Fall Bulb Fest
Gourd Mountain at Fall Bulb Fest in GlencoePhotograph: Robin Carlson

October. ane–Nov. 18

Art

Erik Beehn

Evanston

Although artist Erik Beehn was raised in a hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, his paintings are neither tacky nor glitzy. The SAIC grad creates abstracts of floral imagery by painting with solvents over inkjet prints from the internet, dissolving the surface to reveal beauty beneath.

Details:Platform. Free. platform904.com

Oct. i

Trip the light fantastic toe

Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre

Roscoe Village

Cerqua Rivera, known for blending alive music, visual art, and contemporary trip the light fantastic toe, has a autumn program boasting premieres past quondam River Due north Dance Chicago artistic manager Sherry Zunker and 3Arts accolade winner Stephanie Martinez. An added bonus is Corner Sketches, a Miles Davis montage developed as part of an open rehearsal series.

Details:Links Hall. seven p.1000. $36–$44. linkshall.org

Oct. 1–22

Opera

Das Rheingold

Loop

Lyric Opera's years-in-the-making Band cycle gets rolling, forth with the house's 2016–17 season, with Das Rheingold, the commencement (and shortest!) of the four operas in Wagner's epic of gods and power. The bass-baritone Eric Owens plays Wotan throughout the cycle, spread over four seasons. For better or worse, this Ring volition wed itself to Lyric's reputation until the finish of the decade.

Details:Civic Opera House. $34–$299. lyricopera.org

Oct. one–2

Gardens

Ikenobo Ikebana

Glencoe

You lot may be familiar with ikebana—the Japanese art of flower organization—but you probably haven't heard of Ikenobo, the ancient school that has kept the craft alive for more v centuries. Wait some truly mind-bending bouquets at the Chicago affiliate's almanac display.

Details:Chicago Botanic Gardens. Gratuitous. chicagobotanic.org

Oct. 1

Trip the light fantastic toe

Natya Trip the light fantastic Theatre

Skokie

Hema Rajagopalan, a master of the Indian Bharatanatyam manner, teams up with Indonesian maestro Eri Mefri in The Incomplete Gesture, which blends the rhythmic footwork and gestures of classical Indian dance with Indonesian martial arts.

Details:North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. 8 p.chiliad. $20–$38. northshorecenter.org

Oct. 1

Rock

Brian Wilson

Loop

L years afterward Pet Sounds shattered the mold of American popular, Brian Wilson is dusting off the raw, emotional classic. Of course, Wilson has gathered a picayune dust himself: His gear up at this year's Pitchfork Music Festival was, at all-time, deflated, with Wilson toddling along to a musical backdrop past fellow Embankment Boys Al Jardine and Blondie Chaplin. Even so, it's not every solar day you get to see one of the all-time albums of all fourth dimension trotted out by the genius who composed it.

Details:Chicago Theatre. viii p.m. $39–$154. ticketmaster.com

'Laszlo Moholy-Nagy: Future Present'
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy: Future Present Photo: ©2016 Hattula Moholy-Nagy/VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Oct. 2–Jan. 3

Fine art

Laszlo Moholy-Nagy: Future Present

Loop

In 1935, Moholy-Nagy fled war-torn Deutschland and somewhen brought modernism to Chicago with his avant-garde New Bauhaus school. The Hungarian photographer and mechanical sculptor was obsessed with new technologies and pattern, proposing that pure geometry—circles, rectangles, and straight lines—could limited feelings. This 300-piece of work retrospective celebrates his futuristic vision.

Details:Art Institute of Chicago. $xiv–$25. artic.edu

October. 4

Pop

Christine and the Queens

Lake View

In indie-rock circles, French singer-songwriter Héloïse Letissier is the next big thing. The Nantes native'due south serene phonation is a perfect match for the sparse, catchy synths she infuses each of her songs with. But make no mistake: Letissier'due south brand of heady synth-pop is more indebted to the developed-contemporary flourishes of Jessie Ware than to annihilation out of the oft-cheesy '80s.

