Events on Wednesday, August 26

<em>The Vanished Empire</em> (2008)

Film

The Vanished Empire

Wednesday 8/26 @ Gene Siskel Film Center

A love triangle between three teenagers that culminates in a coming-of-age tale might sound about as compelling as watching Matthew McConaughey,... 

Opera Cabal

Music

Opera Cabal

Wednesday 8/26 @ High Concept Laboratories

The Chicago-based DIY music collective Opera Cabal opens a mini-run of preview performances with tonight's interpretation of the Schoenberg masterpiece "Pierrot... 

The Armor Class w/ the Roadside Graves, Divebar, and the Pullman Strike

Music

The Roadside Graves

Wednesday 8/26 @ Bottom Lounge

With a name like the Roadside Graves, you'd think this country-rock seven-piece with New Jersey roots would be a somber crew,... 

Ongoing Events

FrankenMatt

Comedy

FrankenMatt

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Second City e.t.c.

For 50 years, Chicago has steadily exported its most lucrative cash crop to the coasts: sketch and improv talent from theaters... 

Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary

City Gems

Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary

Wednesday 8/26 @ Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary

If nothing else, taking up birdwatching gives you a convenient excuse to bring terms like "Magnificent Frigatebird" and "Purple Gallinule" into... 

Dance Dance Party Party

Party

Dance Dance Party Party

Wednesday 8/26 @ Perpetual Motion Dance Studio

Since its inception in 2006 by two New York dance enthusiasts, Dance Dance Party Party has developed into a fully-fledged, ladies-only... 

Zarina Bhimji: <em>Out of Blue</em>

Art

Zarina Bhimji: Out of Blue

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Art Institute of Chicago

Turner Prize nominee Zarina Bhimji returned to Uganda, her childhood home, to shoot this gorgeous, mournful short film. As Out of... 

Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

City Gems

Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

Wednesday 8/26 @ Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

Escape the roaring cars on Lake Shore Drive and the crowds at Lincoln Park Zoo by slipping through the unobtrusive entrance... 

<em>Felt</em>

Performing Arts: Puppetry

Felt

Wednesday 8/26 @ iO Chicago Theater

It's tough for an improv troupe to set itself apart in a city bursting with quality comedy options. With nine cute, floppy... 

Prairie Avenue House Museums

Get Social

Prairie Avenue House Museums

Wednesday 8/26 @ Glessner House Museum

Chicago's historic Prairie Avenue district — the site of the 1812 Fort Dearborn Massacre — became known after the Great Chicago... 

<em>Your Pal, Cliff: Selections from the H.C. Westermann Study Collection</em>

Art

H.C. Westermann

Wednesday 8/26 @ Smart Museum of Art

A remarkable artist with a sensibility all his own, H.C. Westermann pursued themes of love, death, and catastrophe in his works... 

<em>Chicago Model City</em>

Art

Chicago Model City

Wednesday 8/26 @ Chicago Architecture Foundation

As the city celebrates the centennial of Daniel Burnham's Plan of Chicago (if you don't think it's brilliant, try navigating a... 

<em>District 9</em>

Film

District 9

Wednesday 8/26 @ AMC River East 21

Overturning the usual alien invasion scenario, District 9 recasts a million extraterrestrial visitors as refugees, confined to a slum in Johannesburg.... 

<em>The History Boys</em>

Theatre

The History Boys

Wednesday 8/26 @ TimeLine Theatre

The History Boys treads familiar ground, following a band of students and the teachers who light their way — but Alan... 

<em>Cy Twombly: The Natural World, Selected Works 2000&ndash;2007</em>

Art

Cy Twombly

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Art Institute of Chicago

Keeping to his own path, Cy Twombly has developed a singular idiom over five decades. His energetic paintings are marked by... 

<em>MP3 II</em>: Curtis Mann, John Opera, and Stacia Yeapanis

Art: Photography

MP3 II: Curtis Mann, John Opera, and Stacia Yeapanis

Wednesday 8/26 @ Museum of Contemporary Photography

MP3 II presents works by three Midwest-based photographers, their divergent approaches united by the transformative nature of their pieces. Curtis Mann... 

<em>The Big World: Recent Art from China</em>

Art

The Big World: Recent Art from China

Wednesday 8/26 @ Chicago Cultural Center

Since the Chicago Cultural Center last presented an exhibition of recent art from China 12 years ago, the country has experienced... 

<em>America: All Better!</em>

Comedy

America: All Better!

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Second City

The 2008 election may have delivered a ray of hope, but storm clouds still hang above us. That's the uneasy premise... 

Veggie Bingo

Special Event: Benefit

Veggie Bingo

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Hideout

Community gardens win big at the Hideout's weekly Veggie Bingo. Each Wednesday until September, Martha Bayne, the gastronome behind this winter's... 

Michael Ruglio-Misurell: <em>Project #12</em>

Art

Michael Ruglio-Misurell: Project #12

Wednesday 8/26 @ Gallery 400

Some of the more memorable artworks of recent years have been immersive, meticulously constructed environments (see Mike Nelson, or Marfa's Hello... 

Harry Potter: The Exhibition

Special Event

Harry Potter: The Exhibition

Wednesday 8/26 @ Museum of Science and Industry

Raised eyebrows and a few chuckles greeted the 1990s announcement that an exhibit of Star Wars movie memorabilia would tour such... 

<em>The Hurt Locker</em>

Film

The Hurt Locker

Wednesday 8/26 @ Landmark Century Centre Cinema

Famous for sensational thrillers like Point Break, filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow stakes a new claim as a serious-minded action auteur with The... 

<em>Studs Terkel's Not Working</em>

Comedy

Studs Terkel's Not Working

Wednesday 8/26 @ The Second City e.t.c.

After taking aim at Obama, Hillary and McCain in its recent shows, the Second City looks homeward with a heaping helping... 

<em>Constellations: Paintings from the MCA Collection</em>

Art

Constellations: Paintings from the MCA Collection

Wednesday 8/26 @ Museum of Contemporary Art

Our usual introductions to the history of 20th-century art tend to lean on certain narratives — the subversive march of the... 

Graceland Cemetery

City Gems

Graceland Cemetery

Wednesday 8/26 @ Graceland Cemetery

Hidden away on Chicago's north side, this secret memento of the city's architectural history is a large, rambling Victorian-style cemetery. Filled... 

Bertha Honoré Palmer

Special Event

Bertha Honoré Palmer

Wednesday 8/26 @ Chicago History Museum

Bertha Palmer reigned as the queen of Chicago society, but her influence was known around the world.  She was a champion... 

The Picture Tells the Story: The Drawings of Joseph E. Yoakum

Art

The Picture Tells the Story: The Drawings of Joseph E. Yoakum

Wednesday 8/26 @ Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art

An exhibition of Joseph Yoakum’s visionary landscapes, curated by Mark Pascale, caretaker of Whitney Halstead’s collection bequeathed to the Art Institute...