Monthly Archives: October 2013
March on Springfield for Marriage Equality October 22nd, 2013
Marriage is an important institution. It is through marriage that
adults throughout our country and throughout the world express their
commitment and devotion to each other. In turn, governments use the
institution of marriage to recognize and protect family units.
However, the definition of marriage has not been static throughout
history. The definition of marriage has changed considerably from
biblical historical days, when the marital unit might have included more
than 2 adults and when every participant’s consent may not have been
readily apparent. In past traditions, marriage was sometimes used to
consolidate wealth, produce children, and create kinship between
powerful families. The legal and social benefits of marriage continued
to evolve to accommodate changing needs of societies.
Marriage continues to serve as an important civil institution in
America today. Its protections continue on many levels: financial,
legal, social, and emotional. Even while the institution of marriage
evolves, it is still the avenue through which our society provides
benefits, rights, protections, and responsibilities to partners.
Marriage bestows a host of benefits -and responsibilities – to
couples who choose to marry. The following is a short, illustrative
list of some of the more than 1,000 benefits and responsibilities that
married couples enjoy automatically, yet are denied to same-sex couples
that cannot wed.
- Automatic inheritance, even without a will
- Responsibility for each partner’s debt
- Ability to put partner and partner’s children on medical or life insurance
- Hospital visitation rights
- Ability to make partner a U.S. citizen and prevent deportation
- Right to take leave to care for a sick partner
- Ability to make medical decisions in an emergency
- Privilege from testifying against partner in court
- Ability to file joint tax returns and use tax benefits for married couples
- Exemption from gift and estate transfer taxes
- Right to joint parenting, adoption, foster care, and visitation of children
- Right to recognition in all states
- Right to file wrongful death claims for a partner’s death
- Right to a divorce, court division of property, and visitation of children in times of breakup
GRAB A BUS RIDE THERE AND JOIN US!
SOFA 20 Expo at Navy Pier Oct 31 – Nov 3
Cast glass 40 x 25 x 6 in Habatat Galleries
GORGEOUS ARTWORK at SOFA EXPO 2013! Atlanta‐based show management company Urban Expositions has acquired the
international Sculpture Objects Functional Art + Design Fair (SOFA)
from The Art Fair Company. Celebrating its twentieth anniversary this
year, SOFA is the largest and longest continually running art fair in
Chicago.
Urban Expositions plans to build a division specializing in art
fairs and SOFA is their first such acquisition. The Art Fair Company
will continue to run the fair during a transition period and Urban
Expositions will take over at the completion of the upcoming 2013 event.
SOFA will take place at the Navy Pier’s Festival Hall in Chicago,
October 31 – November 3, 2013.
Steel, patina and ferrocement (concrete) 48 X 42 X 34 in Wexler Gallery
Fly ashtray, insecticide spray pump, glass beads, rhinestone, Scrabble letters,
assorted embellishments 5 x 8 x 24 in Judy Saslow Gallery
“We are thrilled to take ownership of an event that is so well known and
respected by galleries, collectors, museum curators, artists, dealers
and countless other members of the international art and design
communities,” says Doug Miller, president, Urban Expositions. “With the
expert guidance and invaluable industry insight of Mark Lyman, Donna
Davies and the entire SOFA team, we will initiate a seamless transition
process through to the 2013 fair that builds upon the event’s solid
foundation and impressive reputation by continuing to grow its exhibit,
educational, and networking opportunities.”
“Urban Expositions is the perfect management team to take over
the ownership of SOFA,” explains Mark Lyman. “Urban partners Doug Miller
and Tim von Gal have built their own company through a hands-on
management style and keen desire to truly understand and serve the
specialized needs and business goals of their customers. When we began
talking about the acquisition opportunity, they instantly understood
that this fair’s distinctive focus, unique educational programming and
sense of community were the underlying keys to its longevity. I have
every confidence they will continue to enhance the SOFA experience for
the international art community.”
Caprice Pierucci White Seafoam
pine 36 x 54 x 12 in Diehl Gallery
Lyman launched SOFA CHICAGO at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in 1994.
The first edition drew 58 exhibitors and 14,000 visitors. Located at
Navy Pier since 1995, today SOFA CHICAGO attracts around 80 exhibitors
each year and its average attendance is close to 34,000.
The artwork exhibits are presented from dealers around the world
in a host of media, including glass, ceramics, textiles, wood and
metalwork by artists at every stage of their careers. SOFA CHICAGO
features a signature lecture series, including presentations by renowned
artists, collectors, curators, critics and designers. In addition, a
number of special exhibits, tours and live demonstrations further
enhance the educational outreach of the fair.
