Friday belongs to Ladybear at Smartbar, Pedroz at Spybar, Westend at Radius and Elderbrook at TAO Nightclub. Saturday brings Franc Fala’s Spybar debut, Brutalismus 3000 in Radius’s main room and E-Rock at TAO. Here is Chicago nightlife from Friday, November 13 through Sunday, November 29, 2026, with Thanksgiving Eve and Black Friday at the center and the New Year’s Eve tickets worth booking now. For Pendry’s rooftop chalets, Curio and Sound-Bar, start with our November nightlife guide.
This weekend: Franc Fala, Brutalismus 3000 and Ladybear
Start on Clark Street. Ladybear at Smartbar on Friday, November 13, 2026 (doors 10 PM, 21+) brings Juliana Huxtable, Ariel Zetina and Mister Hoochiemama, hosted by Lucy Stoole and Gnat, with tickets at $20 to $25 advance and $25 door. Saturday, November 14 is 4trk presents Centrific with Henry Chow and DJ Hyperactive, $15 to $20 advance and $20 door, doors 10 PM, 21+. Sunday, November 15 is Queen! with Derrick Carter, Michael Serafini and T Mixwell, hosted by Lucy Stoole and Nico with guest host Diwa Oro, at $15 early, $20 advanced or $20 door.
Across the river, Spybar at 646 N Franklin Street runs a two-night stack on Dice, both 21+ with doors at 10 PM. Friday, November 13 is Pedroz, currently $20. Saturday, November 14 brings the debut of Amsterdam’s Franc Fala, also $20 on Dice.
A few blocks east, TAO Nightclub at 632 N Dearborn Street keeps the same hours, 21 and over, with entry by general admission or table reservation. Friday, November 13 is Elderbrook in a DJ set, 10 PM to 4 AM. Saturday, November 14 is E-Rock, also 10 PM to 4 AM.
Radius at 640 W Cermak Road keeps the big-room calendar moving, with tickets on each event page. Friday, November 13 is Westend with DANSYN and Eddie Adams, doors 10 PM. Saturday, November 14 is Brutalismus 3000: Harmony US Tour with Cannelle, 10cust and TDY b2b Shaun LaCosta-Sinclair, doors 10 PM, plus a second room, Benwal, Kyle Starkey, Paige Tomlinson, STÜM and BasiK, also doors 10 PM.
Two more Saturday rooms sit off the main club axis. Pedro Sampaio plays Ramova Theatre, 3520 S Halsted Street, at 10 PM, with tickets listed on Ramova’s calendar via Tixr. Party Time Promotions marks its 12th anniversary at Seven Nightclub, 3124 N Central Avenue, from 9 PM Saturday, November 14, into Sunday. The 25th PAWS Chicago Fur Ball at The Drake on Friday, November 13, from 6 PM to midnight, is sold out.
Rooms worth a detour
Between the club nights, rooms already open deserve their own plans. Kermess keeps running Premonitions Inc. in the Belgian Spiegeltent on Floor 14 at 32 W Randolph, including a December 31 late show, with tickets on kermesschicago.com. Sip & Guzzle is still pouring at the Four Seasons, Carlyle Club holds the river windows inside Reid Murdoch, Logan Inn keeps Logan Square late, The Lair sits under Stardust in River North, and The Champagne Room continues at the Ambassador Gold Coast. Gibsons Tavern at 925 W Fulton Market lists a Tuesday, November 17, 2026 opening on gibsonstavern.com.
Holiday kickoff, November 19 to 22
The civic lights come on the following weekend. Christkindlmarket Chicago at Daley Plaza, 50 W Washington Street, opens Friday, November 20, and runs daily through December 24, with Friday and Saturday hours until 9 PM and Sunday through Thursday until 8 PM (11 AM to 4 PM on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve). The 113th Annual City of Chicago Christmas Tree is lighted in Millennium Park, near Michigan Avenue and Washington Street, on Friday, November 20, at 6 PM, and the McCormick Tribune Ice Rink returns the same day, weather permitting, with admission free. The Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival is scheduled for Saturday, November 21, with the evening parade and fireworks.
Up on the 24th floor at 230 N Michigan Avenue, the Winter Garden returns to Château Carbide at Pendry Chicago around November 20. Private chalets hold up to five guests, with 90-minute seatings at 5, 7 and 9 PM, Thursday through Saturday through December 31 and Friday through Saturday from January 15. The reservation fee is $40 per person, applied in full as a food and drink credit. New Year’s Eve seatings are $75. Guests are 21 and older, and reservations are on OpenTable.
