Dev Hynes, who makes pop and R&B as Blood Orange, has a gift for synthesis that’s made him a favorite collaborator of many cross-genre stars in the past decade, including Mac Miller, Solange, and FKA Twigs. The London-born, New York-based auteur has visited Chicago multiple times in recent years, notably appearing at the Pitchfork festival in 2018 and opening for Florence & the Machine at Northerly Island the following summer, but while Hynes and his ensemble sound great in sunlit venues, a theater might suit the intimacy of his music better. Blood Orange unites decades of Black pop styles with airy vocals and lyrics about longing and identity, with both the house-adjacent dance beat of “Baby Florence (Figure)” and the dark, Three 6 Mafia-indebted thump of “Gold Teeth.” If the most recent Blood Orange release, 2019’s Angel’s Pulse (Domino), feels slight compared to its predecessors, it’s by design: Hynes described it as a “mixtape” composed as an epilogue to 2018’s lushly arranged Negro Swan, named one of the best albums of that year by Pitchfork, Spin, Complex, and others. The songs on Angel’s Pulse sometimes stop abruptly or build around a single instrumental loop–they’re closer to sketches, unlike previous fully realized opuses, but the image is still clear and ready to be colored in by the live band. On “Dark & Handsome” Hynes sings over warm keys and snapping drums: “Nothing lasts forever and I told you / Everything you need to know that’s not true.” Even when he’s trying to end a relationship, Hynes can’t hide his yearning for more connection. It’s music for dancing in the dark, in a loved one’s bedroom, or in the timeless space of a century-old theater. v
New York-based rock band Habibi can make any show, even one in the last weeks of winter, feel like a humid summer day spent lounging around and eating good food with friends–the good shit. Their music draws from surf rock and chipper 60s girl groups, and though it’s sweet, it never feels saccharine. This is largely a result of their exacting playing: all four members seem to move in lockstep, which allows for every lyric to be directly and clearly communicated. On their latest album, Anywhere but Here (Muddguts), Habibi convey a longing to do something–anything–whether it’s physically going somewhere or falling in love. Sometimes it’s both: on the love song “Hate Everyone but You,” singer Rahill Jamalifard fantasizes about ditching society and moving to the desert with her special someone. Her voice is crucial: it drips with effortless cool, every word and coo charmingly disaffected. It pairs nicely with Habibi’s melodies, which incorporate Middle Eastern influences–most prominently on psychedelic album closer “Come My Habibi,” which sounds just as assured and unfettered as everything they do. Habibi go their own way, but luckily we’re invited along for the ride. v
Rockabilly probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when somebody says “Latin roots music,” but several generations of artists on both sides of the southern U.S. border have taken doo-wop, boogie-woogie, and early rock ‘n’ roll to heart. The music–and its associated hot-rod imagery–has long connections to the Mexican American community (particularly on the west coast), with artists blending influences such as 60s girl groups, soul, early punk rock, and a “take no prisoners” style of mariachi vocals. The National Museum of Mexican Art’s multidisciplinary Sor Juana Festival, whose 26th annual edition began March 7 and runs through April 25, includes this night of music, which features taco trucks and lowriders and starts where “La Bamba” singer Ritchie Valens (aka Ricardo Valenzuela) left off. Opening the “Vintage Vibes” program are Monica Rocha & Cota; bandleader and soulful R&B vocalist Joey Cota will sing lead on three songs but otherwise cede the spotlight to the Motown-inspired Rocha. Headliner Gizzelle will perform with guitarist Kevin O’Leary, bassist Alejandro Vargas, drummer Mario Perea, and pianist-bassist Victor Mendez. The Los Angeles-based singer wraps her huge voice around the band’s sparse rock licks, adding just the right amount of soulful growls. She counts Patsy Cline, Aretha Franklin, Barbara Streisand, and Etta James among her influences, and echoes of all these greats resonate in her swinging phrasing. But her tunes aren’t just museum pieces preserved in musical amber: as she belts out her rebellious lyrics, deploying the raw, seductive power of the rock, soul, pop, and country divas who came before her, her brassy punk swagger makes it all sound perfectly relevant for today. v