Details:Vic Theatre. 7:30 p.thousand. $30. ticketfly.com

October. 5–x

New Music

Ear Taxi Festival

Various neighborhoods

Chicago's new-music community, one time the province of a few academically minded mandarins, now spreads its color and variety through many ambitious and mischievous ensembles. The downside of the abundance of groups, though, is that they mostly do their own thing. The composer Augusta Read Thomas wanted to alter that, so she organized a festival encompassing all Chicago's biggest new-music players, planned far enough in advance that the 32 events include 54 world premieres.

Details:Diverse venues. $24–$200. eartaxifestival.com

Oct. 6–thirty

Theater

Wicked City

Edgewater

In Chad Beguelin and Matthew Sklar's new detective musical, femme fatales, jaded private optics, shady politicos, and doe-eyed ingénues cruise a city that never sleeps. A jazz-infused score and plentiful neo-noir dance numbers color this tale of greed, corruption, and criminal offense.

Details:Chicago Theatre Workshop at the Edge Theatre. chicagotheatreworkshop.org

Oct. 7–8

Dance

Ballet 5:viii

Almost N Side

The v-yr-old ballet company premieres v works, including those past artistic manager Julianna Rubio Slager and erstwhile Houston Ballet dancer Caleb Mitchell. Slager's Ripple Outcome dissects the "sticks and stones" parable to uncover the ability of words to hurt or heal.

Details:Ruth Folio Center for the Arts. $12–$25. ballet58.org

Oct. seven

Electronic

Bonobo and Leon Vynehall

Lake View

This rare back-to-back DJ beak features the former and new guard in contemporary electronic music. The one-time, English producer Bonobo, made waves when he announced a new album slated to drop sometime in 2016. The new, prolific standby Vynehall, is yet riding the moving ridge of his second album in two years, Rojus (Designed to Dance), a lush journey of house styles interspersed with one-of-a-kind field recordings.

Details:Smart Bar. 10 p.m. $25–$30. smartbarchicago.com

Oct. 7–nine

Gardens

Fall Bulb Festival

Glencoe

More than than 200 varieties of crocuses, daffodils, and tulips are up for grabs at this garden sale, forth with a spread of local treats, sweets, and seasonal essentials (fresh apple tree cider, anyone?). For bonus autumn points, snap a selfie in front end of the picturesque Gourd Mountain. (October seven open only to Chicago Botanic Garden members.)

Details:Chicago Botanic Garden. Free. chicagobotanic.org

October. seven–20

Film

Music Box Theatre Special Screenings

Lake View

Lake View's stalwart indie movie house toasts the birthdays of three classics—Howards Finish's 25th and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly'south and The Battle of Algiers's 50th—with anniversary screenings (in new 4K resolution for Howards Cease).

Details:Music Box Theatre. $9–$11. musicboxtheatre.com

Kanye West
Kanye West Photo: Rich Fury/Invision/AP

October. 7–viii

Hip-Hop

Kanye West

Near West Side, Rosemont

Regardless of your thoughts almost West's underwhelming The Life of Pablo, his concert is not ane to miss. Expect brilliant lighting and theatrics to back-trail a deep catalog of solo and collaborative material. That it's a hometown evidence for Yeezy is gravy.

Details:United Center (Oct. seven), Allstate Arena (October. eight). $thirty–$140. ticketmaster.com

Oct. 8–Nov. thirteen

Theater

Merge

Wicker Park

Andrew Hobgood directs Spenser Davis's 1976-set up exploration of the video game gurus at Atari and the culture clash that ensued after Warner Bros. bought the visitor. Tin can a grouping of pot-smoking arcade nerds adjust to life nether the rule of a megacorporation? New Colony digs into the games that people (and businesses) play.

Details:New Colony at Den Theatre. $15–$20. thenewcolony.org

Oct. 9

Electronic

James Blake

Loop

English vocalizer James Blake recently took a page from Beyoncé'southward book (perhaps subsequently working with her) and surprise-released his third solo album, The Colour in Anything. This collection is Blake'due south bleakest nevertheless, featuring his stock somber vocals and oftentimes oppressive instrumentation. Look that atmospheric depth to be doubly enveloping in this regal live setting.

