The Five
Don’t-miss picks for Wednesday, September 17 through Tuesday, September 23
1 Expo Chicago
Art: This annual fair brings 140 international exhibitors to the city; it’s like a pop-up museum of modern and contemporary art. Even if the prices are out of your range, the browsing and free programs are worth the trip to the end of Navy Pier. Also consider checking out Edition, Expo’s younger, cheaper sibling featuring the work of emerging artists.
9/18–9/21. $20–$30. Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand. expochicago.com
2 Funny Ha-Ha
Readings: The popular reading series celebrates its 10th anniversary with a redux of its original lineup. Fault in Our Stars author John Green and sketch comedy group Schadenfreude are among the featured guests.
9/19 at 6:30. $10. The Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia. ticketfly.com/purchase/event/654683?utm_medium=bks
3 Kyle Kinane
Comedy: The former Chicagoan—famous for his freewheeling storytelling style—returns home for two nights of gut-busting standup.
9/18–9/20. $20. UP Comedy Club, 230 W. North. upcomedyclub.com
4 Nellie McKay
Jazz: It’s difficult to classify this genre-flouting musician who flits among easy listening, Broadway tunes, and more recently, reggae. Still, to catch this irreverent feminist crooner is always a treat, classifications be damned.
9/19 at 7. $15–$35. SPACE, 1245 Chicago, Evanston. evanstonspace.com
5 Design Harvest
Festivals: Grand Avenue’s design shops open their doors for this West Town home-and-garden sale. The kids can go on a hayride while you look for that perfect repurposed piece for the living room.
9/20–9/21. $5 suggested donation. Grand between Damen and Wood. design-harvest.com
What I’m Doing This Weekend
Up next in our series of weekend plans from notable, in-the-know locals—a.k.a. people we like: the MCA’s chief curator, Michael Darling. David Bowie Is opens on Tuesday, September 23.
“Friday, I’m hoping to go to Expo Chicago. It’s a great place to see a lot of art in one location under one roof. I know that there is a booth at the fair being curated by Theaster Gates; I’m always curious to see what he’s up to, so that ought to be good.
“Saturday, I live up in Evanston so the place that I like to go to for breakfast is Leonidas. It’s a Belgian/French coffee and crepe place. I usually go for a latte and they have a good spinach crepe. In the afternoon, I’ll probably be walking people through the David Bowie show and then Saturday evening, we have our big gala opening of the David Bowie exhibition. Bryan Ferry is going to be playing a concert. That’s going to be really amazing; it’s rare to have someone of his caliber performing for a small audience so I’m looking forward to it.
“This Sunday, we’re hosting all the art exhibitors for the art fair, so I’m going to be welcoming all these dealers. The rest of the day we’re doing a members preview of the David Bowie show. I’ve been deep into the show, planning and organizing it, so it will be fun to finally be a fly on the wall and watch people respond to it.” —As told to Tomi Obaro
Freebie of the Week
Concert for Chicago
Classical: Muti leads the CSO in an all-Tchaikovsky program, consisting of the fantasy overture from The Tempest, the Sleeping Beauty orchestral suite, and the Fourth Symphony.
9/19 at 6:30. Free. Pritzker Pavilion, Millennium Park, Michigan and Washington. cso.org