondrous Chi-Noceros at Gapers Block's Chicago Artists Month Kickoff Exhibition in 2010, to great acclaim. The original print has been sold out for some time, and Jones finally acquiesced to calls for another edition. It's available for just $25 -- or for $40, you can get one of 24 prints from the "dusk" variant.

— Andrew Huff

Theatre Tue Mar 27 2012

Lookingglass Theatre Announces 25th Anniversary Season

The Lookingglass Theatre has announced its 2012-2013 season and is celebrating 25 years of successful, engaging and thought provoking performances. The year will feature the return of a critically acclaimed play and premiers of shows never before seen on the Chicago stage.

The season will commence in September with a Chicago revival of Metamorphoses, which debuted at Lookingglass in 2002 and quickly led to a run on Broadway. The show earned Ensemble Member and writer and director Mary Zimmerman the 2002 Tony Award for Best Director. Zimmerman draws from Ovid's myths to weave an intriguing story within an imaginative setting.

In January, the Lookingglass will host the Chicago premiere of Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, written by Rajiv Joseph and directed by Ensemble Member Heidi Stillman. This 2010 Pulitzer Prize finalist is a dark comedy that follows two US Marines and an Iraqi translator after an encounter with a now-deceased but still very pissed-off tiger.

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— Janna Dons

Theater Tue Mar 27 2012

A Catered Affair Reminds Us to Keep it Simple @ Stage 773

It makes perfect sense that three decades after his "love makes a family" play, Torch Song Trilogy, that writer Harvey Fierstein would kindly remind us that a) marriage is forever, and b) a wedding is a black hole sucking in money, spitting out familial anxiety and resentment, and c) love can, will and does conquer all - at least it does in Fierstein's A Catered Affair.

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— Alice Singleton

Preview Mon Mar 26 2012

Preview: You might live, but you won't love, paintings by Mario Desa @ Firecat Projects

Firecat Projects (2124 N. Damen) showcases the work of local artist Mario Desa with the collection: You might live, but you won't love, featuring 30 original works. Desa marks 15 years as a tattooist with this collection. The opening runs from 7-10pm this Friday, March 30. This event is free, with beer by 3 Floyds, and wine by Red and White Wines Chicago. For more information go to Firecat Projects or Mario Desa.

— J.H. Palmer

Overheard Illustrated Mon Mar 26 2012

Overheard Illustrated: "Hard"

Saturday, March 24, my dining room--Uptown

— Mark Addison Smith

Literary Fri Mar 23 2012

Preview: Chicago's Biggest Liar Contest @ Herdegen-Brieske Funeral Home

Scott Whitehair, the brains and brawn behind live literature series like This Much Is True and Story Lab has taken on a project with a different angle -- he's put together a one-night-only event called the Liars Contest. I spent an evening at the Hopleaf helping direct people in and out of auditions, and I couldn't tell just by looking if the people coming to try out were full of it, so I spoke to Whitehair for some clarification.

Scott Whitehair: I don't want to reveal too much; there's two parts to the show, it's a 10-person storytelling competition seeing who can tell the most outrageous lies. So many great people auditioned, it's going to be a great show.

Tell me about some of the contestants.

Paulette McDaniels -- she looks like somebody's grandma and she comes in telling a story about an alien boy with three arms and you think: "this woman wouldn't lie to me, I totally believe her." And Monte LaMonte -- he's so believable.

I know people have been wondering if this show is really going to be in a funeral home.

People keep asking me that, like I'm going to go, "No, it's in a black box (theater)." It's going to be inside the funeral home as a theme park of lies, I don't want anybody to be sure about anything at any point, we have a lot of surprises, and a lot of misdirection. At least one person is going to get really uncomfortable and think: "I have to go." The Funeral Director, Joe Herdegen, is the worst one of us all, he's so charming, has great sense of humor, and a prankster's spirit.

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— J.H. Palmer

Art Around Town Fri Mar 23 2012

Art Around Town

Tonight:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Wednesday

Thursday:

— Kelly Reaves

Column Fri Mar 23 2012

The Hunger Games & The Raid: Redemption

The Hunger Games

Much as I did with the Harry Potter films, when I first heard they were making Suzanne Collins' hugely successful trilogy of books into a series of movies, I opted to go into each of them without having read the novels. I'm a firm believer that, although having read The Hunger Games might have provided me with insight into characters and situations, a film should stand on its own regardless of the source material. I didn't want to get lost or frustrated tracking what minor characters or subplots got dropped or altered in the transition from book to screen, and I just wanted to enjoy or loathe the movies as stand-alone entities.