Details:Cadillac Palace Theatre. 7:30 p.m. $25–$37. ticketmaster.com

Oct. ten–Nov. 19

Art

Practise You Accept Cents for Nonsense? I Have Cents for Sensitive

Elmhurst

Selina Trepp decided in 2012 that she would no longer bring any new fine art materials into her studio in a statement confronting a civilisation of overconsumption. To continue her work, she institute free creative solutions, like painting on recycled photographs and drawing digital animations. Her new fashion ends up being a commentary on sustainability, the economic system, and the nature of creativity itself.

Details:Cleve Carney Art Gallery. Gratuitous. clevecarneygallery.org

Oct. 11

Art

Jewelry for My Mother(s) and Other Microaggressions

Loop

Laura Davis makes jewelry not to exist worn, only every bit ceramic sculptures to contemplate the mode women care for and share heirlooms. In an artist talk, Davis explains how she thinks about "the ghosts of the women" haunting the chilling necklaces and bracelets on brandish.

Details:Chicago Cultural Center. 12:30 p.chiliad. Costless. cityofchicago.org

Oct. 12

R&B

Avery Sunshine

Pilsen

It'south been 2 years since Denise Nicole White (a.thou.a. Avery Sunshine) released a new album. This summer, she has toured across the country in support of her latest, 2014's The SunRoom, in consequence reminding fans what they're missing in a new LP of her soulful R&B.

Details:Thalia Hall. 8 p.m. $25–$480. ticketweb.com

Oct. 12–23

Dance

Thodos Trip the light fantastic toe Chicago

Near North Side

The gimmicky dance company teams upward with Chicago Children's Theatre to remount A Light in the Dark: The Story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan. Trip the light fantastic toe and theater merge to tell the story of the blind, deaf, and mute daughter whose life would inspire so many.

Details:Ruth Page Center for the Arts. $10–$39. chicagochildrenstheatre.org

'Romeo & Juliet'
Romeo & Juliet Photo: Cheryl Mann

October. 13–23

Trip the light fantastic

Joffrey Ballet

Loop

The acclaimed ballet company'south autumn program is a reprise of Krzysztof Pastor'southward Romeo & Juliet, the archetype Shakespearean tragedy set to Prokofiev's transcendent score. In this version, the story is moved to 20th-century Italy; striking projections provide context and highlight the political unrest of the period.

Details:Auditorium Theatre. $34–$159. joffrey.org

Oct. 13

Fundraiser

Blitz Woman'south Board Fashion Testify

South Loop

The charity way show celebrates its 90th year.

Details:United Club at Soldier Field. 5:30 p.m. thefashionshow.org

Oct. 13–15

Dance

The Seldoms

South Loop

The Seldoms present Philip Elson's The Fifth, a peek inside hacktivism and the whistleblowers of internet.

Details:Dance Middle of Columbia Higher Chicago. $15–$xxx. colum.edu/dance-center

October. 14

Classical

Apollo's Fire

Hyde Park

Baroque performance generally inclines toward the buttoned-down: terraced dynamics, clock-similar tempos, and proper cadences. Not so with the Cleveland-based orchestra Apollo's Burn, named to evoke its lambent style, aflicker with dramatic phrasing. Hither, the group plays some of its core repertoire, including ii of Bach'due south Brandenburg Concertos.

Details:Mandel Hall, U. of C. seven:xxx p.m. $5–$35. chicagopresents.uchicago.edu

Oct. xiv

Fine art

Conversation: ART21—Chris Ware, Gary Panter, and Hillary Chute

Loop

Chris Ware, the Chicago artist who proved that comics aren't just for kids with his emotional, conceptual graphic novels, makes a rare live advent in chat with Harvard comics expert Hillary Chute and iconic illustrator Gary Panter, whose gear up designs for Pee-wee's Playhouse won him multiple Emmys.

