10GAN CENTER BIRTHDAY BASH

Circle Drive, South Entrance

Join us in creating a mural celebrating our 10th Birthday! You can help fill in the existing design with vibrant colors, or add your personal portrait or expressive gestures to the overall composition using tempera paints. Safe for all ages.

Lower Level

For a decade now, the Logan Center has been an innovative hub for artists, students, scholars, audiences, and neighbors, and it is in this spirit of community that we turn to YOU to help us celebrate and remember. Come to the Story Booth to submit your favorite memory or moment at the Logan Center. Whether it’s a written recollection, a photo of you at an event, a video of you relaying your favorite Logan Center moment, or an audio recording of a memory—these collective experiences are Logan Center history. We will be collecting and featuring your stories in different ways throughout the year.

And take home a souvenir polaroid at our photo booth!

Level One, KilnHouse

Explore the joys of sculpting with clay outside the Logan Center’s Kilnhouse on the West side of the building. A material used in both functional and expressive endeavors for at over 25,000 years, clay has been a part of cultural productions across the globe. Get your hands dirty working with clay during Logan’s 10 year Anniversary Birthday Bash, and make something you can take home to remember. All clay will be Air-drying so 0make sure to give it a full 24 hours to harden, no kilns required! Supplies are limited.

Level One, Logan Shop

Join us in the woodshop and try your hand at the art of pyrography, also known as wood burning. Hypothesizes to dates back to prehistory, wood burning has been a method of image making throughout the world, from the Han dynasty – where it was known as "Fire Needle Embroidery" – to Victorian England where the first pyrography machine was invented. Now you can try it yourself! Visit the Logan Center’s Woodshop and we will have wood tiles and burning pens available for visitors to play, learn, and bring something home!

Please be advised, limited space is available and tools may not be safe for younger audiences.

Level One, Logan Shop

Try the materials and methods of artists such as Leonardo Drew, Louise Nevelson, and Martin Puryear through wood assemblage. Artistic wood constructions have been made for thousands of years, but the term assemblage was first coined in the 1950s by French artist Jean Dubuffet, and was popularized by artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns. Now you can explore assemblage and make new and exciting shapes and forms by gluing together wood pieces in various sizes. create a sculpture of your own to take with you!

Tools and materials will be provided, but space will be limited. Tools may not be safe for some younger audiences.

Level One, Theater East

Learn more about the Logan Center's Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project and enjoy workshops of 3 of the 10 companies: Najwa Dance Corp, Joel Hall Dancers & Center, and Muntu Dance Theater.

Level Two, Great Hall North

Family members of all ages can join us for arts and crafts on the second floor of the Logan Center and stop by and get some pop corn.

12:30PM & 2PM | Level Two, Mezzanine

Epic Steel Orchestra (Epic Steel) is an unfolding story of the power of vision and the pursuit of purpose. What began in 2010 as an idea in the heart of founder and director Mr. Julian Champion to positively affect the lives of inner-city youth, has become a musical sensation garnering the attention of audiences throughout the Midwest. This energetic group is committed to performing calypso, the genre of music that gave birth to the steel drums in its native Trinidad. The orchestra’s home is at the West Point School of Music — a community music school serving the needs of children with talent but without privilege and a Logan Center Community Cultural Arts Partner. mpera paints. Safe for all ages.

1 - 2PM | Performance Hall

Watch the live stream & view the program >>

The day’s celebration begins in the Logan Center Performance Hall with a program of works that includes a new collaboration by Deeply Rooted Dance Theater and composer and University Professor Augusta Read Thomas; avery r. young, Chicago’s Inaugural Poet Laureate; a commissioned work by Angela Jackson, Illinois Poet Laureate, read by acclaimed storyteller Emily Hooper Lansana; a new a capella song by Voices in Your Head; a classical work by Hyde Park School of Dance; performances by Dee Alexander and John McLean; and more.

2:15 - 3:15PM | COURTYARD

Participants have the opportunity to create a work of art using a wide assortment of colors using the Color by Number method. Youth will have the choice between a variation of the Little Black Workshop logos participating in different activities.

