Nina Kraviz, Jane Fitz, and More Billed for Smartbar's Daphne 2017 Series

Chicago nightclub Smartbar has shared the first wave of programming for its Daphne event series celebrating women and non-binary artists in electronic music.

Launched in 2015 as a tribute to British composer and electronic music pioneer Daphne Oram, who died in 2003, the third annual Daphne series of club nights and workshops is slated to take place throughout the month of March, which is Women's History Month. So far, the revealed cast of DJ talent includes Heidi, Cassy, K Hand, DJ Heather, Nina Kraviz, Volvox, Honey Dijon, and recent THUMP interviewee Jane Fitz. Also featured are Elysia Crampton and Octo Octa, both of whom will perform live, as well as fast-rising star (and our artist of 2016) The Black Madonna, a Smartbar resident and its first-ever Creative Director.

In a statement posted on Facebook, Smartbar said that the series returns "in a time when music and activism are more linked than ever." They added: "Women have been central part of the architecture Smartbar's residents program for almost 20 years—long before equality in dance music was a hot button topic. With the Daphne series, we hope to disprove the oft-cited "roadblocks" used to scapegoat gender disparities in dance lineups by showing that gender parity is not only possible, but it also requires no compromise in the quality or success of the club. We challenge our community to join us and even raise the bar."

View the first-wave programming for Daphne 2017 below, and visit Smartbar's website for scheduling and tickets.