It was the spring of 1971. The band Sly and the Family Stone was scheduled to play a concert on the campus of Northwestern University. The show was scheduled to start at 7 pm. Sly had a reputation for being late, so when the clock turned eight, no one was too worried. He also had a reputation for being a no-show, so an hour later the talk turned to if this would be another Grant Park episode.

It was less than a year earlier that the band had been scheduled to play a free concert in Chicago’s downtown area. It was a peace offering from the band to the city to make up for a few no-shows at previously scheduled concerts. It was also a gesture from Mayor Daley (the original) to the area’s young people that after two years of battling over the Vietnam War, police brutality and other political and racial differences, the two sides could peacefully coexist.

The Grant Park show was scheduled to begin at 4 pm, but the crowd starting filling the park in the early morning. It was a brutally hot summer day and the crowd grew restless. Rumors started that it was going to be another no-show. Even though the band’s instruments were set up on the stage, Sly & the Family Stone never did appear.

Objects were thrown onto the stage and one hour after the scheduled start time, the riot was on. It moved from the park into the downtown area. Stores had their windows broken and were being looted. Police arrested 160 people. Another 162 were injured.

Peace and coexistence between the band, the Mayor and the cities’ youth lasted only a few hours.

Nothing like what happened at Grant Park occurred in Evanston that spring evening. The band finally showed up at 10 pm. They played a short, uninspired set of music. Everyone left the arena disappointed and pissed off, but safe.

We didn’t know it at the time, but the two Chicago area events should have been a huge hint that big changes were occurring with the band that so many loved for their upbeat brand of funk, soul and rock music.

In November 1971, Sly & the Family Stone released “There’s A Riot Going on.” This was their fifth studio album and it had a much different sound and feel than any of their earlier records. This was no “Everyday People” or “Dance to the Music.” The music was more serious and somber. Listening to it didn’t put you in the same mood as their other records. It was kind of a downer.

It turned out that there was an upheaval going on within the group. There were personnel changes as well as drug problems. Cocaine had taken over the band, especially for Sly, in what has turned out to be a life-long issue for him. If you listened closely, you hear it in this album.

And yet the album received many rave reviews. This was a time when serious albums were being made that deal with the many issues of the country. Apparently, music critics felt that Sly had stepped up his game and “There’s A Riot Going On” was his entrance into becoming a serious musician. You could find the album near the top of many best albums list for 1971.

We’re closing in on the fiftieth anniversary for “There’s A Riot Going On.” It’s time to give it another listen. It’s time to see if the critics were right. It’s time to see if the album holds up fifty years after its release.

The 2021 listening experience of “There’s A Riot Going On” has a lot of the same qualities as the 1971 version. The recording of the record itself isn’t very clear. Plus, the lyrics sound garbled, so it’s best to google a lyric sheet and read along with the songs. Even knowing the words, they didn’t make much sense to me…then and now.

However, the actual music on the album is damn good! The guitars especially sound very crisp and distinct. Much of the music is played by Sly, himself. Make no mistake about it, this is almost a Sly solo production. Whatever credit or blame you want to give should go to him.

While listening to the record, I noticed that there were some definite foot tapping and head bobbing moments going on. Not quite like the earlier music, but there was definitely some sort of rhythm happening. That’s always a good thing, especially when it’s during a Sly and the Family Stone album.

If I had to give this album a rating, it would be a C. It’s not horrible, but if I’m spending time listening to Sly’s music, I’m going real old school and break out their earlier work. The only thing that actually holds up is the actual title because in 2021, the same as 1971, “There’s a Riot Going On.”

Related Post: Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” has aged like a fine wine

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Eastern Illinois’ wait lasted a week longer than expected, but the Panthers are scheduled to open their long-awaited Ohio Valley Conference-only spring season Sunday at O’Brien Field. It will be EIU’s first true test in roughly 15 months.

Eastern was supposed to begin last weekend, but the impact of recent winter storm forced a postponement at UT-Martin. That game has been rescheduled for March 7, which was previously left as an open date on the schedule.

“We’ve continued to say, ‘what does this make possible?’ We’ve been saying it for 12 months now,” second-year head coach Adam Cushing said during the OVC’s weekly media address.

Saturday’s opponent is Southeast Missouri State, which also lost its season opener because of the severe weather that struck the Midwest. The Redhawks are ranked 21st as one of three Ohio Valley Conference teams in the Stats Perform poll along with Jacksonville State (16th) and Tennessee Tech (23rd).

SEMO has won 13 conference games over the last two seasons, most in the OVC in that span.

Meanwhile, Cushing’s EIU team has been remade to the tune of an 85 percent turnover rate from the program in 2018 under former coach Kim Dameron.

“It’s completely different in a lot of ways, from a personnel standpoint,” EIU offensive coordinator John Kuceyeski told Prairie State Pigskin. “We were the youngest team in all of college football (in fall 2019). I don’t know of anybody who has started five true freshmen on the offensive line at any level.”

According to Tuesday’s EIU’s depth chart, three sophomores will start in the offensive line Sunday. In addition, two true freshmen, a redshirt freshman and a sophomore will serve as backups.

In 2019, left tackle Chad Strickland made 10 starts earning second team Freshman All-American honors. Other returnees are sophomore Elkhanan Tanelus, who started nine games at left guard, and sophomore Anthony Imperio, who started seven games at right tackle.

EIU is banking on the experience those players have gained since the global pandemic cancelled the fall 2020 season and sent the Panthers into this unprecedented seven-game spring league schedule.

“We got older. We basically had three offseasons. We had spring of 2020. We had summer/fall 2020, and had another one with our camp,” Kuceyeski said. “That was just huge for this group to develop even more trust. You look at year two in a system and that’s when it really starts to believe and year three when it really starts to take off. I’m hoping that we’ve got year two done, and now we’re in year three.”

Meanwhile, according to EIU’s two-deep chart, five freshmen and three sophomores will start on defense. 

“Certainly you always want to see some experience out there on the field, but we’re incredibly pleased with our group of newcomers this year,” Cushing said during a recent OVC Zoom session. “The fact that we had fall ball with this group of freshmen, this isn’t the same as a first game at the end of August or early September. These guys have been in the system.”

The Panthers will be missing two key veteran defensive contributors against UT-Martin:  defensive back Bryce Dewberry and defensive end/linebacker Dytarious Johnson.

“Those guys aren’t going to be able to play in the first one; we’ll hopefully see as it goes along here how it plays out,” Cushing said.

Johnson is the Panthers’ top returning tackler and sack leader. Dewberry is EIU’s fourth-leading returning tackler.

‘Quarterback friendly’ system

Senior Harry Woodbery gets the starting nod at quarterback. Should he falter or get injured, the Panthers must go to a group of inexperienced players.

“It’s a room that’s obviously young,” Kuceyeski said. “The room has changed quite a bit since we’ve gotten here, through graduation and attrition.

“Against SEMO (in a 26-12 loss in 2019), we lost Harry (to injury). We were playing a redshirt freshman walk-on (Jonah O’Brien who has since transferred to Colorado State). What it taught us as coaches is that we’ve got to make sure that this system is quarterback friendly. It was, but we really shored it up to make it even more so. Based on the inexperience in the o-line and other positions, we’ve got to give the players the chance to succeed. This extra time has given us the chance to clean it up even more.”

Backing up Woodbery for the season opener is Otto Kuhns, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound true freshman from Carroll, Ohio.

“He showed up in the fall and has really, really grown. He’s not like that true freshman. He would have been a lot greener had we thrown the ball down Sept. 1,” Kuceyeski said. “He’s a different quarterback than Harry in the sense of he’s a little bit more of that dual-threat guy that has a chance to use his feet to win, but also has the arm talent.”

Scouting SEMO

The Redhawks posted a 9-4 record and a share of the 2019 OVC title along with a playoff berth. While many of the key players from that team are gone, SEMO remains very much in contention in the current league race. Former Southern Illinois assistant Tom Matukewicz’s team played one fall game, losing 20-17 to the Salukis in Carbondale.

Nebraska transfer quarterback Andrew Bunch ran for 115 yards against SIU.

“It starts with quarterback,” Cushing said. “We’ve got to do a great job of knowing where he’s at all the time.”

However, look for running backs Zion Custis and Geno Hess to get the bulk of the carries behind an experience offensive line. Six-foot-4 Aaron Alston returns as the Redhawks’ top receiving threat.

The defense, generally a Matukewicz-coached hallmark, feeds off turnovers. 

What does this game mean?

Sunday’s outcome could prove to be a measuring stick to see what progress the young Panthers have made since their last games in the fall of 2019.

News and notes

Redshirt junior Isaiah Hill and Johnson were named to the preseason All-OVC squad.  . . . Sunday’s game is the first football game action for the Panthers since Nov. 23, 2019 – a span of 463 days. The last time EIU had a gap that big or bigger between games was in the midst of World War II when EIU went 686 days between games (1942-44) . . . Cushing has been named to the NCAA Division I Football Oversight Committee.  Cushing is the lone football coach on the committee and will serve a four-year term until June 30, 2024. The Football Oversight Committee ensures that appropriate oversight of football for both the Football Bowl Subdivision and Football Championship Subdivision is maintained, enhances the development of the sport and make recommendations related to regular-season and postseason football along with other duties.

Where can I find the game?

ESPN+ will air the game live at 1 p.m. Sunday. Fans can listen to the radio broadcast live on the Panther Radio Network.

This week, the Southern Illinois football team will try to do something it hasn’t had to experience in 15 months – rebound from a loss.

The Salukis’ 44-21 season-opening loss last weekend at North Dakota was the team’s first defeat since Nov. 23, 2019 against North Dakota State.

“We’d rather go out there and learn with a win, but were going to have to learn from a loss and move on,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said during his weekly press conference. “We have a great team coming in that we have to do that against.”

Ironically, No. 1 NDSU and its 39-game winning streak is back in Carbondale this weekend to face SIU at noon Saturday.

The Salukis (1-1) have to focus first on taking care of the football after they opened the season with five turnovers against North Dakota.

“There’s no magic formula to that,” Hill said. “You have to make smart decisions with the ball from the quarterback position and you have to have great ball security.”

Senior quarterback Kare’ Lyles fumbled twice before leaving the game with a rib injury. His replacement, sophomore Nic Baker, threw two interceptions.

Despite the defeat, Hill said he saw plenty of positives.

“I think we have a good football team, and we’ll show that throughout the season,” he said.

Lyles listed at No. 1

Senior quarterback Kare’ Lyles, who left last week’s game with a rib injury after being sacked, is listed as the starter this week on SIU’s depth chart.

Lyles was 12-for-14 passing for 74 yards before the injury. The performance tied Lyles for second in single-game completion percentage in school history (85.7%). The last SIU player to complete that percentage of passes was current head coach Nick Hill in 2007.

“I feel that Kare probably graded out … as good of a game as he’s played here,” Hill said.

Cox among nation’s best

Junior wide receiver Avante Cox of Rochester, Ill., is among the nation’s leading pass catchers. Through two games this season, Cox ranked second in the FCS in receptions per game (8.0), fifth in receiving yards a game (90.5), eighth in all-purpose yards (127.5).

Kicking toward Top 10

Nico Gualdoni, SIU’s senior placekicker, has 16 career field goals, which is one shy of the top 10 in school history. His 51 career PATs currently ranks 13^th in Saluki history.

Familiar faces up front

On the SIU offensive line, senior left guard ZeVeyon Furcron has 26 consecutive starts, the second-most on the team behind defensive end Anthony Knighton’s 36. Sophomore Beau Branyan, who plays next to Furcron at left tackle, has started 13 games in a row, which is the third-most on the team.

About NDSU

The Bison (2-0), the nation’s No. 1 team and eight-time national champion, bring a 39-game winning streak to Carbondale. A victory against SIU would tie NDSU for the second-longest winning streak in Division I history with Washington (1908-14).

NDSU beat Youngstown State, 25-7, last weekend in its season opener in Fargo. The Bison defense held Youngstown to 51 yards rushing. Meanwhile, the offense rushed for 243 yards in the victory, led by sophomore Kobe Johnson’s career-best 116 yards.

Where you can watch

The game will air at noon on ESPN+ online.

WASHINGTON—One of the largest makers of voting machines in the U.S. on Monday sued a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump, alleging that the businessman had defamed the company with false accusations that it had rigged the 2020 election for President Biden.Dominion Voting Systems sued Mike Lindell, chief executive of Minnesota-based MyPillow Inc., and his company in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking more than $1.3 billion in damages.”   Wall Street Journal

Mike Lindell

Once had pillows to sell

Now he wants us to buy

The “Big Lie”.

Some mornings are worse than others. There are days when I wake up before dawn with a cramp hardening the calf muscle on my left leg into a rigid burl, knotted and gnarled.

My grimace is a combination of agony, familiarity and resignation; it is not my first time on the rack watching the ratchet wheel turn. I stretch my toes toward my chin to elongate the Achilles tendon and loosen the grip of the spasm that has turned the calf rigid. Mercifully, the jaws of the vice open and the baseball sized knob relaxes, the muscles vibrating rhythmically under the skin, flickering like neuropathic strobe lights.

Gingerly placing the heels of my feet on the floor, I roll my ankles in half circles to loosen the tendons crisscrossing from arch to toes. Instantly I realize my mistake: the rolling motion that lengthens the calf is a seesaw that alternately contracts the elongated muscle embedded alongside the tibia. I am writhing in pain, my calf feeling like a cudgel carved from briar, contorted and misshaped.

I dig my thumbs into the rigid muscles, massaging the tender tissues with long, cajoling caresses. What feels like eons later the nervous system declares truce among its warring axons and dendrites and the cramp unties, leaving me limp, saturated in perspiration.

“What next?” I mumble to myself, limping to the bathroom. The answer comes without warning.

A paroxysm of pain tears through the arch of my left foot like the oblique rip of a serrated blade sawing through the bony arc between heel and metatarsals. I reel in agony, lurching against the medicine chest, somehow managing to fling open the mirrored door. On the bottom shelf is the plastic bottle of quinine tablets, the precious powdered leaf of cinchona officinalis that would ease my pain as digitalis to the trembling victim of a heart attack. I place two pills under my tongue and stifle my whining; then miracle of miracles, the bow in my arch straightens; the pain subsides as the sole of my foot relaxes.

Okay, okay, a bit exaggerated. But I do admit to being creaky and making funny noises before I get warmed up and it is true some days are worse than others. There are mornings when I am hurting and getting out of bed requires some curious yogic twisting and contortions.

I don’t welcome the stiffness and the aches. But I handle it. I remind myself that waking up in some pain does not equate to becoming ineffective and irrelevant. I regard it as a metaphor for the psychic pain I grappled with for too many years. I breathe into the pain and I feel relief.

I look back at my life with a lot more compassion, recognizing it wasn’t all cynicism and competition and pursuit of the corner office; there were accomplishments and friendships and inestimable creative satisfaction. My time as husband and father was considerably more than angst and argument and regret; there were shared events and acts of generosity and limitless unconditional love.

And having seen there was ample good along with the bad, I can be grateful for the moment when at last, I forgave myself and left behind the shame and regret associated with long past events.

I have closed the “What if…” file. I am content with the “This is it” file. I am comfortable in my own wrinkly skin. Instead of bemoaning the unfulfilled ambitions of youth I am reviving them as present day aspirations. I have written books; I write this blog; I do workshops; I edit a digital newspaper for seniors. The process is complete when we let go of what we have done and celebrate what we have become.

The paradox is, although my octogenarian’s eyesight is blurry, I see the sub-text of my blog title more clearly, How to Add Years of Joy and Meaning to Life. I write candidly about the regrets and revelations that accompany the aging process, and in the act of doing so, the motor keeps running. I do not go from zero to 60 in seconds, but I get out of bed a few minutes after the alarm rings, despite the degree of discomfort that I have dramatized.

I can tolerate the ache and stiffness that comes with the morning light, even as some days are more harrowing that others. Dear readers, we “ain’t what we used to be” but we still have work to do.

Chicago Theatre week starts today. This year, like many other things, the event will be held virtually. Here’s what you need to know to enjoy special offerings from home.

Log On

Log on to ChicagoTheatreWeek.com starting February 25 where you’ll see offerings from more than 100 theatre and learn about individual theatres and how you can offer support and engage with each company.

Engage

How to engage: Engage with a digital production, audio play, or online class.

Many theatres are continuing to keep the spirit of Chicago theatre alive through connecting virtually with audiences through online performances, classes, and other programs. Browse the theatre listings on ChicagoTheatreWeek.com and plan to watch a virtual performance during or after CTW. 

There are no set CTW ticket discounts like in the past. The featured content may be free or paid.

Highlights

Streaming Productions during Theatre Week

An Illiad (Photo)
March 3-31
Court Theatre

An Iliad showcases the power of classic theatre to speak to our current moment. Interrogate how rage and division reverberate throughout civilization in this streaming release of our limited-engagement, site-specific production of An Iliad at the Oriental Institute. This professionally-captured, multi-camera stream of the play allows you to experience this one-of-a-kind production at home, which Rick and Brenda McCain of Chicago Now hailed as “a superb collaboration of theater and history in a site-specific platform that is sure to bring chills to the historian that resides in all humanity.”

Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery
February 25 – March 7 – Special Chicago Theatre Week revival

Metropolis Performing Arts Center
The play’s afoot! The award-winning comedic mastermind Ken Ludwig transforms Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic The Hound of the Baskervilles into a murderously funny adventure. Equal parts comedy and thriller, the world’s favorite detective, Sherlock Holmes, is on the case. The heirs of the Baskerville line are being eliminated one by one. To find their ingenious killer, Holmes and faithful companion Dr. Watson reluctantly travel to Devonshire where they are forced to brave its desolate moors. The duo must unravel a web of murky clues before this family curse dooms its newest heir. The investigators attempt to escape peril and deceit, as a small group of actors portrays over forty characters with wit, silly accents, and clever disguises. Join the fun and see how far from elementary the truth can be.

Boléro 

Friday, February 26 at 7:00 PM CST – One Night Only
Joffrey Ballet

Joffrey Artist Yoshihisa Arai takes audiences on a journey through time and space in this world premiere performance for the Joffrey. Featuring 15 dancers, this debut work takes inspiration from nature and the seminal score of the same name by composer Maurice Ravel.

Other Rockpools
February 25 – March 7 – Special Theatre Week encore
The New Colony

Originally presented in partnership with Chicago Votes as part of an extensive get-out-the-vote campaign, The New Colony is proud to bring back the virtual reading of Other Rockpools for an encore presentation in conjunction with Chicago Theatre Week.

Taking Up Serpents 
February 27 – March 19
Chicago Opera Theater

Kayla’s father presides over an isolated community of snake handlers – a sect of Pentecostals who willingly take up venomous snakes to prove themselves before God. When ritual ends in tragedy, Kayla is compelled to return to the family she left behind, reckon with her past, and take control of her future.

The Delicate Tears Of The Waning Moon (Photos and Video)
February 26 – March 5

Water People Theater

A play about Human Rights violations suffered by those fighting for and communicating truth in the world. Two journalists immerse into a world of violence where cruelty is a habit, impunity is routine, freedom a utopia, and telling the truth is the greatest risk of all.

The Secretaries 

February 27, 7 PM CST – One Night Only
Goodman Theatre
Berlin, 1944: four women in Aryan drag vie to be the Führer’s personal secretary as he heads into a bunker with his girlfriend. It’s a rough time to be a German, but this is a chance to search for greater importance in a national capacity. Omer Abbas Salem’s fearsome, absurd new work examines complicity and the lies we tell ourselves as we mistake self-interest and supremacy for patriotism.

Where Did We Sit on The Bus? (Photos and video)
Feb. 22- Mar 7

Victory Gardens Theater

Where Did We Sit on the Bus? is an electric one-man show pulsing with Latin rhythms, rap, hip-hop, spoken word, and live looping. During a third grade lesson on the Civil Rights movement and Rosa Parks, a Latino boy raises his hand to ask, “Where did we sit on the bus?” and his teacher can’t answer the question. This thrilling autobiographical production from Jeff Award-winner Brian Quijada examines what it means to be Latino through the eyes of a child, turned teenager, turned adult.

Audio Plays and Podcasts

Miss Holmes
March 12 – May 2
Lifeline Theatre

Miss Sherlock Holmes, possessor of one of the greatest deductive minds of her generation, finds herself regularly incarcerated for behaviors deemed abnormal in a “respectable” lady. Miss Dorothy Watson struggles to make a difference at the only hospital in England that will hire female doctors. These unconventional women, trapped in an era that refuses to accept them, must forge a bond of trust and work together to uncover the secrets surrounding a corrupt police investigator whose wives have a habit of turning up dead.  Join the original Lifeline cast in this thrilling murder mystery that re-introduces familiar characters from the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in an immersive, six-episode audio experience.

Opposing Ophelia (We Women Podcast)
Artemisia Theatre

Podcast Episode Released March 3
An audio performance of Opposing Ophelia, by Deneen Reynolds-Knott. Yvette, a former model and student at the Ophelia Devore School of Modeling & Charm, is confronted with new ideas about beauty, blackness and womanhood, when her daughter, Nina, joins the National Black Feminist Organization in 1973.  Directed by Celeste Cooper and performed by Tiffany Cox, Abie Irabor, Martasia Jones, and Cajardo Lindsey.

Play Festivals or Series

BECHDEL FEST 8: REALIGN

Broken Nose Theatre
Now – March 26
Free
As in past years, each of the brand-new short plays in BECHDEL FEST 8: REALIGN pass The Bechdel-Wallace Test, meaning that these stories feature an ensemble of femme, female-identifying, non-binary, trans and genderqueer actors talking about things other than men. Each play will stream for FREE thru March 26, 2021 on BNT’s YouTube channel, with a new play released each Friday for an entire week before it’s removed and a new play is broadcast.

Hit ‘Em on the Blackside (Part 1) Watch Party + Talkback

March 5 – One Night Only
Did you miss the first 6 episodes of Hit’ ‘Em on the Blackside? No worries! Come hang out with the Congo family for a live watch party catching up on all the previous episodes and a talkback with the HOTB cast and crew before the launch of the new episodes on March 19th.

KICKBACK: a world-premiere virtual performance festival (Photo)
Stream Anytime
About Face Theatre

KICKBACK is an online festival of original plays and performances that highlights the intersection of queerness and Blackness in all its beauty and glory. When just being alive and living your best life is an act of rebellion, it’s time to turn up the music and make some noise! About Face Theatre has commissioned a cohort of Black LGBTQ+ artists to create new works in conversation with Rebuild Foundation’s extensive collection of African-American art and cultural artifacts. This bold online performance series will be an unapologetic celebration of Black lives now and through the ages.

Orfeo Remote – Mini Opera Series (Photo)
Stream Anytime
Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University

Claudio Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo—based upon the story of Orpheus’s journey to the underworld to rescue his love Eurydice—is often considered the first great opera. Orfeo Remote presents it in the form of an opera mini-series, with a timely twist. During the challenging times of a pandemic, a young, unemployed musician—embodied in the character La Musica—reaches out to friends and colleagues to tell Orfeo’s story in the setting of 1960s America. Orfeo Remote juxtaposes the hippie movement’s ideals of free love and connection with the current reality of pandemic-induced isolation.

Honor Black History during #CTW21
Amplify
February 24-25, 2021
Definition Theatre

Amplify, our new play commissioning program was developed to empower and uplift underrepresented theatre creatives. Filmed in accordance with COVID-19 safety guidelines, these eight scenes are snippets of the brilliant submissions we received. Over the course of two nights, we’ll get to know the eight semi-finalists playwrights and preview what’s to come from their plays in development.

Being Sincere

Virtual Play Reading February 27, 7:30 PM CST – One Night Only
Beverly Arts Center

Being Sincere is a coming-of-age story about a middle-aged man named Sincere, ‘Junior’ who lives with his terminally ill grandmother. Sincere and his grandmother learn new lessons about love, change, and starting a new life when a mysterious homemaker comes to help.

Black Teen Lives Matter
Silk Road Rising
February 27 & March 1, 7PM CST

Black Teens Lives Matter is a virtual project in four acts that draws on monologues and short plays written by Black teens in Silk Road Rising’s EPIC (Empathic Playwriting Intensive Course) program from 2017-2020. Black Teen Lives Matter: Act Two is curated by Brianna Buckley, Elena Feliz, Jabari Khaliq, Jarrett King, and Londen Shannon. Silk Road Rising will host two screenings followed by talkbacks with creators. Saturday, February 27 at 2:00PM CST and Monday, March 1 at 7:00PM CST. After that, the video will become available to watch at any time for free.

Family-Friendly Streaming Productions

Diamond’s Dream (Photo)
Stream Anytime
Chicago Children’s Theatre

Diamond’s Dream is a virtual puppet production that takes place on a CTA Red Line train traveling south through pandemic-era Chicago. Diamond, a pre-teen African-American boy, has fallen asleep on the train while on his way to visit his dying grandmother. When he awakes, time and reality have shifted, and he meets the ghost of a young African-American girl, a shape-shifting elder spirit who died of Spanish Flu 100 years ago to the date.

Hot Chocolate Sunday Reading of “The Adventures of Cleaver And Whizjam. On The Isle of Oogle”

March 7, 3PM CST – One Day Only

Her Story Theater
Join us on Zoom for our first Hot Chocolate Sunday Readings for Family and Youth.  A book launch party perfect for family and friends.  A great cast of professional actors (see names below) reading  the opening chapters of “The Adventures of Cleaver of Whizjam On The Isle of Oogle” written by Mary Bonnett and illustrated by Emily Thomsen.

Mountain Goat Mountain (Photo)

February 20 – March 21
Filament Theatre
Using just a bedsheet, a phone or computer, pencils and a piece of paper, Mountain Goat Mountain immerses families in a 45 minute theatrical experience. Children and families are carried along by a narrative soundscape, and invited to bring their own creativity and imagination to the performance. Got Hungry Hikers? Local adventurers can add fresh baked treats from our friends at Fannie’s Cafe to your pass! Look for the option at check-out.

