PROGRAM OF THE LOGAN CENTER

Logan Center Community Arts welcomes you to our 2023/24 Logan Center School Matinee Season. We are excited to carry on the tradition of bringing high-quality, educational artistic experiences to students and teachers. Our exciting 11th School Matinee season features local and world-renowned performing artists representing dance, music, storytelling, and poetry.

As a part of this unique opportunity, we provide 90 free tickets and 2 free buses to all participating schools in the Chicagoland area. In addition to world-class performances, we also provide professional development sessions to support educators in connecting these performances to their curriculum. If you plan to join us for a School Matinee, we encourage you to attend a corresponding virtual Teacher Professional Development Session. Led by seasoned educators, these workshops will be presented as live Zoom sessions, and each session will provide participants with powerful educational resources. 

The Logan Center School Matinee program is made possible through support from the Logan Center endowment established by the Reva and David Logan Foundation, the Angell Foundation, and friends of the Logan Center, as well as partnerships with the Neighborhood Schools Program of the Office of Civic Engagement at the University of Chicago, the Department of Music, University of Chicago Presents, Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, the Chicago International Puppet Festival, DCASE’s Word Music Festival Chicago, Lyric Opera, and other local and national, and international performing artists and arts organizations.         

Logan Center School Matinees

  • Who
    Students and teachers of grades K-12

    What
    11th School Matinee season of the Logan Center for the Arts

    Where
    Performance Hall at the Logan Center for the Arts

    When
    Weekday mornings from 10:30-11:30am

    Why
    Our culturally immersive field trips introduce youth to a diverse array of experiences that provide opportunities for dynamic learning, critical inquiry, and artistic engagement. These field trips provide an excellent form of actively engaging students with CPS learning standards.

  • • Access to a multi-disciplinary season featuring local and national leaders in the areas of music, dance, theater, poetry storytelling, and film.

    • It would cost each school an average of $1,430 to participate in the Logan Center’s School Matinee experience. Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, our programs and transportation are presented at no cost to schools.

    • We’ve opened our doors to over 50,000+ CPS students through this program.

  • #7 Perceive and analyze artistic work

    #8 Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work

    #9 Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work

    #11 Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding

  • Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

  • • Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts

    • Make effective choices for meaning or style

    • Comprehend more fully when reading or listening

  • State Goal 16:
    Understand and analyze events, trends, individuals, and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the United States, and other nations

    State Goal 17:
    Demonstrate knowledge of world geography, as well as understand the effects of geography on society, with an emphasis on the United States

    State Goal 18:
    Understand, analyze, and compare social systems, with an emphasis on the United States

  • All matinees take place at the Logan Center on weekday mornings from 10:30-11:30am.

    School Eligibility and Confirmation Policy
    Each teacher may register for up to three School Matinees per calendar year. Two free buses will be provided per school and schools can receive up to 90 tickets. Registration can be completed and submitted via the provided form. Schools can receive up to 90 tickets. To make reservations for this free program, teachers must:

    1. Submit a completed Registration Form;

    2. Attend a Teacher Professional Development Session prior to the reserved school matinee; confirmations will be sent once ticket request forms have been received. Each school may request up to 2 free buses and 90 free tickets for 3 performances this season.

    Cancellation Policy 
    Please make cancellations no fewer than 30 days prior to scheduled performances. Schools that fail to give 30 days’ notice will jeopardize their ability to participants in the matinee program for the remainder of the season.

    Adjustments to reserved ticket numbers should made no fewer than 2 weeks prior to the scheduled performance. If a school fails to attend a performance or cancels with fewer than 30 days they will be billed for transportation.

    Is it possible for my school to stay at the Logan Center for lunch following the School Matinee?
    Unfortunately, due to space limitations, we do not have the capacity to accommodate schools for lunch following the school matinee, except on special occasions.

    How do we make travel arrangements?
    The Logan Center makes FREE travel arrangements for all schools attending the matinees. Two free buses will be provided per school. You will receive more information upon registering.

  • Yes! The Logan Center is part of a collective of cultural organizations at the University called Amplify. The Amplify Collective offers a variety of multi-disciplinary arts education opportunities for teachers and their students. Amplify works with individual schools to tailor the most effective schedule, engaging teachers as planning partners to help articulate connections to curricular content and increase impact on school culture.

    Learn more at amplify.uchicago.edu.

If you have any questions/concerns about this program, please contact D'onminique Boyd-Riley (d b DOT riley AT uchicago DOT edu), Associate Director of Education & Family Programs.

2023-2024 School Matinees

All School Matinee performances take place in the Logan Center Performance Hall from 10:30-11:30am.

Founded in 2009 by Melaku Belay, Ethiocolor draws deeply from Ethiopia's rich heritage. An ecstatic symbiosis of both dance and music, Ethiocolor brilliantly displays the importance of creating balance between tradition and modernity.

