The Ten

Don’t-miss picks for April 19 through April 25, 2018

1 Bill Murray, Jan Vogler & Friends: New Worlds

Performance:Bill Murray, known for his deadpan comedic performances—early in his career on episodes of Saturday Night Live, and more recently in Wes Anderson films—takes the stage with a (slightly) more serious tone. Alongside cellist Jan Vogler, Murray will read excerpts from American authors like Ernest Hemingway and Mark Twain and accompany Vogler on pieces from 20th-century music masters Leonard Bernstein and George Gershwin.
4/19 at 8 p.m. $45–$70. Chicago Theatre. ticketmaster.com

2 Memphis

Theater:Set in Bluff City during the 1950s, this musical is packed with toe-tapping grooves. It spins the story of a white DJ who bucks his corporate overseers by playing “black” music on the radio.
4/19–6/3. $33–$60. Porchlight Music Theatre at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts. porchlightmusictheatre.org

3 Beth Adler & Nancy Gardner: What I’ve Learned from Flower Arranging

Art:This month-long art show—featuring monoprints by Beth Adler and ceramics by Nancy Gardner—focused on flowers and plants is appropriately timed for spring. The two artists explore the natural world in their first exhibition together.
FREE 4/20–5/20. Firecat Projects. firecatprojects.org

4 Helen Frankenthaler Prints: The Romance of a New Medium

Art:Frankenthaler, who died in 2011, was one of a few women to break into the male-dominated field of abstract expressionism. These rarely seen pieces convey the joy of a creative person in love with color.
4/20–9/30. $14–$29. Art Institute of Chicago. artic.edu

5 Lord Huron

Rock:Indie-folk group Lord Huron will release their new album Vide Noir on Friday, the first day of their tour. Judging from early tracks, titled “Ancient Names (Part I)” and “Ancient Names (Part II),” fans can expect more upbeat, garage-rock music and fewer ballads.
4/21 at 8 p.m. Sold out; see resellers. Riviera Theatre.

6 Waxahatchee and Hurray for the Riff Raff

Rock:As Waxahatchee, musician Katie Crutchfield crafted her most confident material on 2017’s Out in the Storm, her fourth album. Filled with rollicking guitar riffs and empowering lyrics (“I went out in the storm, and I’m never returning,” she croons on lead single “Silver”), Out in the Storm was a stark departure from the longing and devastation of her previous record, 2015’s Ivy Tripp. Expect a similarly captivating live show. In this case, she’ll be joined by New Orleans–based blues-folk band Hurray for the Riff Raff.
4/21 at 7:30 p.m. Sold out; see resellers. Thalia Hall.

7 Richard Rezac

Art:Rezac is Chicago’s foremost guru of small sculptures. Each object he creates is like a Zen koan aimed at opening the viewer’s mind.
FREE 4/21–6/17. Renaissance Society. renaissancesociety.org

8 Maurizio Pollini

Classical:The septuagenarian pianist returns to Symphony Center with a victory-lap program of Book 2 of Debussy’s Préludes and three works by Chopin, the bread and butter of Pollini’s half-century-plus career. While he still plays with perfect posture, rumblings about a slippage in Pollini’s execution suggest there won’t be too many more chances to see him live.
4/22 at 3 p.m. $35–$104. Symphony Center. cso.org

9 Errol Morris

Film:The documentary filmmaker has spent his career exploring various pockets of American life: the unusual (Fast, Cheap & Out of Control, Gates of Heaven), the powerful (The Unknown Known, about Donald Rumsfeld), and the unjust (The Thin Blue Line). The Chicago Humanities Festival hosts Morris for a discussion about his new book, The Ashtray, just before the fest starts.
4/24 at 7 p.m. $10–$25. Music Box Theatre. chicagohumanities.org

10 Joffrey Ballet

Dance:It might have the same title as Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but Swedish choreographer Alexander Ekman’s full-length ballet, which enjoys its North American premiere with the Joffrey, shares little in common with the Bard’s work. Mortals and mythical creatures meet in what’s sure to be a magical evening.
4/25. $34–$159. Auditorium Theatre. joffrey.org