What’s New

Before there was Wicked, there was Children of Eden, and before there was Beyoncé, there was Destiny’s Child. Michelle Williams, Bey’s former bandmate, stars in this concert presentation of Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz’s 1991 musical based on the book of Genesis. (Not his first foray into biblical musicals; he also wrote Godspell 20 years earlier.) There are two shows only—today at 2 and 8 PM at the Cadillac Palace (151 W. Randolph); tickets are $41-$91 at broadwayinchicago.com. (KR)

A few concerts scheduled tonight were recommended by our music writers. Reader contributor Monica Kendrick wrote a preview of this evening’s 7 PM Sabaton show for our latest issue, saying that the Swedish power-metal veterans “deliver poetic lessons in military history.” Dutch symphonic metal band Epica opens, and tickets are still available (at the Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence, all-ages). And at 8 PM, the European multi-instrumentalist and sound artist Clara de Asís makes her Chicago debut at Elastic (3429 W. Diversey, second floor, all-ages); Reader contributor Bill Meyer says that de Asís “uses played and collected sounds as prompts to focus the power of the listener’s attention on the potentialities of the sound fields around them.” (SCJ)

Looking for a little spooky fun to get you into the Halloween mood? Haunted: The Improvised Ghost Hunters returns to the Cornservatory (4210 N. Lincoln) this month on Saturdays at 10 PM. It’s a longform narrative improvisation satirizing (with love) paranormal investigative TV shows like Ghost Hunters and Ghost Nation. $10 tickets are available on Eventbrite. And if you’re looking for a more cinematic late night horror experience, Music Box Theatre’s month-long Music Box of Horrors series delivers tonight with a screening of 1994’s Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (11:59 PM, 3733 N. Southport). Advance tickets ($8-$11) are available at the Music Box website. (SCJ)

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Before there was Wicked, there was Children of Eden, and before there was Beyoncé, there was Destiny’s Child. Michelle Williams, Bey’s former bandmate, stars in this concert presentation of Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz’s 1991 musical based on the book of Genesis. (Not his first foray into biblical musicals; he also wrote Godspell 20 years earlier.) There are two shows only—today at 2 and 8 PM at the Cadillac Palace (151 W. Randolph); tickets are $41-$91 at broadwayinchicago.com. (KR)

A few concerts scheduled tonight were recommended by our music writers. Reader contributor Monica Kendrick wrote a preview of this evening’s 7 PM Sabaton show for our latest issue, saying that the Swedish power-metal veterans “deliver poetic lessons in military history.” Dutch symphonic metal band Epica opens, and tickets are still available (at the Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence, all-ages). And at 8 PM, the European multi-instrumentalist and sound artist Clara de Asís makes her Chicago debut at Elastic (3429 W. Diversey, second floor, all-ages); Reader contributor Bill Meyer says that de Asís “uses played and collected sounds as prompts to focus the power of the listener’s attention on the potentialities of the sound fields around them.” (SCJ)

Looking for a little spooky fun to get you into the Halloween mood? Haunted: The Improvised Ghost Hunters returns to the Cornservatory (4210 N. Lincoln) this month on Saturdays at 10 PM. It’s a longform narrative improvisation satirizing (with love) paranormal investigative TV shows like Ghost Hunters and Ghost Nation. $10 tickets are available on Eventbrite. And if you’re looking for a more cinematic late night horror experience, Music Box Theatre’s month-long Music Box of Horrors series delivers tonight with a screening of 1994’s Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (11:59 PM, 3733 N. Southport). Advance tickets ($8-$11) are available at the Music Box website. (SCJ)

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“Good set.”

It’s a saying you’ll hear bands pass along to each other after a gig, regardless of a set’s actual quality. To Chicago filmmaker Dan Stewart, the camaraderie between underdog musicians that the phrase represents often goes unsung.

“[Bands] have this language that we all understand. I wanted to utilize that. The humor and tragedy of being in a DIY band,” Stewart says.

