Photo: Courtesy of Mary Ellen Croteau
 

PLASTIC WORLD Mary Ellen Crouteau’s self-portraits come to Northwestern’s Block Museum.

THE FIVE

Don’t-miss picks for Wed 5.1.13 through Tue 5.7.13:

1

art Dittmar Gallery
Mary Ellen Croteau’s self-portraits, made of prescription drug bottles and colored caps, are like more urgent Chuck Close paintings.
GO: Through 5/5; Northwestern U. 1999 Campus, norris.northwestern.edu

2

music Patti Smith
Her hard-driving band’s mix of garage and arena rock matches Smith’s oracular delivery, and the invaluable guitarist Lenny Kaye most likely will take a turn in the spotlight to perform a handful of classics.
GO: 5/6 (sold out) and 5/7; $38.50. Vic Theatre, 3145 N Sheffield. jamusa.com or etix.com

3

theatre Oklahoma!
The Lyric ventures into Rodgers and Hammerstein territory with the musical about statehood, feuding cowboys and farmers, frontier sweethearts, and a lost soul named Jud.
GO: 5/4–5/19; $32–$163. Lyric Opera, 20 N Wacker. lyricopera.org

4

art Amanda Ross-Ho
The Chicago-born artist—who recently showed at the 2008 Whitney Biennial and L.A.’s MOCA—returns to the city with new found objects.
GO: 5/4-5/26. Shane Campbell Gallery, 673 N Milwaukee. shanecampbellgallery.com

5

festivals Cinco de Mayo Festival
The three-day celebration, which kicks off in Douglas Park and culminates with a parade in Pilsen, features more than 100 local organizations.
GO: 5/3–5/5; free. Douglas Park, 1401 Sacremento Dr. and Cermak and Damen. chicagoevents.com

WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND

Roopa Weber
Photo: Courtesy of Roopa Weber

Roopa Weber

Up next in our series of weekend plans from notable, in-the-know locals—a.k.a. people we like: Roopa Weber, senior vice president of institutional marketing at Ariel Investments and co-chair of the SAIC Fashion Show, happening this Friday, May 3 at 9 a.m., noon, and 3 p.m.

“It’s an all fashion weekend. The Thursday night leading up to the show, I’ll be going to a dinner party Ikram Goldman is hosting at her café, featuring the Rodarte sisters [designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy]. It’s small and intimate, but open to the public. Tickets are $250.

“Friday is the show. Ninety-four students will participate [and they are] displaying about 250 garments. There’s a show in the morning, afternoon and evening, then a cocktail reception and an after party at the Harris Theater. That’s going to be really fun; it’s not sitdown or formal at all. It’s at the Chase Promenade in Millennium Park. Tickets range from $40–$70.

“Saturday afternoon, there’s a brunch at Ikram’s. I’m the co-chair for the SAIC fashion show, which means I raise funds for the scholarships benefitting the students. This brunch is part of our ticket package for donors who give $5,000 or more. Ikram will lead a conversation with [Kate and Laura Mulleavy] about how they started in the industry. They’re very young, [so] it’s really cool to hear [about] their career trajectory. They are so innovative.

“Saturday evening, I’m going to this card-making party with moms from my daughter’s school. It’s really just an excuse to get together at the Paper Source in Lincoln Park. We’ll probably have dinner in the neighborhood too.

“Sunday, I’m really looking forward to spending time with my husband and daughter. She calls us ‘the trio.’ We live in Old Town, so since the weather’s nice, we’ll probably go to Oz Park and the Lincoln Park Zoo. She loves the nature museum too. I love doing all of the stuff in the community, but at the end of the day I want to be a great mother.” —As told to Tomi Obaro

FREEBIE OF THE WEEK

music The Drastics
The Chicago-based musicians add some jazz chops to their reggae sound for a totally original combination. Catch them in Logan Square this weekend.
GO: 5/1 at 9:30. The Whistler, 2421 N Milwaukee. whistlerchicago.com