Theater
“Grease” at Rosemont Theatre, Tuesday-March 15. The never-ending tour of the rock ‘n’ roll high school musical features Frankie Avalon this time around.
“Blues for an Alabama Sky” at Goodman Theatre, March 16-April 18. Midwest premiere of Pearl Cleage’s drama of four friends in Harlem in 1930.
“An Ideal Husband” and “The Cherry Orchard” at Court Theatre, March 15-May 3. Oscar Wilde’s comedy and Anton Chekhov’s drama are performed by a 17-actor ensemble in rotating repertory.
“The Wizard of Oz” at Rosemont Theatre, March 21-April 5. Mickey Rooney in the title role and Eartha Kitt as the Wicked Witch of the West are featured in a special effects-laden production, based on the classic film.
“The Phantom of the Opera” at the Opera House, beginning March 22. The Andrew Lloyd Webber blockbuster musical comes back for a spring-summer engagement.
“A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” at Drury Lane Oakbrook, March 22-May 10. Bradley Mott appears as Pseudolus, the crafty comic slave, in the Broadway musical based on the Roman comedies of Plautus.
“The Last Survivor” at Northlight Theatre, March 25-April 19. Premiere of Eleanor Reissa’s drama of a Holocaust survivor and his daughter.
“View of the Dome” at Victory Gardens Theater, March 26-April 19. Therese Rebeck’s comedy offers a timely satire of Washington, D.C., politics and sex.
“Gypsy” at Marriott’s Lincolnshire Theatre, April 1-May 31. Alene Robertson returns to the role she was born to play, Mama Rose, in the vintage Broadway musical.
“Moonlight” at Organic/Touchstone Theatre, April 6-May 17. Midwest premiere of Harold Pinter’s drama.
“Cats” at the Shubert, April 15-26. The musical with more lives than a zillion cats revisits Chicago.
“Let Me Live” at the Goodman Studio Theatre, April 20-May 10. Eight men struggle to survive in a Georgia prison of 1932 in OyamO’s drama.
“The Man Who Came to Dinner” at Steppenwolf Theatre, April 25-June 14. John Mahoney stars in the George S. Kaufman-Moss Hart comedy about a caustic radio host who terrorizes a middle-class American family’s home.
“Design for Living” at Goodman, May 11-June 6. David Petrarca directs Noel Coward’s 1930s comedy of a carefree romantic triangle.
“Flyovers” at Victory Gardens, May 21-June 28. Jeffrey Sweet’s new drama of a tense reunion between old antagonists features William L. Petersen and Amy Morton.
Penn & Teller at the Shubert, June 2-14. The big, talkative man and the little, silent one amble in with their magic and comedy.
“The Wound and the Bow” at Northlight Theatre, May 13-June 7. Russell Vandenbroucke ends his 11-year term as Northlight’s artistic director by staging Amlin Gray’s new translation of Sophocles’ “Philoctetes.”
“Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk” at the Shubert, June 16-July 12. The African-American experience is surveyed in tap dance and song.
“The King and I” at the Auditorium Theatre, beginning June 19. The lavish Broadway revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical settles in for the summer.
– Richard Christiansen
MOVIES
“The Man in the Iron Mask,” Friday. Finally, another chance to catch Leonardo DiCaprio without seeing “Titanic” again. The teen swoon king plays the title character in this “Three Musketeers” tale starring Gerard Depardieu, John Malkovich, Jeremy Irons and Gabriel Byrne as the swashbucklers. “Braveheart” writer Randall Wallace directed.
“Wild Things,” March 20. Chicago director John McNaughton (“Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer”) headed to Florida in search of a sexier brand of nastiness in this double-crosser involving a high school counselor (Matt Dillon) accused of misbehaving with a pair of students (Neve Campbell and Denise Richards), and a cop (Kevin Bacon) who gets mixed up in the intrigue.
“Primary Colors,” March 20. Mike Nichols directed and Elaine May adapted this film of Joe Klein’s “Anonymous” best seller, which will answer the question: Is America really up to seeing John Travolta and Emma Thompson pretend to be Bill and Hillary Clinton types reeling from his sexual exploits?