OPENING NIGHT is October 31st!
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Public Preview
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7 – 9:00 pm
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$50.00
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Friday 11am-7pm, Saturday 11am – 7pm and Sunday Noon – 6pm
Tickets are available online, or at the door.
Cash and credit cards (VISA, American Express & Mastercard) are accepted.
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General Admission
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$15.00
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Three-Day Pass
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$25.00
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Groups (10 or more)
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$12.00 (in advance)
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The Holiday Smash hit WE THREE LIZA’S Is Coming Back!!
About Face Theatre’s sparkly, queer holiday hit musical WE THREE LIZAS is back and better than ever – with a new book and expanded score!
Featuring book and lyrics by Scott Bradley*, music and additional lyrics by Alan Schmuckler, direction by Scott Ferguson*, music direction by Aaron Benham and choreography by Patrick Andrews*, WE THREE LIZAS will play November 27, 2013 – January 5, 2014 at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. in Chicago.
Tickets will go on sale Friday, October 11 at will be available online at www.aboutfacetheatre.com
WE THREE LIZAS will feature many of the original cast members including Scott Duff*, John Francisco*, Sharriese Hamilton, Danielle Plisz (Jeff Award-nominated), Dana Tretta and Andrew Swan in addition to newcomers Mark David Kaplan, James Nedrud and Bethany Thomas. Musicians include Aaron Benham (piano/conductor), Jed Feder (drums) and Debra Johnson (bass). *Denotes AFT Artistic Associates.
Box maker Conrad Ticklebottom’s life has hit a block. Once, Conrad and his purple box ignited an entire movement in art and design, but now he finds himself alone, forgotten and teetering on ruin. The holidays bring three magical figures to his door – a trio of Liza Minnellis to escort him on a fabulous journey through what-was, what-could-be and what-the-f*?!, redeeming his lost promise and re-inventing a brand-new Conrad Ticklebottom. It’s a quirky holiday musical tale of hope, transformation… and the power of Liza!
“Liza’s back and she’s better than ever! After having played to sold-out audiences in 2012 at the Steppenwolf Garage and in concert at Joe’s Pub in New York this summer, I’m thrilled to bring back this hilarious and moving holiday musical,” comments About Face Artistic Director Andrew Volkoff. “In this year of development at About Face, we are proud to support the continued growth of this project and the artists who’ve created it. Artistic Associate Scott Bradley and composer Alan Schmuckler have developed a sensational new book and score and we’re delighted to share it with Chicago audiences. If you missed it last year, get your tickets now: it’s bound to sell out again this year!
And if you saw it last year, you’ve got to see this fantastic new version and make We Three Lizas your new holiday tradition!” adds Volkoff.
Location: Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago
Dates: Previews: Wednesday, November 27 at 7:30 pm, Friday, November 29 at 7:30 pm, Saturday, November 30 at 7:30 pm, and Sunday, December 1 at 3 pm
Regular run: Friday, December 6th, 2013 – Sunday, January 5, 2014
Curtain Times: Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm; Saturdays at 3 pm & 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm
Tickets: Previews: $20 adults/$10 students. Regular run: $45 adults/$20 students. Group discounts available. Tickets will go on sale Friday, October 11 and will be available online at www.aboutfacetheatre.com
High School Crowns Gay & Lesbian Best Friends As Homecoming King & Queen
School Crowns Gay & Lesbian Best Friends As Homecoming King &
Queen !
Irizarry and Ariana Reiff are close friends, and they are also the
newly crowned Waukegan High School homecoming king and queen. Upon
finding out at the school bonfire Wednesday night, both students said
they were surprised. – Both are gay.
and I are both out and open about our sexuality,” Irizarry said. “Our
attitude is we are who we are and if that bothers people, that’s OK, but
we have so many friends who accept us for who we are.”
Ballroom Dancing Series at Center on Halsted Step to the Music with Instructor Steven Nasshan SUNDAYS
Step to the music with ballroom dance lessons led by dance instructor Steven Nasshan of Get On the Floor Dance Company on Sunday evenings from Oct. 6 through Nov. 3 from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Center on Halsted, located at 3656 N. Halsted St., Chicago, Ill. Single registrants welcome. A partner is not need to join.
The full ballroom dancing lesson series cost is $60. Drop in rate is $15 per session. For more information, visit getonthefloordanceco.com or call 773-540-5901.