Hollywood loves stories about musicians but tends to avoid the unglamorous bits. Fitting in practices around tight work schedules, paying hand over fist for a rehearsal space, and playing to no one are all integral to the experience of most underdog bands, yet they rarely make it onscreen. 

Stewart aimed to give those moments their justice, and he brought together some of the Chicago indie scene’s favorite bands to help. The result is Local Band, a feature film about a fictional band that, like their real-life Chicago counterparts, still give it their all despite feeling doomed to fall through the cracks. 

“This project started way back at the end of 2018. I was living in Saint Louis, which is my hometown,” says Stewart. “I was starting to really get into the local music scene there.” 

Stewart and Local Band cowriter Nick Wandersee would frequent underground metal shows together. The acts they saw varied wildly from conventional rock and metal bands to some truly niche offerings.

“There was a touring noise act where this guy wheeled out a folding table and there were VCRs involved, and it was the loudest wall of death and noise. The band was called Terminator 2.”

Though genres varied, the underground shows were consistent in the creative energy on display, and Stewart and Wandersee saw a story that wasn’t being told. 

“I sat down in my basement with my friend Nick and we just ironed out this idea for a movie about a band that is struggling. [It’s] a story about a band that doesn’t end up successful,” Stewart says.

Thinking back to Terminator 2 (the band), Stewart says, “This guy is clearly not doing this so that he can have the ‘Live Aid’ ending of the movie. This guy’s doing this because he loves what he’s making, and he loves performing.” 

After years of tinkering with the concept and navigating film school, Stewart—who had uprooted to Chicago by that point—was ready to get the film off the ground. Funding for the film was secured primarily through an Indiegogo campaign that Stewart describes as “an emotional journey.”

“There was an incredible outpouring of support from the scene,” says Stewart. “They say a lot of funding comes from one person who wants to pick up your idea and give you a couple thousand dollars. Ultimately for us the average donation was 50 bucks, and that was just from very generous contributions from people in the scene.”

Local Band’s production caught the Chicago indie scene in the middle of a small renaissance, with the end of pandemic lockdown energizing veteran and new artists alike. As Pinksqueeze’s Ava Marvin puts it, the time apart has brought Chicago’s indie bands closer together. 

“I think that it’s just beautiful how much people show up for each other in this community and really go hard for each other’s shows, and just truly, genuinely support each other. So, it’s just been special,” Marvin says.

“That was something that kind of really didn’t happen a lot in the older scene,” says Isabella Martinez, who pulls double duty as the film’s lead and representation for Chicago alt-rockers Cut Your Losses. “It really does now feel like a little family. To see all the same people at each other’s shows.”

Along with Pinksqueeze, Local Band’s roster of bands includes scene regulars Superkick, OK Cool, CalicoLoco, and Nora Marks, with their contributions ranging from short clips of sets to full-on speaking roles, according to Stewart. Stewart himself lends guitar and vocals to punk trio Damager. 

“[Adding] grit and weight, and to ground it a little bit in the real scene, he’s going to have this footage of other bands playing,” says Nora Marks’s Michael Garrity. “That was our primary role; he filmed one of our concerts.”

“To bring us all a little out of our comfort zones to be actors and musicians was a beautiful feeling. Especially the last day of the shoot when we were all at Double Door. It was bittersweet, but we all knew we would see each other again. But who knows when we’ll all be able to collectively be a part of something like this film again,” says Superkick’s Mike Vaughn.

Local Band producer Jake Rotger says that the crew initially anticipated that working within the schedules of nearly ten different bands would be herculean on its own.

“And that’s on top of the fake band we put together with the actors,” Rotger says. “We went into this project thinking that [scheduling] was going to be a total obstacle to get around. I thought it’d be a constant pain in the ass. But it wasn’t. Everyone was very good about just being there when they needed to be.”

