Give Your Cabin Fever Das Boot With Mayfest
By Danette Chavez in Arts & Entertainment on May 28, 2015 8:45PM
Now that the outdoors has become considerably more hospitable again, it's time to dance around the Maypole. The 17th Annual Mayfest (or the German "Maifest") kicks off today in Lincoln Square and runs through Sunday. That's nearly four days of food, beer, live music and good old-fashioned German Gemütlichkeit (a "state of warmth or friendliness").
Mayfest is the traditional German celebration of spring—a season which, this year anyway, seems to have timed its arrival with the festival's late May dates. The heart of Chicago's German-American community rests squarely in Lincoln Square, as does the festival. You'll find beer and food vendors along with live music stages and craft tents at Lincoln and Leland Avenues.
The festival—along with its fall counterpart, the German-American Fest—promotes Chicago’s German heritage and will benefit cultural organizations such as the DANK Haus, the American Aid Society of German Descendants and the Donauschwaben Society of Chicago. The program includes German dance groups, bands and choirs, as well as the Jesse White Tumblers.
Thursday's lineup, with performers from the Old Town School of Folk Music, is a sneak peek at the weekend's events. The official opening ceremony is on Friday, when the keg will be tapped and the May Queen is crowned. Saturday and Sunday are two full days of merry-making and performances by Phenix, The Polkaholics and The Captain Blood Expedition.
Admission to May Fest is free and open to the public. The festival, which is at the intersection of Leland and Lincoln Avenues, is open on Thursday from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Friday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m.; and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m.