About Steven Nasshan
Steven
Nasshan is passionate about dance and music. At age 11, Nasshan started
in musicals, and the joy of dance and music continued through high
school and college. Nasshan has worked at Arthur Murray School of Dance
and Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Chicago. He has numerous awards for
dance and instruction including becoming the Fred Astaire National
Smooth Champion in 2009, with his professional partner. For more
information on Get On the Floor Dance Company, visit getonthedancefloordanceco.com.
Sacha’s Bling Bow Ties
which the festival also coincides on the same dates and location. The
festival gives patrons the FREE and special opportunity to meet and talk
with Deaf visual artists.
The QU Unviels web Series…It’s like The View, but with Queer people
“It’s like The View, but with queer people. We talk about current events
and modern culture while creating our own colorful space in the
media.” Joey Grant (CoFounder)
The Qu (www.thequ.co) has
unveiled the cast of its upcoming web series, The Qu, with introductory
videos of each cohost. Comprised of six Chicagobased LGBTQ people,
The Qu’s cohosts embody the diversity found in Chicago’s
queer community.
“The way we watch television is rapidly changing
but what we watch on television is not,” said Qu cofounder and
producer, Erin O’Neal. “While there are huge strides being made
in queer television there is still a long way to go. The voices of the
LGBTQ community are just as important as those of the LGBTQ celebrity.”
As Hulu, Youtube and Netflix begin to create their own
original programming, the lack of LGBTQ visibility remains. Inspired by
the popular series The View, The Qu features a panel of four people who
identify as LGBTQ. The starter season will have 6 episodes
with Precious Davis, Harrison Luckett, Sarah Rosenblum, Crispin Torres,
Alberto Guitérrez (aka Mister Junior), and cofounder Joey Grant. The
webseries will include topics ranging from culture, politics,
and events, discussed through a vital Queer perspective.
***Meet The CoHosts of The Quhttp://thequ.co/meetthecohostsofthequ/
The Qu on Youtube! http://www.youtube.com/user/
Meet Robert Kingett – Our New Columnist Sharing His Thoughts on being Blind – and Gay – And Dating
Do you ever stop and think about those who are less fortunate than us? Those who have a harder life than us? Those who face daily challenges in life? Do you ever give gratitude and thanks for the life you are living?
RobertKingett.com
Olympia Dukakis in ROSE November 16th
ROSE, by Martin Sherman, a one-woman play, is a portrait
of a feisty Jewish woman who has
survived some of the major events that shaped the 20th century with humor, guile, and
spirit. The play illustrates a remarkable life that began in a tiny Russian village, moved on
to Warsaw’s ghettos and ship called The Exodus, and
finally to the boardwalks of
Atlantic City, the Arizona Canyons and salsa-flavored nights in Miami Beach.
Dukakis first
performed ROSE in 1999 on stage at the Royal National Theatre in London and then in spring
2000 opened at the Lyceum Theatre on Broadway.
Recent praise for
ROSE “The
wonderful acting of Olympia Dukakis, herself a fighter for justice, an actress
with a forty-year
history of stage activity, as a university lecturer, the founder and director
of a New Jersey
theatre, in her classic roles, and especially in her total immersion into the
skin of a Holocaust
survivor as a symbol of the Jewish people and its suffering, make this play something so
sublime that the Cameri Theatre is deserving of applause for the third year of its cultural
enterprise (the International Theatre Festival).” – News1 Tel Aviv
4/18/2012
Long a vital,
respected actor of the classic and contemporary stage and the epitome of Mediterranean-styled
weariness, this grand lady did not become a household name and sought-after film
actress until age 56 when she turned in an Oscar-winning performance as Cher’s sardonic
mother in the romantic comedy Moonstruck (1987).
Since then movie (and TV) fans have
discovered — an acting treasure. Her adaptability to various ethnicities
(Greek, Italian, Jewish,
Eastern European, etc.), as well her chameleon-like versatility in everything from cutting edge
comedy to stark tragedy, has kept her in high demand for the past 30 years as of one
of Hollywood’s topnotch character players.
Olympia Dukakis
Starring in “Rose,” a concert reading by Martin Sherman
Saturday, Nov. 16 7:30 p.m.
Dorothy Menker Theater @ Moraine Valley Community College
9000 W. College Pkwy. Palos Hills, IL 60465-2478
Buy
Tickets
***Dinner and a Show: Enjoy 25% off your total bill at Cíao Ristorante (10296 S. 78th Avenue, Palos Hills) before or after any Mainstage Series performance by showing your tickets.
