We utilized CAKE Village's services for our company holiday party and they were absolutely AMAZING!…read more I wanted to do something fun this year for our Holiday Event instead of just dinner. We elected to use CAKE Village as our painting vendor because they offered us a very fair price and were super helpful. I was in constant contact with Lande to plan our event and she did a great job with everything. We had decided on painting the Chicago skyline. Our event had 50 people and literally everyone's painting looked beautiful. Lande came to our event with 2 other instructors and they all did wonderfully at guiding us with our own unique masterpieces. All of our guests had an absolutely amazing time, and would love to do something like this again. I will definitely make it a point to visit their actual location to enjoy their services as well. I highly recommend using the CAKE village for their painting instruction for large events, they can definitely handle the job! They will also work with you in order to get exactly what you want/need.

From the owner: Our mission is to foster an enriched, positive connection between all children and the continent of…read moreAfrica. We focus on African cultural, visual and performing arts. Outreach, field trips, home schooling, and birthday parties are welcome. We are open on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday by appointment only.

The Elgin Symphony Orchestra is absolutely phenomenal! A powerful performance, moving, and…read morebeautifully executed. The musicians are incredibly talented!

Let's go over theatre etiquette. Turn your dang phone off. Don't video like you're at a rock…read moreconcert. And don't wear so much perfume that people 5 rows ahead can smell you. Gross I didn't even know that Elgin had a symphony, but someone gave me free tickets and I was game. I really enjoyed it. The symphony has so many very talented musicians and the theatre small enough that there isn't a bad seat in the house. Would I drive all the way to Elgin again for another concert? That's undecided. But I wouldn't discourage anyone from going. It really was a beautiful evening

I attended a work event here and it was a beautiful venue . The venue has historic charm and has…read moreretained many of its original features. It is the perfect place for community events, meetings or weddings. The meeting room was accessible via stairs or elevator. There is ample parking, A beautiful setting.

Our engagement party at Barrington's White House was everything I dreamed of and more! From the…read moremoment we began planning, the staff made the entire experience seamless and special. The space was stunning and created the perfect atmosphere for cocktail hour with our loved ones. A very special thank you to Sharon, the hospitality manager, who has truly been my favorite person to work with since entering my bridal era. Her warmth, professionalism, and genuine care made all the difference. I can't thank her enough for helping bring my vision to life. The catering by Veridian was incredible. Every dish was beautifully presented and tasted just as amazing as it looked. Our guests couldn't stop raving about the food and the attentive staff. It was a perfect night from start to finish.. we're so grateful!

My husband and I have always loved going to the theater during our dating years. Before kids, we…read moreused to trek into the city to see the bigger productions. Since having kids, things look a little different but our love for live performances hasn't changed. Now we make it a point to support local theaters closer to home. It's more convenient, more affordable, and still gives us that special date-night feeling. We've been to this theater twice since last year. My favorite so far has been "Green Day's American Idiot" production that ran last summer. The songs instantly brought back memories of seeing Green Day live during our college days. The cast delivered a lively, high-energy production that kept me tapping my feet the entire night. I felt transported back to my 20s reliving those songs. Because ticket prices are so affordable, we treated ourselves to front-row seats and I felt so immersed throughout that night. That show was performed in the main theater (I believe it's called the Blizzard Theater), seatings was assigned, and tickets were only $16 for adults. In my opinion, it was an incredible value for a production of that caliber and soundtrack. We returned this past weekend to see "Unsung Broadway," which features musical numbers from shows that never made it to Broadway or had short runs. It was both entertaining and educational. This performance took place in the SecondSpace Theater, located next to the main theater. It's a much more intimate setting, and there really isn't a bad seat in the house. You can see the actors faces very well from any angle. They also do a great job of using all the stage area and turning at all points during their performances. Tickets for this show were $22. There's a small online processing fee when purchasing ahead of time, but overall, it's still very reasonable. You select your own seats of what's available or remaining once you enter the theater. The seats are a little bit tight together your traditional classic theater seat seats so there's not too much room when you have a big coat on during the winter time. If you want more leg room, you can get the floor seats which is right next to the stage and comes with a table with a candlelight centerpiece which gives off a very romantic & intimate flair also. They seem to pair off about 2-3 chairs per table. Both times we've been here we noticed they don't sell snacks or drinks during intermission, but the restrooms are conveniently located just outside between both theater entrances and are well kept. Parking is easy, and you can walk straight into the building -- no stairs required, as both theaters are located on the first floor. We truly enjoy coming here and appreciate having quality live performances so close to home. We'll definitely be back for both planned performances and more impromptu date nights and I want to also try to pair it with the student culinary experiences in the future :)

I've been here twice for concerts; it's a decent venue. And I love that it's so close to home…read more Not a huge venue, but perfect for a community college campus theater.