In physics, the term “refraction” refers to the deflection of a wave, such as light or sound, as it passes through a medium. It’s a phenomenon Sanction aim to replicate with their ear-shattering metalcore. In 2017, these Long Island natives–vocalist David Blom, guitarists Mike Marino and Andrew “Lumpy” Wojcik, bassist Ryan Stephenson, and drummer Dillon “Lil D” Perino–released an EP called The Infringement of God’s Plan, a boisterous amalgamation of breakdowns that speak of apocalyptic disorder titled. In an interview with Exclaim!, Marino, who writes the bulk of the band’s material, said he typically starts out with a song name and lets his creativity flow from there, and that he designed The Infringement around five “fractions” or connected fragments. The following year Sanction signed with Pure Noise, becoming part of its roster of up-and-coming hardcore bands (including Knocked Loose and Sanction’s current tour companions, SeeYouSpaceCowboy); the label reissued the EP and then released their debut full-length, 2019’s Broken in Refraction. The album builds on the concepts of disintegration they explored on The Infringement, even borrowing the EP’s title for a line in “The Final Fraction” (“The infringement of god’s plan,” Blom screams, “Staring back through broken glass”). Throughout the EP, Sanction paint vivid pictures of atrophy, disease, and mental illness. In “Answers From a Syringe,” which Marino told Revolver last fall had been inspired by the heroin epidemic sweeping the band’s hometown, an addiction becomes increasingly debilitating, even as a single dose offers temporary respite from life’s problems. Blom matches the rage and terror provoked by such a sharp decline with cracks in his voice as he screams over staccato guitar squeals that mimic the thumping rhythm of a heartbeat. The world that Sanction have built with Broken in Refraction is in chaos, and it gives you the feeling that their heavy, send-you-to-the-hospital violence isn’t just a sound–it’s a warning. v
When Excelle McFly and King Art appear on City of Wind, it usually happens when they are working together. These two have a degree of musical synchronicity that few can match and they constantly bring out the best in each other. On their new single, “Ice Cold,” that trend continues.
King Art’s production is ferocious and teeming with urgency. The piano loop creates an uneasy vibe and the trap instrumentation kicks the pace into overdrive. This is definitely one of King Art’s meaner instrumentals.
If the production wasn’t frenetic enough, Excelle McFly brings a whole new level of tenacity. With a staccato flow that strikes like lightning, McFly addresses gun violence and the harsh realities he faced growing up in the inner-city with stunning focus. The passion exuded in his voice is every bit as urgent as the issues he covers. His wordplay has gotten sharper as well.
Excelle McFly and King Art have dropped their fair share of gems in the past. However, with “Ice Cold,” they have reached a whole new level. With King Art sounding harder than ever behind the boards and and Excelle McFly stepping up his pen game in a major way, “Ice Cold” sees these dudes not only continuing to bring out the best in each other, but bring out the best of themselves as well.
Show Me Chicago previews, reviews and expresses opinions on what’s happening in Chicago from Blockbuster Theater, to what’s new in dining, arts, and the neighborhoods.
Doc Films screens a 35mm print of CANDYMAN (1992) on Monday, March 9th, as part of their “Lost Chicago” film series.
Image Source: IMDb.com
“Don’t walk to the theater–RUN!”
MOVIES:
CANDYMAN [35mm] – (March 9th at 7pm) One of the few films that brilliantly nails down the notion of beauty in horror. Director Bernard Rose created a perfect execution of marrying horror with romance in Candyman. Based on Clive Barker’s short story, “The Forbidden,” the 1992 film follows a grad student (Virginia Madsen) working on her thesis studying urban legends. She finds herself investigating stories about “Candyman” (played by Tony Todd, whose performance quickly cemented himself into legendary horror icon status) appearing in the notoriously dangerous (now demolished) Cabrini-Green housing projects in Chicago. Screening as part of their “Lost Chicago” series, which previously screened Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, The Blues Brothers, Thief, and more. Doc Films, Max Palevsky Cinema, Ida Noyes Hall, University of Chicago, 1212 E. 59th St., Chicago, IL 60637.