Radius stacks the same weekend. Friday, November 20 is Prospa present Prophecy with Locky, Isabella and KDAY, doors 10 PM, and a second room, Adiel, AEREA (live) and Clara Cuvé with Valentina Cappellari, also doors 10 PM. Saturday, November 21 is Madeon presents Victory Live with Anamanaguchi, Folie and avas, doors 10 PM. Spybar fills those two nights as well: Luke Alexander on Friday at $25, and Tre Reynolds on Saturday at $20, both 21+, doors 10 PM.
TAO Nightclub at 632 N Dearborn Street fills the same stretch, 21 and over, with entry by general admission or table reservation. Thursday, November 19 is Sala de Despecho, 10:30 PM to 4 AM. Friday, November 20 is Mr. Shaw, 10 PM to 4 AM. Saturday, November 21 is Nathan Scott, 10 PM to 4 AM. Sunday, November 22 brings a second Sala de Despecho night, 8 PM to 2 AM.
Thanksgiving Eve and Black Friday
Wednesday, November 25, is Thanksgiving Eve, the night Chicago still calls Black Wednesday. Celeste, 111 W Hubbard Street, runs 10 PM to 4 AM across four floors, 21+, with a welcome shot and Eventbrite tickets from $17.85 to $55.20, still in stock. Bizzy Nights lists four more rooms from $10 with a house shot: Hideaway, 5 W Division Street, 10 PM to 4 AM; Gold Coast Social, 7 W Division Street, doors 10 PM; Hubbard Inn, 110 W Hubbard Street, doors 10 PM; and Parlay Lincoln Park, 950 W Wrightwood Avenue, doors 10 PM. TreeHouse, 149 W Kinzie Street, starts at 7 PM, with Tunnel after midnight included, at $11.59 including fees. The Turkey Crawl in Wrigleyville runs 7 PM to 1 AM, 21+, with tickets from $10 to $28.01. Radius hosts Bonobo with Anish Kumar, doors 7 PM.
Friday, November 27, Black Friday, stays loud. Radius splits the building between Ben Klock: PHOTON with RØDHAD, CHLÄR and NEUX, doors 9:30 PM, and Josh Baker with Nicky B, doors 10 PM. Black Friday at Hubbard Inn starts at 9 PM, with general admission (entry and one drink) and open-bar packages listed from $12.51 to $34.04.
Saturday, November 28, Whales play the main room at Sound-Bar, 226 W Ontario Street, doors 10 PM, 21+, with Eventim general admission from $18.53 to $28.94. Radius books MIJA for Mija Invites x boost+++, with MRD, CRUSH3D b2b EERA and Mary K, doors 10 PM. Spybar’s Saturday is Rafa Barrios at $20, doors 10 PM, 21+. Navy Pier’s Wintrust Winter WonderFest, a family event, opens November 27.
TAO Nightclub at 632 N Dearborn Street stays on the holiday calendar, 21 and over, with entry by general admission or table reservation. Wednesday, November 25 is Nick Rockwell for Blackout Wednesday, 10 PM to 4 AM. Friday, November 27 is Benny Benassi, 10 PM to 4 AM. Saturday, November 28 is Proppa, also 10 PM to 4 AM.
Book now: New Year’s Eve
Thursday, December 31, already has public tickets in the market. Sparkling Queen!, an all-building night from Metro, smartbar and Queen!, runs 9 PM to 4 AM at 3730 N Clark Street, 21+, with Ariel Zetina, Derrick Carter, DJ Heather, DJ Hyperactive and Shaun J. Wright among the billed names, hosted by Lucy Stoole and Nico. The house pages list $40 to $55 general admission and $100 to $900 VIP, with tickets on Etix. Spybar’s public New Year’s Eve night is New Years Eve 2027 ft. Bushbaby, $50 on Dice, doors 10 PM, 21+.
Auris Presents Transitions runs December 26, 2026, to January 2, 2027, across Radius, Cermak Hall and other rooms. The Radius calendar lists a Transitions Quantum Pass plus nightly bills that include Green Velvet, I Hate Models, SG Lewis, Gorgon City, Maceo Plex with Ben UFO, D.O.D on New Year’s Eve (doors 10 PM), LP Giobbi and Odd Mob. Tickets are on the MATO event page and the Radius calendar. Phantom on the ROOF at ROOF on theWit, 201 N State Street, 27th floor, is listed from $65.87 on December 31.
