Logan Launch Festival
Oct 12–14

A three-day festival celebrating the opening of the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, a hub for the vibrant arts scene at the University of Chicago and a destination for the South Side and greater Chicago. Free and open to the public.

“Nothing quite like it, in fact, ever has arisen in the Chicago Area…”
—Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

Sean Graney adapts 32 surviving Greek tragedies for “All Our Tragic,” a 12-hour cycle-play

Muntu Dance Theatre will be one of several Chicago-based groups performing

The Logan Launch Festival kicks off a year of new family programs

 

Schedule

  1. Join us for the three-day arts festival!

    Explore the dates to the left or click on the tab below to view a full schedule of events

  2. Oct 12
    Photo by Jason Fulford

    Friday, October 12
    Festival Hours: Noon to 11 pm

    Lecture: Architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, 6—7:30 pm

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  3. Oct 13
    Photo by Rob Kozloff

    Saturday, October 13
    Festival Hours: 10 am to 11 pm

    Family Programs: Saturday kicks off family programming, all day

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  4. Oct 14
    Photo by Bill Reitzel

    Sunday, October 14
    Festival Hours: Noon to 5 pm

    Music: Turtle Island Quartet, talk 2 pm, concert 3 pm

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EventDateTimeLocation
Department of Visual Arts presents
MFA: On Display
Friday, Oct 12 All day Second Level
Works in various media by MFA students in the Department of Visual Arts will be on display in and around the Great Hall.
Logan Center presents
Self-Guided Tours
Friday, Oct 12 All day
Discover the Logan Center on your own with a printed guide that offers insight into several highlighted spaces within the building. Learn little-known facts about the architecture and design of the building while exploring the classroom, performance, and exhibition spaces at your own pace.
The Film Studies Center presents
Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Sound Installation Piece
Friday, Oct 12 All day North tower stairwell
Experience the sounds of the Logan Center in a site specific installation designed by internationally renowned filmmaker, sound artist, composer, and provocateur Richard Lerman. As part of a series of multi-platform events, Lerman will install self-made transducers that relay acoustic vibrations to listening stations in the North tower stairwell. The sounds of persons moving through the Logan, along with sounds from the structure of the building itself, transform the space into an ever-changing, amplified sonic environment.
Department of Visual Arts presents
Wall Text
Friday, Oct 12 All day Second Level
Featuring works by Stephanie Brooks, Tania Bruguera, Anthony Elms, David Giordano, Jenny Holzer, Robert Peters, William Pope.L, Karen Reimer, Mike Schuh, and Buzz Spector. Read more about this exhibition »
Logan Center Exhibitions presents
Ricardo Basbaum’s “Would you like to participate in an artistic experience?”
Friday, Oct 12 All day Logan Center Gallery
Brazilian artist Ricardo Basbaum addresses complex social transformations through the circulation of a deceptively simple object, one of his “New Bases for Personality (NBP).” As participants realize new artistic experiences using the NBP object throughout Chicago, the Logan Center Gallery becomes an interface with the broad scope of his evolving “Would you like to…?” project, which spans 18 years and over 40 cities on four continents. Basbaum’s work offers a base—at once concrete and dynamic—for imagining the workings of our networks. Throughout the Logan Launch Festival, the NBP object will be in the hands of several newly arrived MFA students—bringing their own signature to Basbaum's. Read more about this exhibition »
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts presents
Los Cenzontles with David Hidalgo
Friday, Oct 12 12:00–1:30 pm Courtyard
A special outdoor performance by Bay Area-based Los Cenzontles, joined by Los Lobos singer-songwriter-front man David Hidalgo. Los Cenzontles (Nahuatl for “the mockingbirds”) effortlessly mix contemporary and traditional Mexican instruments to create a powerful sound infused with the gutsy soul of Mexico’s rural roots.
Logan Center presents
WFMT Live Broadcast
Friday, Oct 12 12:00-3:00 pm Performance Hall
WFMT celebrates the grand opening of the Logan Center with a live broadcast. Join Steve Robinson, David Schwan and Andrew Patner for live music, theater and conversation with luminaries from the arts community. Preview some of this year's offerings, learn more about the Logan Center and enjoy some great music as well.
Theater and Performance Studies presents
Conversation with “All Our Tragic” Director Sean Graney
Friday, Oct 12 1:30-2:30 pm Theater West
A conversation between director Sean Graney and Theater and Performance Studies director Heidi Coleman about the development of this ambitious project adapting, directing, and producing 32 Greek tragedies
Department of Music presents
New Budapest Orpheum Society
Friday, Oct 12 1:30-2:30 pm Courtyard Stage
Hear a performance by the New Budapest Orpheum Society, an eight–member ensemble in residence in the Division of the Humanities at the University of Chicago. Performing Jewish Cabaret music and political songs from the turn of the 20th century to the present, the New Budapest Orpheum Society explores original materials in Hebrew, Yiddish, and German, as well as English.
Richard and Mary L. Gray Center for Arts and Inquiry presents
Alternate Reality: A Pervasive Play Project
Friday, Oct 12 1:30-2:30 pm Film Screening Room
Gray Center Mellon Fellows Professor Patrick Jagoda and Visiting Professor Sha Xin Wei discuss their 2012-13 collaborative creation of an interactive production that belongs to the emerging artists form of “Alternate Reality Games” or “transmedia games.” Their yearlong project will culminate in a transmedia game experience in Spring 2013, together with a symposium about these emergent forms of collective event hybridizing play, game and performance.
