Three days of subzero weather and we're hopefully past the coldest days of Chicago winter! So that means still cold, but more manageable outing into the city! This weekend features tons of movies, concerts, markets and a continuation of all the winter fun we've been used to. So head out into the snowy streets and find something cool to do with our recommended picks.
Now, let's get on with your Chicago Curated Weekend!
ART GALLERIES & SPECIAL EVENTS
- All Star Press is constantly putting up new prints for you to decorate your space with! RIGHT NOW they are showing "REGULARS" A Solo Show by PITR! Plus you can check out some of their prints from their Vertical Gallery collab, which you can purchase here!! There is also a virtual gallery featuring all the works! You can also see "Saturday Morning Fever” featuring the works of Griffin Goodmanthrough their virtual gallery! And don't forget to check out the virtual edition of JC Rivera's new exhibition "Still Undefeated" ! Or the All Decked Out virtual show!
- Chicago Gamespace is the perfect spot to check out the hairy present and future of the gaming realm!
- Galerie F has a fun stock of prints from concert posters, pop culture prints and more!
- Rotofugi is the perfect nexus of art and toys! Head over to see what new pieces of art they have in stocks and on display in their gallery space! They are currently showing some awesome art from Stay Focused New Works by Netherland
- WNDR Museum is an ever-evolving immersive art and technology experience designed to ignite your curiosity! See exhibits like the Light Floor, Try to Get Higher, and the Digital Gallery. Plus Keith Haring!
- Garfield Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens safely!
- Lincoln Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens safely
- “Mold-A-Rama™: Molded for the Future” @ Museum of Science and Industry
- Art on the Mart
- Wonderverse takes popular franchises like Ghostbusters, Bad Boys, and more and puts them together in this immersive venue! Enjoy tons of activities including escape rooms, virtual reality games, racing simulators, and more! Plus there are plenty of themed food and drinks for you to try.
- NOW - 3/31 007 Science: Inventing the World of James Bond @ Griffin Museum of Science and Industry
- NOW - 2/15 Insert Coin: Inside Midway’s Arcade Revolution @ Cleve Carney Museum of Art
- NOW -2/15 More Light @ Poetry Foundation (check out our full preview of this an many other literary events here!)
- NOW - 1/31 Hershey Super Sweet Adventure @ Water Tower Place
SEASONAL EVENTS THIS WEEKEND!
- 1/24 - 1/25 Chicago Beefsteak @ DANK Haus German American Cultural Center
- 1/25 Chicago Winter Whiskey Tasting Festival @ Welcome to the Farm
- 1/25 Apres Ski Party @ Tony’s Rooftop Bar
- 1/25 Espresso Martini Fest @ Hubbard Inn
- 1/25 Drag Brunch @ Walnut Room
- 1/25 Running Tour of the Chicago Taxi Wars @ Chicago Athletic Assocation
- 1/25 - 2/2 Chinese New Year Dumpling-Making Dinner @ Hing Kee
- NOW -1/26 Globes on the Terrace @ Hotel Zachary
- NOW -1/26 Young Playwrights Festival @ Chicago Dramatists
- NOW - 1/26 Ice Skating at Rosemont's Parkway Bank Park
- NOW - 1/28 Rudolph's Rooftop at LondonHouse Chicago
- NOW - 2/2 Ice Skating @ Millennium Park
- NOW - 2/9 Disney on Ice Presents: Let's Dance @ United Center
- NOW - 2/16 Winter Wonderland @ I|O Godfrey
- NOW - 2/28 Fairmont Lodge @ Fairmont Chicago
- NOW - 2/28 Après Ski Pop-Up @ Cindy’s
- NOW - 3/9 Winter Curl & Chill @ The Gwen
- NOW - 3/9 Ice Skating @ Maggie Daley Park
- NOW - 3/30 South Loop Winter Farmers Market @ Water Tower Place
FRIDAY - SUNDAY, JANUARY 17 - 19 (& BEYOND)
Chicago Restaurant Week 2025 @ Various Restaurants, Various Times
WHAT: The 18th annual culinary celebration!