This is a small one room museum on the history of St. Charles. They really need some more space;…read morethey're set up in an old gas station. One enters through the gift shop; there is a timeline set up that one follows through the room, with several standalone glass cases, and a few cases shoved up against the walls behind the railing showing the timeline. A few costumes (half a dozen) are featured, including a reproduction Civil War uniform and some authentic World War 1 uniforms, a flapper dress and a dress Miss USA 1977 wore during her reign. Standout pieces include an old dentist's chair with various items from a dental office and a beautiful woven cane baby carriage with beautiful lace trim on the canopy. Do spend a minute to stop at the tiny pickle display to read about how St. Charles was the Pickle Capital of the World, even though no pickles were ever made there. There's also some very nice cut glass in a small display. A couple of pianos and a traveling trunk are jammed into the foyer. When there are visitors they turn on several different documentaries; one, from WTTW, includes a fairly interesting bit on Garfield Farm down the road on the 38. There's a lot of information jammed in here, and I came away with an appreciation for all the various industries that once called St. Charles home, but not a good overall picture. They just need more space. Still, donations are voluntary only,they're not getting any support from the city, and they're only asking for two bucks.

Stopped by the St. Charles Heritage Center this afternoon and checked out the museum and store…read more Pretty cool! Lots of history in a compact space, but well documented. Gives you a deeper appreciation of how the Fox Valley has changed in the last 150 years -- from American Indian paradise to new frontier for folks from Vermont and Massachusetts to industrial powerhouse to cultural destination for folks all around. Check it out -- highly recommended! TIP: They have lots of well-priced St. Charles souvenirs in the store!

So thankful for my time at Integrity, the atmosphere and positivity of the studio is nurtured by…read morethe incredible owners' Kelly and Elisabeth. The stellar training and a wide variety of classes creates incredible dancers with a love for the art form. I'm also very thankful for Kaleigh Schock Tyton and her immense knowledge of ballet, she's the absolute best! An incredible studio with an incredible faculty. I'd recommend this studio to anyone wishing to better their training and artistry! -Integrity Alum :)

Amazing training. Fantastic teachers especially Kaleigh the ballet teacher!! The owners Kelly and…read moreElisabeth are so great and welcoming and are great business owners. The costumes are beautiful and performances are amazing! Definitely recommend

Was here to see a local theatre production. The ushers were extremely friendly. The seats were…read morecomfortable and I felt we had a good view of the stage even sitting on the side.

Food was good Service was good…read more Too loud We had big group and we were seated To the right of the stage near speakers

I owe a lot to of gratitude to ECC. I first attended here when I was kicked out of the University…read moreof Illinois Urbana-Champaign for academic probation. Then a few years later, after I was kicked out again, I came here humble and looking for a fresh start. I stated by taking photography from the late John Grady, a mentor, a friend, and an inspiration to me and many others. He was an advocate that lead me to be recognized as the artist of the year by the local paper. Because of this momentum, I ended up attaining three associate degrees from ECC: graphic design, general arts, and general science. The faculty was supportive and communicative, especially in the design department. The onsite computer lab, library, and study areas were great places to work outside of class. Even the cafeteria was reasonably priced and had many options. Administratively, everything was seamless and easy to navigate. I met with humans a few times, but overall, much of the process is online. The only reason for the missing star is the inconsistency of skilled and practicing adjunct teachers. I had a few that were away from their fields for over 20 years, which made some of the knowledge outdated. But I guess all schools have that issue. I highly recommend ECC for everyone!

I stopped in the cafeteria for lunch between classes at Elgin Community College. My expectations…read morewere low. I just wanted something that tasted better than the normal cafeteria food. My expectations were met and exceeded. I had the beef tenderloin sliders with seasoned French fries. While not the best food I've ever had, they were cooked well and had a good flavor to them. They were not dried out as I feared. The French fries were good and didn't need ketchup or any other sauces to enhance the flavor. One recommendation that I would make is to add some more signs pointing where to go or how much the food costs.. To someone new to the cafeteria, it was not clear where to go or what was being offered. Overall, the food at Elgin Community College was pretty good. I will go back and try more.

We saw this new and on-going production at the NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates. It's been a long time…read moresince we have seen a Cirque du Soleil show. We saw the only other two (for us) both times decades ago in Las Vegas with one being a water theme and the other a Beatles tribute theme. This OVO show had an insect theme, and it was a colorful, dynamic, acrobatic, amazing, musical, and funny circus-like show - all very entertaining! It was a 2 hour show including a 20 minute intermission. Even after all these years, they still come up with some new routines and gadgetry, and of course have retained many of their acrobatic favorites. This time they also had three clown characters for some comic relief between amazing acrobatic routines, and they were hilarious lol. They also had some live musicians performing as part of the show. This show apparently is only in Chicagoland for the Valentine's Day weekend and I really enjoyed it. I didn't really like the tight seating in the NOW Arena but that's a different story. Kids would enjoy it as well particularly with the insect costumes and clown routines. BTW, any photos I have included here are all legit - photography was actually encouraged, just no flash photography. I highly recommend the show if you have the opportunity to go!