Leanr to Dance has all the items you need for dance classes, or for music recitals or whatever. The…read moreprices are low and the servce is great.

We met Holly a Timothy OTooles in Gurnee in their kids night. She was so friendly and engaging with…read morethe kids. But the best part is her unique balloon animals. We are not talking your standard dog, flower, sword, etc. She was making all sorts of balloon figures that we had never seen before. A Chiquita Banana style fruit hat, hammerhead shark, super cute baby dolls, and she had some other unique ideas like superheroes and sports players. She showed us some of her portfolio as we were talking, which included huge balloon sculptures she had made, such as dinosaurs at the Field Museum. She also had examples of team building exercises she had done as corporate events. Really interesting!

I see a lot of balloon artists being in the field that I'm in, and I have to say that Holly Nagel…read moreis one of the very best I've seen. She's a genuinely kind and warm person and her style of balloons are fun and innovative. Definitely a good choice if you're contemplating balloon artists.

Attended a fundraiser here for this remarkable organization. Wonderful that they offer…read moreopportunities for our young musicians especially in this age of fine arts cut backs in our schools. A truly important asset to our community. Had the opportunity to hear some of their musicians play for us and I can honestly say that they are a truly talented bunch.

Going through a huge amount of turmoil and turnover internally. Staff turnover is exceptionally…read morehigh. What does this say about an organization when they can't keep consistent staff? I would question if this is a safe place for young musicians. There are other programs in the area who do a better job. All parent concerns are swept under the rug.

Nice place, the teachers are great! I went to a Zumba class, very energetic and tons of fun! The…read moreprices are okay. Depending on the time of day, parking varies...it can be great, but you also might end up walking a little ways. The studio is a decent size...it's not as big as I expected, but you aren't cramped! Overall, a pretty decent place. I've only taken the one class there, so I don't know how the other classes are.

The staff is friendly. For a kid's activity the price is very reasonable for a one hour once per…read moreweek class. The hip hop teacher is good. The recital is held at the Hemmen's in Elgin which is a nice venue. I think it is fine if your child wants to take a recreational class but I would not recommend this school if your child is serious about dancing and is looking for a school with quality instruction. There is a big difference between learning a dance and learning HOW to dance. At the recital there were several religious songs the girls danced to. It seemed out of place for a spring dance recital and better left for Sunday school. Something to keep in mind if you are not religious.

Evanston Summer Sounds was a lot of fun! Evanston has a summer concert series that they host from…read moreJune through September, each week a different band. It's held near Fountain Square and they close off the street for a couple blocks. I brought the baby to see Ida y Vuelta, a band I really like, and it wasn't crowded at all. There are no seats or anything besides the curb, so if you want to sit you'll need to bring your own chair (and are encouraged to do so). It's a short evening, this year from 5-7, but an enjoyable one. There were a few food trucks and a couple booths selling some food as well, a couple community/non-profit organizations, and a booth or two selling some sort of merchandise. I really enjoyed this little evening concert, as did my little one, and I'll keep my eye on the schedule for next year too.

This amazing troupe has been in existence for over sixty years, over thirty in their present…read morelocation in Rolling Meadows. A labor of love that is felt in every seat of the comfortable, cozy theater. The performances are a short combination of classical opera arias and a collection of popular musical selections. The backstage tour after the performance is the icing on the cake. Thank you Justin and crew for a fabulous experience. One I hope to repeat soon and often.

Hands down a MUST-see experience! I reached out to Opera in Focus months ago to plan a group outing…read morefor my wedding party. Justin, who was our main contact with Opera in Focus, helped me plan a completely custom experience. They let us schedule a private performance just for my group, on a date and time that they aren't normally open to the public. Having a performance only for my group made it extra special to me. We saw Phantom of the Opera and we loved every moment! The puppets, the music, the lighting and set design, were all works of art. Justin and the whole troupe were so talented and kind. This was the first activity my group did on our wedding day (Oct 18, 2025) and it will be something we will never forget. If we didn't live 5 hours away, I'd make this a monthly activity! They switch up their performances year-round. Don't hesitate, get your tickets to Opera in Focus and keep their magic alive for generations to come!

I've lived in Antioch for 15 years, and today was my first time visiting PM&L Theatre -- I can't…read morebelieve I waited this long! I saw Hairspray and it was absolutely fantastic. The energy was incredible, and the singing was amazing. I'm so glad I finally made it out -- this definitely won't be my last time at PM&L!

What a wonderful restored old venue! The production I saw was at a near professional in quality in…read morespite of the cast and tech crew being entirely minimally supervised high school students. A real bargain for ticket price relative to quality of performance. It's an intimate venue, with narrow little seats, and a relatively steep decline down the aisle to seats, but Im old enough to have problems with this sort of thing. The flip side to this is that all seats have a good view and excellent sound. Free parking in back, and a lovely park to have a picnic supper before the show.

University of Illinois extension presented this new conference at Elgin Community College this…read moreyear. I learned about it and bought a ticket for something new to do on a Saturday. Ultimately I left with a lot more knowledge than I had and thought the ticket price was well worth the cost. It began with the main presentation by the horticulturist for Lurie Garden (in Millennium Park). She covered the topic of gardening for the seasons, with thoughts in mind of how your plants look in winter months as well as warm months, something not many take into consideration. Consideration was also given to seasonal management, how, when and what to cut back. Overall the level of detail was good, the presentation was educational without being excessively technical and I left with some good ideas for new plants for my garden. The main presentation was followed by three smaller sessions which attendees could choose from when buying their tickets. For the first, I chose Sustainable Landscaping presented by the Home Program manager of the Conservation Foundation. I again left with a big list of plants I want to investigate to add to my yard. For the second I chose Improving soil health for tree growth and longevity given by a Green Industry coordinator from Morton Arboretum. This presentation was heavily science-based and some of it admittedly went over my head but I got the gist of it and still left with some great ideas and knowledge of soil compaction issues and how to alleviate them (in particular, this one taught me a lot I was clueless about before). The third session I chose was about invasive pests, specifically the spotted lanternfly, which causes a lot of crop damage. Also very educational and now I can identify and help control this population. There was a lunch break with food provided and shorter breaks between the presentations. Overall I highly recommend this conference if you want to learn more about gardening topics and how to manage and improve your yard in general.