Join Saturday Night Live alum, standup comedian, and caricature artist Kevin Nealon for an evening of stories: from backstage at SNL with Chris Farley and Dana Carvey to hanging out in Tiffany Haddish’s vegetable garden. At CHF, Nealon will chat with former SNL castmate Tim Meadows about his new book I Exaggerate: My Brushes with Fame (Abrams), a collection of original, full-color portraits drawn by Nealon himself alongside endearing personal stories of his famous friends.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
A book signing will follow this program.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/kevin-nealon/
What happens when people get their news from the pulpit? At CHF, Bonnie Kristian (author of Untrustworthy and columnist at Christianity Today), Russell Moore (Editor in Chief at Christianity Today), and David French (senior editor at The Dispatch) unpack this question. Join them for a discussion about the power the evangelical church wields in shaping the political ideologies of its worshippers and the impact of this on America’s already prevalent knowledge crisis.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
A book signing will follow this event.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/church-state-information-crisis/
Heralded as the “best short-story writer in English” by Time, and winner of the Man Booker Prize for Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders is the perfect author to help us make sense of our era through fiction. At CHF, Saunders sits down with Peter Sagal for a chat about his latest collection Liberation Day, featuring timely short stories exploring power, ethics, and justice through his trademark prose.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/george-saunders/
“If a law can’t protect a person from lynching, isn’t lynching the law?” asks Margaret A. Burnham, director of Northeastern University’s Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project, in her new book By Hands Now Known. At CHF, Burnham and Courtney Pierre Joseph (Assistant Professor of History and African American Studies at Lake Forest College) explain the ways America’s legal system allowed and encouraged racial violence during the Jim Crow era, how those atrocities extend into today, and what we can do to repair a broken system.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/margaret-burnham/
Seymour Hersh has been at the forefront of investigative journalism ever since his Pulitzer Prize-winning exposé of the Vietnam War’s Mỹ Lai Massacre. At CHF, Hersh sits down with David Greising, President of the Better Government Association, to talk about what Hersh has learned over the course of his storied career—from Vietnam to Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison and beyond—and why the public service of a free press is so important to protecting democracy.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/seymour-hersh/
Mass media rarely tells a three-dimensional story of violence in Chicago, but sociologist Sudhir Venkatesh does. At CHF, Venkatesh goes beyond perfunctory news coverage for a story about a community coming together to save a group of teenagers from gun violence. Join him for a conversation with Rudi Batzell about a national crisis and what it would be like to live in a society without guns.
Open captions and assistive listening devices available.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/sudhir-venkatesh/
The public has always been fascinated by conspiracy theories, but lately more people have started believing in them: from speculations about John F. Kennedy’s assassination to notions that 9/11 was an inside job. At CHF, Michael Shermer (founding publisher of Skeptic magazine) talks with Meghan Daum (The Problem With Everything, The Unspeakable Podcast) about the personality traits and societal factors at play in conspiratorial thinking and how we can counteract these narratives.
Open captions and assistive listening devices are available.
A book signing will follow this program.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/michael-shermer/
We often hear the legends of a musician’s “big break,” but what happens before that? In her memoir Maybe We’ll Make It, Grammy-nominated country singer-songwriter Margo Price gets real about the struggles to survive and succeed in a music industry that is often unkind to women. Aspiring musicians, join Price and CHF at the Old Town School of Folk Music for an intimate chat with Jes Skolnik about building a career, followed by a solo performance.