Details:Art Institute of Chicago. 6 p.g. Free with museum admission (RSVP online). artic.edu

Oct. 14–Dec. 3

Theater

Zombie Broads

Rogers Park

Get your Halloween on with Maxine and Marco, whose book society takes a turn for the flesh-eating thanks to a dim-witted scientist and an experiment gone wrong. Wait epic gushes of brains and blood from the playwrights Corrbette Pasko and Sara Sevigny in a saga of voraciously hungry undead.

Details:Factory Theater. $18–$25. thefactorytheater.com

October. fifteen–Nov. 20

Theater

The Bottle Tree

Lake View

Playwright Beth Kander takes on gun civilisation through the lens of a "forgotten" victim: the smart, struggling sis of a high schoolhouse shooter. Using the setting of a modest town where trauma runs deep and healing is in short supply, Kander explores whether hope and recovery are truly possible in the wake of an indelible tragedy.

Details:Stage Left Theatre at Theater Wit. $x–$30. stagelefttheatre.com

Oct. 15

Classical

Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Loop

The CSO'due south 125th anniversary celebration culminates in a re-cosmos of its very starting time concert, given Oct sixteen, 1891. To modernistic optics, the programming may expect strange: ii of the chestnuttiest pieces in the classical canon, Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 and Tchaikovsky'south Pianoforte Concerto No. 1, bookended with overtures by Wagner and Dvořák. Hard to believe that back and then, the concerto was less than 20 years old.

Details:Symphony Center. 6 p.m. $60–$199. cso.org

Oct. xv–Nov. six

Opera

Lucia di Lammermoor

Loop

Donizetti's tale of star-crossed love on the Scottish moors, by far the well-nigh famous of the gratuitous-flowing bel canto style of operas, features two all-time classic moments of the genre. The beginning, the passionate sextet in act 2, melds solo voices thrillingly every bit Lucia is condemned to marry for politics instead of beloved. The 2nd, the "mad scene," allows the soprano Albina Shagimuratova, as Lucia, to engage in pyrotechnic ornament and high notes while flailing around in a bloodstained wedding apparel.

Details:Civic Opera Firm. $34–$299. lyricopera.org

October. 15–16

Picture show

Music Box of Horrors

Lake View

Once a yr, the Music Box Theatre transforms into a slaughterhouse chock-full of frights. This marathon of monsters and gore gives you serious bang for your buck: One $35 ticket ($25 in advance) allows come-and-go access to 24 hours of scary movies, from classics (Halloween III: Season of the Witch) and forgotten gems (Eyes of Fire) to encarmine slapstick (Popcorn) and straight-upwards comedy (Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein).

Details:Music Box Theatre. $25–$35. musicboxtheatre.com

Hamlet: The Revenge of Prince Zi Dan
Open up House Chicago Photo: Eric Allix Rogers

October. 15–16

Architecture

Open House Chicago

Various locations

If you've ever gazed at the façade of a majestic Chicago building and longed to know what lay on the other side, this citywide suite of costless open houses from the Chicago Architecture Foundation is for y'all. Churches, concert halls, studios, and more open their doors, offering choice interior views. Don't miss a rare gratuitous tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's home studio in Oak Park and the vine-draped atrium of Englewood's Yale Building, usually reserved for residents.

Details:Various locations. Free. openhousechicago.org

Oct. 16

R&B

Miguel

Near West Side

If any R&B singer will inherit Prince's crown, information technology'southward Miguel. The L.A. native exudes energy and sex appeal alive, strutting his stuff in a slew of increasingly glitzy outfits as his ring bumps life-affirming tunes upward to an 11. The unfettered guitar solos don't hurt.

Details:United Middle. seven p.m. $35–$150. ticketmaster.com

October. 18

Folk

Baton Bragg and Joe Henry

Pilsen

Billy Bragg is no stranger to nontraditional songwriting: The vocaliser famously fleshed out Woody Guthrie's unrecorded dorsum catalog with help from local Chicago band Wilco. More than recently, Bragg and vocalist-songwriter Joe Henry boarded an Amtrak streamliner from L.A. to Chicago with their guitars and gear in tow, recording songs in railroad train stations, waiting rooms, and rail yards along the mode. Here they perform the fruits of their journey, plus some back-catalog hits.

