Five people were hurt in a shooting May 2, 2021, in Near West Side. | Sun-Times file photo
The group was standing outside in the 2100 block of West Adams Street when a gray Audi SUV drove by and someone inside began fired at the crowd, Chicago police said.
Five people were wounded, one critically, in a shooting Sunday night on the Near West Side.
The group was standing outside in the 2100 block of West Adams Street about 11:10 p.m. when a gray Audi SUV, with three people inside, drove by and someone began firing at the crowd, Chicago police said.
A 29-year-old suffered two gunshot wounds to the abdomen and was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, police said.
A second man, 20, was struck twice in the back and taken to the same hospital in good condition, police said.
A 32-year-old woman suffered a gunshot wound to the foot and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, according to police.
Another woman, 26, suffered a graze wound to the foot and a third woman, 21, was struck in the leg, police said. Both women were taken to Rush Hospital in good condition.
Long before she was a multi-hyphenate, award-winning singer/actor/director conjuring different worlds on stages across the globe, E. Faye Butler was enamored of the places she could go via her View-Master. The low-tech, vaguely binocular-shaped toy popular throughout the 1960s was the forerunner to virtual reality goggles: Insert a circular cartridge of slides, hold the gadget to your eyes and you could behold everything from the rings of Saturn to the Great Sphinx to cartoon strips.
“When you had your View-Master, you could go anywhere.. I remember watching Bugs Bunny through it, and he was more spectacular than he was on television. Made me think I was in another world,” Butler said. The artist has devoted her 40+ year career to transporting audiences to other worlds, be it via an August Wilson drama or a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical or a Shakespearean tragedy.
This week, Butler flexes her director’s muscles, helming Artemisia Theatre’s world premiere of Dallas native Lauren Ferebee’s “Goods.” The outer-space sci-fi drama follows Marla (Julie Proudfoot) and Sam (Shariba Rivers), two intergalactic garbage collectors charged with hauling loads from an increasingly uninhabitable earth and dumping it in distant outer-space asteroid belts.
As their tin-can rocket rattles toward the wastelands of deep space, the women must negotiate quarters tighter than an off-Loop theater dressing room and a cargo hold they are not, under any circumstances, to look inside.
“The spaceship is like being on tour. Circumstances make you get close fast,” Butler said, recalling years on the road with shows including “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Mamma Mia!,” “Dinah Was” and both “Nunsense I” and “Nunsense II.”
Julie Proudfoot (left) and Shariba Rivers star as two intergalactic trash collectors on a mysterious mission in the virtual world premiere production of “Goods.”Screen shot courtesy Artemesia Theatre
“Goods” is set roughly a century from now, but it’s all often alarmingly recognizable, Butler added. As Marla and Sam take their astral road trip, the earth they left behind is drowning. Rising seas have submerged New Orleans and Miami, among other places. Countless climate refugees wind up parked indefinitely at interstellar “wait stations.” Despite the endless flooding on earth, potable water is a rare commodity. Space itself — for things, for people, for planets — is diminishing as well.
As Ferebee puts it: “It’s like the great Pacific plastic garbage patch, only there’s many of them and they’re also in space.”
Garbage — who defines it and what they do with it — is at the heart of “Goods,” which won the 2021 Planet Earth Arts Playwriting Award from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, given to plays addressing environmental and social justice issues. The drama is also up for the Kennedy Center college festival’s National Partners in American Theatre Award.
“Trash is something I think a lot about — I see it as a metaphor for the way we try to push things away from us, and how sometimes they float right back in. Like the garbage in the ocean,” Ferebee said. “My mother has been an environmental activist since the 1980s. Some of my earliest memories are going to Earth Day events with her. People laughed at her for believing in global warming. The environment has been a driving force in my work, so it means a lot to have that recognized.”
Ferebee grew up an avid fan of “Star Trek.”
” ‘Voyager,’ ‘Deep Space 9,’ also ‘Babylon 5,’ they were my shows as a kid in the ’90s,” she said. “As an adult I returned to them and I was like, ‘Wait. There’s a whole class of people missing here. Where are the janitors? The garbage collectors? Who cleans the bathrooms?’ I wanted to make the women in my play totally ordinary, dealing with those issues and counting down the days and the dollars until they can retire.”
“It was also important to me that the women be older,” Ferebee said of Sam and Marla, who are in their 40s and 50s, respectively. “I’ve heard my mom talk about how she feels invisible now in a way she didn’t when she was younger – I wanted to show those women.”
