Summer 2020 – Clef Notes Chicagoland Journal for the Arts

Music Summer 2020

LUMINARY: Q&A with Singer/Songwriter Camila Meza

October 23, 2020 Fred Cummings Camila Meza

Chilean jazz musician Camila Meza is well-known for her fresh improvizations and her intuitive blending of voice and instrument in a seamless outpouring of music. Ever since the musical upstart left Chile for New York in 2009 to attend the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, she has grown more and more influential as an artist of rank. Almost immediately, she became a regular at jazz clubs in the Big Apple, and as such etched out a reputation of superlative mastery of both voice and guitar, something rare in the jazz world. And as a composer and arranger, she’s developed a voice that embraces both jazz and Latin American traditions, something that is clearly expressed in her recordings for Chilean record label Vertice Records. Having performed in South American, Europe and the US, Meza is already becoming a veteran on the global circuit. She’s performed at the Blue Note of Poznan in Poland and the Swindnica Jazz Festival.

Art Summer 2020

Summer Festivals Adapt to New Normal Amid Pandemic Shutdowns

August 18, 2020 Leslie Price Amdur Productions, COVID-19, Glencoe Festival of Art, Millennium Art Festival, Wrigleyville Art Market

Of the many things Chicago does well—some of the most popular annual events, beloved by Chicagoans and visitors alike—are neighborhood art fairs. Taking over blocks and blocks of business districts in the city and suburbs, these festivals of visual art and artists are fantastic ways to celebrate summer, neighborhoods and Chicagoland, all in one fell swoop.

Joffrey-Ballet-and-Lyric-Opera-Orphee-et-Eurydice

Ballet Dance Summer 2020

Joffery’s Big Move

August 18, 2020 Leslie Price Ashley Wheater, Auditorium Theatre, Joffrey Ballet, Lyric Opera of Chicago

Autumn 2020 brings a new and exciting partnership for Chicago audiences to enjoy when the Joffrey Ballet officially joins forces with the Lyric Opera to share the iconic Lyric Opera House on North Wacker Drive.

The partnership of these two pillars of the Chicago cultural scene has developed over time. First, as an artistic collaboration with 2017’s Orphée et Eurydice, a thrilling piece that blended the musical talents of the Lyric with ballet sequences performed by the Joffrey. During this laudable production, these cherished arts institutions discovered a kind of symbiosis that held the potential for extension beyond a single event.

Art Summer 2020

Finding El Greco

June 1, 2020 Isaac Jacobs Art Institute of Chicago

There’s something quite fascinating about a historical figure whose life’s work has transcended generations. When that figure is someone who’s motivations and movements were shrouded in mystery, their work bears even more scrutiny. Their works take on even more meaning. A new exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago seeks to unveil the mystery behind one such master by examining the works he left behind.

Museums Summer 2020

Shedd Aquarium Boards New Guests in Support of Conservation Efforts

June 1, 2020 Isaac Jacobs

Even though it may be closed to visitors, the Shedd Aquarium has invited new guests to the institution in an effort to further its important conservation efforts this spring. Joining with Tennessee Aquarium earlier this year, Shedd launched a new effort to safeguard the endangered Barrens Topminnow (Fundulus julisia) from extinction. Welcoming six individual fish from the species, Shedd began a head-start program for the fish, listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in October 2019. In the short time since its launch, the effort has already marked an important milestone.

Arts Summer 2020

Pandemic Pallor Sets In with Shutdowns Shutting Audiences Out of Area Arts Venues

June 1, 2020 Leslie Price Anthony Freud, Auditorium Theatre, Deeply Rooted Dance Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Lori Lightfoot, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Music Institute of Chicago

“It’s extraordinary that our world should have been turned upside down in such a short amount of time,” sighs Anthony Freud, Lyric Opera’s general director and CEO as he recounts the days before and after having to cancel the Lyric’s much anticipated Ring Cycle. “But we always have to remember that this is a national and a global tragedy in which we, Lyric Opera, are a tiny microcosm.”