What struck me almost immediately about director Gary Ross' (who adapted the book with Collins and Billy Ray) telling of this story is how wonderfully subversive and angry the story is under the surface. This isn't a story about kids killing kids; that's just something that happens in the much larger tale of class war, about the rich thinking they're doing a favor for the poor by taking their children at random and having them executed by other children rather than doing it themselves, about a world on the brink of another rebellion much like the one that set these terrible games in motion nearly 75 years earlier. And although I haven't got a clue how the next two books progress this story, I see young Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) as someone with the potential to lead the next civil war in the nation of Panem between a government lost in its own opulence and 12 districts of citizens tired of sacrificing for nothing more than the privilege of doing so again and again. Or I could be talking shit. Who cares, The Hunger Games is a really great movie.

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— Steve Prokopy / Comments (2)

Dance Thu Mar 22 2012

Love and Obsession: Carmen for the 21st Century

The number of truly original stories is limited and everything else is an interpretation of those common narratives passed down from generation to generation. Artists continue to manipulate common tales using modern themes, topical issues, and their own varied interpretations to develop works that feel and look new.

In Luna Negra Dance Theater's world premiere of CARMEN.maquia, running only on Saturday, March 24 at the Harris Theater, choreographer and Artistic Director Gustavo Ramirez Sansano uses the classic and tragic romantic opera Carmen to create a highly stylized and greatly physical dance theater work.

Although he was familiar with the work, Sansano admitted in a private preview that his choreography was often interpretive-based. It was something he had known for a while and grown up with, but his better understanding of the work was more succinctly understood the more time he spent with the story and through the choreographic process for this evening-length work.

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— Britt Julious

Interview Tue Mar 20 2012

Mortified Nation Live Filming Tonight at Lincoln Hall

Mortified, famous for allowing adults to expunge their inner-child shame since 2002, is bringing the show to Chicago for the filming of their new documentary, Mortified Nation. Shay DeGrandis produces Mortified in Chicago.

Mortified Chicago Promo from Shay DeGrandis on Vimeo.

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— Nellie Huggins

Art Tue Mar 20 2012

Check Out PLAY! at the Believe Inn

Believe Inn, 2043 N. Winchester Ave., is currently exhibiting PLAY!, a collaborative installation by artists David Cuesta, Lauren Feece, John Heenan, Anthony Lewellen, Chris Silva and Brian Steckel with music by This Mother Falcon and additional artwork by Laura Berger, Chad Kouri and
Luke Ramsey.

Combining paintings, sculpture, audio and video, PLAY! immerses viewers in an unusual urban environment that stretches beyond the walls of the small gallery. It's on view every Saturday from 11am to 5pm through April 14. There's also an artist reception on Friday, March 30 from 6pm to 11pm. [via]

— Andrew Huff

Overheard Illustrated Mon Mar 19 2012

Overheard Illustrated: "Changed"

Thursday, March 15, Cheetah Gym--Andersonville

— Mark Addison Smith

Theater Mon Mar 19 2012

Review: The Strange and Terrible True Tale of Pinocchio (the Wooden Boy) as Told by Frankenstein's Monster (the Wretched Creature) @ The Neo-Futurarium

From left to right: Tien Doman, Chris Rickett, Thomas Kelly, Dan Kerr-Hobert; Seated: Guy Massey;
Seated on floor: Robert Fenton; Photo credit: Joe Mazza

Sometimes it takes opposites to tell a story. The Neo-Futurists' original production of The Strange and Terrible True Story of Pinocchio (The Wooden Boy) as Told by Frankenstein's Monster (The Wretched Creature) does exactly that, as Carlo Collodi's original 1883 Italian story is narrated to the audience by Frankenstein's monster (played by Guy Massey) and proceeds to compare the tales of the two created, motherless figures of modern popular mythology. Despite the seemingly arbitrary framing device, Pinocchio/Frankenstein is a brilliant deconstruction of Pinocchio as well as the way fairy tales, children's stories, and cultural icons are depicted.

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— Jason Prechtel / Comments (2)

Theater Sat Mar 17 2012

FELA! Comes to Chicago

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the Nigerian singer, songwriter and pioneer of the "AfroBeat" sound, was more than just a man and his music--he was also a man with a mission--and a message. The story of his life, the critically-acclaimed, Tony Award-winning musical FELA!, is coming to Chicago.

