October 2022–June 2023
Logan Center School Matinee Program for students and teachers
Welcome to our 2022/23 Logan Center School Matinee Season. This year marks our 10th Anniversary Season and we are excited to carry on the tradition of bringing high quality educational artistic experiences to students and teachers. We invite you to participate in this robust season featuring both local and world renowned performing artists representing the disciplines of dance, music, storytelling and poetry.
As a part of this unique opportunity, we provide 90 free tickets and 2 free buses to all participating schools in the Chicagoland area. To register for this program, please click the link below:
In addition to world-class performances, we also provide professional development sessions to support educators with connecting these performances to their curriculum. If you plan to join us for a performance, we encourage you to attend a corresponding Teacher Professional Development Session virtually. Led by seasoned educators, these workshops will be presented as live zoom sessions and each session will provide participants with powerful educational resources.
Example Steps to Participating in Logan Center Matinee Performances:
- Step 1: Review the schedule and select the matinee you would like to attend.
- Step 2: Register for the corresponding Teacher Professional Development Session
- Step 2: Attend Teacher Professional Development Session virtually
- Step 3: Attend the performance at the Logan Center
- Step 4: Encourage students to answer the post performance questions
- Step 5: Complete a brief post performance survey
OCTOBER MATINEES
Premiere Date: Thu, Oct 6, 2022
Hypocrisy of Justice(Music and Theatre)
Grades: 9-12 /10:30-11:30a)
Hypocrisy of Justie: Sights and soounds from the Black Metropolis is a collaborative commission by Dana Hall and Cheryl Lynn Bruce. The project is inspired by Richard Wright's 1940 novel, Nativ Son. Hypocrisy of Justice is a musical performance that explores inequities within systems and institutions, along with lived experience of confinement, redemption, hope and home.
Cerqua Rivera(Dance and Music)
Tue, Oct 25, 2022 / 10:30-11:30a
Grades: 6-12
Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre presents ROOT, a powerful, exciting suite by choreographer Monique Haley and compooser Joe Cerqua. Haley drew inspiration from West African maxims and collaborated for over two years with Cerqua and the full company. ROOT blends African dance, American Jazz, and the creators' own unique contemorary voices to celebrate the resilience of individuals within a community.
NOVEMBER MATINEES
Premiere Date: Mon-Wed, Nov 7-10, 2022/Times Vary
Chicago International Children's Festival
Grades: K-5
Enjoy stories on the big screen! The 39th Annual Chicago International Children's Film Festival invites educators and students to view international films. After screenings, children are engaged in duscussions with filmmakers and festival staff. Tickets at facets.org/cicff
Premiere Date: Nov 17, 2022
Christylez Bacon
Grades: 4-8
Grammy-nominated progressive hip hop artist Christylez Bacon combines rhyming, storytelling, and interactive call-and-response choruses with diverse instrumentation blending elements of musical styles from jazz to hip hop.
DECEMBER MATINEES
Premiere date: Tue, December 6, 2022
Muntu Dance Theatre (Dance and Music)
Grades: K-12
Muntu Dance Theatre performs authentic andd progressive interpretations of contemporary and ancient African and African American dance, music, and folklore.
Premiere date: Thu, Dec 8, 2022
Sam Thousand and the Soul Vortex (Music)
Grades: 6-12
Dynamic composer/musician Sam Thousand delivers a captivating, genre-spanning performance with his looping station, builiding musical cycles calming melodies and rhythm to create harmony, support, interplay, and interaction amongst various sounds, each holding its place in space and time. Like these elements, individuals find their place in a cycle of life, provoking reactions within our communities. When we work in harmony, what beauty we create.
JANUARY MATINEES
Premiere date: Mon, January 17, 2023
Djeli Baba(Storytelling)
Grades: K-5
Phenomenal performing artist and teacher Djeli Baba captivates audiences of all ages. His highly interactive storytelling performances-employing a mix of music, chants, singing, and tales- have been described as TEDTalks for the young. Baba's assemblies challenge students' imaginations while imparting valuable cultural, historical, and meta-curricula lessons.
Premiere date: Mon, January 19, 2023
Xochitl-Quetzal Aztec Dance (Dance and Music)
Grades: K-8
Experience a journey into Mexico's ancient Aztec culture of music, song, and dance. Xochitl-Quetzal invites you to a dynamic and vibrant performance honoring the heritage of the tradition of La Danza De Los Concheros. Join us and learn about the Aztec world of Indigenous ceremony and ritual.
