Looking for some cool things to do in and around Chicago in the week ahead? Here are some highlights to consider:
Musical theater mavens
Season of Concern presents Second City Divas — In Concert, a benefit performance featuring nearly 40 musical theater singer-actresses who have performed on local stages. Among the impressive list of divas are E. Faye Butler, Roberta Duchak, Mary Ernster, Felicia Fields, Heidi Kettenring, Tammy Mader, Susie McMonagle, Hollis Resnik and Nancy Voigts. At 7:30 p.m. Sept. 9, Mercury Theater, 3745 N. Southport. Tickets: $50. Visit seasonofconcern.org.
A new sound
After years of being pegged the earnest folkie, a result of the success of his movie “Once,” Glen Hansard was ready for something different. He set up shop in Paris where a friend introduced him to the Khoshravesh brothers, a classically trained trio of Iranian musicians who introduced an alluring Middle Eastern touch to the songs on his recent album “This Wild Willing.” Hansard performs at 8 p.m. Sept. 6, Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State. Tickets: $40, $50. Visit ticketmaster.com.
Maria Callas via hologram
This could be both kind of cool and kind of creepy. Forty-two years after her death, legendary opera star Maria Callas returns to the Lyric Opera stage in “Callas in Concert: The Hologram Tour.” State-of-the-art 3D hologram technology, Callas’ digitally remastered recordings and the live Lyric Opera Orchestra merge for what is definitely a unique concert experience. At 7:30 p.m. Sept. 7, Lyric Opera, 20 N. Wacker. Tickets: $59-$129. Visit lyric opera.org.
Photographic time capsule
A selection of photojournalist Julian Wasser’s images are on display in “Julian Wasser: The Way We Were.” During the 1960s to the ’80s, he documented celebrities and politicians, among them Hollywood icons (Steve McQueen, Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston, Brigitte Bardot), artists (Andy Warhol and, in a notorious photo, Marcel Duchamp playing chess with a nude Eve Babitz) and musicians (David Bowie, The Jackson 5, The Beatles, Sonny and Cher). His 1968 image of Robert F. Kennedy was taken just minutes before the presidential candidate was assassinated. The exhibit opens Sept. 6 at Hilton-Asmus Contemporary, 716 N. Wells. Admission is free. Visit hilton-asmus.com.
Re-enter the Seven Kingdoms
Emmy-winning composer Ramin Djawadi’s “Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience” features new music, including The Night King theme, from the final season of the HBO blockbuster. An immersive spectacle, it features an 80-piece orchestra and choir accompanied by visuals from the series as well as what organizers are calling “a whole host of surprises.” At 8 p.m. Sept. 8, Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 19100 Ridgeland, Tinley Park. Ticket prices start at $31. Visit ticketsqueeze.com.
Crafty minds
Founded in 2003, the Renegade Craft Fair began as a one-day event in Wicker Park. It quickly grew into the leader of the independent contemporary craft community with events in 12 cities including fairs and pop-ups year round. This summer’s fair features 400+ makers and designers, hands-on workshops, art installations, food trucks, DJ sets from Reckless Records and Lumpen Radio and more. From 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sept. 7-8, Division between Damen and Ashland. Admission is free. Visit renegadecraft.com.
One-woman powerhouse
Minneapolis-based artist Dessa is known for her rap noir and literary ballads that buck conventions and defy expectations. She has co-composed for a 100-voice choir, contributed to “The Hamilton Mixtape” and written evocative travel essays for the New York Times. She told the Minneapolis StarTribune that writing her memoir “My Own Devices: True Stories From the Road on Music, Science and Senseless Love” made her “happier as a musician because I wasn’t asking a rap song to be an essay anymore.” In November, she’ll release a live album of her groundbreaking collaboration with the Minnesota Orchestra. Also on the bill: Monakr and Bonelang. At 8:30 p.m. Sept. 7, Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport. Tickets: $25, $35. Visit thaliahallchicago.com.
More festival fun
- Celebrate Mexican Independence Day at Festival de la Villita, Sept. 6-8, 26th and Kostner. Visit chicagoevents.com.
- Enjoy tunes from the ’50s and ’60s at Throwback Music Festival, Sept. 6-8, Milwaukee and Peterson. Visit chicagoevents.com.
- Find fine art and craft at Deer Park Art Show, Sept. 7-8, Deer Park Town Center, 20530 N. Rand, Deer Park. Visit amdurproductions.com.
- It’s a daylong fiesta at family-friendly Frida Fest, Sept. 8, McAninch Arts Center, 425 Fawell, Glen Ellyn. Visit atthemac.org.