Directed by legendary choreographer Bill T. Jones and starring Sahr Ngaujah in the title role, FELA! illustrates the legacy and artistry of the late Kuti and his fearless advocacy against an oppressive and capitalistic system in his homeland, and how he used his infectious music to deliver his message and inspire a nation.

FELA! runs March 27 through April 15 at the Oriental Theatre, 24 W. Randolph; tickets are $25-$90. For more information, call the box office at 800-775-2000.

Photo: Los Angeles Times

— LaShawn Williams

Art Around Town Fri Mar 16 2012

Art Around Town

Tonight:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Tuesday:

— Kelly Reaves

Column Fri Mar 16 2012

21 Jump Street, Casa de mi Padre, Jeff, Who Lives At Home, Footnote & Seeking Justice

21 Jump Street

They deal with it right up front, the often annoying and unsatisfying manner in which Hollywood recycled old material (via remakes, TV adaptations or videogame-inspired films) and try to pass it off as something new. One of the most thoroughly entertaining surprises of the year so far is the way in which the makers of 21 Jump Street feels fresh by simply throwing out the formula of the TV show that launched the career of Johnny Depp in the late 1980s and turning it into the story of a high school outcast who gets a second chance at being cool and popular.

The film opens with an encounter between a teenaged Schmidt (Jonah Hill, who also has a story credit with screenwriter Michael Bacall and is executive producer on the film) and Jenko (Channing Tatum, also an exec producer). The shy Schmidt attempts to ask a pretty girl to prom, and she flatly rejects him much to the amusement of Jenko. The two aren't friends, but it's clear that Schmidt is extremely smart, while Jenko is popular but dumb. And there are moments where they wish they could switch places, as when Jenko doesn't get the grades he needs to even go to prom. Jump forward several years, when both men are in the police academy of their unnamed city. Schmidt can pass all the tests but he needs help with the physical training; Jenko is an ace at the training but continues to fail the exams. "Wanna be friends?" The problem is solved, and the two get each other through the academy and become best friends and partners.

Continue reading this entry »

— Steve Prokopy

Bucket List Wed Mar 14 2012

My Chicago Bucket List: Embrace "Yes And"

Previous Entry: Stop Making Fun of Hipsters
Next Entry: Learning Resilience from Preteens

Number 30: Be Silly and Embrace the 2nd City Art Form aka One Night of Improv

I'm your typical improv hater-ator. After moving to Chicago, I overloaded on the second city's best-known theatrical art form. From iO and Comedy Sports to my friends' free student shows and weird troupe performances in dive bars, I personally experienced every single improv show in the city.

And I hated it; I truly, to my blackened, humorless soul, hated it.

I hated the intensely awkward energy, the languishing moments of silence and the hint of edgy competitiveness. I hated the forced laughter, the moment you knew you should laugh and felt the pressure to chuckle at a cheap joke, the laugh "should." So one day I decided to just quit and never again make myself sit through another improv show. It was nothing but rehearsed Second City shows and Judd Apatow movies for me. And then last week, I went beyond going to an improv show; I was the improv show. And I was converted.

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— Niki Fritz

News Tue Mar 13 2012

Wicker Park Art Center Losing Its Home?

"Who are you?"

It was the question Wicker Park community members had asked over and over again throughout the hour-and-a-half-long March 12 public meeting to discuss the sale of St. Paul's Community Church (2215 W. North Avenue) to the Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission. As the new owners, the Midwest-based organization--which represents itself as part of the Roman Catholic Church without Vatican approval--will displace the Near Northwest Arts Council and some 29 other local arts organizations, including the Nelson Algren Committee, the NeuroKitchen Arts Collective, and CIMMFest.

"You keep mentioning your ministry. What is your ministry?" Ald. Proco "Joe" Moreno (1st) asked the mission's treasurer, Jacek Jankowski, after he spoke about the historic building's purchase--they bought it in December and have been trying to move into the space since late January but, despite piles of eviction notices Jankowski personally left, the arts groups haven't yet left.

Moreno had reason to be skeptical--the mission, which is active in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, used to be headquartered in Chicago's 36th Ward on the northwest side and in 2005 was brought to court by the City of Chicago for zoning issues. Signs outside the building called it a communication center, which required a special-use permit, as did the building's use as a church. The ward's alderman, William Banks, warned Moreno to stay far away from the mission when they bought the Wicker Park church.

