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Come to the Chicago Theatre to see the Irish singing group Celtic Thunder Dec. 7, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

This is Celtic Thunder’s annual North American Symphony Tour, also backed by the Celtic Thunder Band (guitar, mandolin, banjo, harp, concertina, cello, double bass, violin, piano, pipes, whistles, bodhran and drums) bring you traditional and modern songs that are highly choreographed, with dramatic set pieces invoking mythology!

Celtic Thunder debuted in 2007, Billboard Magazine named the group Top World Album Artist for three years running. They have released 12 albums over a decade, the first three of which placed in the Top 10 for World Albums. The band changes singers a lot, as the original members went on to solo careers and TV shows such as “Glee.” Their cover of the Leonard Cohen song “Hallelujah” got over 2,640,000 views.

Celtic Thunder has slowly moved away from traditional Irish music to more pop and Christian-oriented, to the disappointment of Irish Roots Music fans, but to the delight of American audiences.

The Chicago Theatre is located at 175 North State Street in the heart of the Loop. For tickets to see Celtic Thunder, go online to https://www.box-office.co/results-ticket?evtid=3155606&event=Celtic+Thunder and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Chicago Theatre, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Bring the kids to see Drury Lane Theatre’s “Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol” written especially for young audiences, Nov. 15-Dec. 23, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

“Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol” has been beloved for well over 100 years. Ebenezer Scrooge, hated by even his fellow businessmen, refuses to let his down and out employee Bob Cratchett have Christmas Day off. Cratchett has a crippled child (of course!), and his family lives in abject poverty.

Scrooge goes home to his funeral parlor-like house, falls asleep and is visited by ghosts who show him his past, the present, and the future. He sees how lonely he was as a child, how Tiny Tim Cratchett will die without proper medical treatment, and his own horrible death.

Charles Dickens once remarked to a friend that by writing “A Christmas Carol,” he had ruined the holiday. He was referring to commercialization. He couldn’t have known that he actually invented the Christmas we know today. He also felt compelled to write more Christmas fables, none of which received the acclaim of “A Christmas Carol.”

The Drury lane Theatre is located at 100 Drury Lane in Oak Brook Terrace. For ticket and show times, go online to http://www.drurylanetheatre.com/tickets/single-ticket-prices and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Bring the family to world famous Brookfield Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo October 21-22 and 28-29, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

Boo at the Zoo, a not-so-scary Halloween event, has something for every ghost and goblin in the family. Aside from the special activities, your loved ones can visit your favorite animal friends.

Enjoy the Hamill Family Play Zoo, the Haunted Hayride, the Creepy Cowboy Carousel, the Crazed Maize Corn Maze, Decorate a Spookie Cookie, the Giant Pumpkin Carver, the Pumpkin Smasher (every hour on the hour), the Bat Zoo Chat at the Australia House, the Wolf Zoo Chat – at Wolf Woods, the Bird Eating Spider Zoo Chat at the Hamill Family Play Zoo, the Owl Zoo Chat at the Hamill Family Play Zoo, the Scorpion Zoo Chat at the Swamp, the Large Snake Zoo Chat at Feathers and Scales, the Raven Zoo Chat  at the Hamill Family Play Zoo, the daily Costume Parade (Starts in front of Discovery Center, ends on the West Mall), and the Costume Contest!

The Brookfield Zoo is located at 8400 31^st Street in Brookfield. For a schedule of events and tickets to Boo at the Zoo, go online to https://www.czs.org/Brookfield-ZOO/Tickets and follow the prompts. The Chicago Zoological Society offers free admission to Brookfield Zoo to all active, reservist, and retired members of the military. Qualified personnel who present a valid ID at one of the zoo’s admission booths will be admitted free of charge.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Brookfield Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Come to the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook to see the Broadway musical “42^nd Street” October 26-January 7, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

Tap through this year’s holiday season with the Tony Award winner for Best Musical, “42nd Street!” In this beloved Broadway classic, Peggy Sawyer lands a bigger break in New York City than expected. When the leading lady injures her ankle, Peggy gets the chance of a lifetime to rise from showgirl to star. With show-stopping tap numbers and hits such as “We’re In The Money” and “Lullaby of Broadway,” there’s no question that “42nd Street” will dazzle you this winter at Drury Lane Theatre.

