From film screenings and premiere plays to indoor concerts and outdoor festivals, the Windy City can be proud of its Pride Month lineup.
Maverick Movies
Throughout June, Music Box Theatre is hosting Fond of His Mother: Queer-Coded Hitchcock. The retro film series includes 1951’s Strangers on a Train (June 6), 1940’s Rebecca (June 13, June 15), 1958’s Psycho (June 21, June 23, June 25), and 1947’s Rope (June 22, June 27).
Call Me By Your Name (2017) and Moonlight (2016) are among the films being shown during AMC Theatres Pride Month Series (June 6-July 1) while Hyde Park Art Center‘s Art of Pride (June 7) offers short film screenings and free public programming to mark the month.
Live Performances
Annie Proulx’s novella Brokeback Mountain (1996) jumps off the page onto the Courtyard Theater stage thanks to Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s North American premiere production and Ashley Robinson’s new adaptation. This Wyoming-set love story between two cowboys became popular in 2005 with Ang Lee’s film of the same name. “It’s a huge pleasure to launch this beautiful love story in the Midwest, so close to its spiritual home,” says Artistic Director Edward Hall. “Audiences will enjoy a truly immersive experience watching this in the intimacy of the Courtyard Theater, where every glance, every breath and every absence deepens what is unsaid and felt beneath the surface.”
The Second City Chicago opens its doors for Give It To Me Gay (June 18) spotlighting sketch comedy and improvisation from a lineup of diverse talent. But not before the non-profit organization playOUT! Chicago presents Spilling the Tea (June 17) at The Driehaus Museum‘s Murphy Auditorium. Exploring themes of identity, protest, spiritual grounding, visibility and joy, the program showcases queer voices in classical music as well as Black musical traditions, both honored in June.
Outdoor Action
Chicago Therapy Collective will take the Balmoral Pride Stage (sponsored by Replay Andersonville) at Midsommarfest (June 12-14) which highlights diversity and community with music, food vendors, artisans, not-for-profits and local businesses.
Three stages of live music will envelope N. Halsted Street between Addison and Grace during Chicago Pride Fest (June 21-22). Next, North Side Queer Pride (June 26-28) will spread across Rogers Park. Finally, Navy Pier Pride (July 27) will provide a full day of free activities, live music, dance, and more.
Plus…
Throughout June, Alma is celebrating Pride Month with its Brick & Ivy, cocktail that mixes gin, blueberry, lime and matcha foam. A portion of proceeds will benefit Center on Halsted.
Pride continues into summer with yo ho. (July 19-Aug, 29) at the Edge Theater Off Broadway. The Babes With Blades Theatre Company (BWBTC) world premiere reimagines queer history by charting pirates Anne Bonny and Mary Read as they set sail on a sexually-charged ship. “This hilarious and saucy comedy is perfect for the summer,” says Artistic Director Hayley Rice. “In many ways yo ho. is exactly the kind of show you would expect from BWBTC: swashbuckling swordfights between moments of illuminating the lost stories of marginalized identities. This script is also fresh, exciting and perhaps a little steamier than Babes’ offerings of the past.”