Gapers Block has ceased publication.
Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni.
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TODAY
Sunday, September 21
Slowdown
BY DAY
Saturday, July 11 2015
Artfest Michigan Avenue @ Chicago Tribune Building
This new summer art festival will take place today from 10am to 7pm and continue throughout the weekend. The festival will feature over 100 artists from around the world, including Zimbabwe artist Peter Rujuwa, Polish Artist Lidia Wylangowska, Julio C. Garcia, Rahmon Olugunna, and Vladimir Pailodze. Admission to the festival is free. The festival will be located at the base of the Chicago Tribune building, 435 N. Michigan.
The Freedom Principle Opening Day @ MCA
The Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave., is free all day today (for Illinois residents) in celebration of the opening of the new exhibition The Freedom Principle: Experiments in Art and Music, 1965 to Now. There will be numerous events throughout the day, including gallery talks, live music and performances. $30 tickets are required for an evening concert with Douglas R. Ewart's Clarinet Choir, Homage to Malachi Maghostut Favors on the MCA Stage at 7:30pm. The museum is open from 10am to 9:30pm today.
Tour de Fat @ Palmer Square Park
New Belgium Brewing hosts this daylong festival that pays respect to bikes and beer at Palmer Square Park (Palmer between Sacramento and Kedzie) today from 10am-5pm. Entertainment, bicycle-related information and advocacy, and loads of beer await you. And if you want to give up your car for a year, you'll get $2,250 toward a fancy new bike. Pedal responsibly! Event is free.
Ruido Fest
Finally, Chicago gets a top-notch Latin alternative music festival. Ruido Fest's lineup soars with talent from all over the Spanish-speaking world and includes plenty of local acts. Saturday's headliners are Mexico's Molotov, LA's Ozomatli and Chile's Zero Kill, with a dozen more bands playing on three stages; see the festival website for the full schedule. The festival is all ages. 3-day tickets are $154.99, or $254.99 for VIP. Daily tickets start at $54.99. Ruido Fest is at Addams/Medill Park, 1301 W. 14th St. Gates open at noon, and the festival closes at 10pm.
Square Roots Festival
The Old Town School of Folk Music presents their annual Square Roots festival, a three-day festival featuring live music, local food & beverage vendors, and family activities all weekend long. The festival takes place on Lincoln Avenue, between Montrose and Wilson. A complete schedule is available at the Square Roots website. The fest runs from noon to 11pm today.
Windy City Smokeout
The Windy City Smokeout runs July 10-12 at 560 W. Grand Ave., overlooking the river. It's three days of barbecue, country music and craft beer. Chris Young headlines today's lineup. Tickets are $40 or $145 for VIP -- or get a three-day pass for $99.50 ($400 for VIP). The festival runs from noon to 10pm today.
Burgers & Beer 5K @ Soldier Field
Running a race can be tough, but the reward of burgers and beer makes it all worth it. The Burgers and Beer 5K Run/Walk kicks off tonight at Soldier Field, 1410 Museum Campus Drive, at 7pm and those items await racers at the end. Check-in is at 5pm and participants can partake in Goose Island beers once they complete the journey.
Mortified! @ Lincoln Hall
Mortified!, the show of embarrassing personal moments, returns to Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln Ave., tonight at 7pm. The show features pieces by Paula Ann Lopez, Max Wastler, Nora Targonski-O'Brien, Kimball Allen, and Brook Allen. Hosted by Shay DeGrandis. Tickets are $20. Doors open at 6pm. 21+
"Wherever" Opening Reception @ LVL3
LVL3 and CHGO DSGN are hosting an exhibition this evening from 6-10pm entitled, "Wherever". LVL3 is located at 1542 N Milwaukee Avenue on the 3rd Floor. The exhibition will be on view until August 16th. Additionally, there will be a lecture on July 19th at 2pm by Bryce Wilner.
A Murder in the Park @ Siskel Film Center
The Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State St., presents the new documentary A Murder in the Park, about a controversial murder case and the exoneration of the man charged for the crime, tonight at 7:30pm. Following the screening, there will be a panel discussion featuring co-director Shawn Rech; author and retired Tribune investigative reporter William Crawford; Tribune columnist Eric Zorn; executive director of the Roderick MacArthur Justice Center at Northwestern University, Locke Bowman; and journalist and executive director, emeritus, of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University, Rob Warden. GB's own Steve Prokopy moderates. Tickets are $11 and are available online or at the box office, at 312-846-2085. See the Film Center website for additional showtimes.
havoc and tumbled @ Roman Susan Rogers Park Art Space
havoc and tumbled, a new art installation created by Kera MacKenzie and Andrew Mausert-Mooney, will open tonight at 8pm at the Roman Susan Rogers Park Art Space, located at 1224 W. Loyola. The creation includes video, 16mm film, sound, and painting. The reception for this exhibition is in conjunction with the opening of PRO BIAS, featuring 2014 ACRE Resident artists Cudelice Brazelton, Zoe Berg, Tal Nisim, and Sanaz Sohrabi at The Bike Room, which will be open from 5-8pm today.
Whiskey Myers @ Joe's on Weed Street
If you like your country music old-school, the place to be tonight is Whiskey Myers' show at Joe's on Weed Street (940 W. Weed Street). Doors open at 10 and the blistering Skynyrd-esque southern rock starts at 11. You can get general admission tickets for $10 here.
