Photo Gallery: Betty Who at The Vic Theatre • Chicago
Betty Who
Vic Theatre
Chicago, IL
June 13th, 2025
Recap and photos by Curt Baran
There was a hesitancy in the air that felt almost palpable. Betty Who was back in town, AND she was performing during Pride Month, so the mood inside Chicago’s Vic Theatre should have been ebullient.
As a staunch, longtime supporter of LGBTQ rights, Who was playing blocks away from the intersection of Belmont and Halsted (arguably the epicenter of Chicago’s gay community).
However, outside pressures from the current administration, too numerous to mention succinctly, weighed heavily on the backs of those inside and outside the venue.
Fortunately, the healing power of music would ultimately prevail. Who took command of a stage that was sparsely adorned with a few banks of light towers and not much else. Flanked by two male dancers, Who was a whirlwind of tempestuous energy and 70’s disco vibe. Throughout nearly two dozen songs, she danced the pain away and provided a rapt audience with the escape they all so desperately sought.
All too soon, the outside world would be waiting to return them to the harsh realization of political unrest. But for ninety-plus minutes on a Friday night in the big city, the shadows and flashing stage lights offered a brief respite from the onslaught of the existential dread of these times.
Category: IE Photo Gallery