“Even the bands that are just in one scene, like CalicoLoco, who just play a few songs,” Rotger explains, “they came in, played three great songs, and were awesome.”

Local Band@localbandthemovie

Local Band was shot over August and July of this year. Scenes were filmed in some of the same practice spaces and venues used by bands across the city, all “without a tripod in sight,” Stewart says. The use of real locations and bands was meant to give the film an unmistakable sense of place within Chicago. Even the behind-the-scenes photos were taken by photographer Vicki Holda, a staple at many shows. 

“It’s our scene, and yeah, they’re drinking Old Style and talking about Beat Kitchen in the dialogue, or Double Door. These are things that we understand as people in Chicago. I think that sometimes, being very specific can be the most universal thing,” Stewart says.

But as OK Cool’s Bridget Stiebris rightfully points out, Local Band’s full roster still only captures a small portion of Chicago’s musical talent pool. 

“[The film] is definitely not comprehensive; there’s so much music in this town. It’s insane,” Stiebris says.

Local Band is currently in postproduction, with Stewart aiming to enter the festival circuit afterward. 

“I have maybe an incredible opportunity to, in the tradition of something like The Decline of Western Civilization, document something really magical and cool right now,” says Stewart. “I think maybe it’s the optimism of a post-COVID lockdown world where we’re fulfilling our angst to get back into crowds and make things.

“I want the world to see these people and hear their music and love it like I do.” 

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“Good set.”

It’s a saying you’ll hear bands pass along to each other after a gig, regardless of a set’s actual quality. To Chicago filmmaker Dan Stewart, the camaraderie between underdog musicians that the phrase represents often goes unsung.

“[Bands] have this language that we all understand. I wanted to utilize that. The humor and tragedy of being in a DIY band,” Stewart says.

Hollywood loves stories about musicians but tends to avoid the unglamorous bits. Fitting in practices around tight work schedules, paying hand over fist for a rehearsal space, and playing to no one are all integral to the experience of most underdog bands, yet they rarely make it onscreen. 

Stewart aimed to give those moments their justice, and he brought together some of the Chicago indie scene’s favorite bands to help. The result is Local Band, a feature film about a fictional band that, like their real-life Chicago counterparts, still give it their all despite feeling doomed to fall through the cracks. 

“This project started way back at the end of 2018. I was living in Saint Louis, which is my hometown,” says Stewart. “I was starting to really get into the local music scene there.” 

Stewart and Local Band cowriter Nick Wandersee would frequent underground metal shows together. The acts they saw varied wildly from conventional rock and metal bands to some truly niche offerings.

“There was a touring noise act where this guy wheeled out a folding table and there were VCRs involved, and it was the loudest wall of death and noise. The band was called Terminator 2.”

Though genres varied, the underground shows were consistent in the creative energy on display, and Stewart and Wandersee saw a story that wasn’t being told. 

“I sat down in my basement with my friend Nick and we just ironed out this idea for a movie about a band that is struggling. [It’s] a story about a band that doesn’t end up successful,” Stewart says.

Thinking back to Terminator 2 (the band), Stewart says, “This guy is clearly not doing this so that he can have the ‘Live Aid’ ending of the movie. This guy’s doing this because he loves what he’s making, and he loves performing.” 

After years of tinkering with the concept and navigating film school, Stewart—who had uprooted to Chicago by that point—was ready to get the film off the ground. Funding for the film was secured primarily through an Indiegogo campaign that Stewart describes as “an emotional journey.”

“There was an incredible outpouring of support from the scene,” says Stewart. “They say a lot of funding comes from one person who wants to pick up your idea and give you a couple thousand dollars. Ultimately for us the average donation was 50 bucks, and that was just from very generous contributions from people in the scene.”

Local Band’s production caught the Chicago indie scene in the middle of a small renaissance, with the end of pandemic lockdown energizing veteran and new artists alike. As Pinksqueeze’s Ava Marvin puts it, the time apart has brought Chicago’s indie bands closer together. 

