Friday 19
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Back in November the National Endowment for the Arts withdrew a $10,000 grant for an exhibit in New York that dealt with AIDS; after some controversy, they reinstated it. Susan Wyatt, the director of the New York gallery where the exhibit was eventually shown, is one of the speakers at today’s conference at the Public Library Cultural Center, Artists’ Voice on AIDS. The daylong event will include speakers, panel discussions, and performances by the Windy City Slickers, Mordine & Company dancers, and performance artist Kermit Berg. It runs from 10 AM to 4 PM on the second floor of the center, 78 E. Washington. Admission is free, but you should register at 744-9797.
Learn to dance like an old Scotsman at tonight’s open house of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, Chicago branch. It runs from 6 to 8:30 at the Saint Josaphat parish hall, 2311 N. Southport. It’s free, and you don’t have to bring a dancing partner. Call 708-985-6065 or 708-9574494 for more info.
The four men and one woman in Acme Vocals do a rap version of the Beverly Hillbillies theme song, plus jazz, Motown, gospel, bluegrass, and reggae–all a cappella. The five Chicagoans have been performing together for a little more than two years, and tonight through Sunday they become the first musical group to perform at Catch a Rising Star in the Hyatt Regency, 151 E. Wacker. Show times are 7:30 Tuesday through Thursday, 8 and 10:30 Friday, 8:30 and 11 Saturday, and 8:30 Sunday. Admission is $10 Friday and Saturday and $8 the other nights, plus a two-drink minimum. The group is also raffling off a future private performance; a $5 or greater donation will earn you the chance to win, and the money goes to charity. More info at 565-4242 or 761-7664.
The city of Chicago will spend $2.4 million over the next five years on neighborhood-improvement projects. Where that money goes is revised every year; this year, for the first time, the city is seeking citizen input. Free Capital Improvement Program workshops are scheduled for tonight at 7 at Walt Disney Magnet School, 4140 N. Marine; Thursday, February 1, at 7 at the Department of Aging and Disability Center, 2101 W. Ogden; Thursday, February 8, at 7 at Northeastern Illinois University, 5500 N. Saint Louis; and Tuesday, February 13, at 7 at the Marquette Park field house, 6700 S. Kedzie. Call the Neighborhood Capital Budget Group, 939-7198, for details.
