Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
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LIFE IS A CABARET Warm up as the temps go down with a tour of Chicago's sultry late-night entertainment scene. BY THOMAS CONNORS Now that summer's outdoor- music fests are a faint memory, it's time to get cozy in the kinds of clubs that offer encounters of the up-close kind. At Davenport's Piano Bar (1383 N. Milwaukee Ave.; 773-278-1830; davenports pianobar.com), you'll fi nd someone tickling the ivories in the piano bar while performers render Cole Porter in the intimate cabaret room. This month's roster includes Laura Freeman, Beckie Menzie, and Marianne Murphy Orland present- ing "The Evolution of the Girl Groups," a show that swings from the Andrews Sisters to The Bangles. With "Monday Night Live," popular pre-curtain dining spot Petterino's (150 N. Dearborn St., 312-422- 0150; petterinos.com) comes alive as an old- school supper club, where almost anyone might appear on the bill. Because the show takes place on nights when theaters are dark, it's common for performers from various productions around town—Jersey Boys, Dirty Dancing—to make an appearance. On November 16, cast members from Porchlight Music Theatre's produc- tion of Ain't Misbehavin' take a bow. Across the river, Mastro's Steakhouse (520 N. Dearborn St., 312-521-5100; mastros restaurants.com) serves up its own brand of late-night entertainment. Versatile vocalist Shana Petrone is a regular, performing Thursday through Saturday. They're selling more than pizza atop Gino's East in River North. On the third fl oor in The Comedy Bar (500 N. LaSalle St., 312-836-0499; comedy barchicago.com), gams and laughs are the spot-on combo during The Wiggle Room, a weekly show featuring stand-up comics and the world-famous Chicago Starlets. With a rotating roster of burlesque dancers, comedians, and magic acts, the late-night variety show at Kiss Kiss Cabaret (4707 N. Broadway, 773-867-1946; kisskiss cabaret.com) at the Uptown Underground hits all the right notes. You can ogle a little leg, have a laugh, and wonder, How did he do that? 70 MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM 2. "This gold funerary mask from Mycenae was discovered by archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. He was trying to link the Homeric poems to specifi c sites. Mycenae is where Agamemnon launched the Trojan War, and when Schliemann came across this he said, 'I have gazed into the eyes of Agamemnon.'" 3. "This gold-plated diadem was the crown of Philip II, who united the city-states of Greece," says Parkinson. "When his son, Alexander the Great, took over, he [went on] to create an empire." The piece features the "Herakles Knot," marking the Macedonian king as a descendant of Zeus. 4. "During the Persian War, Leonidas, the Spartan king, was horribly outnumbered. It's said that before battle, the Persian king, Xerxes, told him, 'We will blacken the skies with our arrows.' And Leonidas replied, 'And we will fi ght in the shade.' This bust of Leonidas has the Spartan plume on top and ram tusks as part of the helmet. Pretty badass." 5. "The last piece you'll see is a marble statue of Alexander the Great, depicting him as a god," says Parkinson. While Pan (the god of the wilderness) is usually rendered as part goat, Alexander sports only horns and a tail. 1. "One of the stories we tell is the discovery of the human individual," relates William Parkinson, "and one of the earliest objects in the show is an amulet showing a person curled up, as if supplicating to the Gods." The small stone object dates from 4800–4300 BC. GREEK CULTURE AS THE FIELD MUSEUM EXPLORES 5,000 YEARS OF HELLENIC HISTORY WITH A MAJOR NEW EXHIBITION, ASSOCIATE CURATOR WILLIAM PAR INSON REVEALS FIVE ITEMS AT THE TOP OF HIS MUST-SEE LIST. BY THOMAS CONNORS Celebrating the profound infl uence of Greek culture on Western civilization, The Field Museum's landmark new show, "The Greeks: From Agamemnon to Alexander the Great," draws from the collections of 21 Greek muse- ums and features more than 500 objects, many of which have never been seen outside Greece. "It's not an art show," stresses associate curator William Parkinson. "It's about Greek culture, using this material to comment on the evolution of Greek politics, and economy, and ideology." With that in mind, Parkinson offers fi ve choice pieces that illustrate the essence of the exhibi- tion. "The Greeks" runs November 25 through April 10, 2016, 1400 S. Lake Shore Dr., 312-922- 9410; fi eldmuseum.org. MA Kiss Kiss Cabaret CULTURE Out & About