Department of Music presents
Music Department Piano Showcase
Friday, Oct 12 2:00-3:00 pm Performance Hall
WFMT celebrates the grand opening of the Logan Center with a live broadcast. Join Steve Robinson, David Schwan and Andrew Patner for live music, theater and conversation with luminaries from the arts community. Preview some of this year's offerings, learn more about the Logan Center and enjoy some great music as well.
Logan Center presents
Muslim Students Association
Friday, Oct 12 2:30-3:00 pm Courtyard Stage
Song, poetry, recitation, calligraphy--these are some of the various ways by which Muslims practice and express the Islamic faith. In this performance, the UChicago MSA (Muslim Students Association) shares a similar expression of our faith culture by joining together to sing a nasheed/naat (in Arabic/Urdu respectively). This vocal composition, usually sung a capella, contains lyrics in reference to Islamic beliefs and/or history.
Logan Center for the Arts and Public Life presents
Deeply Rooted
Friday, Oct 12 2:30-3:30 pm Theater East
See a special class demonstration and performance by Chicago’s Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. Rooted in traditions of African-American dance and storytelling, Deeply Rooted explores themes that spark a visceral experience and ignite an emotional response in diverse audiences world wide. Deeply Rooted is led by Artistic Director Kevin Iega Jeff and Associate Artistic Director Gary Abbott.
Department of Visual Arts presents
Untitled, 39"26", 115"25"-117"30": MFA study in Beijing
Friday, Oct 12 2:30-3:30 pm Film Screening Room
UChicago Visual Arts professors Laura Letinsky and Geof Oppenheimer, along with students from the MFA class of 2013, discuss their recent trip to China that sought to investigate and develop cross-fertilization across geo-political and cultural arenas. Research focused on art galleries, monuments, artists’ studios, universities, and alternative art spaces.
Creative Writing presents
Creative Writing Thesis Student Reading
Friday, Oct 12 2:30-4:30 pm Performance Penthouse
Creative Writing showcases its thesis students with a multi-genre reading of their work.
Logan Center presents
The Ransom Notes
Friday, Oct 12 3:30-4:00 pm Courtyard Stage
Hear a performamce by the Ransom Notes, a student run, co-ed a cappella group at the University of Chicago. The Ransom Notes perform frequently on campus, at local venues, and other colleges.
Logan Center presents
Looking Forward: Diasporal Rhythms
Friday, Oct 12 3:30-4:15 pm Terrace Seminar Room 801
Patric McCoy, president of Diasporal Rhythms, a group of collectors of contemporary works by artists of African descent, engages in a conversation with Monika Szewczyk, Visual Arts Program Curator at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, in anticipation of the Diasporal Rhythms 10th Anniversary Exhibition, scheduled at Logan Center Gallery for Fall 2013, and a day ahead of the group's 7th annual Collectors Home Tour, taking place on 13-14 October throughout the South Side.
Court Theatre, Theatre and Performance Studies and University Theater presents
Inside the Playwright's Studio: Charles Newell & David Auburn
Friday, Oct 12 3:30-4:30 pm Theater West
UChicago alum David Auburn (AB’91) returns to campus to discuss his work on the award-winning play “Proof” and current projects with Charles Newell, Artistic Director of Court Theatre. Auburn’s visit coincides with three student performances of “Proof” taking place throughout the weekend. Buy Tickets.
Department of Visual Arts presents
Inside the Artist's Studio: Pope.L's New Zealand Project
Friday, Oct 12 4:30-5:30 pm Performance Penthouse
What is the role of place in artistic practice? Join artist and Associate Professor in the Department of Visual Arts, Pope.L as he shares his latest project and reflects on the importance of place in shaping his work—both as it relates to his recent move to the University of Chicago and his commission to create work for New Zealand.
Department of Music presents
Monk and Mingus: Performance by University Jazz X-Tet
Friday, Oct 12 4:30-6:00 pm Courtyard Stage
The University Jazz X-tet explores the music of two jazz legends, Thelonius Sphere Monk and Chares Mingus, in this innovative, finger-snapping and collectively improvised performance.
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts presents
Beware the Stairs Are Always Moving: a conversation with architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien
Friday, Oct 12 Guided Tours 5:00 pm; Coversation 6:00-7:30 pm North Entrance Welcome desk; Performance Hall
Acclaimed New York architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien discuss the design of the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts—their first Chicago commission—and how creating creative spaces has influenced their work. Guided architectural tours of the building will be offered prior to the conversation.
Logan Center presents
UBallet
Friday, Oct 12 6:00-7:00 pm Theater East
See a performance by University Ballet of Chicago. Founded in 2001, the University Ballet of Chicago provides classical ballet instruction and performance opportunities at the University of Chicago. Since its founding, the company has produced more than a dozen classical and contemporary productions, showcasing the talents of undergraduates, graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, university employees, and Chicago community members.
Chicago Review and the Nicholson Center for British Studies present
Tom Raworth Reading
Friday, Oct 12 6:00-7:00 pm Performance Penthouse
Hear a poetry reading with Tom Raworth. Born in London in 1938, Raworth has taught; printed and published poetry by others in both magazines and books; had more than 40 books of his own (poetry and prose) published; been translated into many languages; exhibited his graphic work worldwide; collaborated with musicians, visual artists and other writers; and has given readings in more than twenty countries (most recently China and Mexico). Carcanet published his Collected Poems in 2003, and plan a Selected Poems for his 75th birthday next year.
