It's a new month and there's so much to get done this weekend! While there may be a few moments of rain throughout the next few days, that's no reason not to take out that umbrella and enjoy all the things going on in the city like these fantastic literary events happening throughout the month including Tuesday Funk, Chicago Writers Showcase, and Chicago Poetry Center Presents the Debut of Noel Quiñones’ Debut Collection, Orange this weekend!
Let's get on with your 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 "ParkLife" BY Blake Jones and Friends!
- Chicago Gamespace is the perfect spot to check out the hairy present and future of the gaming realm!
- Rotofugi is the perfect nexus of art and toys! Head over to see what new pieces of art they have in stock and on display in their gallery space! Right Now they're showing Further Isn't Far Enough, Paintings and Prints by Chuck U!
- 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.
- Garfield Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens! See what current exhibits are on display now.
- Lincoln Park Conservatory is open! Book a reservation to see all the beautiful gardens
EVENTS THIS WEEKEND!
- NOW - 7/27 Midwest Film Festival
- NOW - 10/25 Maxwell Street Market
- NOW - 10/25Wicker Park Farmers Market
- NOW - 8/30 David Byrne’s Theater of the Mind @ Reid Murdoch Building
- NOW - 9/2 Summer Fireworks @ Navy Pier (Saturdays and Wednesdays)
- NOW -9/7 Chicago Dogs @ Impact Field
- NOW - 9/5 Millennium Park Summer Workouts
- NOW - 9/7 EmotionAir: Art You Can Feel @ The Fields Studios
- NOW - 6/1 Matisse’s Jazz: Rhythms in Color @ The Art Institute of Chicago
- NOW - 4/11/27 Pokémon Fossil Museum @ The Field Museum
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
Rockin’ in the Park @ Parkway Bank Park, 5501 Park Place, Rosemont.
WHAT: A long lineup of great bands ready to rock
SO WHAT: Rockin’ in the Park will take over Parkway Bank Park for a full summer shows full of fun tribute bands and rock-focused bands. Then after the shows enjoy a musical fireworks display! This evening will feature Chicago Tribute Anthology!
NOW WHAT: It’s free! Head out and enjoy the shows!
FRIDAY - SUNDAY, JUNE 5 - 7 (& BEYOND)
Ribfest Chicago @ Lincoln Avenue between Irving Park Road and Berteau Avenue, Friday 4pm – 10pm, Saturday & Sunday Noon – 10pm, All Ages
WHAT: 50,000 pounds of pork to satisfy your hunger!
SO WHAT: It’s Ribfest Chicago’s 25th outing! The Northcenter neighborhood festival has brought together the community for a quarter of a century of the best pork around! As always they will deliver the goods with plenty of amazing food and a fantastic musical lineup including Rod Tuffcurls & The Bench Press, Black Oil Brothers, and many more! Highlights will also include the “Best Ribs” and “People’s Choice” competitions and a Kids Square for families to enjoy entertainment, inflatables, games and more.
NOW WHAT: The suggested donation is requested to benefit the Northcenter community and help support local schools, nonprofit organizations, economic development, and greening efforts. There are also VIP passes that include VIP Lounge access with private seating, bathroom, charging stations and swag bag, Official Ribfest Chicago 2026 T-Shirt, 2 DAILY drink tickets, and fast pass line access to Belle Plaine / Middle beer booth!
Lincoln Park Greek Fest @ St George Greek Orthodox Church, 2701 N. Sheffield Ave, Friday 5pm – 11pm, Saturday Noon – 11pm, Sunday Noon – 10pm, All Ages
WHAT: Take a trip to Lincoln Park as it throws its Greek Fest!
SO WHAT: St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Lincoln Park, established in 1923 by Greek immigrants, is throwing a fun Greek festival! This fantastic fest will allow you to celebrate Greek traditions with authentic food, great modern and traditional Greek music, a beautiful craft fair, and dancing performances from some incredible dance troupes!
NOW WHAT: There is a suggested $10 donation, so just head over to Lincoln Park and enjoy all the activities.
ChiTown Movies @ Pilsen Neighborhood, 2343 S. Throop St, Various Times, All Ages
WHAT: An old school experience for the modern age
SO WHAT: Take a trip back in time and head out to a drive-in movie with ChiTown Movies. Ever since the pandemic started and shut down traditional movie screening, a few pop-up drive-ins have arrived and ChiTown Movies has persevered, offering up modern movies in this retro setting. Check out their lineup at their website for showings this weekend and in the future!
