One of the best parts of living right near Grant Park and Millennium Park is the wide array of free activities. Between the Grant Park Music Festival and all the other free concerts in Pritzker Pavilion, the traveling art exhibits, the museums, the festivals and Summer Dance it is nearly impossible to find an evening without a free Chicago activity.
While Adam and I have done a great job this season of attending concerts in Pritzker Pavilion (I think we've averaged one a week), we need to do a better job of attending Summer Dance. Summer Dance is a free evening event that consists of 2 parts: the first hour is a dance lesson with professional instructors. The lessons range from Argentine Tango to Bhangra to Steppin' but also include classics like Salsa, Fox Trot and Waltz. Over 20 different dance types are taught over the course of the summer. After the lesson, there is live music and dancing under the stars.
The events happen at various places in the city including two locations right outside our front door: Navy Pier and Grant Park's Spirit of Music Garden. These pictures are from the latter. Goose Island had a private event just next to Summer Dance a few weeks ago that Adam and I attended. We arrived too late to do the dance lesson but got to enjoy watching others dance. It motivated me to get there in time for the lesson soon!
More details for Chicagoans:
Summer Dance is on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays all summer long. The next few lessons/dances in the Grant Park Spirit of Music Garden are:
July 10 (today!) :
Buddy Bates and Rebecca Unger (Zydeco lesson) w/ Jeffry Broussard and The Creole Cowboys providing Zydeco music
July 11:
BallroomChicago.com (Mambo lesson) w/ the John Burnett Orchestra playing Vintage Big Band and Ballroom music
July 15:
Soham Dance Space (Bhangra lesson) with Red Baraat playing Punjabi Funk music
July 16:
Big City Swing (East Coast Swing lesson) with The Flat Cats playing Jump Blues and Swing music
Get out there and boogie! (And from what I saw the other day, don't worry about looking silly- there is always someone who looks sillier than you!)
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