2001: A Space Odyssey [70mm] – (March 6th-8th; 10th, & 12th) The annual 70mm Film Festival returns to the Music Box, running March 5th-19th. Be sure to catch space horror LIFEFORCE March 12th, 14th, & 16th! The March 14th screening event will be presented by Metal Movie Nights. Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Avenue, Chicago, IL 60613.
DARK RED – (March 6th & 7th at Midnight) Psychological horror thriller about a young woman (admitted to a psychiatric hospital) who insists her baby was kidnapped by a secret society called The Dark Red. She believes this ancient cult wants to harvest the infant’s blood for the special powers it contains. Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Avenue, Chicago, IL 60613.
Chicago European Union Film Festival – (March 6th-April 2nd) It’s time for the 23rd Annual Chicago European Union Film Festival, a month-long celebration of Chicago premieres of films from 28 EU member nations. Read all about the films HERE! Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State St., Chicago 60601.
THE INVISIBLE MAN – (through March 11th) An unstable scientist uses his invention to become invisible against his ex, stalking her to the point of madness. Without much help from others, she fights back on her own. Parasite also continues running through March 11th. ArcLight Cinema, 1500 N. Clybourn, Chicago, IL 60610.
PARASITE – (through March 12th) Director Bong Joon-ho (The Host, Memories of Murder, Snowpiercer) is a master at his craft and it’s worth seeking out his entire body of work. Don’t miss this film that won multiple Academy Awards, including Best Picture! Times vary. Landmark Century Cinema, 2828 N. Clark, Chicago, IL 60657.
THE INVISIBLE MAN – (through March 12th) A woman’s disturbed ex (a scientist) experiments with his invisibility potions by stalking her after staging his death. Without much help from the disbelieving police, she takes matters into her own hands to try and stop him. Also, PARASITE continues through March 11th. Logan Theatre, 2646 N. Milwaukee, Chicago, IL 60647.
KNIVES OUT – (through March 12th) Smartly written whodunit. Wilmette Theatre, 1122 Central Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
THE INVISIBLE MAN – (through March 11th) Leigh Whannell’s 2020 reimagining starring Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale) as a woman fighting back against an ex, whose scientific discovery of invisibility has brought stalking one’s ex to a whole new level of terror. Hollywood Palms Cinema, 352 South Route 59, Naperville, IL 60540.
ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW – (Saturdays at 11:55pm) Full cast performance each Saturday at midnight. Hollywood Boulevard Cinema, 1001 W. 75th St., Woodridge, IL 60517.
Movie Trivia Night – (Tuesdays at 8pm) Every Tuesday in their swanky lounge! Team limit 5 people. Winning team members receive a Logan Theatre gift card! Logan Theatre, 2646 N. Milwaukee, Chicago, IL 60647.
THE THING – (March 12th at 7pm) Ghoulish Mortals hosts free movie nights each Thursday at 7pm. 228 W. Main Street, St. Charles, IL 60174.
Sinema Obscura TV Party – (Feb. 19th-July 15th) Sinema Obscura and Trust This Ghost present monthly independent entertainment in the lounge each Wednesday. Logan Theatre, 2646 N. Milwaukee, Chicago, IL 60647.
KING KONG – (March 15th) TCM Big Screen Classics presents limited theatrical screenings via Fathom Events, with exclusive insights from Turner Classic Movies. Check your local listings!
REEFER MADNESS – (March 19th at 8pm) Live organ accompaniment by Jay Warren! Davis Theater, 4614 N. Lincoln, Chicago, IL 60625.