A book signing will follow this program.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/margo-price/
Jeff Garlin is a man of many talents: he is a writer, producer, director, actor, photographer, and stand-up comedian. His impressive filmography includes: Curb Your Enthusiasm, WALL-E, Toy Story 3 & 4, and Paranorman, among others. At CHF, Garlin returns home for a chat with fellow comedian Susie Essman about his career, his city, and his stand-up special: Our Man in Chicago, which features his signature style of storytelling and improv.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/jeff-garlin/
America is witnessing a frightening trend: the rise of extremist groups, like the Proud Boys, infiltrating our politics. At CHF, leading extremism reporter Andy Campbell (author of We Are Proud Boys: How a Right-Wing Street Gang Ushered in a New Era of American Extremism) sits down with Michael Fanone, a former Trump supporter, DC Metropolitan police officer, and author of Hold the Line. Together with Kathleen Belew (Associate Professor of History at Northwestern University and author of Bring the War Home), they’ll discuss how extremist groups have influenced violence in America and abroad, and what we can do to organize against the radicalism they espouse.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/extremism-america/
Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Will Bunch calls higher education the great political and cultural fault line of American life. Join Bunch and Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Anthony S. Chen, as they explore the central question of Bunch’s latest book After the Ivory Tower Falls: How has the fracturing of American people into two groups (one educated and the other not) contributed to political, cultural, and economic unrest; and what can we do to bridge the divide?
At CHF, renowned legal scholar Daniel S. Medwed explains how America’s judicial system is stacked against the innocent. Join him and Lake Forest College legal studies professor Stephanie Caparelli for a conversation demystifying the procedural rules, systemic bias, and court culture that make up the barriers to exoneration. We’ll discuss how our justice system operates, what justice actually looks like, and possible solutions for the future.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/daniel-medwed/
Miranda July has gained a cult following over the span of her award-winning career as a filmmaker (Me and You and Everyone We Know and Kajillionaire), writer (No One Belongs Here More Than You), and artist (her latest project, Services, is both a sculpture and a book). Chill with July at CHF for a chat about her life so far – as recently highlighted in the release of her mid-career retrospective.
https://www.chicagohumanities.org/events/attend/miranda-july/
For artist and MacArthur Fellow Rick Lowe, art doesn’t only hang on walls in museums, art is all around us. Art is street murals celebrating Black-owned businesses. Art is the Project Row Houses in Houston’s historic Third Ward. Art is the act we take as members of our communities. At CHF, Lowe reflects on community-based creative practices and the power of art to remake our public lives.
Chicago’s favorite holiday tradition for four decades.
Nearly two million theatergoers have experienced Chicago’s must-see annual holiday tradition, Goodman Theatre’s A Christmas Carol. With first-rate performances— starring award-winner Larry Yando as Ebenezer Scrooge for the 15th year—and “amazing sets, gorgeous costumes and eye-popping effects” (Chicago Reader), the heartwarming story of generosity’s triumph over greed comes to vivid life. Don’t miss this 45th anniversary production of “the best Christmas story ever told” (Time Out Chicago).
A Christmas Carol is appropriate for ages 6 and up. The production contains loud noises, bright lights, and images that may frighten very young children. Children under 5 are not permitted in the theater. For more information contact the box office at 312.443.3800
Direct from New York City and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this Chicago premiere features hundreds of illustrated puppets, fuzzy Muppet-style puppets, hilarious actors on live cameras, and a live music soundtrack which bring the popular children’s books by Mo Willems to life in a new Manual Cinema show the whole family will enjoy.
Leonardo is a terrible monster. He tries so hard to be scary, but he just…isn’t. Then Leonardo finds Sam, the most scaredy-cat kid in the world. Will Leonardo finally get his chance to scare the tuna salad out of an unsuspecting human? Or will it be the start of an unlikely friendship? They will need to make a big decision: will they be friends or will they be controlled by their fears?
12TH ANNUAL COUNTERBALANCE
SEPTEMBER 24TH & 25TH, 2022
presented by Access Living, Bodies of Work, MOMENTA, and ReinventAbility.
IN-PERSON PERFORMANCES
(A virtual viewing option will be available in October)
Hoover-Leppen Theatre
CENTER ON HALSTED
3656 N. Halsted
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
7:30pm
Doors open at 7:00pm
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25
2:00pm
Sensory Friendly Performance
Doors open at 1:30pm
ACCESS FEATURES
Wheelchair Accessible, ASL Interpretation, Open Captioning, Audio Description, All Gender Restrooms
SAFETY PROTOCOLS
Masks Required
Proof of Vaccination
or Negative Covid Test
Aligned with the mission of representing marginalized voices, BWBTC has partnered with UIC’s Disability Cultural Center to tell the tale of the malicious Richard of Gloucester. Casting both non-disabled and disabled actors, this production will not only examine stage combat as a storytelling tool, but interrogate the divide between “regular” theatre and “theatre for the disabled”.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://babeswithblades.org/summer-2022-bwbtc-shakespeare-richard-iii/
Use coupon code (Access) for 20% discount!