NOVA 2027, from 9 PM to 4 AM at Sound-Bar, is a Chicago Twenty Something party billed as Sound-Bar’s Last Dance. Sound-Bar at 226 W Ontario Street is the venue. The club is expected to leave the building, per the Chicago Sun-Times, and no closing date has been announced. The full night is in our Sound-Bar Last Dance guide. For another December 31 late option, keep Kermess on the list.
On the radar
Curio’s Midnight in Chicago, already mapped in the November nightlife guide, lands Monday, December 7, from 6 to 9 PM at ROOF on theWit. Smartbar lists Horse Meat Disco with Shaun J Wright and Sunshine Rewind on December 11, doors 10 PM, 21+, at $20 to $25 general admission. Spybar books George Smeddles on December 19 at $20. Radius has Kim Petras on December 1, Eric Prydz on December 5, and Elrow on December 11 and 12. Still coming without firm public party dates: Osaka Nikkei and Kero Bar, and The Lake in River North.
Frequently asked questions
What is happening in Chicago nightlife this weekend, November 13 to 15, 2026?
Friday, November 13, 2026, brings Ladybear at Smartbar ($20 to $25, doors 10 PM, 21+), Pedroz at Spybar ($20), Westend at Radius, and Elderbrook at TAO Nightclub, 632 N Dearborn Street, 10 PM to 4 AM. Saturday is Franc Fala’s Spybar debut ($20), Brutalismus 3000 at Radius and E-Rock at TAO. Sunday, November 15, is Queen! at Smartbar with Derrick Carter, Michael Serafini and T Mixwell.
What is Black Wednesday in Chicago?
Black Wednesday is Thanksgiving Eve in Chicago, Wednesday, November 25, 2026, when clubs stay open late the night before the holiday. This year’s rooms include Celeste in River North from 10 PM to 4 AM, Bizzy Nights at Hideaway, Gold Coast Social, Hubbard Inn and Parlay Lincoln Park, TreeHouse with Tunnel after midnight, The Turkey Crawl in Wrigleyville, and Nick Rockwell at TAO Nightclub for Blackout Wednesday, 10 PM to 4 AM.
Where should I go out on Thanksgiving Eve in Chicago in 2026?
Celeste at 111 W Hubbard Street runs 10 PM to 4 AM on Wednesday, November 25, 2026, 21+, with Eventbrite tickets from $17.85 to $55.20. Bizzy Nights lists Hideaway, Gold Coast Social, Hubbard Inn and Parlay Lincoln Park from $10 with a house shot. TreeHouse at 149 W Kinzie Street starts at 7 PM, with Tunnel after midnight, at $11.59.
When does the Winter Garden return to Château Carbide in Chicago?
The Winter Garden returns to Château Carbide at Pendry Chicago, 230 N Michigan Avenue, 24th floor, around November 20, 2026, with 90-minute seatings at 5, 7 and 9 PM. The fee is $40 per person, credited fully to food and drink, and New Year’s Eve seatings are $75, 21 and older, on OpenTable.
How much are Franc Fala tickets at Spybar Chicago?
Franc Fala’s Spybar debut on Saturday, November 14, 2026, is $20 on Dice, doors 10 PM, 21 and over, at 646 N Franklin Street. Friday, November 13, is Pedroz at the same club, also $20 on Dice, doors 10 PM, 21+.
When is Sparkling Queen New Year’s Eve at Metro and Smartbar in Chicago?
Sparkling Queen! is Thursday, December 31, 2026, from 9 PM to 4 AM, an all-building night at Metro and smartbar, 3730 N Clark Street, 21 and over. The lineup includes Ariel Zetina, Derrick Carter, DJ Heather, DJ Hyperactive and Shaun J. Wright. House pages list $40 to $55 general admission and $100 to $900 VIP, with tickets on Etix.
Further reading
Chicago Nightlife in November 2026 · Last week’s nightlife roundup · Sound-Bar’s Last Dance / NOVA New Year’s Eve
Smartbar · Spybar · Radius calendar · TAO Nightclub calendar · Christkindlmarket Daley Plaza · Magnificent Mile Lights Festival · Château Carbide Winter Garden · Château Carbide on OpenTable · Sparkling Queen! · Transitions on MATO · Phantom on the ROOF
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