Achy Obejas

Come the end of the month, the Bop Shop -- one of the city's last venues for emerging and avant-garde jazz and spoken word artists -- will close its doors...

When Fidel Castro came triumphantly into Havana on New Year's Day in 1959, Pablo Armando Fernandez was already in the United States. But, unlike so many of his compatriots who...

Johnny Almendra y los Jovenes del Barrio Evolucionando (RMM) (star) (star) (star) 1/2 A delightful little gem, "Evolucionando" comes from Johnny Almendra's music workshops, which work to both preserve and...

There have been many memorable Lynn Book performances. Like the time the sky erupted with wild bolts of lightning behind her as she made her entrance at the Blue Rider...

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Consider Berlin, the North Side pansexual watering hole and house of gyrations. Under new management, but still working the same...

Various Artists Super Cuban All Stars (RMM) (star) You have to wonder whose idea this was, and just how enthusiastic RMM was about the project. What's most obvious is who's...

Paula Killen is remarkably relaxed these days. Her legs tangled under her on a chair in a temporary apartment while back in Chicago for a short stint, her hair short-cropped,...

Encarnacion Teruel, who the Tribune named as one of 1996's top Chicagoans in the arts, has resigned from his post as performing arts director of the Mexican Fine Arts Center...

The House Band Rockall (Green Linnet) (star) (star) (star) (star) These instrumental virtuosos make soaring music with dark, luscious undertones. With heavy doses of Bulgarian, African, Scottish and Irish, they...

Various artists The Twentieth Anniversary Collection (Green Linnet) (star) (star) (star) (star) A breathtaking collection of Celtic music from Green Linnet, this country's premier label for Irish music addicts. Featuring...