Steppenwolf's LookOut Series launches into 2026 with a bold line-up featuring vital work from Chicago's dance, cabaret and music artists. With eight distinct programs over the course of two months, the breadth and diversity of this city's artistic communities is on full display this winter in the intimate 1700 Theater.
Highlights include a collaboration between celebrated dance artists Shalaka Kulkarni and Rika Lin; the return of The Uncanny Attic, an episodic tribute to the macabre work of Edward Gorey; and the premiere of Fold, a new solo piece by multidisciplinary artist Isabella Limosnero.
LookOut Series Spring 2026 highlights include (left to right) Project Bound Dance’s "Smoking Meat," Shalaka Kulkarni’s "MUDRA," Red Velvet Riot and Ellis Centric’s "HERE: in our bodies" and Isabella Limosnero’s "Fold."
Creative Producer Patrick Zakem comments, “Every year, Steppenwolf is honored to host and showcase a cross-section of Chicago's dance and performance art communities as a part of our LookOut Series. Kicking off 2026, we've got a truly eclectic mix of work from familiar faces and new friends; we can't wait to see what these artists have been creating.”
All LookOut performances take place in Steppenwolf's 1700 Theater, an intimate and flexible venue nestled behind Front Bar, 1700 N. Halsted St. in Chicago. Tickets, which range in price from $23 – $43*, are now on sale by visiting steppenwolf.org/lookout or by calling the Box Office at (312) 335-1650. *Pricing includes a $3 fee
The full LookOut Spring 2026 Season (in chronological order):
The Uncanny Attic: Chapters E-H
A Beautifully Gruesome Production
Dates: Thursday, January 15 – Saturday, January 17 at 7:30 pm; Saturday, January 17 at 3 pm.
Ticket Price: $43
Description: The camp macabre world of Edward Gorey returns to Steppenwolf in the second installment of this absurdist dark comedy anthology told through puppetry, clowning, dance, live music, song, animation and an unhealthy dose of death.
TightUs Presents:
FLUIDITY
By Taji Elemah
Featuring Jarqueze Simmons, Brandon Cox and Q. Shunté
Dates: Friday, January 23 & Saturday, January 24 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $28
Description: Fluidity follows the story of three dancers, stuck in detention, who share more in common than is first apparent. This piece synthesizes various genres of dance in an immersive experience featuring an electric trio of performers.
Cristal Sabbagh Presents:
Freedom From and Freedom To
Dates: Friday, January 30 & Saturday, January 31 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $23
Description: Movement and sound improvisors from all around Chicago gather in front of a live audience and are grouped by chance in this exploration and celebration of artistic circumstance. Each performance features a different group of performers who fuse diverse artistic practices to create unique and fleeting worlds.
Fold
By Isabella Limosnero
with Max Lazarus, Indigo and Carmani Edwards
Dates: Friday, February 13 & Saturday, February 14 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $23
Description: Multidisciplinary artist Isabella Limosnero combines physical storytelling, choreographed movement and live music in this piece examining how ancestral stories are stored in the body.
Project Bound Dance Presents:
Smoking Meat
Dates: Friday, February 20 & Saturday, February 21 at 7:30 pm; Sunday, February 22 at 3 pm.
Ticket Price: $33
Description: Under the direction of Ashley Deran and Emily Loar, Project Bound Dance is a Chicago-based modern dance group rooted in the practice of collaboration. Interweaving partnering and choreography inspired by epic fantasy worldbuilding, Smoking Meat deliciously questions what we give up of ourselves in the pursuit of physical and social safety.
Red Velvet Riot and Ellis Centric Present:
HERE: in our bodies
Dates: Thursday, February 26 – Saturday February 28 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $43
Description: This interdisciplinary cabaret production combines puppetry, performance art, drag and burlesque to explore the unique relationships we have to our bodies — as a whole or in parts — and to ourselves.
flights for future generations
Devised and performed by Lindsey Barlag Thornton
Dates: Friday, March 6 & Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $23
Description: In this solo work from prolific performance artist Lindsey Barlag Thornton, movement, text, sound and imagery are overlaid in an exploration of the history of women aviators and spiritualists. By interweaving stories of flight with mysterious encounters in a type of séance-lecture, flights for future generations navigates our fragile course between faith and uncertainty.