Theater and Performance Studies presents
Student performance of Tony© Award-winning play “Proof”
Friday, Oct 12 7:30-9:30 pm Theater West
First of the weekend’s student performances of the Tony© Award-winning play “Proof” – Written by alumnus David Auburn, “Proof” tells the story of Robert, a genius mathematician who suffered from mental illness. After Robert’s death, his daughter Catherine tries to come to grips with her possible inheritance—his insanity—and finds matters complicated by one of her father's ex-students and her estranged sister. “Proof” is directed by Block Box Studio’s Audrey Francis and features Chicago actor Steve Pickering. Buy Tickets.
The Film Studies Center presents
Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Films for Screens, Performers, and Audiences
Friday, Oct 12 7:30-10:00 pm Film Screening Room
Sonic Environments, a series of multi-platform events by internationally renowned filmmaker, sound artist, composer and provocateur Richard Lerman, launches with this selection of films, video pieces and live performance. Among the works to be showcased at this unique event are Lerman’s famous “Sections for Screen, Performers and Audience” (1974) and his innovative “piezo disk,” which transform everyday objects (passports, thorny branches, a compass) into instruments for a look at Border issues in 2012. Lerman will be on hand for this multi-media presentation.
Department of Music presents
Spektral Quartet
Friday, Oct 12 8:00 pm Performance Hall
The cutting-edge Spektral Quartet, newly appointed Ensemble in Residence for the University of Chicago Department of Music, presents an eclectic and engaging concert as part of the opening celebration for the Logan Center for the Arts. Featured on the program are Hugo Wolf’s Italian Serenade, George Crumb’s Black Angels, and Franz Josef Haydn’s String Quartet in C Major, Op. 76 No. 3, subtitled the “Emperor” Quartet. Don't miss the chance to hear “The chamber supergroup ... [that will] knock your socks off!” (TimeOut Chicago)
Arts|Science presents
Café Scientifique
Friday, Oct 12 8:00-9:00 pm Café
These sessions invite the public to explore and debate current issues and interesting topics in science research at the University, for the price of a cup of coffee or a glass of wine. Part of a loose knit program which take places on campuses around the world, the next generation of scientists offer up an informal and accessible conversation about their research, and lively questions and comments from the audience are expected.
Richard and Mary L. Gray Center for Arts and Inquiry presents
The Project
Friday, Oct 12 8:00-10:00 pm The Shop
Visiting Mellon Fellow in Arts Practice & Scholarship Sha Xin Wei and Michael Montanaro (of Montreal's Topological Media Lab) join forces with U of C Professor Patrick Jagoda to launch a year-long collaboration at the Gray Center for Arts & Inquiry with a choreographed action-based event introducing The Project, an alternate reality transmedia game. Game development by students, faculty, and artists begins this fall and culminates in exciting and unpredictable constellations of play, practice & theory in spring 2013.
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts presents
Logan Cabaret Series Kick-off
Friday, Oct 12 9:00-11:00 pm Performance Penthouse
The Logan Cabaret series offers a weekly platform for individual artists and groups to take the stage during an informal night of live performance. Featuring a student MC, the student driven evening will offer a mix of comedy, spoken word, rock music, solo dance performance, poetry readings, improvisational jazz, works-in-progress, short play readings, and more. Are you a student interested in performing? Email logancenter@uchicago.edu for more information.
EventDateTimeLocation
Logan Center Exhibitions presents
Ricardo Basbaum’s “Would you like to participate in an artistic experience?”
Saturday, Oct 13 All day Logan Center Gallery
Brazilian artist Ricardo Basbaum addresses complex social transformations through the circulation of a deceptively simple object, one of his “New Bases for Personality (NBP).” As participants realize new artistic experiences using the NBP object throughout Chicago, the Logan Center Gallery becomes an interface with the broad scope of his evolving “Would you like to…?” project, which spans 18 years and over 40 cities on four continents. Basbaum’s work offers a base—at once concrete and dynamic—for imagining the workings of our networks. Throughout the Logan Launch Festival, the NBP object will be in the hands of several newly arrived MFA students—bringing their own signature to Basbaum's. Read more about this exhibition »
Department of Visual Arts presents
MFA: On Display
Saturday, Oct 13 All day Second Level
Works in various media by MFA students in the Department of Visual Arts will be on display in and around the Great Hall.
Logan Center presents
Self-Guided Tours
Saturday, Oct 13 All day
Discover the Logan Center on your own with a printed guide that offers insight into several highlighted spaces within the building. Learn little-known facts about the architecture and design of the building while exploring the classroom, performance, and exhibition spaces at your own pace.
The Film Studies Center presents
Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Sound Installation Piece
Saturday, Oct 13 All day North tower stairwell
Experience the sounds of the Logan Center in a site specific installation designed by internationally renowned filmmaker, sound artist, composer, and provocateur Richard Lerman. As part of a series of multi-platform events, Lerman will install self-made transducers that relay acoustic vibrations to listening stations in the North tower stairwell. The sounds of persons moving through the Logan, along with sounds from the structure of the building itself, transform the space into an ever-changing, amplified sonic environment.
Department of Visual Arts presents
Wall Text
Saturday, Oct 13 Exhibit: All day
Reception: 5:00-7:00 pm
Second Level