“42^nd Street” is based on the 1933 film of the same name. It opened on Broadway in 1980 and ran for nine years! With lyrics by legends Johnny Mercer and Al Dubin, and music by Harry Warren, the show has played in a continuous loop around the world. The 2001 revival of “42^nd Street” won two more Tony Awards, for Best Revival of a Musical and Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Musical (Christine Ebersole).

The Drury lane Theatre is located at 100 Drury Lane in Oak Brook Terrace. For ticket and show times, go online to http://www.drurylanetheatre.com/tickets/single-ticket-prices and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Come to Fitzgerald’s Night Club to see the Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Three tribute, the Cold Hard Cash Show November 3, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

The Cold Hard Cash Show is the brainchild of guitarist and singer Merle Travis Peterson and his band, Fel Torres on drums and Trevor Riddle on standup and electric bass. Enjoy the Man in Black’s classic songs from the Sun and Columbia Records catalog.

The band has performed on hundreds of stages with such artists as Darryl Worley, John Anderson, Eric Church, Charlie Daniels, Lone Star, Eddie Money, Eli Young Band, Los Lobo, James Hunnicutt, and Dale Watson. The band appeared on “Late Night with David Letterman” in 2008, leading to such prestigious gigs concerts as the Memphis in May Festival, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, Daytona Bike Week, Lonestar Rally, and the Johnny Cash Festival Road Show.

Fitzgerald’s Night Club is famous across the country. “A musical gem.” The New York Times. “Slightly off the beaten path but right on the mark for music lovers.” Metromix Chicago

Fitzgerald’s Night Club is located at 6615 West Roosevelt in Berwyn, a stone’s throw from historic Oak Park. For tickets, go online to http://www.fitzgeraldsnightclub.com/ and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from Fitzgerald’s Night Club, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Come to the Windy City to see the hilarious show “My Brother, My Brother and Me” at the Chicago Theatre November 17, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

Justin, Travis and Griffin McElroy came up with a podcast, “My Brother, My Brother and Me,” in which the guys answer questions from and give advice to listeners. It’s all in fun, of course, the irony being that the brothers are experts about very little. That simple premise launched a hit show which has hundreds of thousands of followers.

“My Brother, My Brother and Me,” fondly known as MBMBaM, is the most unlikely of hit podcasts. The brothers answer questions submitted earlier by listeners and questions from Yahoo! Answers (called a yahoo). Regular features include “Munch Job,” in which Justin makes fun of fast food companies; “Haunted Doll Watch,” which is about so-called cursed dolls available on e-Bay; “Movie Watch,” in which inconsistencies in movies are discussed; and “Sad Libs,” with Justin doing tragic stories with nonsense words.

The Chicago Theatre is located at 175 North State Street in the heart of the Loop. For tickets, go online to  http://www.thechicagotheatre.com/events/2017/november/my-brother-my-brother-and-me-at-the-chicago-theatre.html and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from “My Brother, My Brother and Me” at the historic Chicago Theatre, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Bring the little ones to see PJ Masks Live at the Chicago Theatre September 30-October 1, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

As parents and kids know, PJ Masks is a Disney Junior TV production featuring three six-year-old kids as superheroes. The live PJ Masks show features your heroes, as well as some familiar villains! This a very kid-friendly show where no character ever really gets hurt.

Connor, Amaya and Greg are normal kids by day and at night they become Catboy, Owlette and Gekko. Catboy, in his blue costume complete with cat ears and tail, has Super Hearing, can do the Super Cat Jump and run with Super Cat Speed, and he drives The Cat Car. But! He is afraid of water. Owlette, in her red costume, can see in the dark using her Super Owl Eyes, flies on Super Owl Wing Wind, and she can make opponents fly backwards! Gekko wears a green costume with a reptilian tail. He can blend in with his surroundings, lift very heavy things, and he can travel underwater in his Gekko-Mobile. Villains Romeo, Night Ninja, Luna Girl and Firefly act as the comic relief.