“The Newton Boys,” March 27. Director Richard Linklater unites his former stars Matthew McConaughey (“Dazed and Confused”) and Ethan Hawke (“Before Sunrise”) with Skeet Ulrich and Julianna Margulies in this 1920s bank robbers caper.
“The Object of My Affection,” April 17. Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd (“Clueless”) star in the screen version of Steven McCauley’s novel about a gay young man whose straight female friend falls for him. Directed by Nicholas Hytner (“The Crucible”).
“My Giant,” March 27. Billy Crystal’s slimy talent agent–and this movie–try to make a star out of Gheorghe Muresan, the ungainly 7-foot-7 Romanian player for the NBA’s Washington Wizards.
“Lost in Space,” April 3. It’s TV’s goofy ’60s sci-fi show played straight, with William Hurt as leader John Robinson, Mimi Rogers as his scientist wife, Matt LeBlanc as Don West, Jack Johnson as young Will Robinson and Gary Oldman as the famously annoying Dr. Zachary Smith.
“Mercury Rising,” April 3. This is the Bruce Willis thriller–about an FBI agent protecting a code-cracking autistic boy–that caused the Kennedy Expressway to be shut down over the summer. Was it worth it?
“The Butcher Boy,” April 3. Neil Jordan (“The Crying Game”) directed this drama about a 1960s Irish boy (Eamonn Owens) whose falling-apart family–his father (Stephen Rea) is a drunk, and his mother (Aisling O’Sullivan) is going crazy–leads him to violent frustration.
“Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple II,” April 10. You want more Grumpy Old Men? This time Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau return to the source for a sequel to their 30-year-old hit comedy.
“The Spanish Prisoner,” April 17. David Mamet wrote and directed this audience-pleasing con-game movie about a businessman (Campbell Scott) mixed up with a menacing rich guy (Steve Martin) and others who may be out to cheat him.
“Almost Heroes,” May 1. Chris Farley’s swan song is a comedy directed by Christopher Guest (“Waiting for Guffman”) and co-starring Matthew Perry about a pair of 18th Century frontier explorers. Farley–uh, oh,–plays the boozy one.
“He Got Game,” May 1. Director Spike Lee works out his basketball jones on the big screen with his first original screenplay since “Jungle Fever,” about a paroled convict (Denzel Washington) pressured to guide his hoops-whiz son (the Milwaukee Bucks’ Ray Allen) to the governor’s alma mater.
“Les Miserables,” May 1. This non-musical adaptation of Victor Hugo’s epic stars Liam Neeson as Jean Valjean, Claire Danes as Cosette, Uma Thurman as Fantine and Geoffrey Rush as Javert. Bille August (“Smilla’s Sense of Snow”) directed.
“Deep Impact,” May 8. A comet blazes toward Earth, and the president (Morgan Freeman) and an astronaut (Robert Duvall) try to stop it. (This way the world can regroup and get ready for the deadly asteroids coming our way in the summer disaster flick “Armageddon.”)
“Bulworth,” May 22. Warren Beatty co-wrote, directed and stars in this satire about a U.S. senator using self-destructive race-baiting tactics while running for re-election. Halle Berry co-stars.
“Hope Floats,” Late spring. Sandra Bullock stars in this drama about a young Texas mother who gets her life together after being humiliated on a TV talk show. The title comes from John Irving’s “The Hotel New Hampshire,” right?
– Mark Caro
POP MUSIC
Jonny Lang at House of Blues Saturday. Blues guitar prodigy concludes his yearlong tour.
The Damned at House of Blues, March 15. One of the original British punk bands returns with two original members.
Paul Oakenfold at Metro, March 18. What Frankie Knuckles was to Chicago house, deejay Oakenfold is to the rave scene in England.
Puff Daddy at the Rosemont Horizon, March 20. The hip-hop kingpin swings back for his second local appearance in four months.
Roni Size and Reprazent at Metro, March 21. This acclaimed collective of British drum ‘n’ bass mixers and deejays makes its first stateside appearance after winning the coveted Mercury Prize, the British equivalent for album of the year.
June Tabor at Old Town School of Folk Music, March 21. British folk singer is one of keepers of the traditionalist flame.
John Fahey at Unity Temple, Oak Park, March 21. The folk guitar legend continues his recent comeback.
Ben Harper at the Riviera, March 21. Harper’s blend of back porch blues, soul and rock is an incendiary combination on stage.