SCI-FI SPECTACULAR Film Festival – (Mar. 21st – 14 hours!) The annual sci-fi/horror fest is back, with special guest, director Douglas Trumbull (Brainstorm, Silent Running), who is also known for his FX work in films such as Blade Runner, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The festival includes screenings of: SILENT RUNNING, TREMORS, THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD, THE ’BURBS, and more! All ages. Films begin at noon. Special perks: FREE refills on ANY size of popcorn and soda. Davis Theater, 4614 N. Lincoln, Chicago, IL 60625.
STAGE:
BUG -(Jan. 23rd-March 15th) The intense tale of a mismatched pair in Oklahoma whose relationship goes terribly, terribly wrong. When paranoia, bugs, and government conspiracies destroy any semblance of sanity! Written by Tracy Letts (The Sinner, Homeland, Lady Bird) and directed by David Cromer (The Newsroom). Starring Carrie Coon (The Leftovers, The Sinner, Fargo TV series), Namir Smallwood (Chicago Fire), Gary Cole (Office Space), and Randall Arney (Chain Reaction). Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted, Chicago, IL.
THE PILLOWMAN – (through March 29th) A writer who loves composing gruesome stories lives with his brother during the time of an authoritarian regime. One day, he finds himself under intense investigation after a series of ghastly child murders closely resembles those in his written tales. The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee, Chicago, IL 60630.
POISON – (Feb. 20th – March 14th) The plight of poison-makers among rich society in 17th century Paris. Presented by The Plagiarists (Previews Feb. 14th, 15th, 19th) Berger Park Coach House, 6205 N. Sheridan, Chicago, IL.
Comic Book Launch Party – (March 7th from 4pm-7pm) Launch party for two comics, NUNS IN SPACE FIGHTING CRIME and JESUS AND THOR. Meet the artists, Corinne Halbert and Shane Swinnea, and writer Mark Peters. Play some pinball! (21+) Logan Arcade, 2410 W. Fullerton, Chicago, IL 60647.
Troll Hunt! – (through June 2020) Search across 1700 acres of The Morton Arboretum for troll sculptures ranging from 15ft. to 30ft. tall! Tips: Check the site for info, maps, and locations so you do not get lost and please do not go without wearing some form of strong bug spray. Extra tips HERE. Morton Arboretum, 4100 Illinois Route 53, Lisle, IL 60532. Troll Cheat Sheet!
Space Golf – (Daily) Alien-themed outer space fun with blacklight mini golf, 3D golfing, holograms, a Sci-Fi Cafe, and more. 15611 S. 94th Ave., Orland Park, IL 60462.
Bad Axe Throwing – (Days/times vary) Group rates apply or do a walk-in for $20 for one hour. Bad Axe Chicago, 2828 N. Clark (Atrium Level), Chicago, IL. (888) 435-0001.
Fox in a Box Escape Room– Visit their newest room, Zodiac, which is themed on the successor to the Zodiac Killer. The room was scenically designed by a designer from the Field Museum. 47 W. Polk, Suite L5, Chicago, IL 60605. (Recently ranked #1 escape room in the USA and #2 in the world for the month of March 2019.)
Chicago Rage Room – Got rage? Get rid of it pronto with the sweetest release (without hurting anyone!). Pay for items to break or bring your own! Room prices begin at $15. (Reservations required.) 153 W. Ohio, Chicago, IL 60654.
Chicago Ghost Tours App – A free app for enjoying audio and photo tours of Chicago’s Haunted Archer Avenue is available, courtesy of Edward Shanahan, a fellow ChicagoNOW blogger (check out his blog, Chicago Paranormal & Spiritual). He is also a psychic and paranormal host who has worked on making his app a great addition to fans of Haunted Archer. The app includes 16 locations and 6 cemeteries. Free download! Shanahan also has a free online magazine.
Mind Trap Escape Rooms – Solve the clues to get out within 60 minutes! 299 Montgomery Rd., Montgomery, IL 60538. (630) 216-9609.