Details:Thalia Hall. 7:xxx p.m. $34–$46. thaliahallchicago.com

October. nineteen–Nov. 20

Theater

Octagon

Edgewater

Kristiana Rae Colón's rapid-fire battle between poetry slammers comes with a lofty pedigree: The piece won the 2014 National Latino Playwriting Award, and Colón herself is a vet of HBO'south Def Verse Jam. In this U.S. premiere, eight gifted wordsmiths vie for top honors equally the personal and the political collide.

Details:Jackalope Theatre at Broadway Armory Park. $5–$30. jackalopetheatre.org

Oct. 20–23

Festival

A-Squared Asian American Performing Arts Festival

Roscoe Village

An impressive lineup of Asian American dancers, musicians, puppeteers, and functioning artists present pieces influenced in varying degrees by China, Philippines, India, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. A preshow dinner on Saturday, October 22, at v:fifteen p.chiliad., highlights the diverse cuisine of Vietnam.

Details:Links Hall. $15–$45. linkshall.org

Oct. 20

Art

Bronzeville Domicile Tours and Progressive Dinner

Bronzeville

A rare wait inside three South Side collections of contemporary African American and African art includes a guided tour, catered food, and cocktails at each stop.

Details:Diverse venues. 6–ten:30 p.m. $250. art.org

Oct. 20–22

Classical

Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Loop

The marquee name for this concert is Emanuel Ax, the pianist playing the first installment in a comprehensive tour at Symphony Middle this season of all five of Beethoven'due south pianoforte concertos. Each concerto has a different soloist, and Ax begins, fittingly, with No. 1. The name insiders will detect is David Afkham, who helms Beethoven and Shostakovich'south Symphony No. x, a wide canvas to testify his acuity.

Details:Symphony Center. $40–$222. cso.org

Oct. 20–22

Trip the light fantastic toe

Nora Chipaumire

Southward Loop

"What is it nigh the male person body, which happens to be black, that we are afraid of?" NYC-based dancer and choreographer Nora Chipaumire seeks to respond this question in Portrait of Myself as My Father. Audiences are allowed to get every bit shut as they like to the battle ring onstage as Chipaumire channels various cultural influences on black men, including African traditions, colonialism, faith, and the ongoing struggle for liberation.

Details:Trip the light fantastic Center of Columbia College Chicago. $24–$30. colum.edu/dance-eye

October. twenty

Electronic

Helado Negro

W Town

Born to Ecuadorian parents, Robert Carlos Lange is a modern renaissance man: a bilingual singer, composer, video artist, and sculptor. He'south best known musically for the aural mosaics he produces as Helado Negro. On his upcoming anthology, Private Energy, Lange tackles the Latin feel in America via his trademark keen beats.

Details:Hideout. nine p.m. $12–$xiv. hideoutchicago.com

Oct. 20–Nov. 21

Theater

The Mars Assignment

Wicker Park

A schoolteacher, a talent manager, an ad exec, and a child all endure from depression in Ronan Marra and Elsa Hiltner'southward dive into the struggles of the mentally ill. The work aims to smoothen a calorie-free on the spectrum of diseases and disorders that touch millions across the globe just that are still and so stigmatized they're often spoken of in whispers.

Details:Collaboraction Theatre at Flatiron Arts Building. $10–$xxx. collaboraction.org

Oct. 20

Pop

Ry X

Lincoln Park

Part of a new wave of Australian artists who combine modern R&B and traditional folk, Ry Cuming's music serves as a perfect primer for Chicago's oncoming wintertime. Dawn, his second album and get-go every bit Ry X, features dexterous pop hooks below Cuming'south androgynous tenor.