Butler has been president of Artemisia’s board for just over a year. She said she was drawn to the company by Proudfoot, its founding artistic director, and her mission to tell stories by and about women.
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
“There’s not enough of those,” Butler said. “It’s important that we elevate women — I’ve worked toward that all my career.”
That career is formidable: So far, it includes four Black Theatre Alliance Awards, two Black Excellence Awards, two Helen Hayes Awards, nine Jeff Awards, the Sarah Siddons Leading Lady Award and the Guy Adkins Award. Butler’s plaudits are primarily for her work on stage, but she’s hardly new to directing. She’s helmed musicals for Portland Stage, Peoria Player, Columbia College and Old Town Playhouse.
“I’m a good director because I’ve been on the other side of the table for so long too,” Butler said. “I think ‘Goods’ looks at how we want quick solutions for problems that have been around for a long, long time. You just take your garbage, and put it somewhere else. Well eventually, that doesn’t work so well. It’s a question ‘Goods’ makes truly compelling.”
A man suspected of shooting a 62-year-old in Calumet City remains barricaded in his home, as negotiations continue for over 14 hours.
Officers responded to reports of a shooting about 1:45 p.m. in the 100 block of North State Street, according to Calumet City spokesman Sean Howard. They found the 62-year-old with multiple gunshot wounds, possibly sustained during a confrontation with another man, Howard said.
He was transported to an area trauma center where his condition remained unknown.
The suspected shooter, a 52-year-old man, fled the scene to his home in the 100 block of Maple Court, Howard said.
When officers attempted to make contact and approach the home several shots were fired at police, according to Howard.
Officers did not return fire and the South Suburban Emergency Response Team was called to the scene, Howard said.
Negotiators have made contact with the man and efforts have been ongoing for over 14 hours.
Nearby portions of the Bishop-Ford were closed until about 3:30 a.m.
This is a developing story. Check back for details.
A man and woman were carjacked May 2, 2021, in the 200 block of West Illinois Street. | Adobe Stock Photo
A man and woman were carjacked in the 200 block of West Illinois Street.
A man and woman were injured in a carjacking Sunday night in River North on the Near North Side.
About 9:22 p.m., a 26-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman were sitting in a white 2020 Toyota in the 200 block of West Illinois Street, Chicago police said. The man got out of the vehicle and two males jumped in and attempted to flee with the woman still inside.
The woman was able to jump out before they drove off, and the man was struck in the face as he attempted to help the woman, police said. They refused medical treatment.
So much for the Cubs catching the Dodgers at the right time.
The champs were in a 2-8 tailspin heading into Sunday’s 16-4 victory in Milwaukee. Then A.J. Pollock walked to the plate in the first inning and belted a grand slam off Alec Bettinger. Then Matt Beaty walked to the plate in the second inning and belted another grand slam off Bettinger.
Two in a game? It was only the third time in Dodgers history. Two in consecutive innings? That was a first. No major league team had pulled that off since 1984, when Bill Buckner and Tony Armas hit first- and second-inning grannies off Detroit’s Jack Morris, a future Hall of Famer.
It’s hard to imagine anything that could get a struggling offense going better than that — thanks for nothing, Bettinger — but enough about the Dodgers’ hitters. It’s their trio of aces whose mouths must be watering heading into a three-game series that starts Monday at Wrigley Field.
The Cubs’ bats finally started to heat up on a losing road trip through Atlanta and Cincinnati, but this is still a deeply flawed lineup that never seems incapable of putting nine innings of goose eggs on the scoreboard. And now come — in frightening succession — Walker Buehler, Clayton Kershaw and 2020 National League Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer.
It’s the best trio of starters in baseball, and it really isn’t all that close. No offense to — lots of luck, fellas — Kyle Hendricks, Adbert Alzolay and Jake Arrieta, the Cubs starters who will oppose them. Here’s what’s happening:
MON 3
Warriors at Pelicans: Marvel’s Arena of Heroes (6:30 p.m., ESPN2)
The regular telecast is on ESPN, but this version promises to “integrate elements from an original Marvel story and iconic characters including Iron Man, Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Captain America, Black Widow and Doctor Strange throughout the live game.” Look, don’t blame the messenger.