EthioColor
Mon, Sep 25 / Grades: 6-12

Professional Development Session: Wed, Sep 20, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

When Jason’s uncle usurps his position & crowns himself king, Jason gathers his strongest & wisest friends to set sail on an adventure to reclaim the throne. This ancient myth of courage, triumph, & the meaning of heroism comes to life as Jason & the Argonauts search for the Golden Fleece.

Lyric Opera: Jason and the Argonauts
Thu, Oct 12 / Grades: 3-6

Professional Development Session: Wed, Sep 27, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

From Soweto, South Africa, BCUC draws inspiration from Indigenous music that is not exposed in the mainstream. Rebellious, spiritual, and exhilarating, the band’s live shows are transcendent rites of explosive sound. Following in the pulse of their ancestors, they awaken crowds to the power of a more just future.

Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness
Fri, Nov 10 / Grades: 9-12

Professional Development Session: Wed, Nov 1, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Enjoy stories on the big screen! The Chicago International Children’s Film Festival invites educators and students to view international films. After screenings, children are engaged in discussions with filmmakers and festival staff.

Chicago International Children's Film Festival
Tue, Nov 14 • Wed, Nov 15 • Thu, Nov 16 / Grades: K-8

Registration for this Matinee must be done via email through facets.org.

Experience a journey into Mexico's ancient Aztec culture of music, song, and dance. Xochitl-Quetzal stages a dynamic and vibrant heritage performance honoring the tradition of La Danza De Los Concheros. Let the dancers of Xochitl-Quetzal take you on an exploration of the Aztec world of Indigenous ceremony and ritual.

Xochitl Quetzal Aztec Dancers
Wed, Dec 6 / Grades: 4-8

Professional Development Session: Wed, Nov 22, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Now in its sixth season, the Chicago International Puppet Festival returns to the Logan Center in a showcase of puppetry arts and storytelling drawn from across the world.

Chicago International Puppet Festival
Thu, Jan 25 / Grades: K-5

Professional Development Session: Wed, Jan 10, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Award-winning storyteller April Armstrong brings tales to life through scatting, musical flavor, and theater, drawing the audience into stories in ways that speak to both their minds and hearts.

April Armstrong
Thu, Jan 30 / Grades: K-5

Professional Development Session: Thu, Jan 11, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Combining drum and dance rooted in West African rhythms, Chicago’s Ayodele puts on an energetic performance that centers the strength, joy, and stories of women and community.

Ayodele Drum & Dance
Thu, Feb 1 / Grades: 6-12

Professional Development Session:
Fri, Jan 12, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Sharing the beauty of Brazilian Culture through capoeira, samba de roda, maculele, music, dance, and language.

Brazilian Cultural Center of Chicago
Mon, Feb 5 / Grades: K-5

Professional Development Session:
Wed, Jan 17, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Yin He Dance Company presents folkloric, classical, and contemporary Chinese dance. The company bridges East and West, past and present, via repertory works passed down by master teachers as well as new works, especially those by members of the Chinese diaspora.

Yin He Dance
Tue, Mar 12 / Grades: 6-12

Professional Development Session: Wed, Mar 6, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Wu Fei's solo guzheng/vocal suite “Moon Hunter” draws on the singing form of ancient Chinese poetry. Fei’s original work and improvisations are woven together with traditional guzheng repertoire, folksongs, and Chinese opera, taking inspiration and influence from the old to create the new.

Wu Fei
Mon, Apr 8 / Grades: 6-12

Professional Development Session: Wed, Mar 13, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

This annual celebration of National Poetry Month provides a unique opportunity to explore poetry from the page to the stage. We invite schools to create performances of original or classic poetry to be featured at this event. We are also excited to feature award-winning published authors.

Word Is Rhythm Poetry Festival

Tue, Apr 16 / Grades: K-5
Mon, Apr 22 / Grades: 6-8
Mon, Apr 29 / Grades: 9-12

Professional Development Session:
TBD

Presented in partnership with The University of Chicago’s Music Department. Formed in 1994, the Pacifica Quartet is an energetic unified sound of string instruments, an embodiment of an American quartet with a dynamic ability to fold into each composer's vision.

Pacifica Quartet
Thu, Apr 18 / Grades: 6-12

Professional Development Session: Wed, Apr 10, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

Featuring Masankho Banda, Karin Amano, and Nestor Gomez. In this program, storytellers from different cultural traditions share engaging stories that inspire students to learn more about their own cultures and those of others.

Stories Around the World
Wed, May 15 / Grades: K-5

Professional Development Session: Wed, Apr 24, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

An initiative of the Logan Center, the CBDLP celebrates the vital artistic force of Black dance in Chicago. From traditional African dance to contemporary choreography, Black dance encapsulates a broad spectrum of artistic expression rooted in the Black experience. This matinee features performances from select dance companies of the CBDLP’s second cohort.

Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project
Wed, Dec 13 / Grades: 5-12

Professional Development Session: Tue, Dec 5, 4:30-5:30pm on Zoom

REGISTER

Please note that registration for the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (Tue, Nov 14 & Wed, Nov 15 / Grades: K-8) must be done through Facets.org via email.
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