Jeff Tweedy at Lounge Ax, March 25-26. Expect to hear some new songs from the forthcoming album by Tweedy’s group Wilco in these solo acoustic performances.
Jerry Lee Lewis at House of Blues, March 26. In recent appearances, Lewis has proven that the old rock ‘n’ roll fire still burns.
Fairport Convention at FitzGerald’s, March 26. The quintessential British folk-rock group continues on its 30-year journey.
Joe Satriani at Metro, March 26. More notes per minute than any guitarist alive.
Mary J. Blige and Usher at Arie Crown, March 27. Usher is riding a monster hit album, and Blige is proving to be an R&B singer for the ages.
Susan Tedeschi at Buddy Guy’s Legends, March 27. A young blues-slinging singer-guitarist hailed as a the second coming of Bonnie Raitt.
Skatalites at Metro, March 27. The Jamaican group synonymous with ska, the ’60s precursor of reggae, hit town with a handful of original members.
Yungchen Lhamo at Old Town School of Folk Music, March 28. Tibetan singer has drawn international attention with recordings on Peter Gabriel’s Real World label and appearances last summer at Lilith Fair festival.
Victoria Williams at Park West, March 28. Louisiana singer-songwriter celebrates the quirkiness.
Benefit for the late guitarist John Duich at Buddy Guy’s Legends, March 29. Starring a host of local rock and blues acts, including Willie Kent, John Primer, Syl Johnson, the Bad Examples and the Juleps.
Dick Dale at House of Blues, March 31. This titan of ’60s surf is still a force of nature in concert
High Llamas and Low at Metro, April 3. Terrific double bill pairs British orchestral-pop avatars the Llamas with Low, the slowest, quietest rock band on Earth
Chris Whitley at Martyrs, April 6. Solo acoustic appearance by blues-rock mystic.
Mark Eitzel at Lounge Ax, April 8. Acclaimed singer-songwriter on solo tour.
Eric Clapton at United Center, April 9-10. Guitar great touring behind “Pilgrim,” his first studio release of new material since 1989.
Radiohead and Spiritualized at Rosemont Theatre, April 10. Terrific double bill of progressive Brit-rock.
“Masters of Folk”–Dave Alvin, Ramblin’s Jack Elliott, Chris Smither, Tom Russell–at FitzGerald’s, April 16.
Dr. John at Buddy Guy’s Legends, April 18. New Orleans piano at its finest.
Albita at House of Blues, April 21. Cuban singer with a reputation for fiery live performances.
Rolling Stones at United Center, April 23. The “Bridges to Babylon” ends in the city where it began in ’97.
Loudon Wainwright III at Schubas, April 23. Decades worth of great songs, delivered with more than a pinch of wry.
– Greg Kot
CLASSICAL MUSIC
Symphony Center. In late May and June, Barenboim will haul out his biggest guns to conclude the season-long celebration of Beethoven. May 26 and 28 will bring staged performances of the composer’s only opera, “Fidelio,” with principal singers Waltraud Meier, Peter Seiffert, Ekkehard Wlaschiha, Rene Pape, the CSO and the Chicago Symphony Chorus. The following week, June 4-6, Barenboim will take to the keyboard for performances of all five Beethoven piano concertos. Soprano Jane Eaglen will sing the concert aria “Ah! Perfido” at all three concerts.
Less than a week after the Emerson Quartet completes the hall’s cycle of Beethoven string quartets, April 14, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and pianist Lambert Orkis begin their traversal of the complete Beethoven violin-piano sonatas. The 10 sonatas will be spread out over concerts April 19, 26 and 29, the programs including 20th-Century violin works keyed to the ongoing “Roots and Branches” retrospective of important music of our time.
The Russian sensation Evgeny Kissin will lead the parade of solo pianists with a recital that includes Liszt’s Sonata in B minor, April 17 at Symphony Center. The Rising Stars series will bring 1997 Van Cliburn gold medalist Jon Nakamatsu to Ravinia’s Bennett-Gordon Hall on March 20. Symphony Center will host song recitals by Upshaw, with pianist Richard Goode, April 24; and Jessye Norman on June 3 (rescheduled from October). Norman’s program is to include a new song cycle by American composer Richard Danielpour.
