Hannibal Buress & 4 More Chicago Plans This Week

Hannibal Buress in Skokie, Yuja Wang at Symphony Center, David Byrne's Theater of the Mind, plus Jazz Day and Mexico Fest at Navy Pier through the weekend.

By Raj Singh · Published April 29, 2026.

Wednesday in Chicago — 56 and overcast, the kind of day where you're not making big outdoor plans but the indoor stuff is stacked. We've got hometown comedy in Skokie, the most exciting pianist alive at Symphony Center, an immersive David Byrne installation that's been quietly running all spring, plus a stacked weekend ahead with Jazz Day Thursday and Mexico Fest at Navy Pier through Sunday. Five picks, three of them tonight.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29 · WED APR 29

Hannibal Buress @ North Shore Center

Chicago's own Hannibal Buress — the Broad City dentist, the 30 Rock writer, the guy in basically every Spider-Man movie now — drops into Skokie tonight for a one-night-only set at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. He left for New York, then LA, then a music alter-ego (Eshu Tune, look it up), but Chicago made him, and these hometown shows are where he lets the laconic delivery stretch out longest.

The North Shore Center is a 845-seat proper theater — not a basement comedy club — so this is Buress doing the polished-but-still-weird hour, not crowd work. Skokie's not exactly nightlife central, but if you're driving up the parking is free and plentiful, and Pita Inn (rated 4.7 on Google) is two miles south on Skokie Blvd. Get the shawarma plate and a side of garlic sauce before the show.

7:30 PM start. Tickets selling but still available as of this morning. 56F and overcast tonight, basically a no-weather night — no umbrella required, just a jacket. 9501 Skokie Blvd.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29 · WED APR 29

Yuja Wang & the Mahler Chamber Orchestra @ Symphony Center

If you only see one classical concert this year, this is a defensible pick. Yuja Wang is the most magnetic pianist working today — the technique is otherworldly, the stage presence unapologetic, and the program tonight is built around her: Chopin's First Concerto (the radiant one), Prokofiev's Second (the brutally hard one), plus Prokofiev's Classical Symphony as a palate cleanser. The Mahler Chamber Orchestra is along for the ride and they're not slouches.

Symphony Center's main hall is one of the great rooms in the country for this music — every seat hears it well, and the acoustic does favors to the piano you don't get at bigger arenas. It's right on Michigan Ave, two blocks from the Art Institute. Pre-show: walk over to Cherry Circle Room in the Chicago Athletic Association for a cocktail, or if you want a real meal, Acanto on Michigan does Italian without the white-tablecloth fuss.

7:30 PM, $89 and up — there were still seats in the upper balcony as of this morning, which is honestly the best value for piano repertoire anyway. 220 S. Michigan Ave. CTA: Adams/Wabash Brown/Pink/Orange/Green is one block away.

RUNNING NOW · THROUGH JULY 12

Theater of the Mind @ Reid Murdoch Building

David Byrne (Talking Heads, American Utopia, that one) and neuroscientist Mala Gaonkar built a 15,000-square-foot immersive installation in River North that walks groups of just 16 people through a series of rooms designed around real neuroscience research. It's been a Goodman Theatre production since fall and runs through July 12 — Sunday plus Tuesday through Saturday. Over 75 minutes, you participate in actual experiments. We're being deliberately vague about specifics because the surprise is most of the thing.

It's at the Reid Murdoch Building on LaSalle, which sits right on the river — gorgeous old terra cotta facade, easy walk from State/Lake or Clark/Lake. Tickets cap at 16 per show so this is intimate and selling out repeatedly; book a few days ahead if you can. After: Beatnik on the River is two blocks over for a cocktail with the riverwalk view, or if you want something heartier, walk south to the Loop and hit Lyra in West Loop.

Multiple show times daily, around 75 minutes per group. 333 N LaSalle. Visit TheateroftheMindChicago.com for the schedule.

THURSDAY, APRIL 30 · THU APR 30

International Jazz Day Chicago

Chicago hosting the 15th annual International Jazz Day is, frankly, the way it should be — this city's contribution to the form is hard to overstate, and this year UNESCO and the Herbie Hancock Institute agree. Confirmed artists include Hancock himself, Béla Fleck, Melissa Aldana, and Chicago's own Ernest Dawkins, with shows scattered across the city Thursday from afternoon to late.

It's set up as a citywide affair — schools, clubs, museums, public spaces — so the move is to pull up jazzday.com/chicago in the morning, pick the show that matches your neighborhood and your taste, and go. Most are free or pay-what-you-can. The Green Mill, the Jazz Showcase, the Promontory, and Symphony Center are all in the mix.

Free at most venues, schedule varies by location. Drizzly 50F day so tilt toward indoor sets; if you do go outdoor, layer a windbreaker because the lake breeze will find you.

FRI–SUN · MAY 1–3

Mexico Fest @ Navy Pier

Cinco de Mayo weekend at Navy Pier, thrown in partnership with the Consulado General de México and Estado de Mexico — three days of music and dance from Mexican artists, plus a mercadito with handicrafts, jewelry, blankets, embroidered clothing, and dolls. Free, kid-friendly, and walkable. Last year's drew 50K+ across the weekend, so it's a real festival, not a side event.

Navy Pier's the venue, which means: do not drive. Pier parking is $35+ and the streets around Streeterville will be locked up. Take the 29, 65, or 66 bus, or walk over from Ogilvie/Union via the riverwalk. Eat the festival food (it's the point) but if you need backup, Riva inside the pier does decent shrimp with a view, and Tortas Frontera at the Loop train stations is a reliable cheap fallback.

Noon to evening Fri/Sat/Sun. Free admission. 600 E Grand Ave. 45F and overcast all weekend — wear a coat, the lake will make it feel colder than the forecast says.

That's the briefing. Forward to a friend who needs to get out more.