Featuring works by Stephanie Brooks, Tania Bruguera, Anthony Elms, David Giordano, Jenny Holzer, Robert Peters, William Pope.L, Karen Reimer, Mike Schuh, and Buzz Spector. Read more about this exhibition »
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
Family Storytelling Workshop
Saturday, Oct 13 10:00-10:45 am Performance Penthouse
Explore the possibilities of when and how we share stories in this workshop for all ages. Learn creative approaches to oral storytelling, both creating and telling stories, in small family groups. The workshop is led by Emily Hooper Lansana, who has performed and taught storytelling in a variety of venues throughout Chicago and across the country for more than 20 years.
Logan Center for the Arts Family Programming presents
Animation Workshop
Saturday, Oct 13 10:00-11:00 am Video Production Lab
Have you ever wanted to bring your toys to life? This fun workshop with LEGO animator David M. Pickett, AB’07, will give you hands-on experience with the basics of stop-motion animation and teach you what you need to start making movies at home. Bring a toy to animate or use the ones provided.
Chicago Architecture Foundation presents
Open House Chicago
Saturday, Oct 13 10:00 am-5:00 pm Logan Center
Organized by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, Open House Chicago (OHC) is an annual weekend festival providing free behind-the-scenes access to many of Chicago's greatest places and spaces. The Logan Center, selected as one of OHC’s “Top Twenty Sites to Visit,” will offer self-guided tours for OHC participants that feature “backstage” areas of the performance spaces as well as private studios.
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
Made in 24
Saturday, Oct 13 11:00 am Film Screening Room
View a short film made by students participating in an eight-week summer film class at the Logan Center for the Arts, Think it! Make It! Screen It! The course is taught by Catherine Sullivan, artist and Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at the University of Chicago in collaboration with local not-for-profit Faithful Few and the Arts and Public Life Initiative.
Theater and Performance Studies presents
Barrel of Monkeys, “That’s Weird, Grandma”
Saturday, Oct 13 11:00 am Theater East
Kicking off a new free monthly family programming series at the Logan Center, Chicago’s Barrel of Monkeys (BOM) will perform its classic, “That’s Weird, Grandma,” which showcases the amazing talents of student authors and their company of performers. BOM is an ensemble of actor/educators who create an alternative learning environment in which children share their personal voices and celebrate the power of their imaginations. The show changes each time it’s performed as audience votes pick new stories to add.
Logan Center presents
Scheduled Tours
Saturday, Oct 13 11:00 am-12:00 pm & 1:30-2:30 pm North Entrance
Explore The Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts on a tour with a knowledgeable guide. Hear about the building’s history, architecture, and role within the University with visits to the performance hall, blackbox theatre, digital media center, classrooms, gallery and more. Sign up for tours at the North Entrance Welcome Desk. Spaces are limited, and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Logan Center for the Arts Family Programming presents
Animation Workshop
Saturday, Oct 13 11:00 am-12:00 pm Video Production Lab
Have you ever wanted to bring your toys to life? This fun workshop with LEGO animator David M. Pickett, AB’07, will give you hands-on experience with the basics of stop-motion animation and teach you what you need to start making movies at home. Bring a toy to animate or use the ones provided.
UChicago Arts presents
Arts Trolley rides
Saturday, Oct 13 12:00-5:00 pm South Entrance
Guests can visit museums and cultural institutions across the UChicago campus, including the Oriental Institute Museum, Renaissance Society, and Smart Museum of Art. Highlights include the Renaissance Society’s exhibition of works by Vietnam-born installation artist Danh Vo; the Oriental Institute’s renowned collection of art and antiquities from the ancient Near East and special access Open House Chicago tours; and a behind-the-scenes tour of the Smart Museum, UChicago’s fine arts museum, revealing how the Smart has assembled an exquisite collection of traditional, modern, and contemporary art. Visitors will also have the chance to view art brought out from storage in the Museum’s intimate study room. In addition, guests who have already purchased tickets to Court Theatre’s weekend matinee showings of “Jitney” (3pm Saturday and 2:30pm Sunday) may take the trolley to the theater. [Trolley departs from the South entrance and runs Saturday and Sunday 12-5pm; Smart Museum tours depart every half hour, Saturday 2-5pm and Sunday 12-3pm.]
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts presents
Festival Lunch featuring Muntu Dance Theatre and New Beginnings Church Choir
Saturday, Oct 13 12:00-1:30 pm Courtyard and Gidwitz Lobby
Join local community artists and leaders as we celebrate the Opening of the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts during the Logan Launch Festival Lunch on Saturday, October 13 from Noon to 1:30 pm. This festive BBQ will include performances by the Muntu Dance Theatre Drummers and the New Beginnings Church Choir and serve as on opportunity to thank you, our friendsand neighbors for your great support during our Preview Period includin 20th Ward Alderman Willie B. Cochran and other area political officials, community stakeholders, and residents.
Theater and Performance Studies presents
“All Our Tragic,” adapted and directed by Sean Graney
Saturday, Oct 13 1:00 pm Saturday-1:00 am Sunday Performance Lab 501
With “All Our Tragic,” popular Chicago director Sean Graney has adapted all 32 surviving Greek tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides to create an epic 12-hour cycle-play theater event, in two parts: Politics and Ethics. “All Our Tragic” will have its UChicago premiere at the Logan Launch Festival, by both professional and student actors. This presentation is modeled after the Ancient Greeks’ communal festivals or gatherings, which encompassed music, theater, politics and eating.
