Finals week is a stressful time for everyone. If you can escape from the library for a few moments during the week, here are some great ways to relieve your testing anxiety or at least have a change of scenery.
While both occur weekly throughout the year, finals week is a great time to try out free yoga courtesy of the Washington Park Arts Incubator or Rockefeller Chapel. The Arts Incubator hosts beginners’ yoga every Thursday and Friday, and there is restorative yoga in Rockefeller every Tuesday evening. No experience is necessary, but bring your own mat if you have one.
Every Thursday and Friday, Washington Park Arts Incubator, 5:30–6 p.m. 9–10 a.m., free
Every Tuesday, Rockefeller Chapel, 5:30 and 6:45 p.m., free for students
This quarter, various local museums and arts spaces will again be hosting the Study at the… series leading up to finals week. Starting the Thursday of reading period and going until Sunday, students can study in the exhibits free of charge. Snacks and coffee will also be provided.
Thursday, March 12, Rockefeller Chapel, noon to 5 p.m., free
Thursday, March 12, Smart Museum, 9 p.m. to midnight, free
Friday, March 13, Logan Arts Center, 9 p.m. to midnight, free
Saturday, March 14, Washington Park Arts Incubator, noon to 4 p.m., free
Sunday, March 15, Oriental Institute, 7 p.m. to midnight, free
Celebrate the beginning of reading period with a serving of pop-culture feminism. Noah Berlatsky, editor of comics and culture blog The Hooded Utilitarian, will be coming to the Seminary Co-Op for a reading and discussion of his newly released book Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston/Peter Comics, 1941–1948. The book seems to be equal parts lively historical retelling and analytic discourse. It tells the true tale of the creation of the Wonder Woman comics and explores its implications. For starters, many don’t know that Wonder Woman’s creator was an avid feminist as well as a polygamist, a psychologist, and the creator of the lie detector. Berlatsky uncovers more amusing facts as part of the larger story. He argues that the comic was far ahead of its time in creating a world where strong independent females, cross-dressing, and even kink are not out of place. This book and talk promise to be a proper adventure. RSVP on the Seminary Co-Op’s website to make sure you don’t miss it.
Wednesday, March 11, Seminary Co-Op, 6:30 p.m., free
Probably the favorite holiday of your high school math teacher, this Saturday is an extra special Pi Day. The holiday, traditionally held on 3/14 to celebrate the mathematical constant 3.1415926535…, is especially important this year because at 9:26 a.m. the date and time will represent pi perfectly to eight decimal places. WBEZ Chicago, Chicago’s National Public Radio affiliate, is throwing a Pi Day bash at the Adler Planetarium to celebrate the event, complete with lectures on Einstein, the significance of the mathematical constant, and of course, edible pies. There is a daytime event free with admission to the planetarium followed by a 21+ event in the evening for an extra $25.
Saturday, March 14, Adler Planetarium, noon to 4 p.m., free, and 6–10 p.m., $25
Amadeus by UT
Nothing says finals week like sensationalist and historically dubious accounts of 18th-century musical composers. Certainly the cutthroat competitive spirit of the nominally villainous Antonio Salieri in Peter Schaffer’s classic play Amadeus would be familiar to at least the econ majors at this institution. Who wouldn’t kill for a gentler curve? Such lovers of betrayal and murder are in luck this week, as University Theater is staging a production of the play directed by Allie Garfinkle. The play itself follows Salieri as he recounts a highly fictionalized version of an often tumultuous relationship with his better-known contemporary Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Later adapted into an award-winning film, the play’s depiction of history (culminating in Salieri’s jealousy-driven murder of Mozart) has been laughed off by historians but loved by critics and fans for its gripping drama.
Thursday, March 12, and Friday, March 13, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, March 14, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Logan Center, Theater East. Free on Thursday, all other performances $6 in advance, $8 at the door