Principal guest conductor Pierre Boulez will lead two weeks of CSO subscription concerts (including Mahler’s First Symphony) beginning April 23. More Mahler comes courtesy of the San Francisco Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas (Symphony No. 6, Tuesday), City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra with Simon Rattle conducting (Symphony No. 7, May 12) and baritone Thomas Hampson (Mahler songs, in a recital with Barenboim, piano, on May 24). All these concerts will be at Symphony Center.
The new millennium is very much on the minds of area musical organizations this year. Perhaps none is taking its millenial imperatives more seriously than the Chicago Chamber Musicians, which has joined forces with the Museum of Contemporary Art to present concerts, lectures, retrospectives and premieres over the three remaining years of the 20th Century. The opening spate of events will take place May 3, 12, 15 and 21 at the MCA; featured will be the premieres of commissioned works by Richard Wilson and Chicago composer Sebastian Huydts.
Chicago Opera Theater will launch its 25th anniversary season June 5-13 at the Athenaeum Theatre with a triple bill of local premieres: Viktor Ullmann’s “The Emperor of Atlantis,” Lee Hoiby’s “Bon Appetit” and Henry Mollicone’s “The Face on the Barroom Floor.” But the 25th anniversary celebrations don’t stop there. Another worthy local enterprise enjoying a silver anniversary this spring is Bach Week in Evanston. Featured work at this year’s festival–May 1-10 at St. Luke’s Church, 939 Hinman Ave., Evanston–is J.S. Bach’s “Christmas Oratorio.” Richard Webster will lead soloists, orchestra and chorus.
– John von Rhein
JAZZ
Tony Bennett at Park West, March 16 and 17. The great crooner appears frequently in Chicago, but rarely in a venue as intimate as this.
Frank Morgan Quartet at Jazz Showcase, March 17-22. The sublime alto/soprano saxophonist has enjoyed a creative resurgence in recent years, with the Jazz Showcase his local venue of choice. If this engagement is nearly as effective as recent appearances, expect jazz improvisation of considerable harmonic sophistication and melodic eloquence.
Benny Waters Quartet at Jazz Showcase, March 31-April 5. Though he’s 95 years old, the saxophonist-vocalist is said to be performing with great verve and fire. Considering that he apparently hasn’t played Chicago since the 1930s, this would make a great opportunity to catch him.
Franz Jackson and His Jazz Entertainers at the Green Mill Jazz Club, March 20. Few musicians express the sheer joy and optimism of vintage jazz as well as reedist-vocalist Franz Jackson. The octogenarian performer proves that art and entertainment are not mutually exclusive commodities.
Don Bennett Sextet at the Green Mill, March 21. Anyone who has heard Bennett’s recent recordings knows that he’s a piano virtuoso of the most hard-hitting kind. Since his sextet will include tenor saxophonist Ari Brown, trumpeter Tony Mujica and bassist Harrison Bankhead, this could be one of the more dynamic shows of the season.
Chick Corea and the Chicago Sinfonietta at Symphony Center, March 29. Whether he’s improvising jazz or playing a classical concerto by Mozart, Corea remains one of the most interesting keyboardists touring today. For this performance, he’ll offer the Chicago premiere of his Concerto for Jazz Piano and Orchestra, with Paul Freeman conducting the Chicago Sinfonietta.
Robert Henry Johnson and the Von Freeman Quartet at Steppenwolf Theatre, March 30. Johnson is a dancer, Freeman is one of Chicago’s most widely revered tenor saxophonists, but this not a cross-cultural double bill. Rather, Johnson and Freeman will share the stage for this installment of Steppenwolf’s innovative Traffic series, which has won acclaim placing admired artists in unexpected contexts.
Wynton Marsalis at Symphony Center, April 27. The brilliant composer-trumpeter will present the Chicago premiere of a work loosely modeled on Stravinsky’s “L’Histoire du Soldat,” though in a jazz idiom. This project, which will have received its world premiere just a few days earlier in New York, is a collaboration between Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.
Dee Dee Bridgewater at College of DuPage Arts Center, May 1. Fresh from her Grammy win for her exceptional “Dear Ella” CD, Bridgewater shows why she stands among the most accomplished vocalists in jazz.