The Film Studies Center presents
Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Travelon Gamelan (Music for Bicycles)
Saturday, Oct 13 1:30 pm Bike departure; 3:30-4:30 Concert Café Plaza; Performance Hall
Bicycles become the instruments in Richard Lerman's Travelon Gamelon - a collaborative, community-based, live performance work. Beginning with a roving, sonic “promenade”, 20 cyclists on Lerman’s amplified bicycles travel the neighborhood broadcasting the sound of each cycle's spokes, producing a sound similar to that of SE Asian Gamelan orchestras. The performance departs from the Logan Center and travels through the campus and Hyde Park neighborhood before returning to the Courtyard Stage for the performance of the Concert version for 3 amplified bicycles and 6 performers. Travelon Gamelon, composed in 1979, has been performed hundreds of times around the world most recently in 4 cities in Germany and in Chicago in 1980 and 1989.
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
African Dance Workshop with Muntu Dance Theatre
Saturday, Oct 13 1:30-2:30 pm Performance Hall
Join Artistic Director, Amaniyea Payne, of Muntu Dance Theatre for an African dance workshop. The Chicago-based Muntu Dance Theatre performs authentic and progressive interpretations of contemporary and ancient African and African-American dance, music, and folklore.
Logan Center presents
Crafting with ArtShould
Saturday, Oct 13 1:30-2:30 pm Room 401
Join ArtShould for a fun family craft! Construct and decorate a paper lantern that you can bring home today! ArtShould is a student group that works to provide fun after-school arts programming at CPS elementary schools in Hyde Park, Kenwood, and Woodlawn.
Department of Music presents
Tributaries: Songs from another stream
Saturday, Oct 13 1:30-2:30 pm Performance Penthouse
Celebrated recording artist and UChicago director of vocal studies Patrice Michaels presents a stunning concert of songs for voice and piano. Familiar and newly-composed blues, ragtime, ballads and art songs by Tibor Harsanyi, Laurie Altman, Chuck Israels, John Musto and others reveal a glorious musical conversation in a unique genre linking jazz and classical music.
Chicago Ideas Week and the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts present
Chicago Ideas Week Lab: Art, Architecture and Acoustics at the University of Chicago
Saturday, Oct 13 1:30-3:00 pm Performance Hall
As part of Chicago Ideas Week, University Architect Steve Wiesenthal and Kirkegaard Associates’ acoustician Anthony Shou leads a behind-the-scenes Logan Center tour revealing how intense collaboration can successfully balance architectural and acoustical expressions while creating spectacular music performance spaces. Buy tickets ($15).
Theater and Performance Studies presents
Student performance of Tony© Award-winning play “Proof”
Saturday, Oct 13 2:00-4:00 pm Theater West
First of the weekend’s student performances of the Tony© Award-winning play “Proof” – Written by alumnus David Auburn, “Proof” tells the story of Robert, a genius mathematician who suffered from mental illness. After Robert’s death, his daughter Catherine tries to come to grips with her possible inheritance—his insanity—and finds matters complicated by one of her father's ex-students and her estranged sister. “Proof” is directed by Block Box Studio’s Audrey Francis and features Chicago actor Steve Pickering. Buy Tickets.
Film
Fire Escape Films – Student Shorts
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-3:30 pm Screening Room
Join University of Chicago students from Fire Escape Films as they screen some of their latest work and highlight student film making at the University of Chicago.
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
Hyde Park Suzuki
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-3:00 pm Courtyard Stage
Listen to student musicians from the Hyde Park Suzuki Institute! The Hyde Park Suzuki Institute seeks to provide access to high quality musical instruction and performance opportunities to families in our culturally diverse communities of Chicago. Students ages three and up proudly maintain a commitment to excellence and a high standard of musical achievement. These performances at the Logan Center provide opportunities for students to engage with Chicago's rich cultural offerings, attend professional concerts, and meet world-renowned musicians.
Logan Center presents
Henna Demonstration by the Muslim Students Association
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-3:30 pm Room 401
Mehndi (henna) is the application of a plant and turmeric paste, in the form of a design or decoration, to the skin like a temporary tattoo. It originates from India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, as a traditional custom, most often applied on women at special occasions like weddings (ex. on the brides' hands and feet) and religious festivals. The UChicago MSA brings you a workshop on how to make basic mehndi designs and, if you would like, will adorn your hand with a beautiful decoration.
Logan Center presents
Game Design Workshop and Demonstration
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-3:30 pm Room 003
Sean Hogan (3rd year, College), discusses the development of his and Jon Kittaka's (Carleton College) soon-to-be-released adventure game, Anodyne. The discussion encompasses game design, development workflow, and aesthetic choices (art, music) in Anodyne, including live gameplay and a Q&A.
Department of Music
Inside the Composer's Studio
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-3:30 pm & 3:30-4:30 pm Performance Penthouse
Learn how to practice, present and evaluate a world premiere music composition in this interactive performance and discussion moderated by University Professor Augusta Read Thomas, featuring pianist Daniel Schlosberg, UC graduate student composer, Andres Carrizo, and a panel of active UC composers.
Logan Center presents
ArtShould _______
Saturday, Oct 13 2:30-4:30 pm Gidwitz Lobby