Hendricks is off to an awful start.Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images
Dodgers at Cubs (6:40 p.m., Marquee)
Hendricks — 1-3 with a 7.54 ERA — is having a “perfect storm” of problems on the mound, as he put it after his last start. Perhaps he should spend his afternoon watching Game 6 of the 2016 NLCS.
Are we still doing that thing where we pretend the Bulls have a chance to make it into a postseason play-in game?
TUE 4
Champions League: Manchester City vs. Paris-St. Germain (2 p.m. CBSSN, Paramount+, Univision)
As if romping to a Premier League title wasn’t enough for City, which won 2-1 in Paris in the first leg of this semifinal matchup.
White Sox at Reds (5:40 p.m., NBCSCH+)
Ten homers flew out of Great American Ball Park in Sunday’s Cubs-Reds game. The Sox aren’t on much of a long-ball pace yet themselves, so, yeah, time to change that.
Dodgers at Cubs (6:40 p.m., Marquee)
Here’s a thought: Can somebody make Kershaw spend his afternoon watching Game 6 of the 2016 NLCS?
WED 5
White Sox at Reds (11:35 a.m., NBCSCH)
Dallas Keuchel goes against Sonny Gray, who finally seems fully ramped up after getting over a bit of back trouble.
Pulisic celebrates his tally in Madrid.Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images
Champions League: Chelsea vs. Real Madrid (2 p.m. CBSSN, Paramount+, Univision)
American Christian Pulisic scored Chelsea’s goal in the first leg in Madrid, a 1-1 draw. Remember, away goals are the tiebreaker in an aggregate format.
CINCINNATI – Center fielder Ian Happ was removed during the eighth inning of Sunday’s 13-12 loss to the Reds after colliding with second baseman Nico Hoerner.
The collision occurred on a popup to shallow center field with Happ and Hoerner converging on the ball. As Hoerner reached out to make the over-the-shoulder catch, a sliding Happ collided with him, leaving both players lying on the ground in pain.
The Cubs’ medical staff immediately came out along with manager David Ross to check on Happ, who took the brunt of the hit. He was on the ground for several minutes, before being able to get to an upright seated position and being assisted onto the cart.
“Hearing the two of them coming together like being close to it. I don’t want to see that again,” Kris Bryant said. “Thankfully, he’s in there. I was talking to him and made sure to let him know that he had a great game.”
Hoerner would stay in the game and move to left field with Bryant moving to center field.
“I have not talked to the trainer’s yet,” manager David Ross said after the game. “I talked to Ian. He feels fine. Pretty, pretty good. blow to the face. I haven’t heard the doctor’s report yet, but I did talk to Ian and he’s in good spirits.”
Hoerner stays hot
Hoerner is playing like he has something to prove and since being recalled from the team’s alternate site on April 22, he’s been a man on a mission.
The 23-year-old infielder has picked up right where he left off during spring training and provided a spark in a lineup that needed one. He’s hitting .389 (14-for-36) with six doubles, eight walks, seven strikeouts and three stolen bases in 11 games.
“He’s a baseball player, man. He’s a really good baseball player. That’s what I love about him,” Ross said. “He’s always studying and trying to be better. He’s got a plan and he’s willing to do anything we ask. It’s a really consistent at-bat. You think a lot of us knew who he was and he’s out to prove something which is a really powerful thing.”
“Over the course of the season comes a lot of different feels,” Hoerner said. “But the good thing is that the work has been really consistent and pretty much maintained the same routines as the beginning of spring, which I haven’t always done. I have a great support staff here and really feel like I’m in a spot where I’m both learning on the fly in a really healthy way as well as helping the team win on a daily basis and that’s my priority moving forward.”
Call me in three years … no two years — or better yet, Week 6 of the 2021 season. Justin Fields obviously is the key to this draft. Until we see the results, Pace gets a solid A for attacking the Bears needs as well as he possibly could — a potential Russell Wilson-type of game-changing quarterback in Fields and a Week 1 starter at tackle in Teven Jenkins. Four years ago, Pace’s first two picks were Mitch Trubisky and Adam Shaheen. Enough said.
How many games will Justin Fields start in 2021?
None. The Bears will meander through the 2021 season with Andy Dalton being good enough to keep the job and the offense won’t be near the disaster it was in 2017 when Mike Glennon was benched after four games. The Bears are determined to stick to the Patrick Mahomes/Alex Smith development plan, and as long as Pace’s and Nagy’s jobs are safe, they won’t rush Fields into the lineup.