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— Ruthie Kott / Comments (4)

Overheard Illustrated Mon Mar 12 2012

Overheard Illustrated: "Fourth"

Friday, March 9, In Fine Spirits Lounge--Andersonville

— Mark Addison Smith

Art Around Town Fri Mar 09 2012

Art Around Town

Tonight:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

— Kelly Reaves

Column Fri Mar 09 2012

John Carter, Silent House, Friends with Kids, Being Flynn & Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

John Carter

I'm not here to evaluate the place of Edgar Rice Burroughs' "John Carter of Mars" series in the history of science fiction or tell you about all of the other science fiction books and movies that "borrowed" from its storylines and characters. Nor am I here to speculate how much money it will make or talk about how poorly the marketing for the film may have been early on. I'm going to assume you all know that how much money a film makes is no measure of its quality. Because honestly, none of those things have anything to do with whether John Carter, the film, is any damn good. And all of those people who have written articles about how the film is going to bomb, or worse, people who actively wish John Carter (or any film for that matter) fails financially, those folks are the scum of the the universe I write about.

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— Steve Prokopy / Comments (2)

Fashion Fri Mar 09 2012

Chicago Fashion Foundation: "Future of Chicago Fashion"

The Chicago Cultural Center recently hosted the Chicago Fashion Foundation's (CFF) celebration of the fashion community with "Future of Chicago Fashion," its annual scholarship award benefit. The CFF, a non-profit organization that "supports the fashion industry in Chicago including student designers, Chicago fashion designers and anyone who is involved with the fashion industry in Chicago," held a design competition, which included a runway fashion show, to recognize student designers in the city.

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— LaShawn Williams

Dance Thu Mar 08 2012

Dance Theater Receives an Upgrade

Jesse Coffelt and Rachel Damon, Synapse Arts; Erica Mott; Megan Schneeberger, Allyson Esposito, and Anne Kasdorf, The Space/Movement Project. Photos by Carl Weideman; composite created by Dan Mohr.

Rachel Damon wants you to know that dance theater is a different thing than just a dance company. She's not insinuating that one is less than the other, but for more than a year, she has garnered unanswered questions about the role each type plays for it's audience.

"I'm trying to find my way as to what my dance theater looks like," Damon said on a recent Friday afternoon.

Damon will join choreographer Erica Mott and the The Space/Movement Project for Receiver, an evening of three performances that provide different approaches to theatricality within contemporary dance. Damon, the Artistic Director of Synapse Arts, premieres Without Pause, a dance-theater performance focusing on the interaction of live sound (by percussionist Frank Rosaly), water, and motion.

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— Britt Julious

Media Tue Mar 06 2012

Ladies Do It All Festival

It's strictly all about the ladies at the Ladies Do It All Festival; sponsored by YOUmedia and the Digital Youth Network, this action-packed, three-day arts and media festival will feature workshops and seminars, a film screening, and other programs that center on views of women in media and society at-large.

Some of the festival's highlights include a panel on women in media featuring Digital Youth Network founder Dr. Nichole Pinkard and music journalist, Arasia Magnetic; a hip-hop dance workshop with Chicago's Boogie McClarin, and a seminar with filmmaker Sanicole, who will discuss the business of filmmaking and how to break into the industry.

The Ladies Do It All Festival runs Wednesday and Thursday, Mar. 7-8, and Saturday, Mar. 10, at the Harold Washington Library's YOUmedia Center, 400 S. State St. Admission to the festival is free; for a complete workshop schedule, visit the festival's website.

— LaShawn Williams

Preview Tue Mar 06 2012

Architecture & Design Film Festival is Back

The Architecture & Design Film Festival (ADFF) returns to Chicago this April for its third year and will be bringing with it an entirely new line up of 31 films from 13 countries. The festival is the largest in the nation that celebrates architecture and design. The five-day event, held at the Music Box Theatre, will comprise feature-length films, documentaries and shorts, as well as panel discussions with filmmakers, architects, designers and industry leaders.

This year's repertoire profiles the drama, glory and creative spirit behind world-renowned constructions and architects.

ADFF will begin the festival with the award-winning Unfinished Spaces, which chronicles the overdue revitalization of Cuba's National Art Schools project. Designed by three radical young artists commissioned by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara in 1961, at the onset of the Revolution, the schools gained momentum quickly, but construction was abruptly halted in the wake of the political climate and the architects were deemed irrelevant. After 40 years, the schools are in use, but remain unfinished. Now, Castro invites the architects to return and fulfill their long forgotten dream.

