ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar THIRD COAST PERCUSSION  presents Chicago premiere of the first percussion composition by  2024® GRAMMY Award winner and CSO Mead Composer-in-Residence,  JESSIE MONTGOMERY a powerful collaboration between two Chicago GRAMMY® winners Photo credits: left-right Third Coast Percussion, photo by Saverio Truglia. TCP with Jessie Montgomery, photo by Colin D Campbell. Jessie Montgomery, photo by Jiyang Chen. Third Coast Percussion (TCP), the Chicago-based GRAMMY® Award-winning quartet of classically trained percussionists, is a top favorite of ou ..read more

ChiIL Live Shows On Our Radar  'Batman 1989' Live in concert  with 50-piece orchestra at the Auditorium Theatre Apr. 13th for film's 35th Anniversary What’s Batman’s favorite instrument? The Bat Cymbol!  AUDITORIUM PHILMS CONCERT SERIES  continues with Batman 1989 35th Anniversary concert  One night only Saturday, April 13 at 7:30 PM At the Auditorium Theatre  See the classic film as the Chicago Philharmonic performs the iconic score live on stage ChiIL Mama will be there... will you?! Can't wait to catch this.  What? A melding of pop culture and high cult ..read more

ChiIL Mama's Chi, IL Picks List:  Family Friendly Fun C2E2: CHICAGO COMIC & ENTERTAINMENT EXPO 2024  Fri Apr 26 - Sun Apr 28 Credit for all 2023 photos: Dugan Kenaz-Mara Got your cosplay ready? It's that time of year again! Here at ChiIL Mama & ChiIL Live Shows, we've had press credentials to cover C2E2 for years. It's one of our favorite annual events to shoot as folks go all out on the costumes. We dig rampant creativity, and from Artists' Alley to handmade items in booths, C2E2 has got it in spades.  We've had press credentials to cover since 2012, when my ..read more

ChiIL Mama's Chi, IL Picks List:   Adult Shows With Family Themes On Our Radar  About Face Theatre to produce the Midwest premiere of  The Brightest Thing in the World directed by Keira Fromm March 14-April 13, 2024 About Face Theatre continues its 29th season with the Midwest premiere of The Brightest Thing in the World by Leah Nanako Winkler, directed by AFT Artistic Associate Keira Fromm. The show will run March 14 through April 13, 2024, at The Den Theatre. The Brightest Thing in the World starts as a bubbling romantic comedy between barista Lane and her regular ..read more

Chi, IL Live Shows On Our Radar  Message In A Bottle Choreography by Kate Prince, set to the most celebrated hits of world-renowned artist, Sting, is now playing in Chicago for a limited one-week engagement February 28 – March 3, 2024 Audiences can now see Message In A Bottle, a new dance theatre production choregraphed by Sadler’s Wells’ Associate Artist Kate Prince at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre for a limited run, from February 28, 2024 to March 3, 2024. Produced by Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK, Message In A Bottle is a dance theatre production set to the music of 17-tim ..read more

ChiIL Mama’s ChiIL Picks List:  Family Friendly Shows On Our Radar MUSIC THEATER WORKS ANNOUNCES THE CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR  THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE MARCH 7 - 31, AT THE NORTH SHORE CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS IN SKOKIE Perfect for All Ages, with Adult Only Performances, Spelling Bee Invites Audiences to Join This Group of Unique and Dedicated Students as they Compete for the Spelling Bee Championship in this Hilarious Musical  Tickets Only $25 for those Younger than 25 Years Old. Music Theater Works is proud to announce the cast and creative team for ..read more

 ChiIL Mama’s ChiIL Picks List:  Adult Shows With Family Themes On Our Radar JENNIFER MORRISON STARS AS “PENELOPE,” LEADS AN ALL-FEMALE, ALL-CHICAGO CAST OF 13 IN  MARGARET ATWOOD’S THE PENELOPIAD DIRECTED BY SUSAN V. BOOTH, CHOREOGRAPHY BY JOANN M. HUNTER ***BOOTH’S FIRST PRODUCTION TO DIRECT AS NEW GOODMAN ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, THE CHICAGO PREMIERE APPEARS MARCH 2 - 31, 2024 IN THE ALBERT THEATRE*** (L-R Back Row) Hannah Whitley, Ericka Ratcliff, Laura Savage, Elizabeth Laidlaw, Allison Sill and Noelle Kayser. (L-R Front Row) Helen Joo Lee, Demetra Dee, Tyler Meredith, Jennife ..read more

ChiIL Mama’s ChiIL Picks List:  Family Friendly Shows On Our Radar Paramount Theatre's  Billy Elliot: The Musical  Michelle Aravena (right, with cigarette) plays Mrs. Wilkinson, a ballet teacher who sees unusual talent in a young British boy named Billy (Neo Del Corral, center).  All production photos by Liz Lauren. Inspired new production of the coming-of-age tale  directed by Trent Stork February 7-March 24, 2024 REVIEW: By Bonnie Kenaz-Mara Before miners or dancers ever step foot on the stage, the sheer magnitude of  ..read more

ChiIL Mama’s ChiIL Picks List:  Family Friendly Shows On Our Radar Cloud Man  The production is thanks to a new partnership between Filament and the Scottish theatre company Constellation Points. Cloud Man has been specifically designed for audiences members between 4-7 years old, but Filament welcomes family members of all ages. The Northwest Side theater for young audiences invites audiences to follow the clues to the top of Cloud Mountain March 17 through April 14. Expect magical puppets, inventive storytelling, and lots of clouds and surprises. Filament Theatre, the Northwest S ..read more

ChiIL Mama’s Chi,IL Picks List:  Family Friendly Shows On Our Radar Roald Dahl’s  JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH Peter Blair, Executive Producer  Peter Marston Sullivan, Artistic Director  Katie Johannigman, Associate Artistic Director  Presents  A delightfully offbeat adaptation of the classic Roald Dahl adventure!  Marriott Theatre for Young Audiences invites theatergoers of all ages on a remarkable voyage with Roald Dahl’s JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH. Roald Dahl’s beloved story is brought to fantastical musical life, running February 16 to March 30, with a pr ..read more