Miishkooki Art Space, a new gallery (not quite) in town, had a jubilant opening last weekend with “Sweet Spoils,” a 95-piece show of comics-inspired art from all over the U.S. and Europe. Miishkooki is the sole inhabitant of a one-story commercial building on Oakton Avenue in Skokie, where it’s nestled among dental offices and insurance agencies, down the street from a dollar store and Brothers Food Market, and a short stroll from the Oakton stop on the Skokie Swift....

Playwright Kristine Thatcher picked up where she and actor-playwright Larry Shue (The Nerd, The Foreigner) left off over 30 years ago with the world premiere of Waiting for Tina Meyer, a romantic comedy that the pair began cowriting decades ago and that reads in its completed form like William Inge crossed with Samuel Beckett, mixed with a hefty dollop of When Harry Met Sally. “To me this piece is about living life to the fullest....

French-Cuban twins Lisa-Kainde and Naomi Diaz, also known as polystylistic R&B duo Ibeyi, masterfully transform firsthand experiences and thoughts into something universal on their ravishing second album, Ash (XL). The former wrote the song “I Wanna Be Like You” with the latter in mind. Though the lyrics recall her early memories of dreaming she possessed the qualities of her sibling, as the sisters sing, “I’m often down, often down / I often cry, often cry,” they come off as a powerful yearning for childlike optimism and hope....

Reader staffers share stories that fascinate, alarm, amuse, or inspire us. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons Do not swim • About how the $179 million spent on a single Picasso painting helps tell the story of rising global inequality? —Ryan Smith • About the tragedy of Madison Holleran, an Ivy League track athlete, who constructed a perfect-looking Instagram life before jumping off a nine-story parking garage in January 2014? —Aimee Levitt

Q: Something is bothering me and I don’t know where else to turn. I’m a bisexual man. I’ve been married to a great guy for the past six years. Despite COVID we gathered safely for an outdoors Thanksgiving dinner with my family. My mom, my brother and sister-in-law, and my adult nieces and nephews and their partners were there. Each household contributed to the feast and we had a wonderful evening....

There are plenty of events happening in Chicago this weekend. Here’s some of what we recommend: Sat 3/3: A stack of scripts, some drinks, and fumbled lines make up iO Theater’s (1501 N. Kingsbury) Hot Reads, where scripts are read on-site by actors, prompting the audience to drink each time a line is flubbed. Midnight, $5

My favorite question as an arts journalist is “Why now?” When Harvey Fierstein’s Casa Valentina first hit New York stages in 2014, the answer seemed clear. Across the country, states had started to legalize queer marriage left and right; it wasn’t a matter of if it would become the law of the land, but when. With the white weddings and registries, however, continued the question of assimilation: What do we lose when we insist we’re just like everyone else?...

DIY spaces come and go, but people such as Charles Joseph Smith give the city’s nebulous underground scene a sense of cohesion. Smith, who performs under both his own name and that of his performance-art alter ego, Mr. Forefinger, is a champion of the outre, odd, and endearing. A familiar face around independent shows, Smith is likely to be found in the thick of the crowd, busting out dance moves that blur together breakin’ and ballet, which he showed off on local cable-access dance program Chic-a-Go-Go (a fine feather in any underground Chicago musician’s cap)....

With every passing year percussionist John Hollenbeck has upped his game as a composer and arranger, writing increasingly ambitious material for his two primary groups: the chamber-music-like Claudia Quintet and the richly orchestrated Large Ensemble. He’s a devoted student of jazz’s big-band tradition, cleaving unapologetically to ambitious composers and arrangers such as his longtime mentor Bob Brookmeyer. Earlier this year his Large Ensemble dropped its strongest album yet, All Can Work (New Amsterdam), which resonates more for me with every listen—it rarely connects directly with conventional big-band jazz, focusing instead of vibrant harmony, intricate moving parts, and bursts of sonic color....

The first Helltrap Nightmare I attended was in 2016, in the bar half of Cafe Mustache. Sarah Sherman took the stage wearing a metallic jumpsuit hand-painted with veiny boobs, holding up a Ziploc bag full of her own pubic hair—an intro that, though jarring, was completely on-brand. In the years following Helltrap’s inception, the format has expanded to include the entire spectrum of performance-based comedy and DIY music, serving as a multigenre open mike for any and every one....

