Located in the heart of the Halsted area gay nightclub circuit, Cell Block has been a lively nightlife hot spot for years. There are three sections to the bar- the Front Bar, the "Holding Cell" and the "Yard." The Front Bar offers a pool table, a pinball machine and darts. This is also the area where patrons usually meet and hangout. On Saturday, Freddy Baines DJs, and on Sundays DJ Dominic spins the sounds of popular hits from the last three decades. Hang out in the Yard area during the warmer months, and sip a bottle of your favorite brew under a starry sky. The Cell Block sponsors the Cell Block Gay Community Scholarship which is awarded twice each year.

In business for 27 years, Chicago Filmmakers has become a Chicago institution. Its mission is to provide "an opportunity for artists to make films outside the mainstream marketplace, to distribute and exhibit this work, as well as to build audiences and to increase media attention for it." To that end, it offers a $50 co-op membership that provides access to equipment, including 16mm production and post production equipment, information, resource and education. Equipment access is available on a 24 hour basis. Screenings of innovative independent film and video makers are held at the Kino-eye Theater, often with the artists there in person to discuss their work with the audience.

Ten Cat Tavern is a little neighborhood bar that is a welcoming place to relax and enjoy. The crowds are exceedingly civil and mellow, helping create a laid back, congenial atmosphere. The low lighting and honky-tonk feel of the place will help put you in a conversational mood. Contrary to the bar's name, you probably will not find felines on the prowl here. In fact, you are more likely to find man's best friend, as customers are welcome to stop in while taking Fido out for a walk.

About Face Theater only holds 97 people, but that only makes for a cozier night of entertainment without unruly crowds. Founded in 1995, this theater group features artists who are committed to the creation of performances that, examine and participate in the development of gay, lesbian, and bisexual communities. Past productions garnered critical acclaim in both mainstream and gay theater circles. Such productions included a Chicago revival of "Cloud 9" by Caryl Churchill, and a wonderful adaptation of "A Home at the End of the World." Other popular stage events have included "Xena Live!," in which swashbuckling, star crossed, mythological Amazons fight monsters, men and "a desire that dare not speak its name."

This theater on the North Side was built with weekend crowds and convenience in mind. It offers ample parking with a ramp connected to the theater. The theater shows first-run films on its 14 screens, but also some independent and art-house films. Four of the theaters are quite large and can hold a crowd of 500 each. Also, a game room and two private party rooms are available for the kids. See website for showtimes, ticketing and more.

While Friends star David Schwimmer is perhaps the most famous member of the theater company, no one in this troupe could be accused of riding on Schwimmer's coattails. Shortly after graduation in 1989, the students formed the company in 1989. Now, over 30 premieres, four Joseph Jefferson Awards and 26 Joseph Jefferson citations later, the theater is still going strong. Past productions included The Idiot, Metamorphosis and Her Name Was Danger. While the group's front office is located in the historic Athenaeum Theatre building, it currently has no permanent performance space. Instead, productions are staged at various locales throughout Chicago.

Housed in an old speakeasy, this theater has been on the scene since 1994. While the company frequently stages its own productions here, it also rents out its stage to other companies. The Prop Theater, Defiant Theater and the Wig Theater have all preformed here. The Mystery of Irma Vep and a revival of Stephen Dietz's Ten November are just a few of the plays these companies have produced here, while Kafka's the Trial was one of the more notable productions by the National Pastime Theater.

This theater is the home of a hard-hitting, visceral theater company named Mary-Arrchie, whose artistic director Richard Cotovsky has staged such productions as Sam Shepard's 'Curse of the Starving Class' and David Mamet's 'Edmond'. Every August, the theater company performs 'Abbie Hoffman Died For Our Sins;', a marathon festival lasting three days. The annual event provides fuel that fans the fire of Chicago's most experimental theaters. This place opens from Thursday to Saturday at 8 pm and on Sunday at 7pm.

This storefront theater attracts younger audiences than the average theatergoer and does not shy away from the progressive or controversial subjects. Productions have included Caryl Churchill's 'Mad Forest' and Tony Kushner's 'A Bright Room Called Day', as well plays that depicted the siege of Sarajevo and former president Franklin Roosevelt's Federal Theater Project. The theater is cramped but offer good sight lines. This place opens from Thursday to Saturday at 8pm, and on Sunday at 7pm.

If you are seeking something a little off the beaten path and can catch this place on a night that somebody has decided to throw together a production, drop in and enjoy the spectacle. Past performances have included such troupes as the Baubo Performance Project and the Breakbone Dance Company. The downstairs area of this facility closed in 1997, and now the upstairs studio is the only space left to be rented out by various dance troupes and other performance groups.