Art galleries, The Locusts, and more

Tonight, six art venues have teamed up with the nonprofit Old Town Triangle Association to spotlight art in Lincoln Park: Madron Gallery (1000 W. North), Leslie Wolfe Gallery (1763 N. North Park), Wrightwood 659 (659 W. Wrightwood), DePaul Art Museum (935 W. Fullerton), Josh Moulton Fine Art Gallery (2218 N. Clark); and Gallery 1871 (1871 N. Clybourn). From 5:30-8:30 PM, free trolleys will be available for hop-on-or-off service to transport you between each stop, where you’ll have a chance to connect with local artists, curators, and other art enthusiasts. This experience is free, and while registration is not required, it’s encouraged to help organizers get a sense of interest. Please note that masks and proof of COVID-19 vaccination and at least one booster are required to enter Wrightwood 659. (MC)

While Gift Theatre works on its new space in Jefferson Park, they’ve been itinerant. They conclude their 2022 season at Theater Wit (1229 W. Belmont) with The Locusts by Jennifer Rumberger, directed by longtime ensemble member John Gawlik and starring ensemble member Cyd Blakewell. Blakewell plays Ella, an FBI agent sent back to her hometown of Vero Beach, Florida, to investigate a serial killer. But a murderous maniac isn’t her only problem. She’s also confronted by a family history of violence that’s marked her pregnant younger sister and her niece, as well as Ella herself. Rumberger, who has previously written horror plays for WildClaw Theatre and other companies, wrote this piece as a commission for Gift, and was inspired in part by the tragic life of Frankenstein creator Mary Shelley, and she says that the play “asks how women of different generations deal with the threat of male violence—a threat that looms in some way over all of the characters in the play, as well as over our current world and the legislation we see happening in America before our eyes.” The first preview is tonight at 7:30 PM (tickets $25), and the show continues through 11/19. Tickets after 10/27 are $38-$45 (seniors $35, students $25); reservations and information at 773-975-8150 or thegiftheatre.org. (KR) 

In August, Reader senior writer Leor Galil wrote about the recording debut of indie rock outfit Rat Tally. “Addy Harris sings with a dewy softness,” Galil wrote, “but you can hear and feel the iron will behind her performances even over a roaring rock band.” Tonight the group will be opening for Future Teens at Beat Kitchen (2100 W. Belmont). They’ll be joined by Camp Trash as well as Snow Ellet, the latter of which Galil described as an “emo auteur” in another August article. The show kicks off at 8 PM and is open to those 17 or older. Tickets are $15. (MC)


Chicago native Addy Harris makes tender, commanding indie rock as Rat Tally

Addy Harris sings with a dewy softness in her group Rat Tally, but you can hear and feel the iron will behind her performances even over a roaring rock band. On Rat Tally’s debut album, the brand-new In My Car, the Chicago native sets diaristic confessions to sometimes tender, sometimes hard-edged indie-rock melodies that draw…


Now That’s a Comeback

Two strokes left Gift Theatre cofounder Michael Patrick Thornton paralyzed at the age of 24. Now he’s returning to the stage in a one-man show.


An invitation to listen to survivors

“It’s an invitation,” says Aaron Hughes, cocurator of “Remaking the Exceptional: Tea, Torture, and Reparations,” an exhibition currently on display at the DePaul Art Museum. Marking the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Guantánamo Bay detention camp, the exhibit examines the similarities between survivors of torture at the U.S. military prison with survivors of…

Read More

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *