Star Trek: Mission Chicago (STMC) is the ultimate Star Trek fan experience for all ages! Boldly explore the past, present and future of the celebrated franchise created by Gene Roddenberry vhile embracing the ideals of a diverse and inclusive future that remains at the center of one of the most iconic brands of all time. Discover a new frontier of immersive experiences and unique encounters vith fellow fans unlike anything you’ve seen before.

Enjoy three full days of interactive exhibits, major announcements, exclusive merchandise, celebrity guests and more from the ever-evolving Star Trek universe at Star Trek: Mission Chicago, the official fan convention brought to you by ViacomCBS and ReedPop. Assemble your crew and lay in a course for the Starship Enterprise. Team Gregula is honored to be approved as the petrified press in order for us to cover STMC 2022. Our first official Star Trek convention. Beam us up, Scotty!

Star Trek: Mission Chicago 2022 is running April 8-10 in the West Building at McCormick Place Convention Center located at 2301 S Indiana Ave in Chicago, Illinois.  

Show Floor Hours
Friday, April 8: 10AM-7PM
Saturday, April 9: 10AM-7PM
Sunday, April 10: 10AM-5PM

For details on how to get into Star Trek: Mission Chicago 2022, be sure to review the implemented health and safety guidelines. Admission prices vary. To purchase badges and find the most up-to-date info, visit HERE.

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Who hasn’t dreamed of attending a writer’s conference? For some, it is just another dream. But for others, like the members of AWP, this yearly event provides community, opportunities, ideas, news, and opportunities for writers and teachers of writing. This year, the writer’s conference also provided hope and the possibility for a post-pandemic literary life. Again, the diversity and inclusion at this year’s event were evident. With accessibility options, ASL interpretation, and the influx of new faces, it was clear that the desire for building a career in writing is universal. 

Those of us who have been working for years to get a literary agent and publishers realize it isn’t easy—and it probably never will be easy. So, we need lots of encouragement along the way and at every step of our careers as writers. The AWP Annual Writer’s Conference is an essential conference for writers. It provides contacts that might change your life by helping you land an agent, publisher and helpful insight into writing a remarkable book. Below are three takeaways from this year’s conference.

Hope and Possibility of a Post Pandemic Literary Life

Despite the recent uptick in public health disasters, the world is still filled with some hope. Speakers include noted authors, poets, and faculty from MFA programs. The AWP Writer’s Conference was a fantastic experience. After walking around the book fair, stopping at tables, and smiling with my eyes so vendors could see my joy, I was happy to connect. I had the opportunity to experience informative panels, and I found a plethora of MFA programs and literary journal options. There were hundreds of attendees and dozens of panels. The conference had a range of topics, from publishing to professional development. Still, the most important thing for me was the access to panels and breakout sessions, especially those about writing styles, publishing options, and dynamic readings. There was a lot of hope for a post-pandemic life, which made me happy because it seems like we are on our way to surviving this pandemic.

Energizing Off-Site Events

One of the benefits of the location of AWP this year was the access to some offsite events. I had the opportunity to attend the TriQuarterly Books and TriQuarterly magazine Friday, March 25 at 6:00 p.m. ET for an offsite reading at The Notary Hotel, Autograph Collection. Parneshia Jones, the director of Northwestern University Press, emceed the event, which features Amina Gautier, Kien Lam, Colleen O’Brien, Cynthia Dewi Oka, and Talin Tahajian. Books were available for purchase, and attendees were welcome to enjoy complimentary appetizers, soda, and bottled water. Registration is encouraged to provide an accurate headcount.

Meeting New and Old Friends

Then there are the genuinely transformative moments, the opportunities to accidentally connect with strangers from across the world. While engaging in conversation, you can understand the importance of relationships, community, and intellectual discourse. I met great world-renowned poets, and their wisdom exuded through the simplicity of their words. Then there was my friend, the founder and creative director of Front Porch Arts, an Art Institute of Chicago Poet in Residence, and author of Small Alters, Keli Stewart. During our time at AWP, we had the opportunity to weave our literacy narrative of friendship, loyalty, womanhood, and growing pains, which didn’t seem possible two years ago. Just a decade ago, we attended AWP Boston. Present-day, we are both published authors, yearning for our next adventure while making peace with our journey. 

Row House Publishing 

One of the highlights of attending the conference was connecting with Row House Publishing. According to their website, they are committed to raising the volume of voices that matter. I had the opportunity to meet one of their energetic poets at the booth. LindoYes echoed their mission and expressed a passion for creativity and the mission of Row House Publishing. Its mission is to create an equitable publishing model that represents the values and diversity of the authors and audience we embrace. In 2020, it became clear that there was no publisher equally committed to supporting authors while also honoring antiracist and inclusive principles. Row House has been a revolutionary model that supports authors from diverse backgrounds from day one.

Next Steps 

After a global pandemic, our lives will change again, and we must adapt to the new world as it is. This is an essential message of hope for all writing students and authors. Writing is a difficult thing to teach and learn, but now more than ever, it is an important skill. What will happen to all of the writing that we have learned so far? The world will not be the same after a pandemic, which means that our task as writers has become even more critical.

It is clear that AWP has listened to writers, and though things have evolved differently over the last couple of years, I am hopeful about the future of writing culture, publishing, and the literary scene.

I just covered the most recent Case Shiller home price indices release that tells you were home prices have been going so now is a good time to give you an idea of where home prices are believed to be heading. A couple of weeks ago Zillow and Pulsenomics conducted their Q1 2022 Home Price Expectations Survey of 109 housing market experts. Since 2020 drops off their radar for the first quarter survey, I calculated that their forecast for 2022 home price appreciation was 6.5% last quarter but it’s now 9.0% in this quarter’s survey. Their 5 year outlook went from 23.4% cumulative appreciation to 26.8%, which annualizes to 4.9% compounded. You should take note that that much appreciation basically covers a 4.9% mortgage rate…but it doesn’t help your cashflow in the interim. The 5 year compounded rate was 4.3% last quarter.

The five year outlook for home prices is the highest it’s ever been

Pulsenomics founder Terry Loebs commented on the drivers and consequences of the more bullish outlook:

Against the backdrop of tightening Fed policy and increasing mortgage rates, this more bullish outlook for home values suggests that home inventory shortages will remain the dominant price driver this year. If price increases this year for homes, rents, energy, and food each exceed wage growth – as the panel expects – home affordability challenges will intensify further, especially for low- and moderate-income renters.

Since exceptionally low home inventory is driving prices the respondents were also asked about when they expected this “problem” to be resolved. Almost none of them thought it would happen this year and many thought it would not happen until 2024. Of course the other big wild card in all of this is what rapidly rising mortgage rates might do to demand. If you’ve been following interest rates you know that they have really skyrocketed recently and that could cause the rapid retreat of buyers from the market.

Chicago Area Home Price Outlook

Once again I’ve turned to the Case Shiller home price futures market for insight into the outlook for Chicago area home prices. John Dolan, who happens to be one of the panelists contributing to the home price expectations survey and who is also the market maker for the Case Shiller home price futures, provided me with the data and graph below. 

From the end of 2021 to the end of 2024 the futures are implying cumulative price increases of 13.3% or 4.2% annualized and compounded. That compares to the national forecast of 18.4% over the same time period.

Chicago area home price futures imply modest appreciation over the next 3 years

John Dolan has also been following this sad story of Chicago’s lagging home prices so he produced this supplemental analysis which looks at the ratio of Chicago home prices to Case Shiller’s 10 city average both historically and projected based on the futures prices. As you can see that ratio has been going straight downhill and the futures prices project a continuation of this trend, albeit at a slower rate. You would think that Chicago could put a positive spin on this and market our greater housing affordability in attracting businesses to the area.

The ratio of Chicago home prices to the 10 city composite highlights how far Chicago homeowners are falling behind their peers in other cities

#RealEstate #ChicagoRealEstate #HomePrices

Gary Lucido is the President of Lucid Realty, the Chicago area’s full service real estate brokerage that offers home buyer rebates and discount commissions. If you want to keep up to date on the Chicago real estate market or get an insider’s view of the seamy underbelly of the real estate industry you can Subscribe to Getting Real by Email using the form below. Please be sure to verify your email address when you receive the verification notice.

Each month, ChicagoNow holds a contest to determine the best posts that appeared in the previous month on ChicagoNow.com. Of more than 1,000 posts which appeared during March, here are the 20 judged to be the best. (For the record, any posts from the blog Margaret Serious are those nominated by the other bloggers.)

Bon Bini Ya’ll On the Knife’s Edge of Cancer

Cheating Death Staying grounded as the tanks roll into Ukraine

The Chicago Board of Tirade Did Putin promise Donnie a piece of Ukraine?

Chicago Weather Watch Signs of Spring

Comedians Defying Gravity The Gift and the Not Gifted: Ross and AJ are now on Whatifi!

Getting More from Les Hotel California. A Classic or a Nightmare–What Do You Think?

Getting More from Les South Korea Does What the USA Has Struggled To Do. We Should be Embarrassed and Ashamed.

Go Do Good! FAILURE IN THIS CASE WAS SUBLIME SUCCESS.

I’ve Got the Hippy Shakes The road to seventy is full of potholes

I’ve Got the Hippy Shakes To mask or not to mask: That is the question

Looking for the Good Lets Talk About Words

Margaret Serious Volodymyr vs. Vladimir: What’s in a name?

Mom, I Think I’m Poignant! How come the US Government can only bring half the country’s poor children out of poverty?

Opinionated Woman Why you’ll wish you knew Lou: RIP Louie Grenier

Pizza for Breakfast I Had a Southside Irish Parade House

Purple Reigns: How to Live a Full Life with Lupus Lupus and skin care

The Quark in the Road Postscript: The Academy Awards May Never Be The Same

Retired in Chicago Where is the line between frugal and cheap?

Tomfoolery: Eyes Wide Open Respectfully Disagree?

The White Rhino: A Blog about Education and Latino Issues Chicago Public Schools teacher sets 3 Illinois powerlifting records

Robel García by Dylan Heuer/Iowa Cubs

MLB

The Cubs completed their Spring Training schedule yesterday afternoon with an 11-5 loss to the Rangers. A handful of roster players, and AAA depth started the game but were removed by the 4th inning as the club prepared to catch their flight north for the start of the regular season. Those left behind to finish the game were a combo of prospects rehabbing from injuries or interrupted spring schedules (Cole Roederer, Andy Weber, Luis Vazquez, Jordan Nwogu), along with younger prospects (Cristian Hernandez, Kevin Alcantara, Moises Ballesteros) who will stay back in EXST rather than open the year in full season ball, and then unfortunately there was final group of Minor League veterans who failed to make an affiliate roster and may have been playing their final game in the Cubs organization.

There has been no formal Opening Day roster announcement as of this post, but there is really only one real question at this point. The team will open with a 14-14 split of position players and pitchers.

C: Contreras, Gomes

1B: Schwindel, Rivas

2B: Madrigal

SS: Hoerner

3B: Wisdom, Villar (UT)

LF: Happ (likely DH most days until fully healthy), Frazier

CF: Ortega, Hermosillo, Heyward

RF: Suzuki

10-Day IL: Simmons

60-Day IL: Bote

Once Simmons is ready to return it is likely Alfonso Rivas is sent to Iowa. Clint Frazier is the only other OF or 1B with options but the team seems committed to him as a nearly everyday player after the spring he had. If everyone is healthy come May, the Cubs will be forced to decide among their trio of centerfielders in order to cut down to 13 position players.

The one remaining roster question I have is on the final spot for the pitching staff. I’m uncertain whether Mychal Givens is fully prepared to begin the year, or if he’ll open on the IL. If he isn’t ready, Michael Rucker would be in line to take his place after throwing two innings yesterday.

Rotation: Hendricks, Steele, Stroman, Smyly (Or Mills)

LHRP: Norris

RHRP: Wick, Robertson, Martin, Effross, Roberts, Chavez, Thompson, Mills, Givens/Rucker

15-Day IL: Miley, maybe Givens

60-Day IL/Rescricted: Alzolay (shoulder), Heuer (TJS), , Vizcaíno (restricted), Wieck (elbow)

Any IL stints for Simmons, Miley and Givens can be backdated enough that they would be available at some point in the second week of the season if the Cubs believe they’ll be ready.

Given off days already built into the schedule and the potential for weather cancellations the Cubs will not necessarily require a 5th starter until the middle of the month, by which time Wade Miley might be ready to return from the IL (although that appears less likely now than a week ago).

Along with Rucker sticking around in case Givens is not ready to go, the club also kept reliever Eric Yardley, catcher John Hicks, and utility man Ildemaro Vargas in Mesa yesterday rather than sending them to Buffalo for the Iowa regular season opener. This was further insurance in the event of another injury. It is even possible those three stick around Chicago this weekend and don’t join the I-Cubs until the Iowa home opener next Tuesday.

AAA

Buffalo 3, Iowa 2

Game Recap

It was a low event game for Iowa. The weather was shockingly nice for an early April day in Buffalo, but it didn’t help heat up the I-Cubs bats. They scraped together just three hits, two of them doubles off the bat of old friend now returned Robel García. The other was a one out single by Trent Giambrone in the 6th which broke up Buffalo’s no-hit bid.

With Rivas, Hicks, and Vargas away from the club, Iowa was without three projected starters.

Matt Swarmer (Photo by Stephanie Lynn)

Matt Swarmer threw 4 shutout innings (69 pitches) in a piggyback role behind starter Cory Abbott (2.2 IP, 48 pitches). The Cubs plan for the first week or two of the season, both in Chicago and throughout their Minor League system, is to have at least 8 guys stretched out to pitch multiple innings and to utilize piggybacking as often as necessary. Some guys are stretched to roughly ~50 pitches, others up to the ~65 pitch range. So, expect a lot of 2-4 inning appearances early on. I doubt we see anyone exceed those pitch counts the first time through any rotation except for maybe Marcus Stroman or Kyle Hendricks.

Top Performers

Robel García: 2-3, 2 2B, R, RBITrent Giambrone: 1-2, BBMatt Swarmer: 4 IP, H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

Matt Swarmer finished last season on quite a run for Iowa. Over his final 15 games (11 GS) he posted a 3.68 ERA in 73.1 IP. He figures to once again be an important innings eater for the squad. His fastball and slider from his unique over the top delivery are his main weapons, and though not overpowering, he locates them well in most outings.

It was a rough day for Brennen Davis at the plate. The top prospect in the system will have plenty of better days to come, but he opened with an 0-for-4 including 3 punchouts, all swinging. Davis and García are the two legitimate power threats in the Iowa lineup so much will needed from them if the I-Cubs are to put together a good season.

Greg Deichmann is the lone 40-man representative among position players for Iowa. The outfielder will turn 27-years old at the end of next month. Injuries have slowed him throughout his career, but he’s shown spurts of both power and OBP ability in the past. It figures to be a make or break year for him in terms of roster status. The Cubs have a ton of young outfielders who will need 40-man spots this fall, so if Deichmann fails to break through in the bigs later this year his roster time will probably run out.

The majority of the Iowa lineup will be filled by veteran players. Among the most interesting is 2B Estaban Quiroz, a 30-year old left handed hitter acquired in a trade with Tampa this spring. Signed out of the Mexican League by the Red Sox in 2018, he’s been an intriguing AAA bat (career .286/.398/.474) the past few years. Teams keep targeting him in trades (first SD, then TB, now the Cubs) with the idea that he could step in at the MLB level should injuries arise. The right circumstances have not lined up for Quiroz as of yet though, and he is still waiting for his first shot in the bigs. Given the record number of players the Cubs used last season, and with more trade deadline deals expected this summer, Quiroz could get a 2nd half shot this year the same way veterans Ortega, Schwindel, and Wisdom did in 2021.

32-year old John Hicks should be a solid 3rd catcher for the Cubs this season, and the primary backstop for Iowa once he joins the club. He’s spent parts of 6 seasons as a backup at the MLB level, mostly for the Tigers. If called upon, he won’t walk much, but he’s a good bet to hit in the .230-250 range with a decent bit of pop. He’s been considered a solid defender in his career, but there is always concern his skills will have eroded somewhat at his age. I haven’t gotten enough looks at him this spring though to pass judgement. Still, I feel more secure with him as the 3rd option than I have the choices the Cubs have had in many recent seasons.

On the pitching side, Cory Abbott is the lone rotation member on the 40-man roster, but he’ll be joined by a top 10 prospect in the system (Caleb Kilian), as well as several veteran arms with plenty of AAA success and MLB experience (Swarmer, Mark Leiter, Jr., Adrian Sampson, Stephen Gonsalves, and eventually Steven Brault).

Manny Rodriguez (Photo by Stephanie Lynn)

The Iowa bullpen will have a bit more in terms of young firepower however. Not only will 40-man roster players like Rucker, Ethan Roberts, and Manny Rodriguez likely spend time shuttling between AAA and the Majors, but they are backed up by young guns Cayne Ueckert and Ben Leeper. Both had breakout seasons in the Tennessee bullpen last year and offer potential late inning upside the same way Roberts and Rodriguez do. Those four should miss plenty of bats when in Iowa. Ueckert will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft next fall, while Leeper will not, so should the Cubs need to call on one of them I would expect Ueckert to get the nod (assuming both are pitching well).

The rest of the pen is a collection of vets. Former Mets swingman Robert Gsellman being the most well known. He’s spent 5 years in the bigs posting a 4.59 ERA, so he definitely received an opt-out of his MiLB deal if he isn’t in the Majors by a certain date. Should injuries arise in Chicago which frees up a 40-man spot, Gsellman figures to be first in line.

OneChicagoDay was virtual again this year! Like we did the previous year, we thought that it would be a good idea for the fans to get a chance to ask what they’ve been dying to know about their favorite shows. The questions came pouring in on IG & Twitter, that we couldn’t keep up. However, we narrowed down the questions and selected a few for the cast and crew of each show. Unfortunately, due to limited time, Just N/Chicago Now was not able to ask all the ones that were selected but we tried our best to make it happen for the fans. Press play to check it out!

Navigating the rough seas of the Pandemic has been a challenge for chef Martial Noguier and his wife Laurence, the thoroughly French owners of Bistronomic, a charming restaurant on Wabash, just two blocks north of Chicago Avenue. In the years since the restaurant opened in 2011, Bistronomic has earned a reputation for diversity, with featured dishes running the gamut from humble to haute. As a result, the owners have been able to implement changes during the Pandemic without impinging on their identity. Some of the most important changes have involved carryout.

“Carryout accounted for only a small percentage of our business pre-Pandemic,” Laurence explains. “We quickly sensed where the market was going, and by the time we reopened after the initial shut down, we’d stocked the necessary containers and were busy developing an array of dishes suitable for carryout.”

Dishes that travel well, such as boeuf bourguignon and coq au vin, are well suited for carryout, in contrast to fragile soufflés, intricate sauces, and a host of other marvels of French gastronomy.

The Noguiers soon realized that giving customers the option of ordering dishes portioned for more than one would be a plus, since customers frequently wanted leftovers for lunch or a second dinner. In a further innovation, the restaurant added a selection of prix-fixe, two or three-course dinners to the carryout options. Laurence says the feedback on all of the innovations has been extremely favorable, adding that even with the return of on-site dining, carryout continues to do very well.

Of course, not all of the innovations center on carryout. Bistronomic has also expanded its use of specials, and certain of the best sellers are now offered on specific days. Dover Sole, for example, is frequently served on Tuesdays. The fish is so popular that customers know they have to pre-order as much as a week in advance. And given that the fish is very expensive, the restaurant only orders a few more than they’ve already sold.

Bistronomic’s newsie e-mail also lists carryout specials for the upcoming weekend. Pate en croute joined the line-up on March 16 and Maine lobster bisque ($16) on Thursday, March 17. Bouillabaise, priced at $45 per person, was-on the other hand- featured from Thursday- Sunday. Carryout options are also available for on-site dining.

Not all the specials are about food. A recent innovation, Gypsy Jazz, is featured one Thursday a month (April 28, May 26). And with the return to warmer weather, the heated patio will -once again-be dog friendly. The restaurant also offers a wine club under the direction of sommelier Frank Ferru. The Wine Lover Program ($45) includes two bottles a month, as does the Sommelier Program ($80).

With so much going on, it’s not out of line to ask the Noguiers how they keep up the pace. Maybe it’s in their genes, given that Martial’s from Paris and Laurence from Lyons, arguably the best places in the world to sample French cuisine.

Laurence says their customers share their passion for French food, as well as their enthusiasm for positive changes.

“It’s hard to imagine anything good coming out of the Pandemic,” she adds. “But we’ve learned how to adapt, how to create options that work, both for us and for our customers. To survive, you have to innovate.”

Bistronomic, 840 N. Wabash 312.944.8400
The restaurant serves lunch Tuesday-Friday, brunch Saturdays and Sundays and dinner Tuesdays-Sundays.

CHICAGO COMEDIANS IN THE NEWS

Chicago comedians are on the national stage talking about Will Smith, Chris Rock and the Oscars. Curtis Shaw Flagg, president of operations at Chicago’s Laugh Factory, appeared on Fox News here. Chris Redd was Will Smith on Saturday Night Live.

Colleen Brennan and Janice Rodriguez released the third season of Defending Indiana today! The two comedians welcome a series of guests who reveal surprising truths and humor about the neighbor we thought we knew (but didn’t until now). You can listen here.