Best-case scenario for Justin Fields:
He wins the No. 2 job in training camp, replaces Andy Dalton in Week 1 after Dalton leaves with a minor injury, invigorates the offense and sparks the Bears to victory; starts the following week as an intrigued Matt Nagy gives Dalton time to heal, and leads the Bears to another victory that forces Nagy’s hand. Fields has his ups and downs, but learns well and gets a baptism by fire that ultimately proves more valuable than a non-playing apprenticeship behind quarterbacks who aren’t as good as he is.
Worst-case scenario for Justin Fields:
He is unprepared for an earlier-than-expected opportunity after the offense stalls under Andy Dalton in the first four weeks of the season and is overwhelmed by the responsibility of lifting a dead-weight offense on his shoulders; his confidence is shattered, his developmental arc is ruined and his failure confirms that Chicago is a place where quarterbacks go to die.
Their best Day 3 addition was:
North Carolina wide receiver Dazz Newsome in the sixth round. A 5-10 receiver who’s tough enough — mentally and physically — to work the middle of the field has a great chance to succeed in a well-designed offense. And if Justin Fields eventually takes the Bears and Matt Nagy to another level, Newsome is the kind of receiver who takes to coaching and has the skill to ride that wave.
The Bears still need this:
A happy Allen Robinson.
Where do the Bears rank in the NFC North?
Third behind the Packers and Vikings. With Justin Fields slated to sit behind Andy Dalton in 2021, the Bears’ best hope to leapfrog anybody is if Aaron Rodgers sticks to his guns and doesn’t play for the Packers.
CINCINNATI – In what might go down as one of the wildest games of the 2021 season, the Red and Cubs had themselves a slugfest at Great American Ballpark and a game with that much action had to have extra innings.
But after taking haymaker after haymaker and delivering a few of their own, the Cubs came up short in Sunday’s series finale as the Reds came up with the game-winner in the 10th inning to take the series.
“It felt like a playoff game to be honest with you back and forth and tense nobody given in guys to do to fight,” manager David Ross said. “I’m so proud of my team. That’s one of the more intense games I’ve probably ever been a part of, especially as a manager.”
Between the two teams there were 25 runs, 30 hits, 10 home runs and if it not for the new extra-innings rule, who knows how long the game, that felt more like a boxing match, would have gone.
The Cubs’ offense has started to come to life over the last week. In the three-game set against the Reds, the lineup showed that they’re still capable of putting together some big performances.
“Just a great game,” third baseman Kris Bryant said. “I know we didn’t win, but if I’m a fan going to a baseball game, that’s what I want to see. What did we hit, 10 home runs combined? Great plays, lead changes. It was just a great game.”
A big performance was exactly what they needed in Sunday’s game after starter Treveor Williams was hit hard and tagged for six runs over 2 2/3 innings in the loss, allowing three third-inning homers to Nick Castellanos, Mike Moustakas and Eugenio Suarez.
Bryant played the role of catalyst for the offense, getting things started with an RBI-double on his big day before crushing his team-leading eighth and ninth homers off the season in the third and fifth inning.
“These guys didn’t give away an at-bat today. I’m just super proud of my team,” manager David Ross said.
First baseman Anthony Rizzo got in on the action in the third inning by hitting a solo shot of his own. Shortstop Javy Baez added a 434-foot, two-run shot in the seventh.
Despite all the offense, things didn’t look good as the Cubs’ bullpen struggled to stop the Reds’ offense and after the Baez homer, scored three more runs in the bottom of the inning to take a three-run lead. But after scoring one in the eighth inning, center fielder Ian Happ sent a no-doubt three-run shot to the bleachers in right field to tie the wild game at 12.
The Reds would have the last laugh in the game as former Cub Nick Castellanos singled off closer Craig Kimbrel in the bottom of the 10th inning to give Cincinnati the 13-12 victory. It was the first time since May 28, 2006 vs. Atlanta that the Cubs played a game where they scored 12-plus runs and lost.
“This is one of those games where it really felt like it was back and forth all game. It was really who’s gonna blink first,” Williams said. “And as a Cub, it was incredible to see the guys pick me up and pick each other up along the way.
“Man, if we played a 15-inning ballgame, it would have been entertaining until the last out. So I think it’s one of those where we would have loved to be on the winning side of that, but aside from the loss, it was really great to see everybody pick each other up, especially the guys that that, including myself, didn’t have a great day.”
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Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
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