Last weekend, Thalia Hall was treated to a very special and intimate evening with the vastly talented actress, singer and songwriter, Maya Hawke. Though many will recognize her for her iconic on-screen role on Netflix’s Stranger Things, she has also been making deeply melodic music that dates back to as early as 2019. Supporting her newly released 4th studio album, MAITREYA CORSO, Maya Hawke performed a beautifully personal show to a very devoted crowd at Thalia Hall which mainly consisted of (at the time) unreleased tracks from her new LP.
The devotion to Hawke's sound was evident before the show even started; the line to get into Thalia Hall stretched down 18th Street with hugely committed fans ahead of doors opening for the show. The venue gradually filled in rather quickly as the lengthy line funneled into the room for the intimate performance. This was strictly a Maya Hawke and her band only kind of night; skipping an opener for the evening.
The room was jam packed with enthusiasm in the air for the set ahead and as Maya walked onto the stage I found myself just as starstruck as the rest of the crowd. Her presence on stage was gentle yet confidently firm. Hawke, along with her two bandmates (Violinist Odessa Jorgensen & her spouse Christian Lee Hutson) made themselves comfortable on stage, sitting in a semi circle for a performance that felt like a casual hangout with long time friends. The trio kicked off their set with the lead single from MAITREYA CORSO, “Devil You Know.”
What made this show so special was Maya’s efforts to speak with the crowd in between almost every song; discussing the new album and explaining the new tracks she was performing. It felt like catching up with an old friend; it truly was refreshing for such a superstar to be able to sit down and talk to her fans openly aside from her dreamy performance.
Hawke performed a majority of the new album and the trio faithfully covered the serene “Still Crazy After All These Years” by Paul Simon early in the set. Hawke concluded her show with an encore consisting of two older songs, “Luna Moth” and “Thérèse” from her 2022 album, MOSS.
Hawke’s new album is out today; and getting to hear her new songs ahead of the release date was truly something special I’m sure the crowd will treasure for a long time. It’s a pretty rare occurrence when artists get to do that sort of thing at venues as small as Thalia Hall; and when they do, they are a once in a lifetime opportunity. Though Maya’s set was mostly acoustic, I would not be surprised to see her return to Chicago very soon to support her new album with full fledged production.
All photos by Andrew Lagunas.