Please note: Live captions will be available for all performances.
Aligned with the mission of representing marginalized voices, BWBTC has partnered with UIC’s Disability Cultural Center to tell the tale of the malicious Richard of Gloucester. Casting both non-disabled and disabled actors, this production will not only examine stage combat as a storytelling tool, but interrogate the divide between “regular” theatre and “theatre for the disabled”.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://babeswithblades.org/summer-2022-bwbtc-shakespeare-richard-iii/
Use coupon code (Access) for 20% discount!
Please note: Live captions will be available for all performances.
Disney Theatrical Productions and Broadway in Chicago are proud to offer a sensory-friendly performance of Disney’s THE LION KING. With the partnership of Aspire, local nonprofit experts in disability inclusion, the show will be performed in a supportive and judgment-free environment.
This event is open to the public, but customary theater rules will be relaxed. Audience members can stand, move, talk and make noise as needed.
Accommodations include:
-House lights left on at a low level
-Trained volunteers and professionals on hand
-Sensory support encouraged and available
-Designated quiet spaces
-Lower sound levels, especially startling or loud sounds
-Open Captions available
Ticket prices start at $33 and can be purchased online at: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/07005CA3F57D44F8
Patrons may also call (312) 977-1700 (press 5)
OR
TTY: (800) 359-2525
OR
Email accessbility@broadwayinchicago.com
For groups of 10+, call Broadway in Chicago Group Sales (312) 977-1710
On Sunday, September 18 from 8-10am, Lincoln Park Zoo is offering Sensory-Friendly Morning hours for guests with disabilities to experience the zoo grounds and animal buildings in a comfortable and inclusive environment. Modifications include limited capacity and muted attractions. This is a free event, but it does require advanced registration. Tickets may be reserved at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sensory-friendly-morning-at-lincoln-park-zoo-tickets-393799554067
Sensory-Friendly Morning is a free program for all people who benefit from visiting the zoo without crowds and other sensitive environmental elements. This includes guests with sensory sensitivities, disabilities, autism, PTSD, and dementia to name a few.
During Sensory-Friendly Morning, Gift Shop will be open at 8am and Landmark Café will sell beverages starting at 8:30am. AT&T Endangered Species Carousel and Lionel Train Adventure will operate with music and noises muted. Not all animal buildings may be open, and some animals may not be in their public viewing spaces.
At 10am, the zoo will be open to the public and begin typical operations.
View the zoo’s accessibility map and accessibility page to help plan your visit.
Wheelchairs are available at Searle Visitor Center for temporary use by guests. Availability is first come, first served. Guests must deposit a picture ID or refundable $20.
Guests may only enter at West Gate and East Gate, and they need to present their registration email to zoo ushers.
Paid parking is available at the zoo’s parking lot located at Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive (2400 N. Cannon Drive). The zoo is also accessible by train via the Armitage and Fullerton stations and by bus via the 22, 36, 151, and 156 routes.
All Lincoln Park Zoo events take place rain or shine. We have some wonderful animal buildings you can still enjoy if it rains, and the carousel is covered.
There is no smoking at Lincoln Park Zoo for the health of the animals in our care.
Pets are not allowed at the zoo, but licensed service animals are welcome.
Tickets will not be available day of the event.
For any questions, please email access@lpzoo.org.
This off-beat buddy comedy pairs essential workers from two different worlds in the shared cab of a New York City garbage truck. Danny’s a white, blue-collar mansplainer hiding a heart of gold. Marlowe’s a Black, Ivy League-educated newbie learning the ropes from her old-school partner. When they’re thrown together to pick up what the world has discarded, they discover there’s more that binds them than taking out the trash.
This is a relaxed/sensory-friendly performance. These performances are designed to make everyone feel safe and welcome at our theater. While these performances include changes to better support individuals with autism and sensory sensitivities, everyone is welcome to attend.