That’s Weird, Grandma: House Par-Tay
Streams Weekly on Mondays (March 1 during Theatre Week)
PlayMakers Laboratory
PlayMakers Laboratory is pleased to announce the March 2021 line-up for its popular online revue That’s Weird, Grandma: House Par-Tay, celebrating Women’s History Month, St. Patrick’s Day and Easter, plus a special Poetry Slam edition. The creative series of stories written by elementary school students, adapted and performed by PML’s professional actors streams Mondays at 8 pm CST from March 1 – 29, 2021 via Patreon. Tickets ($2 – $4 subscriptions) are currently available at playmakerslab.org .

Online Classes
Actors Gymnasium (Photo)
Our online classes are a great way for people of all ages to stay active from home and learn new skills. Choose Circus Fitness, Flexibility, Puppetry, and more!

Chicago Dramatists
20% discount for Spring online classes

Fired Up February – Cooking Class
February 25, 2021
Oil Lamp Theater

Fire up your stove and learn how to make dishes like the pros! Cook alongside local business and Oil Lamp neighbor, Forza Meats and their famed Chef Juan, to make mouth-watering Carne Asada Fajitas, Mexican Rice, and Refried Beans from scratch! The class will be presented in a mixture of Spanish and English.

Going Beyond “I Like It” – Online Class/Discussion
Wednesdays and Fridays, March 3, 5, 10 & 12, 6:30 – 8:00pm

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company
Remy Bumppo Core Ensemble Member Greg Matthew Anderson will lead a cross-disciplinary discussion on the philosophy of art and aesthetics with selected readings, anecdotes and insights from Chicago theatre productions–and the occasional special guest. Tools in hand, we’ll dive into the group’s collective experiences with the visual arts, museum exhibits, music, food, architecture, dance–and, of course, theatre!–to learn from one another how to both sharpen our critical eye and become even better fans of this great art form and all art wherever we find it.

More

For a comprehensive list of Chicago productions, visit the League of Chicago Theatres websites,  ChicagoPlays.com and HotTix.org. 

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Imagine for just a few seconds that you lived in Chicago. Every single day you read and hear about the soaring violence and the tremendous impact it has on the thousands of victims. In a 14 month period over 875 souls have been murdered, infants, babies, toddlers, hundreds of teens, seniors, no age group or gender spared. Another 4,600 have been shot and over 1,718 have been victims of violent carjackings.

No matter where one lives in the City the violence is real and folks are aware and living, if not in fear then in a state of high alert. So along comes none-other than the Governor of Illinois using his pulpit when signing a Supposed Criminal Justice Reform Bill to label folks as FEARMONGERS who are concerned about a major part of the bill that will completely eliminate cash bail from the Bonding process. Gee! ya think they would be at least a bit concerned to learn that violent criminals will be sent right back through the revolving door they came through in less than 24 hours most times. Not so in the Governor’s mind, HE’S LABELED THOSE CONCERNED FOLKS FEARMONGERS. I’m not sure what kind of a life J.B Pritzker lead before he spent almost 173 million dollars of his own fortune to become Governor, but I’m betting it was either Disney World or the land of the STEPFORD WIVES.

One could not be that out of touch unless he lived on another planet. Not since Hillary Clinton labeled those who disagreed with her political platform a”BASKET OF DEPLORABLES” has a politician besmirched so many decent people with such a blatant disregard for legitimate concerns. Nero fiddled while Rome burned, Marie Antoinette at least offered cake, Pritzker and his family who are surrounded by armed security 24 hours a day offer up an astonishing insult.

I once had a young police officer who was assigned to my unit to work undercover as a decoy. Strong-armed robberies, armed robberies, and chain snatchings were gripping the city’s transit system. He felt that he was not doing something quite right, none of the offenders were picking him out and he was frustrated. I explained to him that it was his demeanor and his sense of security, he was armed, he had other protections on his person, and of course, he had back up no more than 10 seconds away, so his aura, so to speak, gave him away.  He didn’t have the same look as a defenseless citizen would have and the criminal element could sense he was not a typical victim. I sense that Governor Pritzker and his assessment of other people’s fear as Fearmongering also lacked that urgency and most likely NEVER EVER felt what most city folks live with on a daily basis and that is to be alert to your surroundings.  Chicago is not Disney World, dangerous people exist, a little fear and apprehension are sometimes very prudent in order to stay safe.