16th Annual Duke Ellington International Conference at the Ramada Congress Hotel, May 6-10. In the most important jazz event of the spring season, the world will converge on Chicago to celebrate, study and revel in the music of Ellington. The conference, titled “Royalty Comes to Chicago,” will include orchestral performances, lectures and a staging of Ellington’s “My People” at the New Regal Theatre on May 9.
– Howard Reich
DANCE
Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress Pkwy., through March 15. Presenting revivals of such classics as “The Green Table,” “Viva Vivaldi” and “L’Air D’Esprit.”
Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Ensemble, Center for Performing Arts at Governors State University, University Park, March 15. This acclaimed Israeli troupe will offer a new full-length, “Aide Memoire,” by resident choreographer Rami Be’er.
The National Ballet of Spain, Auditorium, March 19-22. The 65-member company showing off its repertoire of classic Spanish dance.
Wim Vandekeybus and Ultima Vez, DePaul Merle Reskin Theatre, 60 E. Balbo St., March 19-21. The Belgium troupe will bring Vandekeybus’ “7 for a Secret Never to be Told,” exploring the myth of the charlatan magpie.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Auditorium, March 25-29. The wide variety of works include Donald Byrd’s “Fin de Siecle” and Ailey’s great signature “Revelations.”
Ballet Chicago, Auditorium, April 1-5. A new production of the classic full-length “Coppelia,” the comic tale of a dollmaker and his prized, lifelike doll, staged by Daniel Duell after Frederic Franklin.
Compagnie Philippe, Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave., April 2-5. The Switzerland contemporary troupe performing “Le Palindrome.”
Muntu Dance Theatre, Auditorium, April 9-10. The beloved Chicago company revives Arthur Hall’s “Fat Tuesday and All That Jazz,” set in New Orleans, centered on Mardi Gras and peopled with gamblers, baby dolls, kings, queens and other carnival folk, ending with a jazz funeral and “When the Saints Go Marching In.”
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Arie Crown Theater, 2301 S. Lake Shore Dr., April 8-9. Performing the Chicago premiere of Jones’ recent “We Set Out Early . . . Visibility Was Poor.”
Garth Fagan Dance, Auditorium, April 11-12. “The Lion King” choreographer brings his own company and his blend of contemporary and Afro-Caribbean dance.
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Auditorium, April 14-May 3. The Chicago premiere of Jiri Kylian’s “Sechs Tanze” and “Jardi Tancat” by Nacho Duato heads this 20th anniversary lineup, joined by “Link,” a work by former Hubbard Streeter Mario Alberto Zambrano.
Bolshoi Ballet, the Rice Athletic Center, Benedictine University, Lisle, April 16. Members of the renowned troupe in their only Chicago area appearance in years. Alas, already virtually sold out.
Beppie Blankert and Dansers Studio, Museum of Contemporary Art, April 16-19. The Dutch choreographer and her company bring “Volume 2,” a work set to music by Charles Ives.
Herve Robbe and Le Marietta Secret, Dance Center of Columbia College, 4730 N. Sheridan Rd., April 30-May 2. The French company will present two parts of a triptych inspired by interviews with 50 people from France, Japan the U.S. and elsewhere.
American Repertory Ballet Company, Center for Performing Arts, Governors State University, May 2. Performing a dance adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s children’s classic, “Where the Wild Things Are.”
The Human Rhythm Project, the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave., July 12-26. The annual Chicago celebration of tap and rhythmic dancing.
– Sid Smith
TELEVISION
Midseason replacements:
– “House Rules,” Monday, WMAQ-Ch. 5. Three childhood Denver friends move into a house together and bemoan their trials and tribulation.
– “That’s Life,” Tuesday, WLS-Ch. 7. A working-class Queens couple endures relatives whose various hardships force them to move in.
– “Significant Others,” Wednesday, WFLD-Ch. 32. Ensemble drama about twentysomething singles in Los Angles keeps “Party of Five’s” time slot warm for six weeks.
– “Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place,” Wednesday, WLS-Ch 7. Two buddies deliver pies while their female friend lives in an apartment above the parlor; “Ellen” returns after six weeks.
– “For Your Love,” March 17, WMAQ-Ch 5. New comedy from the creator of Fox’s “Living Single,” with three couples at various stages of their unions living in Oak Park.