Some adjustments of note might include: lower sound level, the house lights will remain on at all times at a low level, we’ll have a designated quiet area for patrons who need to step away from the performance, patrons are free to walk around and talk during the performance, and cell phone usage and light noisemaking is allowed.
To purchase tickets, use the promo code NACCESS by phone 847.673.6300 or online to receive discounted tickets at a flat rate of $40 each (standard fees still apply).
Kohl Children’s Museum was specifically designed to be inclusive of all children and adults regardless of ability. The Museum’s 17 exhibits and 2 acres of outdoor explorations are designed for play with a purpose and encourage linguistic, cognitive, motor, and social skills for children ages birth through 8. The Museum works collaboratively with community organizations to invite families with children with special needs to the Museum to explore the exhibits while closed to the general public. These FREE events, titled Everyone at Play, usually occur on specified afternoons. This provides opportunities for calm, creative, and collaborative play.
On Sunday, July 24 from 8-10am, Lincoln Park Zoo is offering Sensory-Friendly Morning hours for guests with disabilities to experience the zoo grounds and animal buildings in a comfortable and inclusive environment. Modifications include limited capacity and muted attractions. This is a free event, but it does require advanced registration. Tickets may be reserved at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sensory-friendly-morning-tickets-373533056427
Sensory-Friendly Morning is a free program for all people who benefit from visiting the zoo without crowds and other sensitive environmental elements. This includes guests with sensory sensitivities, disabilities, autism, PTSD, and dementia to name a few.
During Sensory-Friendly Morning, Gift Shop will be open at 8am and Landmark Café will sell beverages starting at 8:30am. AT&T Endangered Species Carousel and Lionel Train Adventure will operate with music and noises muted. Not all animal buildings may be open, and some animals may not be in their public viewing spaces.
At 10am, the zoo will be open to the public and begin typical operations.
View the zoo’s accessibility map at https://www.lpzoo.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/LPZ_Accessibility-Map_JAN-2022_v6.pdf
View the zoo’s accessibility page at https://www.lpzoo.org/visit/accessibility/
Wheelchairs are available at Searle Visitor Center for temporary use by guests. Availability is first come, first served. Guests must deposit a picture ID or refundable $20.
Guests may only enter at West Gate and East Gate, and they need to present their registration email to zoo ushers.
Paid parking is available at the zoo’s parking lot located at Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive (2400 N. Cannon Drive). The zoo is also accessible by train via the Armitage and Fullerton stations and by bus via the 22, 36, 151, and 156 routes.
All Lincoln Park Zoo events take place rain or shine. We have some wonderful animal buildings you can still enjoy if it rains, and the carousel is covered.
• Outside food and beverage is prohibited.
• There is no smoking at Lincoln Park Zoo for the health of the animals in our care.
• Pets are not allowed at the zoo, but licensed service animals are welcome.
• Lincoln Park Zoo’s Code of Conduct can be found at https://www.lpzoo.org/guest-guidelines-and-code-of-conduct/.
Tickets will not be available day of the event.
For any questions, please email access@lpzoo.org.
Join us for a live performance of songs from LYNX Project’s debut album, beautiful small things. These art songs, commissioned between 2017–2020 as part of the Amplify series, feature the poetry of neurodiverse young people who are primarily nonspeaking, set to music by celebrated classical composers. In addition to song performances, there will be a presentation on nonspeaking communication and readings of poems.
The Poetry Foundation and LYNX share a commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive performance space. Sensory accommodations will be provided.
Poetry Foundation’s events are completely free of charge and open to the public. This reading will include live captioning and ASL interpretation. If you require any other accessibility measures, please contact us by emailing events@poetryfoundation.org.
All guests over the age of two must wear a mask inside the Poetry Foundation building. Guests over the age of five must show proof of vaccination and booster up to the level to which they are eligible for their age group. Guests over the age of 18 must show ID alongside their proof of vaccination. If you cannot meet these requirements, you will not be granted entry to the event. All in-person events will be made available online for free at poetryfoundation.org/video. Please note that some performers may choose to perform without a mask.