SO WHAT: Over 470 restaurants will take part in Restaurant Week (which is actually 17 days long!), letting everyone have a taste of Chicago’s restaurant scene from Italian, French, Spanish, Chinese and more! You can feast on delicious multi-course menus all across the city and suburbs. You can find all the participating restaurants on the Restaurant Week website!
NOW WHAT: These multi-course meals are $30 for brunch or lunch, and $45 or $60 for dinner (excluding beverages, tax, gratuity, and delivery fees).
The Neo-Futurists’ The Infinite Wrench @ The Neo-Futurist Theater, 5153 N Ashland, Friday and Saturday 10:30pm, Sunday 7pm, 16+
WHAT: Quick plays live and online!
SO WHAT: The Neo-Futurists are back! Their Infinite Wrench is an ongoing, ever-changing attempt to perform 30 plays in 60 minutes for a live audience. Now it’s actually a live audience that will be enjoying the performance in person!
NOW WHAT: Join the Neo-Futurists this weekend for $20! The Infinite Wrench Goes Viral will be continuing til February (and possibly beyond) over at their Patreon
SATURDAY, JANUARY 25
24th Annual Polar Plunge, hosted by the Chicago Polar Bear Club @ Oak Street Beach, 11am-1pm, all ages
WHAT: A chilly fundraiser
SO WHAT: Another year, another plunge in the icy waters of Lake Michigan! This annual plunge to raise money for families in need is back and whether you're diving in head first or watching on the fringes, it's a great winter event for a good cause!
NOW WHAT: Head over to their website to buy tickets and/or donate !
Mac & Cheese Crawl @ Wrigleyville's Best Bars & Restaurants, 11:00am - 7:00pm, 21+
WHAT: Chicago's cheesiest bar crawl!
SO WHAT: Spend the day checking out all the Wrigleyville bars and restaurants at this fun bar crawl. You'll get to try some new drinks and enjoy some tasty mac and cheese in this full day of winter time fun !
NOW WHAT: Tickets are $20-30 and include admission to all bars on the crawl & seven free mac & cheese servings, drink specials, giveaways and more!
THE WHOLE CURATED WEEKEND & BEYOND
Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival @ Various Locations, Various Times
WHAT: Discover the world of puppetry over the next 11 days!
SO WHAT: Add a little something different to your weekend plans as the Chicago International Puppet Theater festival spends its second week in town. Check out a variety of shows, experiences, and workshops throughout town and home letting audiences immerse themselves in a world of puppets. Special events like neighborhood tours and the The Puppet Hub will be great multi-day highlights! Check out this weekend'sschedule at their website! Read our preview here and our reviews here!
NOW WHAT: You can find full ticket info in the links above or on the festival's website!
Buddy Guy and Special Guests @ Buddy Guy’s Legends, 700 S Wabash Ave, Various times, 21+
WHAT: Experience one of the great musicians of all time performing live!
SO WHAT: Chicago blues legend Buddy Guy is back for 16 electrifying shows over the next four weekends at Buddy Guy’s Legends. He’ll be performing with 15 amazing musicians including Bobby Rush, Corey Dennison, Kingfish, Laretha Weathersby and more! Check out the remaining dates below!
- Thurs Jan 23 – BUDDY GUY w/ Corey Dennison – Standing room only available
- Fri Jan 24 – BUDDY GUY w/ New Orleans Beau – Standing room only available
- Sat Jan 25 – BUDDY GUY w/ Funky Mojo Daddy – Standing room only available
- Sun Jan 26 – BUDDY GUY w/ Paolo Apuli – Standing room only available
- Thurs Jan 30 – BUDDY GUY w/ Stefan Hillesheim – Standing room only available
- Fri Jan 31 – BUDDY GUY w/ John Primer – Standing room only available
- Sat Feb 1 – BUDDY GUY w/ Nublu Ft. Carlise Guy – Standing room only available
- Sun Feb 2 – BUDDY GUY w/ Laretha Weathersby – Standing room only available
NOW WHAT: Tickets are $85 for standing room and $135 for reserved seating !
Weekend Shows @ Lincoln Hall & Schubas, 2424 N Lincoln Ave & 3159 N Southport Ave, various times, 18+
WHAT: A full weekend of amazing shows at Schubas and Lincoln Hall!