This could be the story of two wrongful convictions. This could be the story of how James Allen was railroaded by a Chicago police detective and Cook County prosecutors who didn’t think he deserved to be free. But before he has the chance to prove that he’s innocent of two murders, Allen needs one thing: for Dorothy Brown, the clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, to do her job....

Lucky is the suit, empty or otherwise, whose downfall inspires somebody to reach for Shakespeare. Jack Griffin, the ousted CEO of Tribune Publishing, was just shown that kindness. “This is almost Shakespearean,” says the “savvy industry observer” quoted in media writer Ken Doctor’s account of Griffin’s downfall. “The CEO brings in a new shareholder as his ‘partner’ and his ally’s first move is to kick him out. Act One is Romeo and Juliet and Act Two is Julius Caesar....

Reader staffers share stories that fascinate, alarm, amuse, or inspire us. Greg Allen/Invision/AP Joel Grey: Out of the closet at 82 years of age • About rush at UVA in the aftermath of the Rolling Stone article? —Aimee Levitt • That the final place in the quarterfinals of soccer’s Africa Cup of Nations has been decided by drawing of lots—Guinea progressing and Mali eliminated from the tournament—after the two teams finished the group stage with only ties and tied on all other tiebreakers?...

Courtesy of Eartheater’s Facebook page Alexandra Drewchin, aka Eartheater In 2012 Doug Kaplan and Max Allison of local noise trio Good Willsmith launched Hausu Mountain, an experimental label that’s found a niche on the international scene. Just a couple months into the new year, Kaplan and Allison have already had a strong 2015—last week Hausu Mountain released the engaging, hallucinogenic Metalepsis from Eartheater, aka New York musician (and Guardian Alien front woman) Alexandra Drewchin....

QMy father is 65 years old and has been a devoted husband to my mother, who’s been battling a medical condition for the past 30 years—a condition that prevents her from engaging in sexual activity of any kind. He has not had sex in all this time and is desperately frustrated. He’s not Internet savvy—quite the opposite—and has taken to calling me across the continent from Michigan to ask for my help in getting him laid....

It was plenty warm out when Chicago postpunks Ganser played their noontime set at this year’s Riot Fest, but their dark, thrilling jams still gave Gossip Wolf chills. Maybe it was heat stroke from wearing all black? Anyway, Ganser have long been masters of atmospheric, swirling riffs, and their new EP, You Must Be New Here, is the work of a veteran band at the peak of their powers. Opening cut “Buio” channels the catchy melancholy of Echo & the Bunnymen and Psychedelic Furs, and seems destined for lots of lovelorn mixtapes....

In the wake of last Tuesday’s primary, I’ve decided to take a page from Dr. Freud and put Chicago’s voters on the couch, so to speak. Kennedy was excoriated for his comments, especially in the Tribune, which called the remarks a “divisive fantasy.” Well, if Rahm really was up to such shenanigans, the turnout numbers show he did a lousy job. Only about 29 percent of registered voters turned out to actually vote....

Chicago Water Taxi offers transportation for commuters and tourists along the Chicago River. The ships travel between Goose Island and Chinatown daily from Saint Patrick’s Day weekend to December (weather depending). Photographer Max Thomsen spent a few days following Captain Chloe West, a ten-year veteran of the company, and her crew on the Wendella Ltd. Shuttling folks along the waterway revealed unique views of the city only visible from bow or stern....

We hope you’ve enjoyed the return of comics serials to the Reader. This week’s installments are the last (for now). Here’s where you can follow your favorite indie artists: John Porcellino Prairie Pothole spitandahalf.com/product-tag/john-porcellino Melissa MendesViolet, Private Eye patreon.com/melissamendes, mmmendes.com Mike Centeno P.L. Dermes mikecenteno.com, @mike_centeno If you’re interested in advertising around or sponsoring our comics work—including features, editorials, and strips—contact Sales Director Patti Flynn pflynn@chicagoreader.com.