By Philip Vidal
When I was looking at upcoming events in March, I was struck that many seemed to be touched by nostalgia in some way.
Relive a night out on the town at Mister Kelly’s at the Newberry Library’s new exhibition “A Night at Mister Kelly’s,” March 21 – July 20. Photo courtesy of the Newberry Library.
Certainly, the new exhibition “A Night at Mister Kelly’s” at the Newberry Library recalls good times during the 1950s through 1970s at the long-gone supper club and nightclub at 1028 North Rush Street that featured not only the up-and-coming music and comedy talent of that time, but also established stars. Woody Allen, Ella Fitzgerald, Steve Martin, Richard Pryor, Lily Tomlin, Barbra Streisand, and Sarah Vaughan were just a few of the stars that performed at Mister Kelly’s. The exhibition runs March 21-July 20. Programming related to the exhibition includes a screening of “Live at Mister Kelly’s” on March 23. For another blast from the past, Black Ensemble Theater presents “The Time Machine: A Tribute to the 80s,” March 3-April 14.
Discover Alice Shaddle’s meticulous and enduring works spanning over 60 years at Hyde Park Art Center’s exhibition “Alice Shaddle: Fuller Circles,” March 23-June 16. Photo by Mary Baber courtesy of Hyde Park Art Center.
For a look back at Chicago’s art scene from the 1960s to the 2000s, visit the Hyde Park Art Center and the “Alice Shaddle: Fuller Circles” exhibition, which tells the story of artist Alice Shaddle’s life (1928-2017) and her work over six decades. Shaddle taught art at the Hyde Park Art Center for fifty years, and lived in the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed George Blossom House (1892).
Nostalgia can often preserve the past. On March 6, join the Chicago Architecture Center and Preservation Chicago as Ward Miller, the Richard H. Driehaus Executive Director of Preservation Chicago, presents the 21st annual Chicago 7, a list of the seven most endangered buildings and public spaces in Chicago. Attend this free (registration required) event either in person or via Zoom through the Chicago Architecture Center.
Watanabe Nobukazu (1872–1944), Bronze Statue of Saigō Takamori in Ueno Park, Tokyo, 1899. Ukiyo-e woodblock-printed vertical ōban triptych, ink and color on paper, overall: 14 1⁄2 × 28 in. (36.8 × 71.1 cm), each sheet: 14 1⁄2 × 9 3⁄4 in. (36.8 × 24.8 cm). Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, Gift of Irwin Lavenberg, The Lavenberg Collection of Japanese Prints, 2021:36.453a–c.
An upcoming exhibition, “Meiji Modern: Fifty Years of New Japan,” at the Smart Museum of Art focuses on the Meiji era (1868-1912) that shunned nostalgia for rapid modernization. I was wowed by the exhibition, which is organized by the Japanese Art Society of America, when I saw it last year at the Asia Society in New York City, the first of three venues. The exhibition runs March 21-June 9 at the Smart Museum before moving to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The curators Chelsea Foxwell, Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Chicago, and Bradley Bailey, the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Curator of Asian Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, have done a brilliant job in bringing beautiful and memorable pieces together.
The latest exhibition, “Vector vs Raster,” at Chicago Gamespace runs March 3-24. This exhibition explores the two competing display formats for video games: vector (line) graphics and raster (pixel) displays. Visit and you have the opportunity to play and compare vector and raster games. If you’re nostalgic for classic arcade games, go to Chicago’s Logan Arcade or the Galloping Ghost Arcade in suburban Brookfield, billed as the largest arcade in the U.S. In January, my Classic Chicago Magazine (CCM) colleague Adrian Naves profiled the arcade in his CCM article “Arcade Paradise: Galloping Ghost Arcade.” Chicago has a long history of manufacturing arcade games of all sorts.
Explore new cuisine in 7 neighborhoods participating in North Side Restaurant Week, March 1 -15. Photo by North Side Restaurant Week.
Food and nostalgia go hand in hand. Enjoy some classic dishes, as well as some new ones, during the inaugural North Side Restaurant Week, March 1-15, at restaurants in Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, Andersonville, Edgewater, North Center, Rogers Park, and Uptown. You can also enjoy old favorites and new dishes during Chicago Northwest Restaurant Week (March 1-10) and Rosemont Restaurant Week (March 3-9) in the northwest suburbs.
Shamrock’n the Block at Old St. Pat’s will be in a new location, 625 W. Adams, with plenty of St. Paddy’s day entertainment throughout the event, March 16. Photo by Old St. Patrick’s Church.
