Chicago Magazine - 09.2019

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122 CHICAGO | SEPTEMBER 2019

SEPT. 18–DEC. 29 | ART

Samson Young: Silver Moon

or Golden Star, Which Will

You Buy of Me?

QFor this Hong Kong artist, who works in

sound and performance art, progress doesn’t

necessarily equate with evolution. In his first

solo exhibition in the United States, Young

presents a trilogy of videos that contemplate

the consequences of idealist thinking, from

the vestiges of the 1933–34 world’s fair to the

failures of utopian Chinese thought within a

1980s-era shopping mall.

Details Hyde Park. Smart Museum of Art,

University of Chicago. Free.

smartmuseum.uchicago.edu

SEPT. 19–22 | ART

Expo Chicago

QYou’ll want to wear comfortable shoes to

fall’s biggest (and most taxing!) art event. The

eighth edition of the city’s contemporary art

fair is a maze of booths presented by some

135 galleries representing 24 countries; this

year, local participants include veterans Carrie

Secrist, Rhona Hoffman, and Monique Meloche.

Details Near North Side. Navy Pier. $30–$45.

expochicago.com

SEPT. 19–28 | CLASSICAL

Riccardo Muti

QThe baton falls for the downbeat of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s season, and

that baton belongs to esteemed music director

Muti, on a two-week residency. The highlight of

his first week is the Gothic grandeur of Grieg’s

Piano Concerto, under the fingers of Leif Ove

Andsnes. The second begins a season-long

circuit of all nine Beethoven symphonies, in

honor of the composer’s 250th birthday.

Details Loop. Symphony Center. $32–$254.

cso.org

SEPT. 19–29 | FESTIVAL

Reeling Film Fest

QFor 37 years, this LGBTQ film festival has

been shining a light on queer cinema, from

arthouse dramas to animated shorts. This

year’s highlights include Making Sweet Tea, a

documentary feature about gay Southern black

men inspired by the work of Northwestern

professor E. Patrick Johnson, and a panel on

the emergence of queer web series in Chicago.

Details Various locations. $10–$40.

reelingfilmfestival.org

SEPT. 19–OCT. 27 | THEATER

Destinos

QThe third edition of this annual Latino theater

festival features nearly a dozen productions

staged by local, national, and international

companies (including Chicago’s Teatro Vista,

A g u ij ó n T he a t e r, a n d R e p e r t o r io L a t i no). A m o n g

the most intriguing productions: Feos, a North

A mer ic a n pr em ier e f r om C h i le a n puppet a r t is t

Aline Küppenheim and playwright Guillermo

Calderón; Los Angeles–based solo performer

Marissa Chibas’s autobiographical Daughter of

a Cuban Revolutionary; and the premiere of Back

in the Day: An ’80s House Music Dancesical, from

Chicago’s UrbanTheater Company.

Details Various locations. $10–$35. clata.org

SEPT. 19–JAN. 5 | EXPO

Chicago Architecture Biennial

QThe largest architecture expo on this side of

the globe returns for its third edition with the

theme “... And Other Such Stories,” which will

examine the architectural effects of migration,

ecology, and politics. Yesomi Umolu, curator

at the University of Chicago’s Logan Center,

will serve as artistic director this year, with

featured contributions by architects, artists,

and scholars from around the world. Local

highlights include work by artists Theaster

Gates and Maria Gaspar, as well as projects from

the investigative journalism group Invisible

Institute and the design firm Borderless Studio.

Details Loop. Chicago Cultural Center. Free.

chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org

SEPT. 20 | ROCK

Babymetal

QThe most metal band in the world right now

is fronted by a trio of Japanese pop stars in

schoolgirl skirts, and don’t let any bro rocking a

Pantera T-shirt and a mullet tell you differently.

Since the group’s 2010 formation, members

Yuimetal, Su-metal, and Moametal have fused

speed-metal instrumentation with super-cute

J-pop vocals, which makes a lot more sense on

record than it does on paper. Have you ever

seen the Japanese horror movie Battle Royale,

where rosy-cheeked adolescents fight to the

death? It’s kind of like that.

Details Uptown. Aragon Ballroom. 7:30 p.m.

$53–$304. ticketmaster.com

SEPT. 20–28 | FESTIVAL

Harvest Chicago

Contemporary Dance Festival

QWhen this festival launched a decade

ago, it joined an already saturated field of

contemporary dance showcases. Now it

stands alone, as Chicago’s last remaining

place to discover exciting and underrecognized

choreographers from across the country on

the same stage. New to this year’s lineup is

Chicagoan J’Sun Howard, who presents a

duet in his signature blend of contemporary

and vogue style. And Melinda Jean Myers, a

former Lucky Plush dancer known for her witty

Between River

and Rim: Hiking

the Grand Canyon

SEPT 24@7PM

AuditoriumTheatre.org

Photo by Pete McBride.

SEP 6–OCT 13

based on the Book by Cheryl Strayed

Adapted for the stage by Nia Vardalos

Directed by Vanessa Stalling

victorygardens.org

GET TICKETS