Monday Night at Sidetrack

Considering how much musicals have given gay men over the years—escape, employment, Barbra—any gay man with a sense of cultural responsibility should at the very least be able to tell you where the corn grows as high as an elephant’s eye, who Sally Bowles is, and why Jennifer Hudson’s version of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” will never, ever supplant Jennifer Holliday’s. Gay or straight, you can initiate, continue, or flaunt your musical-theater education at Sidetrack on Monday nights. The 25-year-old Boys Town bar plays video clips from Broadway and Hollywood musicals on Fridays and Sundays as well, but Mondays are best for a thorough survey of American razzle-dazzle. Even if you think you don’t like musicals, when things get cracking at Sidetrack—when the entire room knows the lyrics and a fair bit of the choreography too—resistance is futile. As Irving Berlin once advised, “Let yourself go.” 3349 N. Halsted, 773-477-9189, sidetrackchicago.com. —Zac Thompson

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