These guidelines are up to date as of March 7, 2022.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/events/156862/lynx-project-beautiful-small-things-in-person
Kohl Children’s Museum was specifically designed to be inclusive of all children and adults regardless of ability. The Museum’s 17 exhibits and 2 acres of outdoor explorations are designed for play with a purpose and encourage linguistic, cognitive, motor, and social skills for children ages birth through 8. The Museum works collaboratively with community organizations to invite families with children with special needs to the Museum to explore the exhibits while closed to the general public. These FREE events, titled Everyone at Play, usually occur on specified afternoons. This provides opportunities for calm, creative, and collaborative play.The event includes one-on-one interactive activities with trained, registered therapy animals and other partners, a quiet room for stimulation breaks, museum staff providing play support and guidance, and a free family pass for 4 to return to the Museum.EAP is generously supported by the Edmond and Alice Opler Foundation, the Pajeau Children’s Foundation and the Walter and Caroline Sueske Charitable Trust. Capacity is limited and registration is required.
In 1905, a Black seamstress named Esther sews her way out of poverty stitch by delicate stitch, creating fine lingerie for her Manhattan clientele while longing for a husband and a future. She finds common ground with a Jewish fabric merchant, a relationship they both know cannot grow. So when correspondence with a lonesome Caribbean man leads to a marriage proposal, she accepts. But as her new marriage quickly leads to regret, Esther turns back to her sewing machine to rebuild her life and refashion her future.
When two strangers meet by letter during World War II, a love story begins. U.S. Army Captain Jack Ludwig, a military doctor stationed in Oregon, begins writing to Louise Rabiner, an aspiring actress and dancer in New York City, hoping to meet her someday if the war will allow. But as the war continues, it threatens to end their relationship before it even starts. Two-time Olivier Award-winning playwright Ken Ludwig tells the poignant story of his own parents’ unlikely courtship during World War II.
Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
Wired is an immense and intimate experience that traces the fine line between “us” and “them” through aerial and contemporary dance and the metaphoric use of barbed wire. The dancers of Wired spin and soar together in this meditation in sound, light, and movement on the gendered, racial, and disability stories of barbed wire in the United States, showing how this material shapes common understandings of who belongs. Barbed wire is designed as a material for containment. It is used, time and again, to limit individual and community movements and delineate boundaries as large as a nation state and as small as a personal fence. In Wired, this fraught material comes to highlight not only danger and contradiction, but also beauty and interconnection.
To create Wired, the artists of Kinetic Light—Alice Sheppard, Laurel Lawson, Jerron Herman, and Michael Maag—and their collaborators—composers Ailís Ní Ríain and LeahAnn Mitchell and scenic designer Josephine Shokrian—defy both gravity and assumptions about what dance can be. The artists of Kinetic Light see interdependence as a political position as well as an approach to making dance from a disability aesthetic: in which disability is a powerful creative and cultural force, and the many ways of accessing the performance are the art itself.
ASL interpretation and AD are available for all shows. There is no spoken dialogue in Wired. Audio description is available through Kinetic Light’s app, Audimance. More information will be provided to ticketholders by email in advance. Orientation to and demonstration of the app will be available in the lobby prior to all shows, along with a tactile exhibit that serves as an introduction to the Wired set, props, costumes, and theatrical elements.
Wired content and artistry will remain the same for all performances. The show shares many aspects of MCA’s Relaxed Performances. Audience members are welcome to exit and reenter.
Light haze is present in certain sections. There are no strobe lighting effects. Quiet spaces and stimulation kits are available for all performances.
The show will be livestreamed on Saturday, including ASL, with one channel being audio described. Friday and Sunday’s performances will offer an alternative lighting design.
Kohl Children’s Museum welcomes children with special needs and their families for an afternoon of learning and play focused on them. Our Museum campus is designed for universal accessibility with a purpose to encourage linguistic, cognitive, motor and social skills for all children ages birth to 8. Events attendees will experience: 17 hands-on Museum exhibits, One-on-one interactive activities with trained, registered therapy animals and other partners, Quiet room for stimulation breaks, Museum staff providing play support and guidance, A free family pass for 4 to return to the Museum.