2:30 - 3PM | Courtyard

neXus Dance Collective is UChicago's premiere K-pop dance organization that aims to connect people through their love of Korean pop music and dance. We are one of the largest dance organizations on campus with over 120 members and provide a space for people of all backgrounds and levels of dance experience to learn and grow. We perform at K-pop dance competitions around the Chicago/Midwest area, host our own K-pop competition called KonneX, where we invite Kpop cover groups from all around the Midwest to compete for real price money and invite established judges, and hold our own showcases throughout the school year.

3 - 4pm | Courtyard

Like the Logan Center, UChicago’s funkiest jazz/funk/pop brass band turns 10 years old this year, and we perform around Hyde Park for RSO and community events. Our 14-piece band has annual cultural trips to New Orleans and strives to foster a great appreciation for jazz music on campus. This set will feature upbeat music by Chaka Khan, Gloria Gaynor, Rebirth Brass Band, and Young Blood Brass Band.

South Lawn

Participants have the opportunity to create a work of art using a wide assortment of colors using the Color by Number method. Youth will have the choice between a variation of the Little Black Workshop logos and participating in different activities.

Level One, Theater East

NAJWA Dance Corps (NDC) will be providing an introductory class in West African dance for ages 5 to 12 years . Students will participate in movement to drum music. Andrea Vinson, Artistic Director is the instructor for this class. NAJWA Dance Corps (NDC) is a living archive of African-American dance history. Founded in 1977 by Najwa I in Chicago, Illinois our mission is to perform, produce and preserve dance styles reflective of the African-American experience. From the rituals of traditional Africa to the glamorous chorus girls of the swing era, and the developing hip-hop styles of the 21st century, NDC focus is to educate and entertain their audiences about the black dance experience in America.

Level One, Gallery

Meet the artists and learn more about the 2023 MFA Thesis Exhibition center • part featuring works by CM Clemente, Ceyhun Fırat, Kyrin Hobson, Jules Koreman, Iona Bohan Liu, Jacob Pet, C. Tai Tai, and Qiuchen Wu. Gallery tours will be led by Exhibitions Manager Jan Brugger at 2:15 and 3:30 along with several of the students, but pop in anytime to view the work, ask questions, and congratulate the graduates!

Level One, Café Logan

Today the SOL Collective will share personal stories that voice the complexity of the intergenerational experiences of women of color. Founded in 2020, SOL Collective was formed to support and elevate women of color’s voices in the storytelling community and arts scene in Chicago. Through humor, empathy, community, and joy, we create healing connections in transformative narratives that reclaim and amplify our lineage and heritage of storytelling. We are women of the Sun…speaking with our soul-ancestral heart spirit…telling the stories of our lives.

Level Two, Screening Room

Community Film Workshop has been educating, mentoring, and advocating for equity and access in the media industry for over 52 years. Every citizen has the ability to tell their stories, archive their histories, and transform their communities through the media. Untold stories from underserved and underrepresented multicultural communities reveal their vibrant lifestyles, culture, and essential issues. We are immensely proud of the South Side Stories produced at the Production Institute as part of the Logan Center’s Digital Storytelling Initiative at the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Media Center.

Level Two, North Cantilever Lounge

Join members of the Hyde Park Youth Symphony as their quartet plays chamber music.

Level Five, Room 501

We are women of the Sun…speaking with our soul-ancestral heart spirit…telling the stories of our lives.

Level Six, Room 603

In this short introduction to movement-based composition, participants will be led through a gentle introduction to 1) moving our bodies in space, alone and together, and 2) how to begin thinking about composing movement phrases or vignettes. We will discuss the importance of warm-ups, introduce concepts such as rhythm, pacing, shape, and architecture, and play with two or three ways to begin a choreographic inquiry. Clara Nizard is a Joint-PhD candidate in English and Performance Studies at the University of Chicago. Her artistic practice draws from a variety of genealogies: postmodern and contemporary dance, new-style Hip Hop, historical dance idioms; mask and clown traditions, but also visual art’s intersections with performance practice. She is interested in dance as a capacious, interdisciplinary container for moving and thinking the world today.

Level Seven, Room 701

Ayodele, a Yoruba word meaning joy in the home, is a sisterhood of women who recognize the guidance of the Creator in our mission to study, heal and express ourselves through African Drum and Dance from a woman’s perspective. Join us for a culturally enriching African dance with live drumming experience designed to intrigue your mind, move your body, and feed your soul.