“I think that it’s just beautiful how much people show up for each other in this community and really go hard for each other’s shows, and just truly, genuinely support each other. So, it’s just been special,” Marvin says.

“That was something that kind of really didn’t happen a lot in the older scene,” says Isabella Martinez, who pulls double duty as the film’s lead and representation for Chicago alt-rockers Cut Your Losses. “It really does now feel like a little family. To see all the same people at each other’s shows.”

Along with Pinksqueeze, Local Band’s roster of bands includes scene regulars Superkick, OK Cool, CalicoLoco, and Nora Marks, with their contributions ranging from short clips of sets to full-on speaking roles, according to Stewart. Stewart himself lends guitar and vocals to punk trio Damager. 

“[Adding] grit and weight, and to ground it a little bit in the real scene, he’s going to have this footage of other bands playing,” says Nora Marks’s Michael Garrity. “That was our primary role; he filmed one of our concerts.”

“To bring us all a little out of our comfort zones to be actors and musicians was a beautiful feeling. Especially the last day of the shoot when we were all at Double Door. It was bittersweet, but we all knew we would see each other again. But who knows when we’ll all be able to collectively be a part of something like this film again,” says Superkick’s Mike Vaughn.

Local Band producer Jake Rotger says that the crew initially anticipated that working within the schedules of nearly ten different bands would be herculean on its own.

“And that’s on top of the fake band we put together with the actors,” Rotger says. “We went into this project thinking that [scheduling] was going to be a total obstacle to get around. I thought it’d be a constant pain in the ass. But it wasn’t. Everyone was very good about just being there when they needed to be.”

“Even the bands that are just in one scene, like CalicoLoco, who just play a few songs,” Rotger explains, “they came in, played three great songs, and were awesome.”

Local Band@localbandthemovie

Local Band was shot over August and July of this year. Scenes were filmed in some of the same practice spaces and venues used by bands across the city, all “without a tripod in sight,” Stewart says. The use of real locations and bands was meant to give the film an unmistakable sense of place within Chicago. Even the behind-the-scenes photos were taken by photographer Vicki Holda, a staple at many shows. 

“It’s our scene, and yeah, they’re drinking Old Style and talking about Beat Kitchen in the dialogue, or Double Door. These are things that we understand as people in Chicago. I think that sometimes, being very specific can be the most universal thing,” Stewart says.

But as OK Cool’s Bridget Stiebris rightfully points out, Local Band’s full roster still only captures a small portion of Chicago’s musical talent pool. 

“[The film] is definitely not comprehensive; there’s so much music in this town. It’s insane,” Stiebris says.

Local Band is currently in postproduction, with Stewart aiming to enter the festival circuit afterward. 

“I have maybe an incredible opportunity to, in the tradition of something like The Decline of Western Civilization, document something really magical and cool right now,” says Stewart. “I think maybe it’s the optimism of a post-COVID lockdown world where we’re fulfilling our angst to get back into crowds and make things.

“I want the world to see these people and hear their music and love it like I do.” 

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Ruth Page Center for the Arts (1016 N. Dearborn) offers its Fall Showcase 2022, the debut performance of the current Ruth Page Civic Ballet Training Company, tonight and tomorrow at 7 PM. The program includes Steady Going, a new piece by South Chicago Dance Theatre founder and artistic director Kia Smith; Dreaming With Ruth Page: The Expanding Universe, a commission by Nejla Yatkin that reimagines a famous solo by Page from 1932 that she created in collaboration with artist Isamu Noguchi; and other shorter classical and contemporary pieces, including excerpts from Giselle. Tickets are $15 at ruthpage.org. (KR)