Stop by the ArtShould table to tell us what you think ArtShould do! Fill out and decorate a piece of paper for us to display at the Logan Center Launch. Your ideas can be silly or serious, insightful or nonsense. ArtShould is a student group that works to provide fun after-school arts programming at CPS elementary schools in Hyde Park, Kenwood, and Woodlawn.
Logan Center presents
Ligeia Quartet
Saturday, Oct 13 4:30-5:00 pm Courtyard Stage
Ligeia Quartet, a semi-professional performance group involved with the University of Chicago Chamber Music Program, performs movements 1 (Allegro) and 2 (Andante con moto) of Franz Schubert's Death and the Maiden quartet (String Quartet No. 14 in D minor).
Logan Center presents
Sitar Performance and Workshop
Saturday, Oct 13 4:30-5:30 pm Music Ensemble Room 703
Learn about the Sitar and South Asian classical music in this interactive workshop and performance. Audience members can sing a song of their choice and will be accompanied by the sitar. The sitar can used to play any kind of music; it all depends on what's playing in your head!
Logan Center presents
Workshop with the Argentine Tango Club
Saturday, Oct 13 4:30-5:30 pm Room 701
Join the UofC Argentine Tango Club for an introduction to the most elegant and expressive dance of all: Argentine Tango. No partner or dance experience is required. Please find more information about the club and classes on tango.uchicago.edu.
Poem Present (Poetry and Poetics Program) presents
Reva Logan Inaugural Poetry Series Reading
Saturday, Oct 13 4:30-5:30 pm Performance Penthouse
Adam Zagajewski, one of Poland’s most famous contemporary poets and the Ferdinand Schevill Distinguished Service Professor at UChicago’s John U. Nef Committee on Social Thought, will launch this series with a reading of his own world premiere work, “We Know What Art Is” commissioned by the University and the Reva and David Logan Foundation for the Logan Center Dedication and Logan Launch Festival. A graduate of Jagiellonian University in Kracow, Zagajewski first became well known as one of the leading poets of the Generation of ‘68’ or the Polish New Wave.
Logan Center presents
Guerilla Tango Dancing
Saturday, Oct 13 5:30-6:30 pm Courtyard Stage
Watch expressive and elegant moves, hear melancholic and energetic music or participate in “Guerrilla Tango dancing” hosted by the UofC Argentine Tango Club. Learn more about exceptional outdoor and social dancing events as well as regular courses on tango.uchicago.edu.
Arts|Science presents
Outdoor screening of “Opening”
Saturday, Oct 13 Dusk Exterior
“Opening,” a recent video collage by graduate students Jared Clemens and Marco G. Ferrari, will be projected on to the facade of the Logan Center. An audiovisual montage that manipulates original and archival materials relating to various brain processes, “Opening” is comprised of formal manipulations of color, speed, rhythm, and sound, to reflect the spatiotemporal concept of neural activity and highlight the complexity of the brain.
Logan Center presents
Occam's Razor
Saturday, Oct 13 7:00-8:00 pm Performance Penthouse
Occam's Razor is the University of Chicago's only independent improv group, dedicated to bringing you the finest and funniest in all-improvised comedy.
Department of Music presents
Jazz X-tet Reunion Band: Beyond 5 Lines and 4 Spaces
Saturday, Oct 13 7:30 pm Performance Hall
Mwata Bowden, acclaimed jazz musician and Director of the UChicago Jazz Ensembles, will be joined by University Jazz X-tet alums to celebrate the group's 18th anniversary. "Beyond 5 Lines and 4 Spaces" will debut new music inspired by gardens in Paris, Japan, and Vancouver, and composed by Bowden and X-tet alums. The intricate, maze-like program will showcase music on the cutting edge!
Theater and Performance Studies presents
Student performance of Tony© Award-winning play “Proof”
Saturday, Oct 13 7:30-9:30 pm Theater West
First of the weekend’s student performances of the Tony© Award-winning play “Proof” – Written by alumnus David Auburn, “Proof” tells the story of Robert, a genius mathematician who suffered from mental illness. After Robert’s death, his daughter Catherine tries to come to grips with her possible inheritance—his insanity—and finds matters complicated by one of her father's ex-students and her estranged sister. “Proof” is directed by Block Box Studio’s Audrey Francis and features Chicago actor Steve Pickering. Buy Tickets.
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
Hyde Park Suzuki Open House
Saturday, Oct 13 3:30-4:30 pm Music Practice Rooms
Listen to student musicians from the Hyde Park Suzuki Institute! The Hyde Park Suzuki Institute seeks to provide access to high quality musical instruction and performance opportunities to families in our culturally diverse communities of Chicago. Students ages three and up proudly maintain a commitment to excellence and a high standard of musical achievement. These performances at the Logan Center provide opportunities for students to engage with Chicago's rich cultural offerings, attend professional concerts, and meet world-renowned musicians.
Department of Music presents
UChicago Voices: A Panel Discussion and Recital
Saturday, Oct 13 3:30-5:00 pm Performance Hall
Director of Choral Activities James Kallembach leads a presentation and discussion with current students and alumni on the vibrant state of the current choral and vocal program at the University of Chicago. Rockefeller Chapel Artist-in-Residence Matthew Dean (AB ’00) and members of the Motet Choir will perform; selections may include recently campus-commissioned or premiered works, including those by composer Kallembach.
Logan Center and Arts and Public Life
Storytelling with the Ase Youth Ensemble
Saturday, Oct 13 4:30-5:30 pm Theater East
The Chicago Association of Black Storytellers presents the work of the Ase` Youth Ensemble, which celebrates the importance of the oral tradition through storytelling and poetry. See engaging performance of folktales, poetry and stories performed by young people between the ages of 6 and 17.
Logan Center and Hyde Park Jazz Society