MUDRA
By Shalaka Kulkarni
with Yoshinojo Fujima (aka Rika Lin)
Dates: Friday, March 13 & Saturday, March 14 at 7:30 pm
Ticket Price: $23
Description: Interdisciplinary Asian-American dance artist Shalaka Kulkarni creates experiences that bridge the ancient and contemporary. In this piece featuring guest artist Yoshinojo Fujima (aka Rika Lin), Kulkarni illuminates a dance-theatre journey through sand, water and the language of gestures.
Accessibility:
Steppenwolf's 1700 Theater is equipped with an induction hearing loop and assistive listening devices (ALDs) are available upon request. Our building features wheelchair-accessible seating and restrooms, push-button entrances, a courtesy wheelchair, and all-gender restrooms, with accessible counter and table spaces at our bars. For additional information regarding accessibility, visit steppenwolf.org/plan-your-visit/accessibility or e-mail access@steppenwolf.org.
Sponsor Information:
The LookOut Series is supported in part by the Walder Foundation. United Airlines is the Official and Exclusive Airline of Steppenwolf. Steppenwolf is also grateful for the significant season support from lead sponsors Allstate Insurance Company, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies, Caroline and Keating Crown, Julius Frankel Foundation, Lefkofsky Family Foundation, Northern Trust, Anne and Don Phillips, John Hart and Carol Prins, Shubert Foundation, Inc, and Zell Family Foundation. Steppenwolf also acknowledges generous support from premier sponsors Anonymous, Andrew and Amy Bluhm, Michael and Cathy Brennan, Ann and Richard Carr, Chicago Community Trust, Steven and Nancy Crown, Conagra Brands Foundation, Rich and Margery Feitler, FROST CHICAGO, Joyce Foundation, Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, The Orlebeke Foundation, Polk Bros. Foundation, Bryan Traubert and Penny Pritzker, Sacks Family Foundation, Smart Family Foundation of Illinois, Thoma Bravo, and Vinci Restaurant. Steppenwolf also acknowledges support from the Illinois Arts Council and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events.
About Steppenwolf Theatre Company:
Steppenwolf Theatre Company is the nation’s premier Ensemble Theater with 49 members who are among the top actors, playwrights and directors in the field. Thrilling, powerful, groundbreaking productions have made this theatre legendary. From the 1980 phenomenon of Balm in Gilead, to The Grapes of Wrath, August: Osage County, Downstate, The Brother/Sister Plays, and now, the 2025 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Purpose, Steppenwolf Theatre has had a long-running and undeniable impact on American Theater and Chicago's cultural landscape. Founded in 1976, Steppenwolf started as a group of teens performing in the basement of a church. Today, the company's artistic force remains rooted in the original vision of its founders: an artist-driven theatre,
whose vitality is defined by its appetite for bold and innovative work. Every aspect of Steppenwolf is rooted in its Ensemble ethos, from the intergenerational artistic programming to the multi-genre performance series LookOut, to the nationally recognized work of Steppenwolf Education and Engagement which serves nearly 15,000 teens annually. While grounded in the Chicago community, more than 40 original Steppenwolf productions have enjoyed success nationally and internationally, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, London, Sydney, Galway and Dublin. Steppenwolf also holds accolades that include the National Medal of Arts, 14 Tony Awards, two Pulitzer Prize-winning commissions and more. Led by Artistic Directors Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis, Executive Director Brooke Flanagan and Board of Trustees Chair Keating Crown — Steppenwolf continually redefines the boundaries of live theater and pushes the limits of acting and performance.
Steppenwolf’s Mission: Steppenwolf strives to create thrilling, courageous and provocative art in a thoughtful and inclusive environment. We succeed when we disrupt your routine with experiences that spark curiosity, empathy and joy. We invite you to join our ensemble as we navigate, together, our complex world. steppenwolf.org, facebook.com/steppenwolftheatre, twitter.com/steppenwolfthtr and instagram.com/steppenwolfthtr.