The fifth annual Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival continues this weekend, and tonight at 7:30 PM is the opening of Ricardo Gamboa’s new play, The Wizards, which uses the framework of a ghost story to illustrate issues of gentrification. The longtime playwright, educator, and activist also stars (along with their real-life partner, Sean James William Parris) in this story of a queer couple who move back home to Chicago after being assaulted in New York City on the night of Donald Trump’s election. But when they find a Ouija board in their new Pilsen apartment, they connect with the spirits of a 1960s Mexican Motown cover band from the neighborhood. Gamboa talked to Reader contributor Annie Howard about their play this week, noting that it “jumps through time, with Sam and Amado living in the years of the Trump administration, then going back to the 1960s and ’70s. As a cultural studies scholar, I know those moments are closer than we might want to acknowledge, part of an enduring and ongoing legacy of colonialism and white supremacy. We’re not just trying to cash in on these moments, but I believe that in October, the veil between the worlds is thinner.” It runs through 11/26 Thu-Sat 7:30 PM at APO Cultural Center (1438 W. 18th St.); 45 tickets are available in advance for each performance on a sliding scale of $20-$60 via Eventbrite, with ten pay-what-you-can walk-up tickets also available each show. (KR)

Love Hamilton? Hate Hamilton? Either way, you may wanna check out Shamilton! An Improvised Musical, presented at the Revival (1160 E. 55th) tonight and tomorrow at 8 PM. Created by Baby Wants Candy, a long-running musical improvisation powerhouse in Chicago whose alums include Jack McBrayer (Kenneth on 30 Rock) and former SNL castmates Vanessa Bayer and Aidy Bryant, the show promises to send up Lin-Manuel Miranda’s original by substituting a famous person selected by the audience (historical figure or contemporary celebrity—it’s all fair game!). If you want to be in the room where it happens, reserve tickets ($35) at the-revival.com. (KR)

How about some music tonight? If you were able to take in Reader staff member Micco Caporale’s feature this week about Avondale’s Podlasie Club (2918 N. Central Park), you’re probably curious to check out the bar in person. Thankfully the club is open this evening starting at 9 PM, and you can catch sets by DJ M50, Frail808, and Alejandro Marenco. It’s strictly open to those 21 and up with proof of COVID-19 vaccination, and cover is $10 cash at the door. (SCJ)

If you would like to stay in the dance realm but your tastes push more toward first wave acid-house, get over to Spy Bar in River North tonight (646 N. Franklin) to take in Viva Acid, an event dedicated to the distinctive Chicago style of electronic music. Genre pioneer DJ Pierre headlines, and techno vet Noncompliant (often found at 90s midwest raves under her former name DJ Shiva), Brenda, and Mark Angel support. Spy Bar is also open only to those 21 and over with proof of vaccination. Viva Acid opens at 10 PM, and $20 advance tickets are available here. (SCJ)

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Ruth Page Center for the Arts (1016 N. Dearborn) offers its Fall Showcase 2022, the debut performance of the current Ruth Page Civic Ballet Training Company, tonight and tomorrow at 7 PM. The program includes Steady Going, a new piece by South Chicago Dance Theatre founder and artistic director Kia Smith; Dreaming With Ruth Page: The Expanding Universe, a commission by Nejla Yatkin that reimagines a famous solo by Page from 1932 that she created in collaboration with artist Isamu Noguchi; and other shorter classical and contemporary pieces, including excerpts from Giselle. Tickets are $15 at ruthpage.org. (KR)

