Chicago Humanities Festival — Talks & Performances
- Multi-week festival of talks, readings, and performances featuring leading artists, authors, and thinkers. - Runs Apr 18–May 17, 2026, with events throughout the week and weekend. - Events take place at venues across Chicago; full schedule and ticket info at choosechicago.com.
Chicago Humanities Festival is running a spring slate of talks, readings, tours, and performances across Chicago and Evanston through May 17. (choosechicago.com) The nonprofit’s official schedule lists three main festival days this season: Bridgeport on April 18, Lakeview on May 9, and Northwestern University Day in Evanston on May 17. (chicagohumanities.org) As of Thursday, April 23, the next events on the calendar include Xochitl Gonzalez at Salt Shed’s Three Top Lounge at 6:30 p.m. and “A Night With NPR’s Planet Money” at the Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture at 7:30 p.m. (chicagohumanities.org) Chicago Humanities has been staging public conversations for more than 30 years, and this spring’s program spreads those conversations beyond a single downtown venue into neighborhood and campus stops. (chicagohumanities.org) That structure is visible in Bridgeport, where the festival paired Ramova Theatre and Co-Prosperity with bus tours led by Shermann “Dilla” Thomas, a Brick of Chicago walking tour, and talks on public health, housing justice, and music. (chicagohumanities.org) The April 18 lineup in Bridgeport included Dr. Ibram X. Kendi with Mayor Brandon Johnson, Yann Martel on his new novel, and Tonika Lewis Johnson, Amanda Williams, and Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor on housing justice. (chicagohumanities.org) Lakeview Day on May 9 shifts to the Athenaeum Center, where the schedule includes David Axelrod and David French at 11 a.m., Padma Lakshmi at 4 p.m., Kimberlé Crenshaw at 6:30 p.m., and Jad Abumrad with Lynda Barry at 7 p.m. (chicagohumanities.org) Northwestern University Day on May 17 moves the festival to Evanston venues including McCormick Auditorium, Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, Norris University Center, and the Block Museum. (chicagohumanities.org) That day’s listed programs include Curtis Duffy at 11 a.m., Congresswoman Lauren Underwood at 1:30 p.m., John Waters at 5 p.m., and Veronica Roth at 7 p.m. (chicagohumanities.org) The spring roster also reaches beyond the three hub days. The festival’s home page and event listings show appearances this season by Michael Pollan, Rick Steves, Peter Sagal, and Mary Beard, with some events already marked sold out. (chicagohumanities.org ) (chicagohumanities.org) For anyone trying to catch it now, the festival is less a single weekend than a rolling month of ticketed conversations, neighborhood tours, and stage events, with the remaining calendar running into Sunday, May 17. (choosechicago.com)