The question that comes to mind is could a person who was born with billions of dollars and lived in a mansion most of his life ever be able to feel, what hundreds of thousands of others do, who have to negotiate life in a big city? Being a billionaire could possibly cause one to feel “Entitled, Impatient and Arrogant,  but a sense of decency carries no monetary weight. Governor Pritzker needs to know that the mind is slow to unlearn what it learned earlier. Lots of folks in Illinois will not forget being labeled a Fearmonger and maybe another 173 million dollars will not be enough next election. Leadership cannot be bought.  Even people labeled Fearmongers have long memories.

Blackbird restaurant in Chicago closed in June, one of thousands of business affected by the coronavirus pandemic. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)

Will he tell us when it’s over, or will he keep America dangling on his string?

We know that President Joe Biden is big on having “plans.”  One of his biggest criticisms of former President Donald Trump was that he had “no plan” for fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

(Even though not only did Trump have a plan, but that plan was being executed as Biden was yakking about Trump not having one.)

Having a “plan” or a “program” always is a big deal for Democrats, liberals and progressives. It fits right in to their ideology that “planners” have superior knowledge about how everything works, that action plans need to be centralized (mostly at the federal level) and that everyone must march in step with the “plan.”

Yet here the COVID-19 pandemic is showing persuasive signs that it is abating, and Biden has no real plan for re-opening America. Infection and death rates have dropped dramatically, yet Biden has no real plan. Vaccinations are speeding up and herd immunity is approaching, yet Biden has no real plan. No variants of the coronavirus are showing up, but scientists are coming up with vaccines they believe will effective fight them. Unemployment claims have fallen sharply.

Yet, Biden has no real plan.

Oh sure, Biden’s scribblers have posted something called “THE BIDEN PLAN FOR AN EFFECTIVE RE-OPENING THAT JUMPSTARTS THE ECONOMY”.

It’s chuck full of the usual liberal/progressive/far left/hard left malarky: More money, more regulation, more centralized control, more nose in your business, more bureaucratic structures, more this and more that. For example, it would

Ensure workers and unions have a voice in reopening plans, and that reopening decisions by tribal governments are respected. (Read Joe Biden’s plans for establishing a Pandemic Testing Board to surge testing nationwide, and ramping up the production and fair distribution of PPE.)

That’s a thinly disguised promise to government employe unions to bow to their bidding. Those are huge, powerful special interests that heavily fund Democratic candidates–precisely the kind of big lobby that liberals once despised for corrupting the will of the people.

And a Pandemic Testing Board? What the? Biden says it would be like the War Production Board of World War II that would massively scale up COVID-19 testing. You’ve got to read it in detail to get an idea of just how massively bureaucratic, utopian and certain-to-fail it is.

Just like Biden’s wide-ranging, all -inclusive, complex plans for supposedly reopening the economy and schools.

Like so much that comes out of the bureaucratic lairs these days, Boden’s so-called plan unleashes an army of academics, grant writers, social scientists, planners and the like whose job is to basically take an idea and load it down with so much verbiage, required studies and and other first-required steps that by the time the plan would into the action, if it ever does, the problem will be long gone. Those “planners” hated Trump for launching what was an effective campaign to discover, test, produce and distribute the vaccines–without the “benefit” of their cumbersome and utopian “plans.”

Trump’s plan was simple: Make life miserable for the bureaucrats who said “it couldn’t be done” or “we’ve never done it that way before.” In Trump’s supposed ignorance, he said it must be done, and, miracle of miracles, it was.

On the other hand, Biden’s “plan” was to carry out Trump’s framework and organization, add a bunch of ornaments and pretend that the resultss his. Despicable.

If Biden feels compelled to make a plan, it should guide us to know when we can “emerge from the other side.” He can start with a couple of Atlantic magazine articles: (1) “A Simple Rule of Thumb for Knowing When the Pandemic Is Over: At some point—maybe even soon—the emergency phase of the pandemic will end. But what, exactly, is that magic threshold?” and (2) “The most likely timeline for life to return to normal.”

You and I might disagree about the timelines and standards that the authors use to create their outlook. But it raises the issues and discusses the data that should be at this exact moment debated.

Instead of the hollow “plans” take Biden has read off this teleprompter.

Related: “You’ve gotten your second COVID-19 vaccination. When will your life get back to normal?“

[email protected]

www.dennisbyrne.net 

My historical novel: Madness: The War of 1812

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