Chicago Hauntings Bus Tours – One of the longest-running ghost tours in Chicago, each 2.5 hour tour is led by founder, paranormal investigator, and author Ursula Bielski and her partner, author David Cowan. Routine stops include locations of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, Death Alley, gangland sites, murder sites, and more. Departs at the Congress Hotel. For schedules, all tours, and background information, please see ChicagoHauntings.com.
Please check websites for updates, cancellations, and ticket pricing information before attending.
Please join The Chicago Creepout for current updates on Facebook HERE!
Horror movie fanatic. Sculptor of oddities. Owner of Chicago Creepster Yahoo!, festival volunteer, writer, artist, social media freelance. Officially a biomechanical Frankenlady. Doing what I can to support our spooky community.
Show Me Chicago previews, reviews and expresses opinions on what’s happening in Chicago from Blockbuster Theater, to what’s new in dining, arts, and the neighborhoods.
The rear camera mirror in the 2020 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque gives a clearer and wider view out the rear window than you would get from just using a mirror. (Photo by Jill Ciminillo)
Anyone who has ever driven a vehicle with tall passengers or a cargo-laden trunk knows the frustration of not being able to see out your rearview mirror. It can be scary backing out of parking space — even with the back-up camera — and trying to see what’s behind you so you can change lanes is near impossible.
That’s why the rear camera mirror is one of those brilliant features I’d love to see on more vehicles. Quite simply, this feature allows you to flip a switch and turn your rearview mirror into a camera display that shows a clear view out the rear of the vehicle via a well-placed camera.
We first encountered prototypes of this feature way back in 2014, but we didn’t start seeing production versions of this feature until the last couple years. First in GM products and now scattering throughout other manufacturers.
The rear camera mirror is also helpful when a rear window might be narrow — such as in the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque — or if there is another visibility issue — such as the split rear window in the Toyota Prius.
We’ve seen this pop up a few times now in test vehicles, and while I don’t have a comprehensive list of vehicles with this feature, I have seen them on Cadillac, Chevrolet, Toyota and Land Rover vehicles. So, if this feature is important to you, start there.
Show Me Chicago previews, reviews and expresses opinions on what’s happening in Chicago from Blockbuster Theater, to what’s new in dining, arts, and the neighborhoods.
“Rage–Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles,” begins Robert Fagles’s 1990 translation of Homer’s The Iliad. A rage-goddess indeed might be the appropriate muse for our unsettled times; goddess knows quite a few women I know are looking at the electoral options facing them this cycle with anger and sorrow and probably more than a little bit of desire for some kind of divine retribution (though not necessarily of the blood-and-guts variety).
But as Court Theatre’s one-man version of the Homeric epic, An Iliad, mournfully demonstrates, the story told by the Poet (Timothy Edward Kane, returning for the third time to the role with Court) both transcends the Trojan War narrative confines of Homer’s original and the specific calamitous circumstances of our own time. Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare’s adaptation (based on the Fagles translation), deftly weaves together the ancient tale with anachronistic punch: the everyday soldiers pressed into combat in the war between the Trojans and the Greeks could be, as Kane’s Poet notes, from Ohio or Nebraska.
And though this is a story rife with twists dictated by the caprices of ancient gods, the Poet reminds us “Gods never die. They change. They burrow inside us. They become us, they become our impulses.” Are the bloody actions of Achilles and Hector noble or nasty? Are they killing in the name of patriotism or personal vendetta? Hard to tell the difference once the fog of war covers the land.
I saw the 2013 production of this show at Court, where the set felt like an ancient subterranean bathhouse-bomb shelter, with Kane’s vagabond Poet delivering his notes from underground. This time, Court has partnered with their Hyde Park neighbor, the Oriental Institute, and artistic director Charles Newell’s staging takes us through several rooms filled with artifacts–including a fragment of part of The Iliad written down in the first century AD.