FEBRUARY MATINEES
Premiere date: Tue, February 7, 2023
Epic Steel Orchestra
Grades: 4-12
Epic Steel Orchestra began in 2010 playing the indigenous steel drums of Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies. This energetic group is committed to performing calypso, the genre of music that gave birth to the steel drums in its native Trinidad. The Epic Steel performers bring pleasantry and accessibility to this complex musical style and they demonstrate great flexibility and musical talent as they engage Latin, jazz, marches, classical, and contemporary music.
Premiere date: Fri, Feb 10, 2023
Mellissa Aldana (Music)
Grades: 9-12
Born into a musical family in Santiago, Chile, Melissa Aldana took up the saxophoone at age six under her faathers tutelage. Her early alto influences were Charlie Parker and Connonball Addderley, followed by tenor hero/mentor Sonny Rollins. Aldana performed in Santiago jazz clubs in her teens and played at the 2005 Panama Jazz Festiival by invitation of pianist Danilo Perez.
MARCH MATINEE
Premiere date: Tue, Mar 7, 2023
Women in Hip Hop
Grades: 6-12
Hip Hop has been a vibrant part of American culture for more than 40 years. We are excited to celebrate the power of several dynamic Chicago based leaders in hip hop and education. Featured artists: Linda Sol, Lizzie G, Amina Hawkins.
APRIL MATINEE
Premiere date: Tue, April 12, 2023
Caitlin Edwards (music)
Grades 6-12
Classically-trained violinist Caitlin Edwards draws influence from Gospel, R&B, and Neo Soul, combining classical violin with harmonies forming those genres to create an emotional-/intellectually-charged journey. This student-focused concert is intended to demonstrate to young people how diverse string music can be, and how one can be a classical musician while staying true to other cultures, traditions, and styles.
Premiere date: Wed, April 17, 2023
Linda Gorham (Storytelling)
Grades: K-5
Linda Gorham's multiculatrual folktales educate, explain the natural world, and teach community values-all in a zany, interactive way! Gorham's storytelling performances are infused with her unconventional humor and her signature 'sophisticated attitude.'
Premiere date: Apr 20, 2023
Amjad Ali Khan (Music)
Grades: 6-12
Indian classical sarod performer Amjad Ali Khan is the sixth generation in a legendary lineage of Classical Indian Musicians. In this performance, he will speak and demonstrate about his own artistic practice, family, and lineage. He will also perform excerpts from its 2008 concerto for Sarod and Orchestra, Samaagam, which he will perform with the Uchicago Symphony Orchestra on Saturday, April 22.
Premiere date: Apr 25-27, 2023
Word Is Rhythm Poetry Festival
Grades: K-5, 6-8, 9-12
Logan Center's celebration of National Poetry Month provides a unique three-day opportunity to explore poetry (Apr 25, Grades K-5/ Apr 26, Graddes 6-8/ Apr 27, Grades 9-12). We invite schools to create performances of original or classic poetry to be feaured by award winning published authors Zetta Elliot (present for grades K-8) and avery r young (reading Grades 9-12).
Premiere date: May 11-12, 2023
Lyric Opera of Chicago (Theatre and Music)
Grades: 7-12
Lyric Unlimited presents Canadian composer/ librettist Dean Burr's acclaimed family-friendly opera, The Scorpions' Sting. Following a group of young archaeology students racing against time to save their professor, who's been stung by a poisonous scorpion, the story explores legendary Egyptioan tales of gods and goddesses, themes about the quest for knowledge, and the power of forgiveness.
Premiere date: May 24, 2023
Stories Around the World
Grades: K-5
In this program, storytellers from different cultural traditions share engaging stories that inspire students to learn more about their own cultures and those of others, featuring Anne Shimojima, Shanta, and Jasmin Cardenas
Amplify
If you are interested in extended field trip opportunities for your students that connect to other institutions on campus, please visit the Amplify website.
https://arts.uchicago.edu/explore/amplify-k%E2%80%9312-arts-learning-programs
Critics Program
If you are interested in further engagement opportunities for your students with the subject matter presented at the Logan Center Matinees, please contact us for information on our Critics Programs.
Logan Center Critics
Frequently Asked Questions
The Logan Center School Matinee program is made possible through support the Reva and David Logan Foundation, friends of the Logan Center, Urban Gateways and the UChicago Office of Civic Engagement’s Neighborhood Schools Program, and local and national arts organizations and performing artists.
Contact:
D'onminique Boyd-Riley
db.riley@uchicago.edu
Sponsors
The Logan Center School Matinee program is made possible through support of the Reva and David Logan Foundation and friends of the Logan Center, as well as partnerships with the Neighborhood Schools Program of the Office of Civic Engagement at the University of Chicago, University of Chicago Presents, and local and national arts organizations and performing artists.
