BEST Things To Do In Chicago
The Event Oracle knows ALL the fun things to do in Chicago. Select your date above then scroll down for all the Arts, Entertainment, and Events in my crystal ball...
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Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts
78 E. Washington St.
Chicago, IL 60602
The International Music Foundation presents the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts. Enjoy free weekly classical music performances in Preston Bradley Hall located on the 3rd floor of the Chicago Cultural Center.
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Chicago Works: Assaf Evron
Museum of Contemporary Art
220 E Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60611
The work of Assaf Evron (Israeli, b. 1977) dwells at the interstice of architecture, decoration, place, and image. A former photojournalist, the artist uses a wide variety of media to both upend and connect an even wider variety of references, materials, and geographies. While global in scope, Evron’s practice is rooted in a rigorous investigation of local histories and context. The meander, a decorative motif based on natural curves of rivers and streams, wends its way through the artist’s work, which follows the design as it moves from sedimentation lines on the face of Mount Sodom to the ornamental facades of some of Chicago’s most iconic buildings to Rabin Square in Tel Aviv. In this exhibition, Evron traces how different forms of decorative design meander and meet as images across the world, accruing new cultural significance in each collision.
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Indigenous Entrepreneurship: Tribal Enterprises & Co-ops
3001 Central St
Evanston, IL 60201
As there are no reservations in Illinois, most tribal based businesses are not well known in this area. While many people are familiar with the arts, crafts, and casinos, there are many other products and services offered by Indigenous businesses today.
The Mitchell Museum is proud to present the latest exhibit showcasing Indigenous-owned businesses, tribal co-ops and enterprises; Indigenous Entrepreneurship: Tribal Enterprises & Entrepreneurs about the expansion of tribal initiatives that support tribal sustainability and the incorporation of tribal values into business models.
The exhibit also covers the challenges that many tribal entrepreneurs face, their unique opportunities based on their sovereign nation status, and the programs that offer them support. Learn about the various products and services offered by tribal enterprises and Indigenous entrepreneurs, from Ioway Honey to buffalo meat Tanka Bars!
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Skyline
Chicago Children’s Museum
700 East Grand Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611-3428
What’s the strongest shape? Find out when you design and build your own one-of-a-kind structure using wooden struts, real tools, and authentic gear. Take the Skyscraper Challenge to record yourself at work and tell the story of what you did. Includes special activities for babies and toddlers.
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Routes and Territories
Museum of Contemporary Art
220 E Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL 60611
Across the world, human migration is a hotly contested issue rooted in longstanding histories of cultural displacement. MCA Collection works by Noe Martínez, Andrés Pereira Paz, and Nohemí Pérez explore the legacy of colonialism across Latin America. These artists interrogate contested sites—the Huasteca region in Mexico, the Andean regions of Peru and Bolivia, and the Catatumbo region in Colombia, respectively—where personal, social, and territorial dynamics shape identity. Together, the works construct a critical interpretation of displacement and migration in Latin America.
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WaterWays
Chicago Children’s Museum
700 East Grand Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611-3428
Make a splash in this flowing, squirting, pumping playground. Feel the power of water as you control the flow with pulleys, wheels, and pipes. Navigate your boat through the locks and dams of the mighty river. You may get wet as you immerse yourself in the sensory-rich world of water—hand dryers are available nearby!
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Treehouse Trails
Chicago Children’s Museum
700 East Grand Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611-3428
Camp, climb, burrow, and pretend in this enchanted forest setting. Canoe and fish in the blue river, splash in a mountain waterfall, build a fort under the enormous tree house, and serve a stew in the log cabin. Babies can stretch, explore, and relax in the new infant area.
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Oliver
10 Marriott Dr
Lincolnshire, IL 60069
When young Oliver Twist finds himself orphaned in Victorian England, he's left trying to find friends, find a family and navigate his way through life in London, which is filled with pickpockets, gangsters, and danger.