Kane’s fever-bright intensity, even in Rachel Anne Healy’s hobo suit, is reflected in the harsh ghost lights–exposed bulbs encased in metal cages on top of beat-up stands, supplemented by spotlights shining up from the floor around the playing areas. (Keith Parham’s lighting creates its own cunning parallel play of shadows to accompany Kane’s corporeal presence.) We begin in front of the massive winged bull sculpture from the throne room of Assyrian King Sargon II. Designed (as are so many artifacts in the Oriental’s collection) as a protective figure, we see it here as both ominous and impotent. It’s massive, impressive–and completely removed from its original purpose, far from its homeland.
That’s Kane’s Poet too, who tells us that he sang this tale differently in Babylon, as if offering a preemptive apology for the direct (though still evocative) vernacular he now uses. Has the constant and never-ending human need for dominance and score settling removed every vestige of high-flown poetry from our chronicles of war? Or is trying to make poetry out of such pain and pointless loss its own form of folly and sacrilege? These questions come up over and over as we watch Kane in action.
The last section of the show takes place in a small room with wooden packing boxes marked FRAGILE (artfully arranged by scenic designer Todd Rosenthal). Kane jumps from box to floor and back again, and delivers the section most people who’ve seen it probably remember best from this show: a litany of all the recorded wars humans have fought from Homer’s time to our own. (The last time I saw this, it ended with Syria. Now it’s Ukraine. Give it a few months and it will be something else.)
And though I’m not sure this was the central intent, those boxes and the statues and artifacts around us–horses, bulls, gods, fertility amulets, pots and vessels used for both everyday life and holy ritual, the mundane and the sacred–remind us that we are in a place built in part on imperial imperatives. We in the west continue to display other people’s stories and works of art in our museums. Do we provide safe harbor? Or are we quietly saying that the best we can do is preserve these vestiges, and the people are, as always, left on their own? You can ask the goddess for an answer, but the rage of the times makes it hard to hear. v
This weekend we spring forward, so the days are about to get a whole lot brighter. Celebrate the daylight with something from our list of recommended things to do.
Through 4/11: Artist Tony Tasset’s solo exhibition “The Weight” features new sculptures that look at the innermost human psyche through assemblage and assortment. Tue-Fri 10 AM-6 PM, Sat 11 AM-5 PM, Kavi Gupta, 219 N. Elizabeth, kavigupta.com, free.
Fri 3/6: Singer-songwriter and bassist Meshell Ndegeocello talks with poet, actor, and performing artist Staceyann Chin. ASL interpretation will be available. 7 PM, Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago, mcachicago.org, walk up tickets only on a first come, first served basis.
3/6-4/26: The story of “Big Edie” and “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale, aunt and cousin, respectively, to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, was first told in an acclaimed 1975 documentary by Albert and David Maysles. Book writer Doug Wright, composer Scott Frankel, and lyricist Michael Korie adapted it for the 2006 musical Grey Gardens, set in 1941 and 1973, which traces their lives from high society to living among garbage and raccoons on the East Hampton estate of the title. Thu-Sat 7:30 PM, Sun 7 PM, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theater, 721 Howard, Evanston, theo-u.com, previews 3/6-3/14, $35; regular run 3/15-4/26, $42-$54 ($5 discount for seniors and students). Optional dinner available for $29 (advance reservations required).
Sat 3/7: Stand-up Kate O’Connor presents Pee Is Stored in the Balls, a night of comedy and some of the things on the Internet that keep her up at night, complete with her own hot takes. 7 PM, Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia, hideoutchicago.com, $8.
Sat 3/7: TheInternational Women’s Day Festival is a celebration featuring music from Cathy Richardson’s Goddesses of Rock, Katie Todd, Sandra Antongiorgi, Naomi Ashley, and Cathie Van Wert in both FitzGerald’s main club and SideBar, food by Mulata Kitchen, and a variety of vendors. 8:30 PM, FitzGerald’s, 6615 Roosevelt, fitzgeraldsnightclub.com, $20. 3/7-3/28: A dozen local sex-working artists showcase their work at the SWOP-Chicago exhibition, Chicago Sex Workers Art Show 2020. Opening reception Fri 3/7, 6-10 PM. Mon 6-9 PM, Tue-Wed 6-7 PM, Thu-Fri 5-8 PM, Agitator Gallery, 1112 N. Ashland, agitatorgallery.com, free.
