Magnus and Brün both note that the two different spaces will offer different kinds of programming. The more intimate room at Jimmy Beans, where O’Reilly has been organizing Saturday cabaret-style shows, will feature music and storytelling; opening night features an evening of new speculative fiction from Sharon Houk, Andy Sullivan, and Tanner Vaughan Halversen, and the Crooked Mouth will perform on Saturday, April 2.
The connection to PrideArts came about because Brün was brought in as a consultant when the company started fixing up the space during the COVID shutdown. PrideArts let Curious use the theater for a three-week tribute to the late Rhino/Curious vetChicago Beast Women, who bill themselves as “Chicago’s longest-running showcase for veteran and premiering female artists,” will take the Saturday late-night slot at PrideArts for Rhino.
“It’s the philosophical question for us as a company, for sure,” says Magnus, “and for us as makers. Why should we do this unbearable amount of work that is just so exhausting? We really sit and go, ‘Do we really want this again?’ And the answer always comes down to: we could just be making our own little stuff in our own little corner and that could be enough. Or we can extend ourselves and support other artists who don’t have a company with money behind them.
“So I think it is sincerely about wanting to be of service to the community and the tremendous feeling of togetherness that brings. We call it the Rhino bliss. It’s the summer camp feeling. There’s nothing like it when you’re in the lobby and people are coming out of one show or going into another show, and there’s this mix of all kinds of people.”Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.