Halloweek Arts and Music Events in Chicago

A bounty of performances, events, and parties that will have you ready to celebrate spooky season in the Second City!

Tony Awards telecast makes inclusive history and puts on quite a show despite Hollywood strike

Tony Awards history was made when J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell became the first nonbinary people to win Tonys for acting.

Chicago Pride Concerts & Events for 2023

From concerts to screenings to festivals to parades, there’s always something happening in and around Chicago for LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

‘Some Like It Hot’ leads Tony Award nominations with 13 nods

The message of self-acceptance and respect for all was echoed across Broadway, from the new musical take on Some Like It Hot to a Black actor-led Death of a Salesman to the new play Ain’t No Mo.

A Women’s History Month Playlist: Sara Davis Buechner

After coming out as transgender, Buechner was shunned by the classical music industry. Decades later, Buechner finds herself in a more accepting world and is proud to support other LGBTQ+ musicians.

LGBTQ chorus in Colorado Springs unifies community with song

In the days since the Club Q shooting, Colorado Springs’ LGBTQ community has worked to collect itself and forge ahead.

Eric Ferring on Songs from the LGBTQ+ Perspective

The American tenor previews his upcoming debut solo album with pianist Madeline Slettedahl, “No Choice But Love.”

Elton John to perform at White House on Friday

The audience will include teachers, nurses, students, gay rights advocates, and others.

Tony Moments: A Night For Broadway to Reclaim Its Groove

Broadway has its groove back, said Tonys host Ariana DeBose at an exuberant ceremony seeking to illustrate just that sentiment.

A Walking Tour of 12 LGBTQ+ Artists Whose Legacies Are on Display in Chicago

In the Lakeview Neighborhood, the Legacy Walk, a series of ten 25-foot pylons, recognizes influential figures across genders, races, and fields.

Reynaldo Hahn and Guy Ferrant

Reynaldo Hahn’s world was the Paris salon, where he reigned supreme with his songs and went about in his full‐length opera cape.

5 Conversations: Studs Terkel and LGBTQ+ Voices

“Among the eminent broadcast journalists of his generation, Studs Terkel may well stand alone in his consistent compassion for lesbian and gay people and curiosity about their lives.” Here are just a few testaments to that compassion.

‘Closets Are For Clothes’: Celebrating Pride Month through Musical Coming Out Stories

“I wanted to encourage young emerging LGBTQ+ composers to write pieces that tell their story in an authentic way… This concert series is both a celebration of how far we have come and how far we still have to go.”

After a 50-year wait, ‘Stonewall’ opera was written in weeks

This is the third major presentation of City Opera’s LGBTQ series following Peter Eotvos’ Angels in America in 2017 and Charles Wuorinen’s Brokeback Mountain last year.

Interview | Trans baritone Lucia Lucas on making her historic US debut

In 2019, Lucia Lucas made history as the first trans opera artist to star in a professional American opera production of a standard repertory opera.

WFMT, Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus Celebrate Bernstein 100 In Pop-up Boystown Performance

To celebrate Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday, WFMT and the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus presented a pop-up performance of “Somewhere” from the composer’s beloved musical West Side Story. The event was broadcast live from the Legacy Walk in Chicago’s Boystown neighborhood.

Was Frida Kahlo the ‘greatest love’ and Muse to This Iconic Lesbian Chanteuse?

The name Frida Kahlo is often associated with Diego Rivera. But Kahlo, one of Mexico’s most iconic painters, may have also had a romantic relationship with one of Mexico’s most iconic singers: Chavela Vargas.

Video: After Coming Out as Gay, This Russian Violinist Can’t Return Home. This Is How Music Helped Him Find Acceptance.

For violinist Artem Kolesov, leaving his home country didn’t just offer the opportunity for professional advancement, it was also a chance to escape a life of constant fear and persecution.

Conductor, MacArthur ‘Genius’ Marin Alsop Explains Why There Aren’t More Women on the Podiums

Marin Alsop is a woman of many firsts; she spoke to WFMT about how she’s inspired young women, why there aren’t more women on the podiums, and more.