FRIDAY, February 10th
Friday Forum: State of Political Gridlock, University YMCA, noon to 1:30 p.m., free
With all the gobbledygook and nonsense happening on the national level, it might be that you have forgotten about the state of our state: it’s kind of a mess. If you have time on your lunch, stop by the University Y to hear and have a conversation with Jim Nowlan, politic scientist and former commentator for the News-Gazette. No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, we all need to be informed and armed with information, and be able to have meaningful conversations about these very serious matters. Image from Facebook. (JH)
Chase Baby’s Birthday Bash, Canopy Club, 9 p.m., 18+, $5
If you’re into rap, and more specifically local rap, Canopy is the place to be tomorrow night. Featuring some of the best in town celebrating C-U mc Chase Baby’s birthday, there’s really nothing to lose from checking this out. (BH)
SATURDAY, February 11th
Building a Progressive Politics in the Trump Era, Channing-Murray Foundation, 2-4 p.m, Free
This Saturday, the first in a line of programs that are responses to the election of President Donald Trump will take place. Come one, come all to a free series of talks this Saturday to talk about how progressives organize from here on out. (BH)
Drink free wine, Common Ground Co-op, 2-4 p.m., free
Common Ground is hosting a free wine tasting to celebrate Valentine’s Day. The store will be pouring reds, whites, and bubbly vino, providing an excellent opportunity to discover something new, do some research for a Val- or Gal-entine’s, or just treat yourself while you do some Saturday afternoon shopping. Image from Facebook. (JH)
Folk & Roots Winter Weekend, The Iron Post, Friday at 8 p.m. ($10 at the door) and Saturday at 6 p.m. ($20 at the door. $20 in advance for both days.)
This inaugural Folk & Roots Winter Weekend, sponsored in part by the C-U Folk and Roots Festival collective, will feature two days of local and touring folk, bluegrass, and Americana acts sure to satisfy your roots music cravings. Check out the event page for the full schedules for each day, and if you intend to go both days, make sure to buy your tickets in advance – $20 will get you admission for both days, which is a 30% savings. (JM)
PechaKucha Night Vol. 23, The Virginia Theatre, $10-15, 8:20 p.m.
The mighty PechaKucha Night Champaign-Urbana returns for their 23rd installment this Satuday, their first since their 22nd at last year’s Pygmalion Festival. 20 slides, 20 seconds each, 10 presenters — check out the Facebook event for all the details about the presenters. (PS)
Cara Louise Band, Penny Horses, Neoga Blacksmith, 9:30 p.m., $7 after 11 p.m.
The folks who put together Hogchute Opry are presenting this show as one of their Offchute Opry Series at Cowboy Monkey on Saturday: Cara Louise Band. She’s jointed by a couple of locals Penny Horses and Neoga Blacksmith. (PS)
SUNDAY, February 12th
Failure, a Love Story, KCPA Studio Theatre, 2:30 p.m., $25 with discounts available.
Yeah, it’s sold out, but it is worth it to show up at the ticket office and see if there are any late-release tickets. In fact, why don’t you put yourself on the waiting list right now? This jazz-fueled, spunky, tragic funny ode to love and acceptance and family features a tight ensemble cast who play off each other in a spectacular fashion. But the gramaphone’s my favorite. Aside from John N. And Jenny June. See? They’re just too good to choose. Go see for yourself. (RK)
Simpson’s Trivia Night, Pizza M, Urbana, 6-9 pm, FREE
Embiggen your reputation as the most cromulent Simpson’s fan in C-U. A few classic episodes, 5 rounds of Simpson’s trivia, delicious pizza and mmmm…beer. A couple hours spent in the back room of Cafeteria & Co. (is it still “Secret Bar”? “Bar M”?) may just make you forget the devastating national deficit we have to recover from after the Trump Administration. I may just go to hear the team names. (RK)
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All event information is accurate to the best of our abilities, but sometimes we make mistakes and sometimes event information, times, prices, etc., change after we look them up. Whenever possible, we’ve provided a link to the original event page; you should always double-check the source before you make any firm plans. Thanks for your understanding.