The fifth annual Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival continues this weekend, and tonight at 7:30 PM is the opening of Ricardo Gamboa’s new play, The Wizards, which uses the framework of a ghost story to illustrate issues of gentrification. The longtime playwright, educator, and activist also stars (along with their real-life partner, Sean James William Parris) in this story of a queer couple who move back home to Chicago after being assaulted in New York City on the night of Donald Trump’s election. But when they find a Ouija board in their new Pilsen apartment, they connect with the spirits of a 1960s Mexican Motown cover band from the neighborhood. Gamboa talked to Reader contributor Annie Howard about their play this week, noting that it “jumps through time, with Sam and Amado living in the years of the Trump administration, then going back to the 1960s and ’70s. As a cultural studies scholar, I know those moments are closer than we might want to acknowledge, part of an enduring and ongoing legacy of colonialism and white supremacy. We’re not just trying to cash in on these moments, but I believe that in October, the veil between the worlds is thinner.” It runs through 11/26 Thu-Sat 7:30 PM at APO Cultural Center (1438 W. 18th St.); 45 tickets are available in advance for each performance on a sliding scale of $20-$60 via Eventbrite, with ten pay-what-you-can walk-up tickets also available each show. (KR)

Love Hamilton? Hate Hamilton? Either way, you may wanna check out Shamilton! An Improvised Musical, presented at the Revival (1160 E. 55th) tonight and tomorrow at 8 PM. Created by Baby Wants Candy, a long-running musical improvisation powerhouse in Chicago whose alums include Jack McBrayer (Kenneth on 30 Rock) and former SNL castmates Vanessa Bayer and Aidy Bryant, the show promises to send up Lin-Manuel Miranda’s original by substituting a famous person selected by the audience (historical figure or contemporary celebrity—it’s all fair game!). If you want to be in the room where it happens, reserve tickets ($35) at the-revival.com. (KR)

How about some music tonight? If you were able to take in Reader staff member Micco Caporale’s feature this week about Avondale’s Podlasie Club (2918 N. Central Park), you’re probably curious to check out the bar in person. Thankfully the club is open this evening starting at 9 PM, and you can catch sets by DJ M50, Frail808, and Alejandro Marenco. It’s strictly open to those 21 and up with proof of COVID-19 vaccination, and cover is $10 cash at the door. (SCJ)

If you would like to stay in the dance realm but your tastes push more toward first wave acid-house, get over to Spy Bar in River North tonight (646 N. Franklin) to take in Viva Acid, an event dedicated to the distinctive Chicago style of electronic music. Genre pioneer DJ Pierre headlines, and techno vet Noncompliant (often found at 90s midwest raves under her former name DJ Shiva), Brenda, and Mark Angel support. Spy Bar is also open only to those 21 and over with proof of vaccination. Viva Acid opens at 10 PM, and $20 advance tickets are available here. (SCJ)

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In 1997, Heather Robinson (aka DJ Heather), Colette Marino (aka Colette), and Shannon Ialongo (aka Dayhota) debuted at Funky Buddha Lounge as the DJ collective Superjane; soon after their membership grew to include Darlene Jackson (aka DJ Lady D). Superjane have become a supergroup with their own center of gravity, but they’ve also functioned as advocates for other women fighting for space in the global dance scene. “When Superjane began, we were trying to mirror the approach of most parties going on, but with female promoters and female DJs instead of males,” Robinson told XLR8R in the early 2000s. “I’ve never really thought of myself as a woman DJ, but just as a DJ that happens to be a woman. I’m hoping people will be receptive to that.” The members of Superjane have stacked up individual accomplishments over the past quarter century—DJ Heather has become a Smart Bar resident, Colette has issued several albums through Candy Talk and Om, and DJ Lady D has worked as an A&R rep, where she gave Kaskade a big early-career bump—but even before all that happened, the four of them could hold down a party together. Since those early days as a unit, two members of the collective have moved to the west coast, but their bond has remained intact—at this Smart Bar show, Superjane celebrate their 25th anniversary. An entire generation of ravers has passed through Smart Bar’s doors since Superjane got started, so at least in theory this party could be full of all-new dancers getting their first chance to feel how Dayhota’s forceful tech house mingles with Colette’s relaxed, more pop-forward club tracks.

Superjane 25th anniversary Superjane collective members Colette, DJ Heather, DJ Lady D, and Dayhota will all appear. Sat 10/22, 10 PM, Smart Bar, 3730 N. Clark, $25, $20 in advance, 21+

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