Photo Gallery: Maya Hawke at Metro • Chicago

Brassneck | March 19, 2023

Maya Hawke
Metro
Chicago, IL
March 18, 2023

Recap and photos by Curt Baran

Maya Hawke is well on her way to becoming multi-hyphenated. She’s best known for her acting roles, specifically her character Robin on the hugely successful Netflix television series Stranger Things. As the daughter of actors Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman, one might say she’s also won the DNA lottery. But over the course of two full-length releases and a handful of singles, she has also not so quietly amassed a successful music career.

Should you have the sudden urge to shout nepobaby, well, you might want to check with those who attended her sold-out Metro performance on Saturday night in Chicago’s Wrigleyville neighborhood. Tickets disappeared almost immediately when they were put on sale, and the line before doors opened snaked its way down Clark St., took a hard left on Roscoe, and proceeded south seemingly towards infinity. Once the music started, the response was both deafening and fanatical.

As a musical performer, Hawke, at times, displayed a sense of hesitation, perhaps trying to hide behind her mic stand a bit too often. But there was certainly no denying that her songs connected with her audience. In the smallish confines of one of the city’s most revered venues, Hawke’s songs were voluminously sung back to her, matching the intensity with which they were exhaled. Soon enough, both performer and audience were feeding off each other’s energy, the fourth wall being blurred with each passing note. The evening passed with the whir of a fever dream and nary a mention of nepotism anywhere to be heard.