Steppenwolf Theatre Company 1650 N. Halsted 312-335-1650 steppenwolf.org Runner-Up: Goodman Theatre

Smyth Oriole Finalists: Travelle at Langham, Pizzeria Uno, Funkenhausen

Empty Bottle Runner-Up: Reggie’s Rock Club

Bill Callahan’s recent album Shepherd in a Sheepskin Vest (Drag City) contains the singer-songwriter’s first set of new songs in six years. That’s a long time for a guy who made 15 LPs in the 23 years between Sewn to the Sea, his first full-length as Smog, and Dream River, which came out in 2013 (followed by a dub companion, Have Fun With God, the next year). But during a series of major life events—marriage, the birth of a son, the loss of a parent—Callahan experienced a long dry stretch....

Little superheroes dashed out of the Black Creativity Innovation Studio and through the Museum of Science and Industry on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, their capes blowing and badges glowing. On this museum family day, the studio was set up just for them. First they picked their superpowers, determined their origin stories, and chose an identity. And then, of course, next up was building their gear. “By me being myself in these environments, it gives people permission to be themselves, and I think authenticity and access to authentic people is lacking in our community because we often are told we have to switch our behaviors, switch our style of speech or dress in order to be deemed as innovative or deemed as intelligent,” Mayden says....

This week the terrific label operated by Chicago art gallery Corbett vs. Dempsey released four titles, including an album from singular Poughkeepsie multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee. Ever since CvsD started operating like a proper label (instead of merely putting out an occasional title related to an exhibition), it’s lavished attention on McPhee—nearly a third of its catalog is devoted to his music, including previously unreleased material and reissues of long-out-of-print records....

In the fall of 2016, I was in Amsterdam for the October Meeting, a festival of young Europe-based improvisers. As the three-day event ended and a partylike vibe took over, saxophonist John Dikeman—an American living in the Netherlands—decided that he needed a haircut. He sat on the floor of the bar and a pair of shears was handed to another musician, who began cutting away. It was a ridiculous episode, but in its own absurd way it reinforced some of qualities essential for good improvisers: spontaneity, risk-taking, and trust....

When Rebecca Baruc was 11 years old, she began to show her drawings from her journal to a teacher, Barbara Herzberg. For eight years, Baruc would study alongside Herzberg where she would focus on still lifes and draw from reality. It wouldn’t be until college—at Skidmore in New York—that she would begin to dive into abstraction, sculpture, conceptual art, and performance art. Growing from this exploration, she began to draw the people she loves....

Inside Out This week we take a look at Results, the latest comedy from indie stalwart Andrew Bujalski (Funny Ha Ha, Mutual Appreciation, Computer Chess), and Inside Out, the latest Pixar animation. Guess which one is going to make a yawning ass-load of money this weekend?

This year hip-hop, long a dominant cultural force, went pop in terms of both setting trends in contemporary music and leading music sales. Philadelphia rapper Lil Uzi Vert is at the apex. His debut studio album, Luv Is Rage 2 (Atlantic), is the most important release of 2017, which has as much to do with his status as an avatar for the current zeitgeist and industry shifts as it does with the quality of his music....

Local punk rockers Aweful captured my attention this year with a classic punk sound that brings an appropriately seedy (and delightfully creepy) atmosphere to their shows. Buoyed by the reception they got with August’s single “Me Me Me,” which I mentioned in my Aweful concert preview in July, they’ve created a music video for their new song “I Never Knew.” Get Up With the Get Downs, Aweful, Pylons Thu 12/19, 8:30 PM, Empty Bottle, 1035 N....

Murphy’s Bleachers Cubby Bear Finalists: Nisei Lounge, Bernie’s

Greek Islands 200 S. Halsted 312-782-9855 greekislands.net Runner-Up: Athena’s

Opart various locationsopartthai.com Runner-Up: Aroy Thai

With bars and restaurants closed around the country, the feeling of plopping down in a seat at the bar after a long week of work is one many people are missing while living under COVID-19. A good drink is the foundation of many a Friday night, whether it’s a fun night out or a relaxing night in. But few people think about the hands making the drinks. Culture Shakers, a new short film by Storm Saulter aims to tell the little-known history of BIPOC in the cocktail industry by highlighting the Black and Latinx mixologists in Gentleman Jack’s Culture Shakers program....

Getting a handle on the music of avant-pop singer-songwriter Mary Ocher is like volunteering to board a canoe piloted by a blindfolded Sandra Bullock: given who’s driving, you’re going to enjoy the adventure, but nothing can prepare you for the rocks and dips ahead. Born in Russia, raised in Tel Aviv, and based in Berlin since 2007, Ocher displays an impressive range of influence and technique on her early albums, moving between Lotte Lenya-style avant-garde torch songs and Robyn-style electronica....

California duo Best Coast are a long way away from the bite-size stoner love songs and sun-drenched slacker tales of their 2010 debut album, Crazy for You. On their brand-new fourth LP, Always Tomorrow (Concord), singer-songwriter and guitarist Bethany Cosentino and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno pair beefed-up power chords with clear-eyed observations, a newfound sense of optimism, and an ambitious look toward the future. It’s the band’s most straightforward rock ’n’ roll record to date, but it still has echoes of the SoCal skater vibe and lo-fi pop-punk warmth that defined their breakthrough tunes, such as Crazy for You’s “When I’m With You” and “Boyfriend....