Kayla Samoy

Kayla Samoy is the editor of the Dining section and works in Arts+Entertainment for the Chicago Tribune. She is a University of Arizona graduate and previously worked for the Associated Press and the Arizona Republic.

Burna Boy performs during the 66th Grammy Awards on Feb. 4, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

What to do around Chicago: From Burna Boy to ‘Blade Runner in Concert’

February 16, 2024 at 10:42 a.m.

Also around the area this weekend, Lunar New Year Celebration in Chinatown, and Civl Fest is ongoing at 15 Chicago music venues.

Sade Ajayi, center left, and Diamond Richardson talk at Kitchen + Kocktails restaurant in Chicago's River North neighborhood during a Chicago Black Restaurant Week event Feb. 9, 2024. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Black Restaurant Week 2024: 6 specials we’re excited to try, from Haitian cuisine to nonalcoholic wine

February 14, 2024 at 9:32 p.m.

Fried chicken on cocoa waffles, topped with caramel rum ice cream, is just one of the new specials created for the annual Chicago Black Restaurant Week.

A Phalaenopsis Hybrid Moth Orchid on display in the Regenstein Center of the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe in Feb. 2019.
(John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

What to do around Chicago for Valentine’s Day: Fireworks, orchids and a dance party

February 9, 2024 at 11:36 a.m.

Our list of what to do around Chicago takes on a holiday theme this week — including first-time fireworks on the lakefront.

Kaskade performs at the Lollapalooza music festival in Grant Park on July 30, 2022, in Chicago. (Raquel Zaldívar/Chicago Tribune)

Beyond Wonderland Chicago announces lineup for EDM festival

February 6, 2024 at 3:49 p.m.

The first-ever edition of Beyond Wonderland Chicago is taking place June 1-2 at the Huntington Bank Pavilion.

The New York-based Complexions Contemporary Ballet company presents "Star Dust."

What to do around Chicago: A Bowie ballet, Architecture Center film fest and Groundhog Day

February 2, 2024 at 5:00 a.m.

Also around the Chicago area, a pop culture expo at Columbia College Chicago, comedian Vir Das and a concert of Taylor Swift music. “Star Dust”: A ballet tribute to David...

Midnight Circus member Samantha Rae Jenkins performs on a ring attached to straps at Humboldt Park on Oct. 1, 2022, in Chicago. Midnight Circus is a 2024 NEA grant recipient.

National Endowment for the Arts gives more than $1.6 million in grants for art projects in Illinois

January 26, 2024 at 1:14 p.m.

The National Endowment for the Arts on Wednesday announced nationwide grants for art projects, including about $1.6 million in grants for 66 projects in Illinois. The grants include funding for...

Eat. Watch. Do. — Christmas rom-coms, NYE restaurant specials and Atelier review

December 21, 2023 at 5:07 p.m.

It's Thursday, Chicago. With the end of the year approaching, the critics and columnists of A+E have selected a handful of individuals as 2023's Chicagoans of the Year in the...

Ashley Newbrough and Marcus Rosner in "Flipping for Christmas" on the Hallmark Channel.

I’ve watched dozens of cheesy holiday rom-coms this year. Here are 5 good ones.

December 15, 2023 at 6:00 p.m.

Since November, I've been watching the season's new Christmas romantic comedies basically nonstop. There were many mediocre movies (unfortunately, the Long Grove-shot "Reporting for Christmas" premiering on Hulu didn't make...

Aaron Mesik, left, and John Printasil of La Grange Park decorate the Czech Republic tree during setup for the annual Christmas Around the World at the Museum of Science and Industry on Nov. 11, 2023.

Holiday lights around Chicago: Top 10 displays for 2023, from Navy Pier to Morton Arboretum

December 5, 2023 at 9:22 p.m.

It's that time of the year again to bundle up, grab a cup of hot cocoa and take a stroll after dark to see some sparkling holiday light displays. Here...

Fans listen to the music of Ani DiFranco at Riot Fest in Chicago's Douglass Park on Sept. 15, 2023.

Riot Fest 2023: Day 1 kicks off with mosh pits, funk and the Foo Fighters

September 16, 2023 at 4:30 p.m.

Music fans descended on North Lawndale's Douglass Park as Riot Fest kicked off Friday with headliners Turnstile and the Foo Fighters. The alternative rock music festival, which has a daily...

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