Hyde Park Jazz Society featuring Miguel de la Cerna, Ari Brown, Harrison Bankhead and Ernie Adams
Saturday, Oct 13 9:00 pm-12:00 am Performance Penthouse
Hear a special performance by Miguel de la Cerna (piano), Ari Brown (saxes), Harrison Bankhead (bass), and Ernie Adams (drums), presented by the Hyde Park Jazz Society. Founded by James W. Wagner, the Hyde Park Jazz Society is committed to the encouragement, promotion, and expansion of jazz performance in the greater Hyde Park community and mid-south side, as well as to the education of young jazz musicians and expansion of the jazz listening audience.
Logan Center and Student Government
Logan Launch Student Party
Saturday, Oct 13 10:00 pm-12:00 am Courtyard and Gidwitz Lobby
Celebrate the Logan Launch with a party at the Logan Center! Explore the new space and mingle with other students while enjoying live entertainment by alumni band Lakesigns and performances by student RSOs. Food and drink provided, alcohol available on the Delgiorno Terrace for those 21+.
EventDateTimeLocation
Logan Center Exhibitions presents
Ricardo Basbaum’s “Would you like to participate in an artistic experience?”
Sunday, Oct 14 All day Logan Center Gallery
Brazilian artist Ricardo Basbaum addresses complex social transformations through the circulation of a deceptively simple object, one of his “New Bases for Personality (NBP).” As participants realize new artistic experiences using the NBP object throughout Chicago, the Logan Center Gallery becomes an interface with the broad scope of his evolving “Would you like to…?” project, which spans 18 years and over 40 cities on four continents. Basbaum’s work offers a base—at once concrete and dynamic—for imagining the workings of our networks. Throughout the Logan Launch Festival, the NBP object will be in the hands of several newly arrived MFA students—bringing their own signature to Basbaum's. Read more about this exhibition »
Department of Visual Arts presents
MFA: On Display
Sunday, Oct 14 All day Second Level
Works in various media by MFA students in the Department of Visual Arts will be on display in and around the Great Hall.
Logan Center presents
Self-Guided Tours
Sunday, Oct 14 All day
Discover the Logan Center on your own with a printed guide that offers insight into several highlighted spaces within the building. Learn little-known facts about the architecture and design of the building while exploring the classroom, performance, and exhibition spaces at your own pace.
The Film Studies Center presents
Sonic Environments: The Work of Richard Lerman: Sound Installation Piece
Sunday, Oct 14 All day North tower stairwell
Experience the sounds of the Logan Center in a site specific installation designed by internationally renowned filmmaker, sound artist, composer, and provocateur Richard Lerman. As part of a series of multi-platform events, Lerman will install self-made transducers that relay acoustic vibrations to listening stations in the North tower stairwell. The sounds of persons moving through the Logan, along with sounds from the structure of the building itself, transform the space into an ever-changing, amplified sonic environment.
Department of Visual Arts presents
Wall Text
Sunday, Oct 14 All day Second Level
Featuring works by Stephanie Brooks, Tania Bruguera, Anthony Elms, David Giordano, Jenny Holzer, Robert Peters, William Pope.L, Karen Reimer, Mike Schuh, and Buzz Spector. Read more about this exhibition »
Chicago Architecture Foundation presents
Open House Chicago
Sunday, Oct 14 10:00 am-5:00 pm Logan Center
Organized by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, Open House Chicago (OHC) is an annual weekend festival providing free behind-the-scenes access to many of Chicago's greatest places and spaces. The Logan Center, selected as one of OHC’s “Top Twenty Sites to Visit,” will offer self-guided tours for OHC participants that feature “backstage” areas of the performance spaces as well as private studios.
Uchicago Arts presents
Arts Trolley rides
Sunday, Oct 14 12:00-5:00 pm South Entrance
Guests can visit museums and cultural institutions across the UChicago campus, including the Oriental Institute Museum, Renaissance Society, and Smart Museum of Art. Highlights include the Renaissance Society’s exhibition of works by Vietnam-born installation artist Danh Vo; the Oriental Institute’s renowned collection of art and antiquities from the ancient Near East and special access Open House Chicago tours; and a behind-the-scenes tour of the Smart Museum, UChicago’s fine arts museum, revealing how the Smart has assembled an exquisite collection of traditional, modern, and contemporary art. Visitors will also have the chance to view art brought out from storage in the Museum’s intimate study room. In addition, guests who have already purchased tickets to Court Theatre’s weekend matinee showings of “Jitney” (3pm Saturday and 2:30pm Sunday) may take the trolley to the theater. [Trolley departs from the South entrance and runs Saturday and Sunday 12-5pm; Smart Museum tours depart every half hour, Saturday 2-5pm and Sunday 12-3pm.]
Logan Center presents
Scheduled Tours
Sunday, Oct 14 12:30-1:30 pm North Entrance
Explore The Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts on a tour with a knowledgeable guide. Hear about the building’s history, architecture, and role within the University with visits to the performance hall, blackbox theatre, digital media center, classrooms, gallery and more. Sign up for tours at the North Entrance Welcome Desk. Spaces are limited, and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
University of Chicago Presents
Turtle Island Quartet
Sunday, Oct 14 Pre-concert talk 2:00 pm; Concert 3:00 pm Performance Hall
Two-time Grammy™ Award winner in the Best Classical Crossover category, Turtle Island Quartet fuses the classical quartet aesthetic with contemporary American musical styles. Its Logan Center debut draws from its 2010 album “Have you Ever Been…?,” tackling works by legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix and other compositions inspired by Hendrix’s music. This performance is ticketed, $35 general, $5 students. Buy Tickets

