+(PLUS) Fest is basically a multi-city party to celebrate the release Bacardi+. Yeah, it's a marketing thing, but at least they're doing so in a way we can get excited about. On May 4 they're putting on ten free concerts in ten U.S. cities with more than 40 acts performing. The focus is on dancing with electronic acts and DJs forming the bills. Even Chicago's own Hood Internet is getting in on the act and performing in Las Vegas during the event. more ›

World Dance Day more ›

The Joffrey Ballet closes out the season with a program loaded with classic romance called “Spring Desire.” whose focus is the world premiere of Incantations, a new work by Val Caniparoli. The most contemporary piece on the bill, Incantations fuses classic ballet movement with a touch of modern dance. Russian composer Alexandre Rabinovitch-Barakovsky’s score sets a whimsical mood, as dancers spiral (literally) over each other. The set and lighting play a big part in this piece with the spiral theme heavily in place. Cyllindrical wire fixtures hang over the stage while costuming is kept simple in nude colors with curious henna tattoos on the backs of the male dancers. Lucy Carter’s (whose work we saw in Infra) prominent and deliberate lighting design is noteworthy in itself for adding to the work rather than simply performing a function. more ›

The Empty Bottle and Ad Hoc are teaming up to present Banter, a new series that celebrates experimental music and intelligent discourse by mingling art, informative presentations, live music and, of course, dancing. more ›

For an electronic music duo named Modeselektor, it's fitting that their music has long navigated countless electronic (and sometimes non-electronic) genres. Members Gernot Bronsert and Sebastian Szary borrow from everything from techno to drum 'n bass to dubstep to IDM and more, marking an attuned sense of the world of electronic music as a whole. Over the course of their 16-year career, Bronsert and Szary have built a name as one of the world's premiere live acts, as evidenced by their performance at Coachella just last weekend. In between their encore performance at Coachella this Sunday, Modeselektor have decided to embark upon Chicago for a gig at Metro on Saturday. more ›

The one-night-only performance of Pushed to the Edge is this Saturday night at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts (9501 Skokie Boulevard). Tickets are $30 to $38. more ›

Today we take you back to the age of Technicolor, epic dance numbers, high waists and sassy footwork, courtesy of Rita Hayworth, in a nicely edited mashup to the Bee Gees' "Staying Alive." more ›

If the 150 people who showed up Thursday to voice their ideas last night at last night's town hall meeting in Edgewater were any indication, the city struck oil with its call for public comment on its first new cultural plan in more than 25 years. more ›

This week the Joffrey veers away from its traditional root of ballet with an all-contemporary program they're calling Winter Fire, comprised of three pieces from choreographers that are shaping the future of dance. We had a chance to chat with Wayne McGregor, whose work is featured in the program. more ›

Whether you're in a relationship or not, here are a few events leading up to Valentine's Day you might want to keep your eye on. more ›

While we were outside dancing in the snow with each other last night, this little kitty stayed warm and cozy during a dance party of his own. more ›

Taking plenty of cues from artists like Kate Bush and The Knife, Austra made tidy drums, dance-ready synth beats and powerful vocals feel like a musical feast. more ›

Custom House Tavern turns six with an open house Thursday. more ›

The Joffrey's take on the Spanish story is full of warmth, humor and lightness. more ›

Paul Christiano teams up with Dance Crash as a guest director for the first time and the result is Immediate Gratification. more ›

A Bollywood dance routine flash mob? We can get behind that. more ›

It was just last year that Diplo's Mad Decent label announced that its annual block party would become a traveling affair. In addition to entertaining folks in its base city of Philadelphia, the Mad Decent Block Party also hit New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Last year's party - then at The Hideout - was at times sloppy and under-organized, but had spurts of fun and excitement, most notably during Kid Sister's headlining set. This year, Mad Decent has taken its party to Milwaukee Ave., between Western Ave. and Oakley Blvd., where it will feature sets this Saturday from Curren$y, Dillon Francis, and Lunice, among others. more ›

Comprised of nearly 900 16mm and 35mm films and videotapes, the Ruth Page Dance Collection documents historic dance performances, rehearsals and interviews from 1920 through the 1990's. more ›

Mayor Emanuel, affectionately known as the "tiny dancer," has been named a honorary chairman of the Joffrey Ballet Board of Directors. more ›

Beer more ›

Today's listings include a dance recital, a choral recital and a reading from a novelist's debut.. more ›

Last year, in the dark days of December, it seemed like nobody (except Cali Swag) knew how to do the Dougie. Today, though, First Lady Michelle Obama is all over the internet showing the nation that she knows how to get down - doing the Dougie and the Running Man at Alice Dean Middle School. It's all part of her "Let's Move!" campaign, to encourage American children to exercise and be healthier. We call it awesome. more ›

Chicago dance music continues to be the object of affection for labels and record producers around the world. The Amsterdam-based Rush Hour, an electronic music imprint pushing everything from techno to disco, will release a compilation of '80s-era dance songs called Gene Hunt Presents: Chicago Dance Tracks Vol. 1. The aforementioned producer, Hunt, has curated 14 songs from reel-to-reel archives of unreleased material written between 1982 and 1989. Many of the greats make the cut, including Larry Heard and Mr. Fingers. The compilation will be released on CD and vinyl on May 16, but you can listen to some snippets of it thanks to XLR8R. more ›

Three years ago two enterprising young men noticed a serious hole in the Chicago club scene; there were plenty of parties out there but there didn't seem to be a party that literally invited everyone to attend. They threw out the club kid hierarchy, adopted an anything goes attitude to the genres they would spin and decided that Monday nights would be the best time to test drive this concept they would name Rehab. That test drive grew into a road trip that grew into a regular transatlantic cruise of partying. more ›

The monthly Soul Summit dance party at Double Door is one of the best places to be if you enjoy getting down to early soul and R&B. The sound is ripped from the days of dancing in dark basements with sweat dripping off the ceiling and it's brought to you by resident DJs Dave Mata, Sloppy White, and Duke Grip. Each month this core group invites guest DJs to help rip up the joint and tonight features an appearance by (arguably the masters of spinning the genre in Chicago) East of Edens Soul Express. more ›

So we had a lot of time Friday to learn how to Dougie. Maybe we should have worked on how to Huskie, instead. more ›

Armando “Mondo” Guerra didn’t quite sew up Project Runway last season (he came in second), but the knee-sock-clad, 32-year-old designer charmed audiences with his unique brand of charisma and bold sense of style. This week Guerra returns to the catwalk, this time as a judge for Vogue for Tots 4, a ball-style vogue-off to benefit ChicagoToyDrive.org. Presented by Mint Male, Stardust, and Berlin, the event features various “houses” that werk their lewks and moves as they compete in categories such as Butch Royalty, Glossy Twink, Glamour Dyke, Tranny Realness and Vogue the House. more ›

As we noted earlier, the entire Gothamist network has been dealing with some technical issues most of the day that seem to have been ironed out (knockonwood). Comes with the territory, but it still doesn't make it less frustrating for readers or staff. more ›

The folks at Fake Shore Drive have new tracks online for you from Twista and Kid Sister ready to roll. more ›

In their sixteen years, the Sones de México Ensemble has been the local standard bearer for Mexican "son" and how the music varies by region. Their mission has also allowed them to incorporate as a 501(c)3 educational non-profit, allowing them to take their music and traditions to schools, communities, and other organizations across the country, and further research the history of one of Mexico's best-known musical styles. more ›