The Five
Don’t-miss picks for Wednesday, April 15 through April 21, 2015
1 CIMMfest
Film: Since its 2009 conception, this festival combining the best of music and film has only grown in scale and caliber. Among the highlights: a Muddy Waters celebration, including a performance from 79-year-old blues drummer Sam Lay, and screenings of documentaries such as The First Waltz and 808, about the history of the Roland TR-808 drum machine.
4/16–4/19. $10–$15. Various venues. cimmfest.org
2 Lisa Fischer
Music: More than 30 years into a career featuring tours with the Rolling Stones and collaborations with Tina Turner, Fischer still retains her incredible voice. Come see what the fuss is about.
4/18 at 7. $34–$480. Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport. ticketweb.com
3 Three Sisters
Theater: Geoff Button goes deep into Chekhov territory as he directs the escalating devastation that results from three siblings’ comic inability to wrench themselves free from petty, inertia-inducing decisions.
4/17–6/6. $28. The Hypocrites at the Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee. the-hypocrites.com
4 The Daily Show Writers Standup Tour
Comedy: Fans of this long-standing Comedy Central staple can catch the writers and producers (many of whom first developed their comic chops doing standup) on this tour. Warning: There will probably be Clinton jokes.
4/18 at 7. $20–$25. Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln. lh-st.com
5 The House on Mango Street: Artists Interpret Community
Art: Newly commissioned contemporary artwork by Hugo Crosthwaite, Amanda Williams, and others respond to Sandra Cisneros’s 1984 semiautobiographical book’s themes about growing up in a working-class family in Chicago. Cisneros speaks at the opening reception.
4/17–8/23. Free. National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W. 19th. nationalmuseumofmexicanart.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: painter Dmitry Samarov. Between Beverly & Bridgeport runs from Friday, April 17 to Friday, May 1.
“On Thursday, I’m part of a brand new reading series that’s starting in Beverly called The Frunchroom. I’m going to be reading a piece about working at a coffee shop called Hardboiled Coffee and how it’s hard to own a small business in Beverly. I also provided artwork for the reading series poster.
“Then Friday is my opening. The show is called Between Beverly & Bridgeport and it’s basically about the last two neighborhoods in Chicago that I’ve lived in. It’s all paintings from my immediate environment.
“Saturday, I’ll probably go to my new favorite coffee shop, Jackalope. There’s a lot of diversity in the clientele. It reflects the changing character of Bridgeport. It’s no longer such an old Irish Daley family stronghold. I like Bernice’s Tavern too. Bernice lives in the same building as the bar and it’s got a good mix of young artsy kids and older neighborhood folks.
“Sunday evening, there’s a reading series called The Marrow run by Naomi Huffman and Leah Pickett at the Whistler that I plan on going to. They pick really strong readers from different backgrounds.” —As told to Tomi Obaro
Freebie of the Week
The Civic Orchestra of Chicago
Classical: The CSO’s training ensemble gives a repeat performance of the American composer James Matheson’s Violin Concerto, premiered by the CSO in 2011.
4/20 at 8. Free. Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan. cso.org