When my husband lost his job last fall in the fall of 2008, he had a vague vision of becoming an organic farmer. I envisioned a new reality show on TLC based on his idea, “Little Jews on the Prairie.” Alas we didn’t get the show. Okay,... 

photo of Jeremy Trager and Courtney Crouse by Johnny Knight There are a few things you’ll have to accept when you sit down at the No Exit Cafe to watch Chess : First, an international chess match taking place during the late Cold War era (the show... 

via http://telegraph.co.uk If you have no idea to whom this headline refers, ask your nearest Broadway fan. For the rest of you: Yes, this means what you think it means. Liza Minnelli, Audra McDonald and Patti LuPone are all coming to Chicago. Get ready... 

Giuseppe Bausilio , Tommy Batchelor, John Peter Viernes and Cesar Corrales share the title role in the Chicago production of Billy Elliot Billy Elliot , the big British musical about a coal miner’s son who forgoes boxing in favor of ballet, glides... 

AP Photo/David J. Phillip The Winter Olympics may be over, but men’s figure skating champion and Naperville native Evan Lysacek will be twirling and whirling on a television near you. Prompted by a tweet from Dancing With the Stars professional... 

Christopher Piatt performs at “Paper Machete” Take a handful of clever journalists and comics, ask them to write funny pieces about current events and culture, and put them in front of an audience at a bar. What do you get? Paper Machete,... 

Known for local indie rock and experimental jazz acts, the Empty Bottle will mix things up next Tuesday with a night of chamber music by Accessible Contemporary Music ’s Palomar Quartet. The two may seem to contradict each other, but the Bottle... 

The Southern’s johnnycakes with pork and chowchow. Two big restaurant openings are set to happen in the next four days. Well, one of the openings is more of a re-launch, but we’re still stoked. Let’s talk about that one first. Chef... 

          On Monday and Thursday of next week, Fifth House Ensemble will present “The Great Exodus of the Tamed,” the second act of their musical graphic novel Black Violet . The story is set during London’s... 

Photo by Rollin Hunt via band’s official page Thursday night, we were lucky enough to experience Bird Names in their natural habitat: the cavernous, crowded basement of a Pilsen house-turned-venue. It was a low-key BYOB show advertised only by...