The Chicago Traveler

Spend New Year’s Eve at Dave and Busters in Downtown Chicagofor extreme fun and games.  $50  per person gets you includes VIP access, a $20 Power Card that you use for the games you will play and an entry to the prizes and giveaways that will go on throughout the evening.
There will be of course food!  The buffet will have chicken wings, pizza bites and all types of goodies for you to partake of throughout the night. 
Reservations are required.  Email Kristen at  kristen_banks@daveandbusters.com  for more information.  Tell her the Chicago Traveler sent you there.

Comments Off

• The Halloween Ghost Bash at Ghost Bar (hosted by the Lincoln Park Young Professionals) includes appetizers, candy, Skyy martinis, and a Bloody Mary bar.
• Plan B invites all Saints and Sinners to come up with the scariest, sexiest, and most creative Halloween costumes.
• Ohm holds its 6th annual Halloween Fundraiser with an open bar and prizes for best costumes. Proceeds benefit Urban Initiatives, a nonprofit organization working to boost children’s academic performance by establishing soccer programs.
• The Haunted Happening at Take Five offers a cash prize for best costume and benefits the Concordia Avondale Campus, a community center serving …read more

Comments Off

• Miss Foozie hosts the 12th annual North Halsted Street Halloween Parade. (Register at Spin to participate in the parade.) After the parade, festivities include a costume contest and the Chicago Spirit Brigade.
• Comic book fans can party down at Heroes & Villians sponsored by Metromix at Harry Caray’s Tavern. Guests can enter the costume contest by having a professional photo taken in front of a comic book backdrop. Awards will be given for Best Hero, Best Villian, and Best Overall Costume.
• Psychic Sidney Friedman shows off his telepathic and mind reading skills at Davenport’s as part of Mind Shivers.
• …read more

Comments Off

• After enjoying cocktails at Plan B, hop on a bus for a tour of four allegedly haunted bars as part of Boo & Brew. (Oct 30)
• Traverse the Trails of Terror, a half-mile of wooded trails in Peterson Park filled with creepy characters. Not suitable for small children. (ends Oct 31)
• ‘The Fear’ at Navy Pier is a tented, outdoor haunted house aimed at teens and adults, featuring zombies, werewolves, vampires, and more. (ends Nov 2)
• The Halloween Bash at Murphy’s Bleachers includes food, drinks, live music, a costume contest, and raffle prizes. Proceeds benefit the North Side Housing …read more

Comments Off

Halloween is one of my favorite times of year. However, I have to say that I much prefer the scary, evil-looking ghouls over the smiling, cartoon-like ghosts. But whatever your likes, you can likely find a stage performance that suits the season.
• Dream Theatre re-presents Anna, in the Darkness, a terrifying story about a young teacher trapped in her own home while the entire town gathers to kill her… and the audience is trapped inside with her… (ends Nov 2)
• Think the goriness has gotten out of hand? You haven’t seen anything yet. Annoyance Productions hosts Splatter Theatre, a parody …read more

Comments Off

• If you’ve ever been to a garage sale, you’ve probably seen the chance video cassette for sale that no one wants. Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher have been collecting these tapes from garage sales, thrift stores, and trash bins. They will present them in the Found Footage Festival at Lakeshore Theater. Expect a hilarious look at workout videos, training films, and random recordings. (Oct 24)
• Costumed representatives from the Chicago White Sox, the Chicago Sky, and other businesses will compete in the relay race Freaky Fast 500 (hosted by Jimmy John’s) outside the Thompson Center. A cash prize goes …read more

Comments Off

• The 44th Annual Chicago International Film Festival begins this weekend, featuring over 100 films from 46 countries. (ends Oct 29)
• More than five dozen vendors from Chicago will sell art, antiques, jewelry, and more at the Fall French Market. The fair also includes French cooking demonstrations and kids’ activities. (Oct 17-19)
• Sixty local and national chefs are featured at the 20th annual Celebrity Chef Ball, including Top Chef: Chicago winner Stephanie Izard, contestant Valerie Bonan, and Top Chef: New York contender Radhika Desai. (Oct 17)
• Oracle Productions holds their third installment of terrifying entertainment, Disturbed III. The audience stands …read more

Comments Off

Tomorrow is National Coming Out Day, encouraging awareness and discussion about gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer issues.
But promoting diversity and acceptance doesn’t have to be all serious business. The Center on Halsted in Boystown features a theatre that’s home to the comedy troupe, GayCo. This award-winning not-for-profit ensemble is made up of eight talented performers and specializes in sketch comedy revues with a gay slant.

GayCo was born from the famous Second City Training Center as a workshop production in 1996 for gay and lesbian performers. Their comedy runs the gamut from silly to witty and pokes fun at just …read more

Comments Off

• The 11th Annual Chicago Art Open presents drawings, paintings, photographs, and more by nearly 300 artists at Merchandise Mart. (ends Oct 19)
• Several local spas are taking part in the Pretty in Pink Fundraiser and offering fixed-price ($31) massages, facials, and other beauty treatments. Every participating spa and salon has made a donation to Breast Cancer Network of Strength. Be sure to mention “Pretty in Pink” when booking your appointment. (ends Oct 31)
• Want to see something spooky? Take the Chicago Hauntings Ghost Tour, featuring Hull House, the sites of the St Valentine’s Day Massacre and Eastland Disaster, and …read more

Comments Off

If you were a child in Chicago anytime between 1961 and 1994, you will recognize the following names: Cooky, Wizzo, Cuddly Dudley, Garfield Goose… These characters and more were all regulars on Bozo’s Circus and then on the even more popular The Bozo Show, both of which were produced locally and aired on WGN.1
You might drive by the WGN television studios and not even know it. While most of the other TV stations in Chicago broadcast from beautiful skyscrapers downtown (including the NBC Tower), the WGN structure looks like a boring office building. That’s because it was constructed in 1963, …read more

Comments Off