Additional events will be announced soon! Sign up for e-updates above for the latest festival details.

News and Updates

  1. Wednesday 10 October 2012
    Download the festival schedule to your computer or mobile device and check out the events by date and category

  2. Tuesday 2 October 2012
    Download the Logan Launch Festival program and plan your weekend!

  3. Wednesday 29 August 2012
    Over 50 events planned for the Logan Launch Festival

    Sign up for e-updates above for festival details and the latest events added.

  4. Wednesday 29 August 2012
    Logan Launch Festival Announced…

    Public opening celebration October 12–14.

Videos Photos

Live musical accompaniment in Theater West

Live musical accompaniment in Theater West

Logan Cabaret series in the Performance Penthouse

Logan Cabaret series in the Performance Penthouse

Logan Center at night

Logan Center at night

Manual Cinema projection

Manual Cinema projection

Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby

Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby

Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby

Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby

Manual Cinema projections in Theater West

Manual Cinema projections in Theater West

Manual Cinema reveals their shadow puppetry process in Theater West

Manual Cinema reveals their shadow puppetry process in Theater West

Manual Cinema singer

Manual Cinema singer

South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building

South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building

South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building

South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building

Student DJs

Student DJs

View of campus from the Logan Center’s eighth floor seminar terrace room

View of campus from the Logan Center’s eighth floor seminar terrace room

  • Live musical accompaniment in Theater West
  • Logan Cabaret series in the Performance Penthouse
  • Logan Center at night
  • Manual Cinema projection
  • Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby
  • Manual Cinema projections in the Gidwitz Lobby
  • Manual Cinema projections in Theater West
  • Manual Cinema reveals their shadow puppetry process in Theater West
  • Menual Cinema singer
  • South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building
  • South Side musicians will perform on the courtyard stage and through the building
  • Student DJs
  • View of campus from the Logan Center’s eighth floor seminar terrace room
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LoganUChicago It is coming & we’re ready. Are you? Logan Launch Festival Oct 12–14 #savethedate #loganlaunch #UChicagoArts