The Five
Don’t-miss picks for Wednesday, February 19, through Tuesday, February 25
1 CCN Créteil et Val-de-Marne/Compagnie Käfig
Dance: The acclaimed French troupe Compagnie Käfig takes on the lively dancing of Brazilian favelas with Correria Agwa, an acrobatic and rhythmic production celebrating correria (running) and agwa (water).
2/20–2/22. $21–$30. Columbia Dance Center, 1306 S Michigan. colum.edu
2 Christopher Wool
Art: Don’t miss this overdue career retrospective of the Chicago-born artist who made his name on the 1980s NYC art scene with clever stencil paintings of slogans like “Sell the House Sell the Car Sell the Kids.”
2/23–5/11. $12–$23. Art Institute, 111 S Michigan. artic.edu
3 Sting and Paul Simon
Rock: Watch The Throne: two graying ’80s icons edition.
2/25 at 8. $45–$250. United Center, 1901 W Madison. ticketmaster.com
4 Soweto Gospel Choir
Gospel: With rapturous voices and perfect pitch, this South African choir makes even the most maudlin pop songs listenable.
2/19 at 8. $20–$62. Symphony Center, 220 S Michigan. cso.org
5 The Radio Show
Dance: The loss of an iconic black radio station and the deterioration of a grandfather succumbing to Alzheimer’s form the crux of this haunting 2010 contemporary piece by MacArthur Foundation fellow Kyle Abraham.
2/20–2/23. $10–$22. Musuem of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago. mcachicago.org
What I’m Doing This Weekend
Up next in our series of weekend plans from notable, in-the-know locals—a.k.a. people we like: Kellye Howard, comedian. She performs her one-woman show This Sh*t Ain’t Funny on Sunday, February 23.
“I’m hosting Jokes and Notes on Friday so I’m going to get my eyelashes done. There’s a particular lady who works at Med Spa and she’s amazing. [At the show] I’m excited to see Kevin White who is performing, because he doesn’t live here anymore. He was a comedian that I started out with, but he moved to Texas, so I’m really excited to see how he has grown. Shawn Monroe is also performing. They are completely different comics; one is more aggressive and the other is laid-back. They’re co-headlining, so you get the best of both worlds, kind of like R. Kelly and Jay-Z.
“Saturday, I’ll probably have brunch with my hubby and kids. One of my favorite breakfast spots is Yolk. They have a lot of different healthy options and I love the ambiance there. I also love Bongo Room. That’s one of my favorite breakfast places ever; I try to limit my Bongo Room pancakes intake though. I like the pretzel white chocolate pancakes.”
“Sunday is my one woman show. I’m really excited. I’ll probably get my makeup done around 3-ish by AJ Moore, a local Chicago makeup artist, and then I’ll just be prepping my mind mentally because it’s such an emotionally draining performance. There’s a lot of darkness to it—because I’m talking about loss and trauma—I lost my 15-month-old daughter, but then you see so much light in how I deal with it. It’s like that light at the end of the tunnel.” —As told to Tomi Obaro
Freebie of the Week
Twin Peaks
Television: Lincoln Park watering hole Delilah’s hosts a marathon of the cult TV series.
2/23 at 3. Free. Delilah’s Chicago. 2771 N Lincoln. delilahschicago.com