“The Musikmeisters”played at the Adler Planetarium for Adler After Dark
Chicago’s Adler Planetarium is open late one Thursday of every month, allowing a 21 and over crowd to gaze upon the heavens while they socialize, sip cocktails and listen to live music.
Two weeks ago, the lakeside observatory and space museum treated stargazers to a show of lovely stars and some lederhosen. An authentic German band lulled attendees with a Bavarian waltz while they learned about satellites, planets and stars.
The atmosphere was playful, reminding some of a playground–unspoiled by the grating sounds of children’s carefree laughter.
Instead, folks who made it out to the Planetarium traded snippets of gossip, furrowed their brows over the Bears’ chances this season (while Soldier Field lay just beyond the front drive of Adler) and got a crash course in the science of brewing beer.
The craft brew lesson came courtesy of Half Acre Beer Co., which also treated lucky guests to a free beer tasting. For those who were not engaged by the telescopic views of the night sky, or even talk of a supernova visible in the nearby Pinwheel Galaxy, the twinkling lights of Chicago’s skyline provided spectators with all the visual splendor they could hope for.
The stars twinkled above while Chicago’s lights dazzled below 
Rory Keane is an American-born teacher and writer who has logged nearly two years in China, and is working on another year-long stint in the Middle Kingdom. He writes about travel, sociopolitical issues, health, entertainment, and culture, among other topics.