SO WHAT: Lincoln Hall and Schubas are some of our favorite venues in the city and they always have something great going on. Check out what's going this weekend at these great venues
- 1/23 - Schubas Open Mic HOSTED BY SHARRON PALM, and SAM SELBY @ Schubas FREE
- 1/23 - 100% Off : Soul Momentum + ADIA + Ifeanyi Elswith + Dai + Havick + Mvte + Wren @ Schubas FREE
- 1/23 - Bay Ledges + future.exboyfriend @ Lincoln Hall
- 1/24 - Elucid + Rich Jones @ Schubas
- 1/24 - Meet Me Upstairs Presents: Private Practice @ Schubas
- 1/25 - C.H.E.F. + Pretoria + Impulsive Hearts @ Schubas
- 1/25 - Christian Lee Hutson + Allegra Krieger @ Lincoln Hall
- 1/26 - Grizfolk + Tanner Dane @ Schubas
- 1/26 - ((( O ))) + FINGY @ Lincoln Hall
NOW WHAT: Head out to Schubas & Lincoln Hall and enjoy this great lineup of shows!
Movies on the Big Screen and Home @ Music Box Theatre, 3733 N Southport Ave, various times
WHAT: A great way to support a great local theater
SO WHAT: The Music Box Theatre recently underwent some great renovations,and are ready for all your movie needs u with some excellent films like The Brutalist on 70MM, Nosferatu (2024), Legend, Stop Making Sense, Bad Hostage (Director Mimi Wilcox and Producer Max Asaf in attendance for a post-film Q&A),Red Line 7000, and so much more!
NOW WHAT: Sit back and enjoy a new film at one of our favorite movie theatres in the city!
Chicago Humanities: New Talks and Video Archives @ Various Locations & Chicago Humanities Festival YouTube channel, your favorite browser or YouTube app, any time you want some inspiration, All Ages
WHAT: Interesting conversations with interesting people!
SO WHAT: Chicago Humanities Festival always brings some of the best ideas to the surface with entertaining programming that captures your imagination. There's tons of talks going on this season, so head over to their website which is constantly updated with new talks. In fact they just announced a good portion of their Spring lineup! And be sure to check out their podcast Chicago Humanities Tapes, which features conversations with some of their best presenters and other great humanities-minded minds! Take a look at some of their upcoming events below:
- 3/1 Juan Williams: New Prize for These Eyes @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 3/1 You Didn’t Hear This From Me: (Mostly) True Notes on Gossip with Kelsey McKinney @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 3/3 Destroyer (solo) @ Old Town School of Folk Music - Maurer Concert Hall
- 3/8 MBIZO!: A Gathering for Johnny Dyani @ Constellation
- 3/9 Dylan Mulvaney: Paper Doll @ The Den Theatre
- 3/13 Paul Reiser: A Career-Spanning Conversation @ Music Box Theatre
- 3/17 Chris Hayes Laureates+ Member Reception @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 3/17 Julian Lage in Performance @ Old Town School of Folk Music - Maurer Concert Hall
- 3/17 The Sirens' Call: Chris Hayes on the Attention Economy @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 3/17 Second Show Added: Julian Lage in Performance @ Old Town School of Folk Music - Maurer Concert Hall
- 3/20 The Interview Show: Samantha Harvey + Jonathan Weisman @ FitzGerald's
- 4/1 Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson on Abundance @ UIC Dorin Forum
- 5/14 Nils Frahm in Concert @ The Salt Shed
Check out their talk "Edward Burns Shares a Pint with Chicago" below!
NOW WHAT: Head over to take a look at their past events here! You should also sign up for their email list to get updates on upcoming talks in 2025
University of Chicago Folk Festival @ Your favorite spot in your home, All Ages
WHAT: A fantastic folk festival
SO WHAT: University of Chicago Folk Festival might have come and gone but their digital presence is still around, making sure the wonderful music reaches as many people as possible! You can check out the past few years of performances on their Facebook page and their YouTube channel any time you want! This past year's performers included The Price Sisters, Brian Conway, Jerron "Blind Boy" Paxton, Ruby John, Sean "Mack" McDonald, and many more!
NOW WHAT: Head over to their Facebook page and their YouTube channel and enjoy the show! We highly encourage you to donate to help support this fantastic folk festival! You can check out day one here and day two here!