Collaboraction Sets September Programming With DESTINOS Festival, DJ Lady D & More
The Chicago company's House of Belonging will host Unpacking Home, Bilingual Improv School, Summer Fuego, The Frequency and more throughout September.
Click for Tickets!
Collaboraction will present a full slate of September programming at its House of Belonging in the Kimball Arts Center in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood.
The lineup includes performances presented through the company's You Belong Here series, Collaboraction's first programming as a host site for the Destinos Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, the launch of DJ Lady D's monthly salon series The Frequency, Bilingual Improv School, youth programming and more.
The events arrive as Collaboraction prepares for its first major production of the 2026-27 season, Mud Life, written by Willie Round and G. Riley Mills. Inspired by Round's experience growing up in North Lawndale, the play will begin previews October 21 and open October 25.
¡El Showcase!
September 9 at 7 p.m.
Bilingual Improv School will present ¡El Showcase!, a fully improvised comedy performance featuring students from the school and hosted by Rudy Mendoza.
The performance combines Spanish and English, with audiences welcome regardless of their fluency in either language. It is presented as part of Collaboraction's You Belong Here series. Tickets are $10.
Summer Fuego: Tablao Flamenco Show
September 13 at 6 p.m.
Community in Compás will present Summer Fuego: Tablao Flamenco Show, an evening of live flamenco music and dance featuring Chicago artists.
The performance will combine live music, guitar and dance in the intimate setting of a traditional tablao. Summer Fuego is presented as part of the You Belong Here series. Tickets range from $20-$40.
The People's Pot & Pantry
September 14 at 4 p.m.
Chicago performing arts workers are invited to a free meal and community gathering with The People's Pot & Pantry.
Designed to build community while addressing food insecurity within the performing arts, the program offers artists a meal featuring locally grown produce as well as an opportunity to take home prepared food for the week. The People's Pot & Pantry is facilitated by Global Hive Laboratories with Cedillo's Fresh Produce.
RADIATE
September 15
The Luminaries will present RADIATE, Collaboraction's monthly youth open mic series featuring emerging artists, students and community members.
The evening begins with a creative workshop and sign-up at 6 p.m., followed by the open mic at 7 p.m. Each edition incorporates a guided workshop centered on a theme or social change concept before opening the stage to live performances. Admission is free.
Unpacking Home
September 18-27
Raíces to Roots will present Unpacking Home, written by Maria Luisa Torres and Luis Tubens, as part of the ninth Destinos Chicago International Latino Theater Festival.
The multidisciplinary work follows The Poet, a character searching for home who receives a suitcase from their ancestors. Objects inside unlock memories that guide the character through the Chicago Puerto Rican experience, with dancers bringing memories of identity, love, struggle and resilience to life.
Performances are September 18 and 19 at 8 p.m., September 20 at 3 p.m., September 24 at 8 p.m., September 26 at 8 p.m. and September 27 at 3 p.m. Tickets range from $25-$35.
The Frequency
September 22 at 7:30 p.m.
DJ Lady D will launch The Frequency, a new monthly series hosted and curated by the Chicago DJ and presented by Collaboraction and Group Sounds. The first edition will feature special guest Leslé Honoré. Doors open at 7 p.m., with the program beginning at 7:30 p.m.
The series will combine conversations, music and participatory experiences centered on culture, creativity, wellness and social change. For the September event, Lady D and Honoré will explore the ways art, poetry and social media can be used to record experiences and respond to current events. Participants will hear a poetry reading and take part in a writing exercise.
Honoré is a poet, activist and author whose books include Brown Girl, Brown Girl and My Brown Boy. Her forthcoming If You Raise Free Daughters is scheduled for publication in 2027. Tickets for The Frequency range from $5-$20.
All September events will take place at Collaboraction's House of Belonging at the Kimball Arts Center, 1757 N. Kimball Ave. in Chicago.
|
Fleetwood Max Raue Center For The Arts (10/03-10/03) |
|
Love Story: A Tribute to Taylor Swift Raue Center For The Arts (11/07-11/07) |
|
Mean Girls Paramount Theatre (8/26-10/11) |
|
Rotary Rocks The Raue: James Garner's Tribute to Johnny Cash Raue Center For The Arts (10/24-10/24) |
|
The Dave Matthews Tribute Band Raue Center For The Arts (9/25-9/25) |
|
Blond Ambition: A Tribute to Madonna Raue Center For The Arts (11/07-11/07) |
|
Memphis The Musical Studebaker Theater at the Fine Arts Building (10/24-10/25) |
|
Beauty and the Beast The Stahl Family Theatre (10/22-11/24) |
|
Menopause The Musical Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts (10/18-10/18) |
|
Chicago Latinx/e Contemporary Movement Festival Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre (10/02-10/03) |