Details:Lincoln Hall. 8 p.thousand. $xviii. lh-st.com

October. 21–Nov. 27

Art

Dirt Hickson

West Town

Draughtsman Clay Hickson (of Pilsen's Tan & Loose Press) remembers the eighties as a pastiche of deco psychedelic style slathered in decadent neon and saxophone, which his illustrations satirically celebrate in this predictable starting time solo exhibit.

Details:Johalla Projects. Free. johallaprojects.com

October. 21–Nov. 20

Theater

The Magic Play

Loop

Playwright Andrew Hinderaker (I Am Going to Change the Globe; Suicide, Incorporated) delves into wizardry in this tale of a nameless magician, the diver he loves, and the male parent who haunts him. Halena Kays directs the story of a showman whose power to astonish vanishes in the face of heartbreak.

Details:Goodman Theatre. $10–$xl. goodmantheatre.org

Tegan and Sara
Tegan and Sara Photo: Pamela Littky

Oct. 21

Pop

Tegan and Sara

Uptown

Later more than two decades in the music industry, indie-stone sister duo Tegan and Sara just seem to be getting ameliorate—their lyrics sharper, their hooks so contagious they've started writing songs for other musicians. Catch the e'er-charming siblings in their near natural and heady class: front and eye.

Details:Riviera Theatre. 7:30 p.m. $34. etix.com

October. 22

Fine art

The Arts Society Centennial Open up House

Aureate Declension

This individual club with a public exhibition plan has for a century drawn the world's virtually desired artists up its Mies-designed stairwell to meet with Chicago's elite art patrons. Hither, the organization pulls back the drapery with a day of free programming, including David Lang–commissioned music by 8th Blackbird and artist talks by Suzanne Bocanegra, Derrick Adams, and Marker Dion.

Details:Arts Club of Chicago. Noon. Free. artsclubchicago.org

Oct. 22–thirty

Classical

Chicago a Cappella

Various neighborhoods

This versatile vocal ensemble presents an eclectic shock of classical, jazz, and pop tunes in a remounted plan titled The Birds and the Bees: Songs of Nature and Naughtiness. The grouping hooks upward with Ruth Westheimer and Laura Berman, who each characterize two performances.

Details:Various venues. $xv–$43. chicagoacappella.org

Oct. 23–24

Classical

Music of the Baroque

Skokie, Loop

Earlier Handel got into the practice of writing religious-themed oratorios such as Messiah, he composed Alexander'south Banquet, a recitative-aria-chorus collection about the power of music, based on a John Dryden ode about Alexander the Great. Nicholas Kraemer serves it up as the first form in Music of the Baroque's 46th season.

Details:North Shore Eye for the Performing Arts (Oct. 23), Harris Theater (Oct. 24). $38–$75. baroque.org

Oct. 23–January. fifteen

Art

Re(Public)

Hyde Park

This seven-person group exhibit takes the pulse of some of Ireland'south politically engaged artists, who, on this hundredth anniversary of an important fight for Irish independence, nowadays new music, photographs, and film almost the country's mental health services, bee colonies, and other hot-push issues.

Details:Hyde Park Art Center. Free. hydeparkart.org

Oct. 26–December. 31

Theater

Singin' in the Pelting

Lincolnshire

Jeff-winning director William Brown helms this splashy rom-com nearly making movies during the dawn of the talkies. Wait a bevy of crowd pleasers, from the classic clown shenanigans of "Make 'Em Express mirth" to the fast-borer footwork of "Moses Supposes."

Details:Marriott Theatre. $l–$55. marriotttheatre.com

Oct. 28–29

Dance

Giordano Trip the light fantastic Chicago

Millennium Park

Chicago'south pioneering jazz dance company kicks off its 54th season with a new work by Peter Chu. Revivals, including Ray Mercer'southward 2015 Shirt Off My Back and Autumn Eckman's improv-inspired Yes, And …, round out the program.

Details:Harris Theater. $xv–$75. harristheaterchicago.org

Oct. 28, 30

Opera

Harriet Tubman: When I Cross That Line to Liberty

Hyde Park, South Shore

The proposed new face up of America'due south $20 beak gets the operatic handling in a work by Nkeiru Okoye. The South Shore Opera Company, an ensemble striving to increase access to opera in underserved areas, produces the biography of the engineer of the Underground Railroad, starring the soprano Joelle Lamarre every bit Tubman.

