Chicago History Museum visitors are no longer required to show proof of vaccination. While masks are recommended and appreciated, they are no longer required. Learn more about the Museum’s safety policies and procedures.

The Chicago History Museum is proud to be a venue for the 59th Chicago International Film Festival! Join us for a screening of Solo (2023, 103 minutes). Director Sophie Dupuis (Family First) returns to the festival with this vibrant and scintillating tale of self-actualization, with stunning drag performances that hold up a mirror between art and life.

Simon, a talented and carefree drag artist, is the rising star of his club, aided by his costume designer sister. When he meets new performer Olivier, their chemistry is immediate and undeniable. The two dive headfirst into a whirlwind romance combined with artistic collaboration, and their love and performance are both passionate and destructive. Meanwhile, Simon also finds hope in the promise of a renewed relationship with his estranged mother, a famous opera singer from whom he is desperate to receive love and artistic validation.

An increasingly controlling Olivier, a cold and distant mother, and Simon’s neglect of his supportive sister illuminate the toxic cycles of codependency and disappointment in his life, empowering him to realize that perhaps he shines most brightly as a solo act.

The film’s director, Sophie Dupuis, will be in attendance. $22.

Film Screening | Solo

CIFF OutLook Series Film

Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 6:30 p.m.

An Evening with Richard and Jessica Fierro of Atrevida Beer Company

Beer Culture Summit Opening Night

Wednesday, October 18, 2023, 6:00‒9:00 p.m.

On Saturday, November 19, 2022, Richard and Jessica Fierro, owners of Atrevida Beer Company in Colorado Springs, Colorado were with their family at Club Q, a local LGBTQ+ bar. A celebratory night soon turned into tragedy as a shooter began his hateful assault on the crowd. In a moment of selflessness, Richard Fierro apprehended and stopped the shooter, ultimately preventing more injuries and fatalities from happening. Richard’s valiant efforts soon made him a hero, but behind it all, their family suffered a tragic loss on top of the trauma they experienced in just a few short minutes.

Tonight, Richard and Jessica Fierro join us in Chicago for a conversation with Chicago Brewseum Executive Director, Liz Garibay. The trio will discuss the tragedy, the events that unfolded, and how identity, humanity, and the coming together of various communities have played a major role in their healing process. And they will demonstrate how beer is more than just a beverage.

This is the first time ever that Rich and Jess will discuss the events of November 19, 2022, in a live open forum to the public.

$25 ticket includes welcome beer and a post-reception with beer and hard seltzer (for those 21+ with ID) and light bar snacks. Program begins promptly at 6:30pm.

This event is presented in in cooperation with the Chicago History Museum’s OUT at CHM programming. High five to Metropolitan Brewing, Revolution Brewing, Conrad Seipp Brewing Company, and Molson Coors for providing beer for the evening. Thank you to Molson Coors for sponsoring the evening.

Chicago History Museum visitors are no longer required to show proof of vaccination. While masks are recommended and appreciated, they are no longer required. Learn more about the Museum’s safety policies and procedures.

The Chicago History Museum is a platform for community voices that preserve the past and mold the future. To us, Chicago is more than just a city—it is a living historical entity, as dynamic as ever, always inviting exploration.

One of the main directives of the OUT at CHM committee is to tell the stories of people who live a range of sexual identities and gender expressions within the larger urban context of Chicago and to discuss how and why the physical body matters to LGBT history; the evolution of the queer family; the interaction of people in social spaces with political consequences; and the queer body politic, a movement full of promise and struggle.

This popular and provocative series delves into the storied history of Chicago’s LGBTQ communities. 

Fifteen years of stories of promises,

struggles, triumphs, and explorations.

Learn more about our previous programs, panelists, exhibitions, and join the conversation yourself on our Facebook page.

Be the first to know about the latest OUT at CHM programs

Interested in LGBT History in Chicago?

In a collection of essays, the history of Chicago's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities is explored by leading historians and scholars.  Spanning the 1850s to the present, essays chronicle how the dynamic forces that made Chicago the great American city also fostered the development of its diverse LGBT communities.

Major support for Out at CHM comes from the Exelon Corporation with additional support from Robert Kohl and Clark Pellett, Kenneth O’Keefe and Jason Stephens, and the Richard L. Ohlhausen Education Fund.