The Artful Dodger takes him under his wing, introducing him to conniving Fagin, kind-hearted Nancy, and the evil Bill Sykes. Only when he is wrongfully accused of theft, does a wealthy gentleman come to his rescue and invite him to live with him. Whilst Nancy tried to help Oliver, Sykes has other plans; this classic musical - which won the Tony Award for Best Original Score - is told to a soundtrack of timeless classics including Food, Glorious Food, Oliver!, Oom-Pah-Pah, You've Got to Pick a Pocket or two, Who Will Buy?, and As Long as He Needs Me.
Charles Dickens originally wrote the novel Oliver Twist in 1987; it was his second novel and was published in monthly installments that ran from February 1837 and ended in April of 1839. The story was translated into a musical by Lionel Bart in 1960, and into film in 1968.
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SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical
24 W Randolph St
Chicago, IL 60601
She was a girl from Boston with a voice from heaven, who shot through the stars from gospel choir to dance floor diva. But what the world didn’t know was how Donna Summer risked it all to break through barriers, becoming the icon of an era and the inspiration for every music diva who followed. With a score featuring more than 20 of Summer’s classic hits including “Love to Love You Baby,” “Bad Girls” and “Hot Stuff,” this electric experience is a moving tribute to the voice of a generation.
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Potted Potter
175 E Chestnut St
Chicago, IL 60611
The Unauthorized Harry Experience
A Parody by Dan and Jeff
Potted Potter the New York and West End smash hit has garnered rave reviews from New York to Nashville, Chicago to Mexico City and Critics’ Picks from the New York Times, New York Magazine, Time Out London, Boston Globe, Chicago Daily Herald and the New York Post!
Playing to sold out houses all over the world, Potted Potter takes on the ultimate challenge of condensing all seven Harry Potter books (and a real life game of Quidditch) into seventy hilarious minutes. This fantastically funny show features all your favorite characters, a special appearance from a fire-breathing dragon, endless costumes, brilliant songs, ridiculous props and a generous helping of Hogwarts magic!
Even if you don’t know the difference between a Horcrux and a Hufflepuff, Potted Potter will make you roar with laughter. This brilliant family entertainment is perfect for ages six to Dumbledore (who is very old indeed).
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Irving Berlin’s White Christmas
151 W Randolph St
Chicago, IL 60601
This holiday season discover the perfect gift for everyone on your list! Start with a timeless tale of joy and goodwill, fill it with classic Irving Berlin songs, top it off with glorious dancing and lots of snow and head on over to the Cadillac Palace Theatre to see IRVING BERLIN’S WHITE CHRISTMAS. Performances begin December 10 for this must-see classic in a lavish new production that the New York Times says to “put on your wish list.” IRVING BERLIN’S WHITE CHRISTMAS tells the story of a song-and-dance team putting on a show in a magical Vermont inn and falling for a stunning sister act in the process. Full of dancing, laughter and some of the greatest songs ever written! Give everyone the gift they’re dreaming of with this merry and bright holiday musical.
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a very bloody Christmas carol the musical
2257 N Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60614
Ebeneezer Scrooge has changed, but the world has not. His newfound friends and family still bear the weight of London's torrid economy. Inspired to make the banks play fair, Scrooge inadvertently crashes the market and the city burns. When Tiny Tim is kidnapped in the ensuing chaos, Scrooge must face the consequences of his actions in a desperate race to save the boy. But he knows all too well - everything has a price.
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Monty Python's Spamalot
3745 N. Southport Ave
Chicago, IL 60613
SPAMALOT is an irreverent musical of the legend of King Arthur's quest for the Holy Grail. Spurred on by a plague with a 50% chance of pestilence and famine, Arthur recruits knights to accompany him on his quest in pursuit of the salvation of Camelot, and their own destinies. Along the way they encounter crazy shenanigans including the Lady of the Lake and her Laker Girls, flatulent Frenchmen with flying cows and blood thirsty, killer rabbits.
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Comedians You Should Know
622 N. Fairbanks Ct.,
Chicago, IL 60611
Circumventing the tired, stale brand of comedy clubs, Comedians You Should Know delivers original, fresh, showcase-style stand up comedy in the revamped back room of Timothy O'Toole's Pub, a classy downtown bar in the Streeterville neighborhood. Their weekly show has garnered frequent sold-out crowds and a loyal local following.
CYSK features a DIFFERENT LINE-UP every single week and thus makes it a must-see event again and again!