Details:Logan Center (October. 28), Due south Shore Cultural Center (October. 30). $x–$250. southshoreopera.org

Oct. 29, 31

Classical

Chicago Sinfonietta

Naperville, Loop

For its Día de los Muertos concert, the Sinfonietta costars with the Chicago Film Archives, screening silent movies aslope Mussorgsky's Night on Baldheaded Mountain, Saint-Saëns'due south Danse Macabre, and music by Latino composers.

Details:Wentz Concert Hall (October. 29), Symphony Center (October. 31). $10–$lx. chicagosinfonietta.org

October. 29–Jan. 8

Art

Diana Thater: The Sympathetic Imagination

Gold Declension

Creatures, humans included, are the subject of Los Angeles creative person Diana Thater's massive video projections. Viewing Thater's surreal artworks is like walking into a digital fish tank—a poignant reminder that we live among the planet'south beasts.

Details:Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. $seven–$12. mcachicago.org

October. 29

Stone

Elvis Costello & the Imposters

Loop

If Elvis Costello is in town, you don't miss it. At this show, expect a mix of classic hits and newer selections from his terminal proper solo anthology, 2010'due south National Ransom, and his concluding collaborative album (with the Roots), 2013's Wise Up Ghost.

Details:Chicago Theatre. eight p.chiliad. $39–$154. ticketmaster.com

Oct. 29–November. 12

Festival

Fallfest: Speed

Various locations

The speed-themed Chicago Humanities Fest opens with a mean solar day of lectures at Northwestern, including visits by Maureen Dowd and Jonathan Lethem and talks on such topics as teen texting.

Details:Various venues. $v–$50. chicagohumanities.org

Through Oct. 9

Opera

The Honey Potion (Le Vin Herbé)

Lake View

Chicago Opera Theater opens its 2016–17 flavor with the Tristan and Isolde story Le Vin Herbé, past the 20th-century Swiss composer Frank Martin. An 8-piece chamber orchestra backs a 12-vocalizer chorus in the piece, a sort of operatic oratorio that raises a question: How will a score of musicians fit upwardly at the front of the old-time movie palace the Music Box?

Details:Chicago Opera Theater at Music Box Theatre. $15–$75. chicagooperatheater.org

Through Oct. 30

Outdoors

Richardson Farm Corn Maze

Spring Grove

This 29-acre maze of maize—said to be the earth'south largest—dons a Star Expedition theme to honor the franchise'due south 50th anniversary. Also nowadays at this "take chances farm": a petting zoo, a pumpkin patch, community campfires, and a wagon ride, all open till midnight on evenings when the moon is total.

Details:Richardson Gamble Farm. $xiii–$16. richardsonadventurefarm.com

Through November. 27

Theater

Scarlet Velvet

Edgewater Glen

Today, no one would think of casting a white histrion as Othello. But in 1833 England, blackness actors weren't even allowed on the stage. Inspired past a true story, Lolita Chakrabarti's Red Velvet takes off when the white lead in the Theatre Royal'southward Othello collapses and a blackness player steps in, sparking race riots. With Chicago's theater customs in the throes of a fractious word about whether an actor's ethnicity should play a office in casting (see the response to Porchlight'southward In the Heights and the Marriott's Evita), Red Velvet couldn't be more timely.

Details:Raven Theatre. $22–$46. raventheatre.com

Through Dec. 18

Theater

Apartment 3A

Albany Park

When a nasty breakdown strikes, Annie is forced to rethink everything from the love of her life to her passion for PBS fundraising. Jeff Daniels'due south (aye, that Jeff Daniels) rom-com with a supernatural twist spotlights a woman who thinks she's lost everything and the mysterious adjacent-door neighbor who steps into her shattered world. Ron OJ Parson directs.

Details:Windy City Playhouse. $15–$55. windycityplayhouse.com