Level Nine, Performance Penthouse

Chicago’s own rising star Alejandro Salazar is deeply rooted in the tradition, yet he likes to explore new ways to help the people groove and dance more to his infectious swing feel. Alejandro has had the pleasure of playing at clubs, venues, and festivals all over Chicago and the world like The Chicago Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Jazz a la Villette (Paris), Primavera Sound Barcelona, Munch Museum (Oslo), Bourse de Commerce (Paris), Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, The Jazz Showcase, Andy’s Jazz Club, DuSable Museum, Navy Pier, The Hungry Brain, Constellation, and Fulton Street Collective.

Level One, Café Logan

The Supasuit Open Mic is a space encouraging people of all ages and identities to commune and express themselves, to inspire and be inspired, to respect the mic, respect each other and respect themselves! Celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Logan Center, we welcome you to bring your best selves and be encouraged to share your gifts and what's on your heart. This is not a space for any -phobias or -isms, any discrimination or disrespect. 3 mins max per piece. Nile Lansana is an acclaimed interdisciplinary artist from the South Side of Chicago who grew up writing & performing with the award-winning Rebirth Poetry Ensemble right here in the Logan Center! He has performed across the country, including Lollapalooza and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He just starred in the play "No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks" produced by Manual Cinema & written by Eve Ewing and Nate Marshall with music from Jamila Woods & Ayanna Woods! He's honored to welcome y'all to the Supasuit Open Mic!

Level Four, Room 401

Join Dayo Laoye, a Nigerian Fine Artist, Painter for this interactive drawing workshop. Dayo studied at School of Art Yaba Lagos Nigeria (1978- 1985) and the Department of Art at Howard University Washington DC USA (1988). A Chicago based artist since 1990, Dayo was the featured Artist for African Festival of the Arts. His Yoruba traditions, figures and nature are part of his inspiration.

Level Five, Room 501

Bhavna Chandramouli is a designer, artist, and performer born and raised in Mumbai, India. She has been classically trained in the ancient Indian dance form of Bharatanatyam since she was 5 and completed her Arangetram in 2013. She has been performing both in India and internationally. Bhavna is also a graduate of the School of the art institute of Chicago and specializes in identity, motion, and type design. and will perform a 5-7 minute dance and followed by a Q & A and teaching session.

Level Two, Screening Room

From our film preservation work in the basement to our drop-off station at the front desk, and from our home movie screenings and discussions on the second floor to our community cataloging workshops on the eighth floor to our community celebrations in the penthouse, South Side Home Movie Project has made a home for home movies in the Logan Center for 10 years. Join us for a look back at some of our favorite moments, including the packed house for South Side Sisterhood As Seen In Home Movies (May 2019) and a field trip to the film vault for the Teen Arts Council (February 2020). Featuring a sneak peek at some of our newest additions to the archive!

Level One, Theater East

Joel Hall Dancers & Center Choreographer and Assistant Artistic Director William Gill leads a 30-minute class in the basics of Joel Hall's Urban Jazz technique. Developed by Mr. Hall here in Chicago, Urban Jazz blends African dance techniques with Western styles and Chicago-born House music to create a breathtaking form of dance artistry and expression. William Gill has worked extensively in dance, opera, and with the internationally revered visual artist Nick Cave. As Assistant Artistic Director with Joel Hall Dancers & Center, William plays an integral role in shaping the vison and programming of one of Chicago’s iconic dance studios.

Level Two, North Cantilever Lounge

South Side Suzuki provides violin, viola, cello, and piano education to children and families on the South Side of Chicago. Today you will hear a performance from our youth violins led by instructor and co-director Hilary Butler. Today's performers range from 4 - 18 years old. Please enjoy!