Corned beef and cabbage will be featured this month during Irish American Heritage Month, with celebrations across the city and suburbs. St. Patrick’s Day is March 17. The main events are on March 16 with the dyeing of the Chicago River and the Chicago St. Patrick’s Day Parade, both sponsored by the Chicago Plumbers Local 130 UA. That same day, head to the Shamrock’n the Block at Old St. Pat’s at 625 West Adams. The Northwest Side Irish Parade and South Side Irish Parade are both on March 17. The St. Patrick’s Day festivities continue with the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle on March 24.
It’s the Chicago Irish Film Festival’s 25th anniversary. The fest continues through March 10 (February 29-March 3 in-person at four venues, and online March 4-10). The 27th edition of the Chicago European Union Film Festival at the Gene Siskel Film Center, March 1-10, focuses on the best of Belgian film.
Celebrate International Women’s Day with the world premiere of Nejla Yatkin’s “Ouroboros” at Links Hall, March 8-10. Photo by Enki Andrews.
Alice in Wonderland meets MOMIX’s signature twist of dance, acrobatics and illusions in their Auditorium Theatre performance of “Alice,” March 9. Photo by Sharen Bradford courtesy of Auditorium Theatre.
March marks Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, March 8. The Chicago Sinfonietta celebrates Women’s History Month with “Echo,” a concert at Wentz Concert Hall on March 15 and the Auditorium Theatre on March 16. The Chicago premiere of Margaret Atwood’s “The Penelopiad” at the Goodman Theater, March 2-31, features an all-female cast and is director Susan V. Booth’s first production as the Goodman’s new artistic director. Choreographer and global artist Nejla Yatkin celebrates International Women’s Day with the world premiere of “Ouroboros,” a full-length, interactive, multi-sensory, solo dance-theater performance at Links Hall, March 8-10. Inspired by Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland,” MOMIX’s family-friendly dance performance “Alice” is March 9 at the Auditorium Theatre. Celebrating women in dance, the biennial La Femme Dance Festival, presented by Red Clay Dance Company, includes a fireside chat with choreographer Fatima Robinson at the Arts Club of Chicago on March 14, a master class led by Robinson at Red Clay on March 15, and a performance at the Harris Theater on March 16.
In honor of Women’s History Month, WTTW is rerunning four programs with Chicago connections: “Ida B. Wells: A Chicago Stories Special” on March 4; “Chicago Stories: Jane Addams – Together We Rise” on March 11; “Inventing Improv: A Chicago Stories Special” on March 23; and “Chicago Stories: Jane Byrne” on March 25.
Fun for all ages with songs that everyone will enjoy! “The Choir of Man” celebrates community and friendship in the “best pub in the world.” Performances begin March 27 through May 26 at the Apollo Theater. Photo by Apollo Theater.
Direct from London, the Apollo Theater Chicago presents “The Choir of Man” set in “the best pub in the world,” featuring hits from Adele, Guns & Roses, Luther Vandross, March 27-May 26. The Nichols Concert Hall presents “Curtis on Tour” a chamber music concert performed by artists in residence at Philadelphia’s renowned Curtis Institute of Music on March 9. Bernard Rands, the Pulitzer Prize and Grammy award-winning composer, celebrates his 90th birthday with a residency and concerts entitled “Rands at 90” at Guarneri Hall on March 8 and 9.
One of the ways the Brookfield Zoo is celebrating its 90th anniversary is with a 110-foot Ferris wheel. Look back over the park’s 90 years while enjoying views from the top of the Anniversary Ferris Wheel of the Chicago skyline and the park’s 235 acres of animal habitats and gardens, March 15-December 31.
See beautiful orchids and purchase one of your own at the Illinois Orchid Society Spring Show and Sale is March 9-10 at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Photo by Chicago Botanic Garden.
Remember the days when women wore enormous corsages of cymbidium orchids, and young women wore a wrist corsage to their prom? The Orchid Show of Wonders at the Chicago Botanic Garden continues through March 25. Begun in 2014, the Illinois Orchid Society Spring Show and Sale is March 9-10 at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Join The Anti-Cruelty Society in celebrating 125 years of dedicated work in animal welfare with a spectacular night of activities, entertainment, food and more at The Geraghty, March 9. Photo by The Anti-Cruelty Society.
The Anti-Cruelty Society looks back and celebrates its 125 years on March 9 with their 125th Anniversary Gala at the Geraghty.
Dates, times, locations and availability are subject to change.