3/7-4/12: School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play is Jocelyn Bioh’s comedy about a “queen bee” at an exclusive Ghanaian boarding school in the 1980s whose aspirations to compete for the Miss Universe title are undone by the arrival of a new student was a hit off-Broadway. Lili-Anne Brown, who staged last season’s Lottery Day for the Goodman, returns to the theater for this production. Wed 7:30 PM, Thu and 7:30 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 2 and 8 PM, Sun 2 PM; also Sun 3/8 and 3/22, 7:30 PM; Tue 3/31, 7:30 PM; Sat 3/7, 8 PM only; Thu 3/12 and 3/26, 7:30 PM only, Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn, goodmantheatre.org, $20-$70.
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Sun 3/8: It’s the ninth annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival, the children’s video contest features short films created by kids that tell the stories of Newbery-winning books like Charlotte’s Web, A Wrinkle in Time, and more. 1:45 PM, Harold Washington Library, Pritzker Auditorium, 400 S. State, 90secondnewbery.com, free.
Sun 3/8: Original stories, poetry, spoken word, and narratives are presented by Fehinty African Theatre Ensemble at WORD DEY! A market of vendors will be selling their wares starting at 1:30 PM in the theater lobby. 3 PM, Green Line Performing Arts Center, 329 E. Garfield, arts.uchicago.edu/apl/glpac, $25, $20 in advance.
Sun 3/8: Greg-O and crew members will be playing Lumpen Radio’s new game show, Quiz-O, live! Apply here to be a Quiz-O contestant. 7 PM, Pleasant House Pub, 2119 S. Halsted, lumpenradio.com, free. v
A brand new report regarding the Las Vegas Raiders’ plans at quarterback could absolutely impact the ChicagoBears’ plans going forward.
The Chicago Bears are going to add a quarterback this offseason. That has already been established. Whether or not you, as a fan, believe in Mitchell Trubisky, it is clear the team wants to push him.
Another franchise appears to be looking at adding a veteran to their quarterback room as well, and it could highly impact what the Bears will do in their near future.
On Friday, Mike Garafolo said on NFL Network’s show NFL Now that the Las Vegas Raiders’ plans include adding a veteran quarterback this offseason. Garafolo did not completely rule out the possibility of said quarterback being Tom Brady, but he did include that it is unlikely.
Garafolo added that Marcus Mariota is a name to watch in Las Vegas because of the fact that general manager Mike Mayock had him ranked as his number one quarterback coming out of the 2015 draft.
Whichever veteran quarterback the Raiders choose to add, it’s looking more and more likely that head coach Jon Gruden isn’t too fond of current starter Derek Carr. The rumor mill has been churning with plenty of Carr-to-Chicago rumblings, and with Gruden still having eight years left with the Raiders, I could see him looking to solidify the team with “his” guy.
The Raiders own picks no. 12 and no. 19 in the first round of this year’s draft. Those two picks very well could be packaged to move up and select Gruden’s future quarterback. Someone like Justin Herbert would make sense, or even Jordan Love. Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa should be gone within the top five picks, and I’m not so sure Las Vegas could move up that high anyways.
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So, what does that mean for the Bears? It’s pretty simple. The door could be swinging wide open for a team to impress Mayock and Gruden with an offer for Carr.
At the same time, if fellow general managers are led to believe the Raiders want to move on from Carr, maybe the asking price goes down a hair. Should Carr become knowingly available to other executives, Ryan Pace has to get involved in the conversation.
Adding Carr would immediately launch the Bears into the Super Bowl conversation. Whether you choose to point the finger at other issues on the roster or not, it doesn’t matter. The fact is, Carr is a significant upgrade over Trubisky — period. Go get him, Pace.
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