Neighborhood News – Celebrate Labor Day in the Chicago Loop and West Loop
Come on, this isn’t really the end of summer! Though Labor Day Weekend typically signals the end of vacations, there are still three more weeks of summer left on the calendar, with elongated evenings, warm temperatures and fun outdoor activities still abound! Enjoy!
And All That Jazz… For more than 40 years,Labor Day Weekend meant one thing for Chicagoans.. the Chicago Jazz Festival! From Thursday, September 1 to Sunday, September 4, the oldest of Chicago’s free lakefront music festivals boasts a diverse lineup, which includes free neighborhood concerts leading up to the main show at Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph Street.
However, this year’s fest is so much more than Grant Park. On Thursday, September 1, from 3:30-4:30pm – The Marlene Rosenberg Quartet performs at the Chicago Cultural Center’s Preston Bradley Hall, while at their Claudia Cassidy Theater at 3:15pm, a special 65th anniversary screening of ‘What is This Thing called Jazz?’ which follows Louis ‘Satchmo’ Armstrong on tour Europe, Africa and back to the United States in the mid-1950s, captured by the camera crews of journalist Edward R. Murrow. The bebop revolution known as jazz starts at Millennium Park, in the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. From 6:30-7:30pm – Mike Allemana Vonology, followed by Henry Threadgill Zooid at 7:45pm. For a complete schedule, click here.
No Bull…Mark your calendars for the inaugural Bulls Fest on Saturday, September 3 and Sunday, September 4 at the United Center’s vast parking lot, 1901 W. Madison, from 8am-10pm. Lots of hoop-ifying entertainment, including a 3×3 Tournament, world-class entertainment like G Herbo, Da Brat, Bulls mascot Benny the Bull, the Luvabulls autographs, photo ops, and local Chicago bands, including Sixteen Candles. Free admission to all fans and a new opportunity to build excitement as the Bulls get ready for the start of the 2022-2023 regular season!. For more information, click here.
Taste of Polonia Festival…The 40th Anniversary of the Copernicus Foundation’s annual salute steps off September 2-5, at the Taste of Polonia Festival, 5216 W. Lawrence Avenue. For four days, you can enjoy a true cultural experience that includes nonstop live music, dance performances, authentic Polish food and beer, exhibitions, local merchants, a casino, beer garden, a Kids Stage and area filled with great activities and much much more! For tickets and information, click here.
Bike The Drive….On Sunday, September 4, from 6:30am. –10:30am, grabyour bike, the kids, and your neighbors and ride on Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive for Bike The Drive. With sweeping views of the lake and skyline, you’ll enjoy fresh air and the wind on your face! Ride as little or as much of the 30-mile course as you’d like and then enjoy a post-ride festival in Grant Park, 235 S. Columbus Drive. Bike rentals are available. For more information, click here.
Taking Bows…The summer long street festival, Sundays on State, ends for 2022 on Sunday, September 4, from 11am-6 pm. Enjoy the vast culture of the city, through interactive demonstrations of the arts, active recreation, food, drinks, shopping, and local attractions at this free event! Sunday’s entertainment includes the Joffrey Ballet,CrocodileRockStar,the Black Ensemble Theatre, and Cabaret ZaZou Luminaire, and the Soul Train Experience. For a complete list of events, click here.
Au Revoir, Cezanne! The Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Avenue, ends its groundbreaking retrospective of impressionist Paul Cezanne’s works on Labor Day, Monday, September 5. Cezanne’s work includes 80 oil paintings, 40 watercolors and drawings, and two complete sketchbooks. Why is this art, more than a century old, stillrelevant today? Find out! For tickets and more information, click here.
Alison Moran-Powers and Dean’s Team Chicago