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— Janna Dons

Overheard Illustrated Mon Mar 05 2012

Overheard Illustrated: "Using"

Tuesday, February 28, Addison and Broadway--waiting for northbound 36 bus

— Mark Addison Smith

Profile Mon Mar 05 2012

Final Fight Family: A Well-Oiled Creative Machine

My favorite thing about Chicago is the way that we take things into our own hands. When we see a gap, instead of waiting for it to be filled -- instead of writing letters or signing petitions -- we just fill it ourselves. Chicago is full of hard workers and go-getters. And this is the case with Final Fight Family, a multidisciplinary arts & entertainment company focusing on uniting artists in a collective community of forward thinking individuals. Formed by an ambitious but small group of youngins in 2007, FFF provides artists with opportunities to expand their careers via collaboration and collective projects.Then, they showcase the artist's work by organizing events, highlight their daily developments in the media, and seek new ventures for them, to "establish a movement of creators who use their unique visions and perspectives to shape the world around them."

One of the original family members, Jarvis Smith, recently reached out to me to let me know about the FFF documentary, YOUNG, which will be released on April 7. I was immediately intrigued, so I emailed him a few questions about the "family."

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— Kelly Reaves / Comments (1)

Theater Mon Mar 05 2012

Las Hermanas Padilla, the Taco Bell of Theater

A couple of decades ago, social satirist Paul Mooney gave an exhaustive commentary on the state of how race patronage works in show business, specifically Hollywood. In his act, Mooney lowers his voice to become the voice-over for the marketing campaign for the 1990 movie Darkman - "Who is Darkman" Who is Darkman?" in a deep and slow bluster, Mooney mimics the announcer, recounting his enthusiastic anticipation of wanting to see this "Darkman." Of course Mooney comically implodes upon the revelation that "Darkman," well, ain't "dark," but Liam Neeson.

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— Alice Singleton

Fashion Sun Mar 04 2012

Interview with Barbara Bates: Chicago's "Fashion Star"

Barbara Bates; Photo by John Russo/NBC.

Barbara Bates is "taking her talents" to Los Angeles; a fashion industry staple for 25 years, this Chicago-based designer will compete against 13 other designers in the new reality series "Fashion Star," hosted by Elle Macpherson, premiering March 13 on NBC. Here, Bates talks about fashion, her newfound love for reality shows, and how she wouldn't mind joining the ranks of another Chicago-born former reality show star.

You're a self-taught designer--when did you know you had a talent for designing? Was it a particular piece you created or did someone tell you that you were good?

I can't really say there was I time when I said, "Hey, I got it goin' on." Even though I've been doing this for 25 years, everyday is a new day and something new comes along. I'm never that confident; I mean, I love when people buy from and shop with me--that's like the best compliment ever--but I always know how life can take a turn. I'm always humble, so I can't say there was never a moment.

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— LaShawn Williams

Literary Sun Mar 04 2012

WRITE CLUB with Ian Belknap

It's a damp night at the Hideout; the sold out audience sits on metal chairs, and latecomers stand wherever there's room. The walls are covered in wood paneling and the occasional trophy fish, and a faint smell of wet dog permeates the room. Onstage, Ian Belknap introduces the audience to WRITE CLUB: Chapter 22: Race War. "Ladies and gentlemen, let's get ready to WRITE CLUB!"

Tonight's categories are: Black vs. White; Cat vs. Dog; and Gay vs. Straight. In addition to a miniature trophy (The Loving Cup of Deathless Fucking Glory,) the winner of each bout gets a percentage of the admissions donated to the charity of their choice.

The first two competitors are called to the stage: Daniel Shapiro (Cat) vs. Natalie Edwards (Dog). Shapiro hunches over the mic and reads from a prepared text on behalf of cats, using persuasive language like: "A cat's anus has a sweeter and mellower flavor than a dog's, but we all knew that." "A cat would rather play with a bag or a box than with you." And "Cats in resting homes can tell when the next person is going to die, and that's kind of awesome." After his seven minutes are up, Edwards tries to outdo him with her piece on dogs, astounding the audience with little known facts that include: the first patents were held by Lhasa Apsos; and Chihuahuas invented Spanish. Her piece runs long, and she hears the dreaded chime of a bell being struck by a hammer, signaling the end of seven minutes, the maximum amount of time allotted to each competitor. The audience is called upon to choose a winner based on applause, and the winner -- determined by a panel of three judges, is Shapiro, whose winnings go to The Wounded Warrior Project.