Level Seven, Room 701

Ballet 5:8 is a female and minority-led premiere ballet company recognized for remarkable artistic excellence, innovation and beauty. Chicana Artistic Director, Julianna Rubio Slager, creates original and dynamic ballet experiences drawing from life, faith, current events and diverse perspectives that tell relevant stories of the 21st century. Ballet 5:8's activation kicks off with two spellbinding classical variations, "Satanella" performed by Ellington Nichols & "Paquita" performed by Ruth Sevlie. Then engage your body and soul with an invigorating movement class. This class invites participants of all skill levels to explore the language of movement. Through guided exercises and expressive improvisation, you'll discover new ways to connect with your body, unlock your creativity, and experience the sheer joy of dancing. Finally be swept away by "The Living Room Series" in captivating excerpts from a ballet that is custom curated for each performance.

Level Nine, Performance Penthouse

Chicago’s own rising star Alejandro Salazar is deeply rooted in the tradition, yet he likes to explore new ways to help the people groove and dance more to his infectious swing feel. Alejandro has had the pleasure of playing at clubs, venues, and festivals all over Chicago and the world like The Chicago Jazz Festival, Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Jazz a la Villette (Paris), Primavera Sound Barcelona, Munch Museum (Oslo), Bourse de Commerce (Paris), Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, The Jazz Showcase, Andy’s Jazz Club, DuSable Museum, Navy Pier, The Hungry Brain, Constellation, and Fulton Street Collective.

South Lawn

Participants have the opportunity to create a work of art using a wide assortment of colors using the Color by Number method. Youth will have the choice between a variation of the Little Black Workshop logos and participating in different activities.

Level One, Café Logan

Catcher in the Rhyme is a slam-poetry RSO that meets weekly to write poetry together. We host quarterly open mics and fundraisers. Each meeting consists of community building, free-writing, and a fun writing activity. Today’s performance is an open mic to celebrate 10 years of the Logan center and what it provides for the arts here at Uchicago. Unfortunately, most of us have been flooded with finals so we have not had the chance to memorize our poems. Nonetheless, we hope you enjoy our writing!

Level One, Gallery

Meet the artists and learn more about the 2023 MFA Thesis Exhibition center • part featuring works by CM Clemente, Ceyhun Fırat, Kyrin Hobson, Jules Koreman, Iona Bohan Liu, Jacob Pet, C. Tai Tai, and Qiuchen Wu. Gallery tours will be led by Exhibitions Manager Jan Brugger at 2:15 and 3:30 along with several of the students, but pop in anytime to view the work, ask questions, and congratulate the graduates!

Level One, Theater East

This sample West African Interactive Movement Demonstration focuses on the fundamental foundations of West African Dance. Participants will experience introductions to movement nuances, music, and dance style. Muntu Dance Theatre: Celebrating 51 Years of preserving and perpetuating the African aesthetic and its influence on world cultures, through the education and professional presentation of dance, music, and folklore.

Level Two, Screening Room

South Side Projections is a small nonprofit film organization that presents screenings and discussions at locations around Chicago’s south side. We have been doing community-oriented screenings at the Logan Center for the Arts for almost as long as the two organizations have existed. A few times a year, we present children’s film screenings as part of the Logan Center's Family Saturdays. By far the most popular ones have been Carol Munday Lawrence’s animated films about the Nguzo Saba, or Seven Principles. Although we usually show them in December in celebration of Kwanzaa, the principles emphasize the importance of unity, collective work, creativity, and cooperation—values that also describe the work of the Logan Center for the Arts and its staff. We’re proud to present four of Lawrence’s films as part of the Logan Center’s tenth-anniversary celebration.

Level Six, Room 603

In the workshop, we will learn about the basics of puppetry through a brown paper puppet exercise. One of the most signature training methods in puppetry, the exercise was designed by The Handspring Puppet Company in South Africa on the basis of traditional Japanese puppetry. We will learn how to craft a simple human-size puppet with brown paper, and how to bring the puppet to life. Yiwen is a scholar-artist. She is a third-year PhD student in the joint degree between East Asian Languages & Civilizations and Theater & Performance Studies. She has been trained in puppetry at Chicago International Puppet Festival and has assisted on various puppetry performances at the festival. Her original puppet performance, The Story of Lady Li, was performed at the Logan Center at the University of Chicago last summer.

Level Seven, Room 701

After watching a spicy performance by some of Ballroom and Latin Dance Association (BLDA), it's your turn to learn a piece of international Latin choreography! No experience or partner necessary. Can't wait to dance with you!