Vicki Quade is putting her hit comedy platform to work to help Ukrainian refugees. Her production company Nuns4Fun Entertainment is collecting funds at all performances to help the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth aid refugees in Poland and Ukraine. Enjoy Late Night Catechism, Easter Bunny Bingo: Jesus, Resurrection & Peeps, and Bible Bingo at the Greenhouse Theater Center or donate directly at nazarethcsfn.org.

The Laughing Academy in Glenview will host a mini comedy camp for kids K-5 during spring break on April 20. Details here.

Cathryn Michon and W. Bruce Cameron are donating all proceeds from the “A Dog’s Courage Tour” to UAnimals, helping animals on the ground in Ukraine and to Best Friends Animal Society. Order your personalized signed book from Book Soup by April 13. Put your inscription instructions in the comment section.

WGN anchor Pat Tomasulo has released his debut comedy special What A Time to Be Alive. You can see it here!

TICKET ALERTS

April 15: Fran Lebowitz at The Auditorium Theatre

May 7: Sarah Cooper at The Chicago Humanities Festival at UIC Dorin Forum

May 8: The Mothers at The Laugh Factory. Steven Springer hosts  Jan Slavin, Mariann Aalda, Linda Collins, Lindsay Porter, Rhonda Cohn,Diane Corder at The Laugh Factory.

May 12: Neal Brennan at The Den Theatre. Tickets on sale April 7.

May 15: Zarna Garg at The Laugh Factory

September 15-17: Jeff Ross at The Improv, Schaumburg. (His shows are great, but I’ll never understand people who volunteer to be roasted – and they will! It’s like stepping in front of an FBI sharpshooter. If you understand why, please tell me. Maybe it has something to do with the title of his book I Only Roast the Ones I Love. Truly one of the best comedy memoirs.)

October 13-16: Chris Rock added more shows at The Chicago Theatre. Tickets still available.

THIS WEEK:

At Zanies Chicago: Rachel Feinstein, Bonnie McFarlane, Jason Tartrick, Calvin Evans

At Zanies Rosemont: “Wednesday with Friends”, Raanan Hershberg, Rob Gleeson

At Riddles: Robert Kane hosts Comedian Stick

At The Improv: David Arnold, D.L. Hughley

Following are ten more original shows happening only in Chicago over the next five days. More advance ticket alerts on my giant 2022 calendar here. Please confirm all details before leaving home!

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6

WTF Is Happening in Ukraine at The Annoyance, 8:00 p.m. A history lecture by Professor Lydia House.

Comedians You Should Know at Timothy O’Toole’s, 8:00 p.m. Jackie Cooper hosts Paul Farahvar, Gena Gephart, Dale McPeek, Mike Samp, Jamie Shriner, Pat Tomasulo.

THURSDAY, APRIL 7

Paul Farahvar‘s Stand Up Then Sit Down at Lincoln Lodge, 8:00 p.m. Top comedians do stand up and then sit down for revealing interviews. With Paul, Kyle Scanlan (Chicago Reader, Best Stand Up 2017) and Jonah Jurkens (Comedians You Should Know, Blackout Diaries).

Las Locas Comedy at Laugh Factory, 8:00 p.m. The Chingona Comedy Hour featuring Janice Rodriguez, Jess Martinez, Fab Monroe, Irma Ruiz, Jillian Ebanks, Susana Rodriguez, Yazmina Tega.

FRIDAY, APRIL 8

Second City’s 110th Mainstage Revue 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Brand new material and cast. Often sold out. Advance purchase recommended.

John & Paul: Strictly Platonic at Rhino Fest at Pride Arts Center, 8:00 p.m. “Chicago sketch comedy veterans John Klingle and Paul Brennan bring their anarchic humor back to the stage in a raucous celebration of dysfunctional friendship.”

SATURDAY, APRIL 9

Paper Machete at The Green Mill, 3:00 p.m. Free comedy and music showcase. Always a stellar lineup. Arrive early for seats!

River Butcher at The Den Theatre, 7:30 p.m. River Butcher began their career in Chicago and is a nationally touring headliner. Bobcat Goldthwait opens. In 2021, River appeared on Comedy Central Stand Up Presenting A Different Kind of Dude.

Best of Annoyance Sketch at The Annoyance, 9:30 p.m. An hour of Annoyance’s funniest.

SUNDAY, APRIL 10

Keenan Thompson’s Ultimate Comedy Experience at Laugh Factory, 6:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.

6:30 p.m. Kristen Toomey and more TBA.

9:00 p.m. Correy Boyd-Bell and more TBA.