Reservations are required by calling Cíao at (708) 237-2426. Some restrictions apply.
Ronnie Kroell will walk 921 Miles from Chicago to New York City
Ronnie Kroell and Elliot
London, Co founders of THE FRIEND MOVEMENT will walk 921 miles, Chicago
to New York
Kroell and London will walk 921 miles – over 37 days to raise awareness for increased bullying prevention efforts
across the country.
The walk, to coincide with National Bullying
Prevention Month, will begin on Saturday, Oct. 5 from The Bean in Millennium
Park in Chicago and end on Sunday, November 10 in New York City. Both men are
from Chicago, and decided to start their journey there.
London and Kroell launched the FRIEND MOVEMENT, in response to the increasing number of suicides being committed
as a result of bullying. Both men were subjected to bullying, and the
two were inspired to establish the
movement in the wake of the suicide of Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University
student who jumped to his death off the George Washington Bridge in New York
three years ago after being severely cyber-bullied by his dormitory roommate.
And they have filmed a documentary, “Friend” about bullying which is
currently in final stages of production.
London said, ” It is so important for me to make this
film. Our goal is to showcase the struggles of present day teens, and adults
for that matter, being bullied with the technology that we have all embraced.”
“Tyler may have been a young gay man, but bullying does
not discriminate.” said film maker London. ” It affects people
of all races, ages, religions, genders, sexualities, socio-economic backgrounds
and more,” adds London. “And the impact of bullying is
profound. It can lead to a plethora of physical and psychological problems
that can be life-long, in addition to suicide, which, by the way, is the number
one cause of death among school and college students in the U.S.”
Individuals can join FRIEND
MOVEMENT by visiting its indiegogo campaign, https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/friend-movement-walk.
For a $20 donation, participants will receive a specially made FRIEND MOVEMENT
watch, as well as a purple ribbon that can be sent back, in a postage-paid
envelope provided by the movement, to The Tyler Clementi Foundation with a
personalized dedication to a friend or family member. Each ribbon will be
placed on the site of the closing ceremony of the walk in New York City.
FRIDAY – OCTOBER 4th 6:30 CENTER ON HALSTED……
FRIDAY – OCTOBER 4th – Meet and Greet at
HAMBURGER MARYS in Andersonville
Crimes Continue in Boystown – Lakeview
When will this madness stop?
CrimeInBoystown blog ran a piece yesterday about a Community Alert issued from the Police Department.
hammer is used to threaten and/or strike the victim. Included in the
alert is a robbery in the 3000 block of N. Seminary that CWB reported on this morning.
pulled off by individuals who may be men dressed as women.
This alert is connected to five incidents, four of which have been previously reported on CWB:
• Saturday’s pepper spraying/robbery at Sheffield and Cornelia.
• Saturday’s 7PM attack outside of Berlin nightclub, 954 W. Belmont.
• Yesterdays incidents at Cornelia and Racine as well as the one at Belmont and Broadway.
My Private Chef Demonstrates How to Cook Spanish Tapas October 19th
Fresh
from his trip to Barcelona, Spain, Chef Christopher Tong of the upscale
Chicago-based private gourmet dining service, My Private Chef, will
demonstrate how to cook and serve Spanish Tapas.
Chef
Tong has been a favorite at Bloomingdales for several years because
lovers of gourmet food get to ask questions, discuss preparation and
come away with recipes that spice up their meals. And, everyone gets to
have a taste!
The demonstration will take place on Saturday, October 19, from 2-4 p.m. at the Bloomingdale’s Home & Furniture Store at Medinah Temple, 600 N. Wabash Avenue, Chicago.
For more information about this Bloomingdale’s event, contact 312.324.7678.
My Private Chef is
enjoying popularity as one of Chicago’s favorite private gourmet dining
services. Trained in European-style fine cuisine,Chef Tong
established his reputation at fine restaurants and hotels in Florida,
California, and Chicago. Now he has adapted his impressive skills to the
world of private entertaining. My Private Chef offers enticing cuisine for a wide range of events, from intimate dinners to weddings to corporate parties.
Chef Chris says:
“Every event is different and I’ve met some wonderful people including
many celebrities. Being part of very special occasions makes my work
worthwhile. I also love conducting cooking demonstrations where I get
the feeling that audience members will go home and try some new dishes!”
For more information about My Private Chef, contact Event Services at 773.370.8131 or visit our web site: www.myprivatechef.net