- 6/4 The Housemaid 8:45pm
- 6/5 Mean Girls (the orginal!) 8:45pm
- 6/5 Nightmare on Elm Street 10:45pm
- 6/6 Jurassic Park 8:45pm
- 6/6 Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the original!) 11pm
- 6/7 Ferris Bueller's Day Off 8:45pm
- 6/7 Halloween (the 1978 Original!) 10:45pm
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' Infinite Wrench is an ongoing, ever-changing attempt to perform 30 plays in 60 minutes for a live audience.
NOW WHAT: Join the Neo-Futurists this weekend for $15-20! The Infinite Wrench and more is also available over at their Patreon!
SATURDAY & SUNDAY, JUNE 6 & 7
Beyond Wonderland @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island, 1300 S Linn White Dr., 2pm-11pm
WHAT: A electronic trip down the rabbit hole!
SO WHAT: It’s the debut of Beyond Wonderland in Chicago! This electronic dance music festival will take over the lakeside venue for two days of trippy Alice in Wonderland themed madness highlighted but some incredible music. The lineup includes the likes of ZEDD, Zed's Dead, Layton Giordani, San Holo,, and many more!
NOW WHAT: Tickets start at $139.98 for single day passes, $239.98 for two day passes and go up for GA+ and VIP passes! Head over to their website for all the details!
THE WHOLE CURATED WEEKEND & BEYOND
Chicago Blues Festival @ Ramova Theatre, 3520 S. Halsted St. Thursday 5-10:30pm, & Millennium Park (201 E. Randolph St.), Noon - 9pm. All Ages
WHAT: Celebrate the Chicago-born blues tradition!
SO WHAT: The Chicago Blues Festival is back with three days of amazing Blues musicians at Millennium Park and a special night featuring John Primer - Tribute to Theresa’s Lounge & Willie Clayton at Ramova Theatre! The festival puts a spotlight on the diverse nature of the Blues as it has influenced countless genres like soul, R&B, gospel, rock, hip hop and more. This year is headlined by Taj Mahal and the Phantom Blues Band! Check out the rest of this year’s massive and impressive schedule here!
NOW WHAT: Admission is free! Head over to theRamova on Thursday night and Millennium Park the rest of the weekend and enjoy this great festival!
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 movie theater
SO WHAT: The Music Box Theatre recently underwent some great renovations, and it's ready for all your movie needs with Obsession, Carolina Caroline, Strangers on a Train, The Magnificent Ambersons, Find Your Friends (Featuring a post-film Q&A with Writer/Director Izabel Pakzad), a midnight screening of Multiple Maniacs and more this weekend!
NOW WHAT: Sit back and enjoy a new film at one of our favorite movie theaters in the city!
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.
- 6/4 - Schubas Open Mic HOSTED BY SHARRON PALM and SAM SELBY @ Schubas (Upstairs) (FREE)
- 6/4 -Arts Fishing Club + Cardinal Bloom @ Lincoln Hall
- 6/4 - toss! + Billy Joel Jr. + Sun Queen @ Schubas
- 6/5 - Choker + Arima Ederra @ Lincoln Hall
- 6/5 - Meet Me Upstairs Presents Clark Street Jams + Cordell Johnson + Josh Zeitler @ Schubas (Upstairs)
- 6/5 -Widemouth Album Release Show + Free Range + Sleeper's Bell @ Schubas
- 6/6 - Model Living + Nervous Wake @ Schubas
- 6/7 - The Metalliques + Do The Needful + Xonni @ Schubas
- 6/7 - Augustana + Phantom Planet @ Lincoln Hall
NOW WHAT: Head out to Schubas & Lincoln Hall and enjoy this great lineup of shows!
SUNDAY, MAY 31 (& BEYOND)
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. 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! Check out their talk with Ed Helms below!
- 6/9 Matt Haig: The Midnight Train @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 6/10Dave Eggers: Contrapposto @ Old Town School of Folk Music
- 6/11 Gallery Talk and Performance: NEA Jazz Master Marilyn Crispell on Cy Twombly @ Art Institute of Chicago
- 6/12A Night with Billy Eichner @ Old Town School of Folk Music
- 5/15 A Conversation with Dr. Jill Biden @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 6/28 Ann Patchett: Whistler @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
- 10/12 SIMPLE TOO: An Evening with Yotam Ottolenghi @ Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
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 Gap Civil, High Fidelity, Lissa Schneckenburger & Garrett Cameron, Ethan Leinwand, Jontavious Willis, Luke Huval Band, Mariachi Flor de Primavera, and 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!