– “Lateline,” March 17, WMAQ-Ch. 5. Former “Saturday Night Live” member Al Franken co-created and stars in this comedy set at a fictional Washington, D.C., late-night news show.
– “Damon,” March 22, WFLD-Ch. 32. Comic Damon Wayans plays a cop and rejoins his “In Living Color” classmate David Alan Grier. The comedy gets a three-week preview on Sundays before moving to Mondays on April 6.
– “The Way We Work,” April 6, WFLD-Ch. 32. Vivica A. Fox of “Independence Day” and “Soul Food” is an executive in this workplace comedy.
– “The Love Boat: The Next Wave,” April 13, WPWR-Ch. 50. Come aboard! Robert Urich’s expecting you! The “Spenser” star, recovered from cancer, is the captain in this six-episode remake of the frothy 1977-86 series.
Miniseries:
– “Moby Dick,” March 15 and 16, USA. Patrick Stewart of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” stars as obsessed Captain Ahab; produced by Robert Halmi Sr. of “Gulliver’s Travels.”
– “From the Earth to the Moon,” April 5-May 10, HBO. Co-executive produced by Tom Hanks, the ambitious 12-part miniseries, for which HBO paid $65 million, looks at NASA’s space program from 1961-72.
– “Merlin,” April 26-27, WMAQ-Ch 5. “Jurassic Park’s” Sam Neill stars as the wise sorcerer conjuring in King Arthur’s Camelot; “Moby Dick’s” Robert Halmi is executive producer.
– “The Last Don II,” April 26-28, WBBM-Ch. 2. Danny Aiello, Jason Gedrick and Kirstie Alley return in a sequel to last year’s successful miniseries about a crime family.
Goodbyes:
Jerry Seinfeld gives up his No. 1 rated NBC comedy on May 14; Candice Bergen says goodbye to CBS’ “Murphy Brown” (May 18; Murphy reportedly won’t die after her seasonlong fight with cancer); and ABC will announce sometime in May whether Ellen DeGeneres loses her history-making sitcom, as season-ending episodes abound.
– Allan Johnson
ART
Henry Darger: The Unreality of Being, Chicago Cultural Center, April 4-May 31. The 25th anniversary of the death of the self-taught Chicago artist is marked by a traveling retrospective full of the coyness and perversity that long has given tastemakers in the local art community a shiver of delight. The work is equally fascinating and appalling. An acquired taste.
Kerry James Marshall, Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago, May 6-June 28. One of last year’s recipients of a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant shows new paintings and a video in his most diverse solo exhibition in his home town to date. An eagerly awaited show for the only contemporary painter based in Chicago who has received substantial national and international recognition–having been represented in both the Biennial exhibition of the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Documenta exhibition in Kassel, Germany–during the last few years.
Songs on Stone: The Lithographs of James McNeill Whistler, Art Institute of Chicago, June 6-Aug.30. More than 200 works in an exhibition that relates the American expatriate’s paintings, pastels, watercolors and etchings to his lesser-known lithographs. The show will celebrate a landmark catalog raisonne of Whistler’s lithographs that was 10 years in the making; it is scheduled for publication by the museum in May. Taken together, the exhibition and catalog should reveal yet another important facet of one of the most forward-looking and influential artists of the late 19th Century.
Chuck Close, Museum of Contemporary Art, June 20-Sept. 13. Here’s an excellent example of how a serious, doggedly productive artist eventually will have his vision confirmed–and re-confirmed–by our product-hungry museums. After initial success in the ’60s, Close’s quirky patchwork portraiture is now getting oohs and aahs by the same people all over again. The present show, organized by the Museum of Modern Art in New York, will include nearly 100 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs. Much ado about the familiar.
Ray Yoshida: A Retrospective, 1968-1997, Chicago Cultural Center, July 25-Aug. 30. Just why this Chicago collagist, painter and teacher should have had two local retrospectives in not-for-profit-spaces during the last 20 years is beyond me, especially when he has always enjoyed continuous representation by a commercial gallery. But there we are: The bolstering of so called “Imagist” artists continues, this time with a show of about 50 pieces that will be breathlessly supported by local cheerleaders. Know thyself.
– Alan G. Artner