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— J.H. Palmer

Column Sat Mar 03 2012

The Lorax, Project X, Undefeated & Bullhead

Dr. Seuss' The Lorax

As a very wise man who does a voice in Dr. Seuss' The Lorax said to me recently, "Who the fuck cares if the message of The Lorax is 'Take care of your environment.'?" Guess what? The book had the same message, and it wasn't even in 3-D. I think the worst thing I can say about this latest adaptation of the lovely book of Dr. Seuss is that it tries to hard to be all things to all people, especially if those people are children. So many filmmakers producing works for youngsters seem to think that they key to keeping kids' attention is dumbing down the work, and that simply isn't the case. But that's how The Lorax was constructed, and as a result we get bathroom humor, broadly drawn villains, and a grammy character voiced by Betty White.

The Lorax isn't even the star of the film. That honor goes to a young man named Ted (Zac Efron), who is trying so hard to impress Audrey (Taylor Swift), that he escapes his nature-free community (everything seems to be made of plastic, and you have to buy clean air the same way we pay for water today) to find a real-life tree, which he's heard you can get from a character called the Once-ler (Ed Helms). The man in control of the plasticized town is O'Hare, a little man with the big voice of Rob Riggle, and for reasons that are a mystery, he uses all of his money and power to keep Ted from leaving the town or ever discovering a real tree.

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— Steve Prokopy / Comments (5)

Museums Fri Mar 02 2012

Join the Feast, Witness Radical Hospitality in Action

I've had several run-ins with food-related arts events of late.

There was "The Dinner Party" on Jan. 30--a monthly, streamed-live meal/performance featuring artists Tony Fitzpatrick, Jon Langford, and Rachel Rockford, as well as chef Homaru Cantu of Moto (see www.FearNoArt.tv for more). Coming soon, "Food & Performance", a two day installation of interactive, edible performances, will be held at Defibrillator March 17 and 18.

And, I forgot to mention all of the odd salons/underground dinners/etc. that seem to be sprouting up around the city faster than I can say grace.

Where does our fascination with the intersection between art and food come from?

The Smart Museum's newest exhibit, Feast, sets out to chart our obsession with food, drink, meal-sharing, and art in a new, interactive series of installations and events in Hyde Park. It not only chronicles the history of the "artist-orchestrated meal", but also brings that history to a more contemporary table in which audience is asked to assess, participate, and celebrate in its meaning.

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— Alexa DeTogne

Art Around Town Fri Mar 02 2012

Art Around Town

Tonight:

Saturday:

Sunday:

Tuesday

Thursday:

— Kelly Reaves / Comments (1)

Street Art Fri Mar 02 2012

The Franklin: Not Your Typical Yard Art

Local artist Edra Soto and her husband Dan Sullivan recently completed a project titled "the Franklin" -- an outdoor exhibition space currently installed at NEIU Gallery for a show titled Living By Example (a damn good show, mind you.) When the show finishes we it will be deconstructed and moved to Soto and Sullivan's backyard in East Garfield park, where it will be permanently installed. NEIU helped pay for materials, but in order to complete the project they need to purchase additional materials for the roof, deck and footings.

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— Kelly Reaves

Review Thu Mar 01 2012

The North Plan - Are You On The List?

The United States is in the midst of a national crisis. People are being detained without due process, the media is being censored and a new regime is rising and most of the country is unaware it's even happening.

Carlton Burg, a bureaucrat from the State Department is in possession of the top secret Enemies List consisting of millions of American's names - citizens that have participated in some way in any number of groups the new government has deemed oppositional. The publication of this list could awaken the public and start the revolution. Unfortunately, Carl is detained in a small police station in Lodus, Missouri and with the Feds on their way, he must rely on his fellow detainee, an eccentric, foul-mouthed redneck woman named Tanya to carry on his mission.

Written by Jason Wells, and developed at the Steppenwolf Theater as one of the three-play First Look Repertory of New Work, The North Plan takes a sinister hypothetical scenario of the not-so-distant future and infuses it with comedy - both dark and light. Directed by Kimberly Senior, the show accomplished multi-layered scenes of mischief, tension and impact.

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— Janna Dons