The Chicago Theatre is located at 175 North State Street in the heart of the Loop. For tickets and times for PJ Masks Live, go online to http://www.thechicagotheatre.com/ events/2017/september/pj-masks-live-at-the-chicago-theatre.html and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the PJ Masks Live show at the Chicago Theatre, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Come to Fitzgerald’s Night Club to see Tommy Castro and the Pain Killers October 6, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

Fitzgerald’s Night Club gets raves from the New York Times, and it is one of the best music venues in the country. Throw in Tommy Castro and the Pain Killers, appearing to promote their new album, “Stompin’ Ground,” and you’ve got a night to remember!

Tommy Castro hails from San Jose, California. Back in the day, hippie folk music and Mexican soul music ruled the town. Slowly, the styles blended. Tommy Castro lists as mentors, Ike & Tina Turner, Janis Joplin, Elvin Bishop and Taj Mahal. Incorporating a style Tommy Castro calls “San Jose DNA,” the band plays unforgettable soul, blues and West Coast rock. In addition to the Painkillers, “Stompin’ Ground” features legends Charlie Musselwhite, and Los Lobos’ David Hidalgo on guitar.

“Gritty, funky, rocking, and original.” The Boston Globe “An inspired blend of high-energy blues, R & B and roadhouse rock…soulful, celebratory vocals and exquisite, stellar guitar.” Blues Review

Fitzgerald’s Night Club is located at 6615 West Roosevelt in Berwyn, a block away from historic Oak Park. For tickets to see Tommy Castro and the Painkillers, go online to: http://www.ticketweb.com/venue/fitzgerald-s-berwyn-il/32814?pl= and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from Fitzgerald’s Night Club, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Run the Bank of America Chicago Marathon and attendant events October 6-8, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon attracts runners from all 50 states, more than 100 countries and brings Chicagoans together for a weekend of excitement. Wherever you arrive from, you are invited to attend the Advocate Health Care International Chicago 5K. The inaugural race is the perfect way for marathoners, fans of the sport and friends and family to experience the city and take part in the Bank of America Chicago Marathon weekend. Don’t miss your chance to run through the streets of downtown Chicago!

Celebrate your achievement at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon 27^th Mile Post-Race Party located in Grant Park’s Butler Field. The outdoor celebration will feature live entertainment. Participants age 21 and over (photo ID required) can redeem the tear-off portion of their bib number for one free 312 Urban Wheat Ale. Additional food and beverages will be available for purchase.

More than 200 students, faculty, and alumni from Chicago’s Cortiva Institute will offer complimentary post-race massage treatments for runners. The Massage Tent will be located within the 27th Mile Post-Race Party at the southwest corner, adjacent to the Petrillo Band Shell.

Participants and spectators can view finisher results at the Race Day Runner Results Tent within the 27th Mile Post-Race Party. Volunteers will be on hand to help you look up unofficial race day results.

To register and for a schedule of events, go online to https://www.chicagomarathon.com/ participant-information/registration/ and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.

Bring the family to see the smash hit musical “Rock of Ages” at the Drury Lane Theatre through October 15, and stay at the nearby and affordable Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside!

If you are thinking gospel musical, wrong! “Rock of Ages” is the hit Broadway show about the 80s, with 28 song hits by Bon Jovi, Journey, Styx, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Steve Perry, Posion, and more! Wanna be rock musician Drew and his girl Sherri fight to save Hollywood’s Sunset Strip. That’s the plot. It’s really all about the music, Bunky.

Song List: “We Built This City,” “Any Way You Want It,” “Hit Me with Your Best Shot,” “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” “I Want to Know What Love Is,” “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” “Here I Go Again,” and lots more!

The Broadway production of “Rock of Ages” ran from 2009 to 2015, tying the run with “Man of La Macha.” The show became the film of the same name with an all-star cast that included Tom Cruise, Mary J. Blige, Alex Baldwin, Paul Giamatti, and Julianne Hough.

The Drury Lane Theatre is located at 100 Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace. For tickets to “Rock of Ages,” go online to http://drurylanetheatre.com/shows/17-181/rock#dl-anchor-top and follow the prompts.

Best Western Plus Chicago Hotel at Hillside, just minutes away from the Drury Lane Theatre’s “Rock of Ages, offers free shuttle service to and from O’Hare Airport in Chicago. The hotel offers affordable, comfortable rooms, a breakfast bar and restaurant and much more. The hotel is pet friendly and offers AAA rates.