The Five

Don’t-miss picks for Wednesday, November 2 through November 8, 2016

1 The Sculpture Objects Functional Art and Design Fair

Art & Design:Better known by the catchy acronym SOFA, this fair attracts top sculpture dealers to Navy Pier with nearly 70 exhibitors of ceramics, wood, glass, and textiles. A highlight this year is a 10-foot, million-dollar cast-glass boat by the Swedish sculptor Bertil Vallien.
11/3–6. $20–$150. Festival Hall at Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand. sofaexpo.com

2 I Am My Own Wife

Theater:See “Transgender Actress Delia Kropp Returns to the Stage” for more.
11/4–12/10. $10–$40. About Face Theatre at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont. aboutfacetheatre.com

3 Deeply Rooted Productions

Dance:Choreographer Joshua L. Ishmon, of Gary, Indiana, premieres Colors, a work that blends hip-hop, contemporary dance, and footwork to explore Chicago’s history through the lens of race. Local footwork guru Jamal “Litebulb” Oliver joins dancers from Deeply Rooted for this special program.
11/4–5. Free. Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington. cityofchicago.org

4 Mitski

Rock:Two years ago, Mitski Miyawaki tested the waters of indie-rock stardom with Bury Me at Makeout Creek—a scuzzy, earnest grasp at navigating young adulthood in America. Her June follow-up, Puberty 2, drives that theme home with heartbreaking cuts, cathartic vocals, and slamming guitar riffs à la Patti Smith and St. Vincent.
11/5 at 8 p.m. $18–$180 (for box seats). Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport. thaliahallchicago.com

5 Craig Ferguson

Comedy:James Corden has done a terrific job of bearing—and advancing—the Late Late Show banner, but Craig Ferguson’s 10-year run laid its oddball groundwork. No word yet on whether or not Ferguson’s former sidekicks, robotic skeleton Geoff Peterson and pantomime horse Secretariat, will join him for this one-night affair.
11/6 at 7 p.m. $35–$75. Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State. thechicagotheatre.com

What I’m Doing This Weekend

Up next in our series of weekend plans from notable, in-the-know-locals: Andrew Mroczek, who, along with Juan José Barboza-Gubo, presents Virgenes de la Puerta at Schneider Gallery starting Friday, November 4.

“Juan was born and raised in Lima, and we’ve worked together on and off for about 10 years now as artists and curators. We’ve always spent a lot of time talking about his experience growing up in Peru, especially about the LGBTQ community there. South America’s very different from the U.S.—the Catholic Church has a huge amount of influence in politics there, and, as a result, gay and trans people are heavily targeted, both politically and socially. It’s interesting, actually, but in Peru specifically, it’s much harder to be, say, trans in an urban environment, because the church is better established in the cities. But when you get out into the country, people tend to be very accepting of trans individuals, who are often, ironically, very devout Christians themselves. We decided to use the iconography of the church to empower these people through our photographs, and we hope to show them in all their beauty and complexity. And I think the images speak powerfully across cultures, which is always what you hope for as an artist.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been back to Chicago, and I always think, when I’m here, about my first time seeing Picasso’s The Old Guitarist at the Art Institute. It’s such a moving painting that I hope, this weekend, to take some time just to be in its presence. I’m also really looking forward to getting reacquainted with the gallery scene. I have a list of galleries I’m hoping to get to this weekend.

“My colleague Matthew Ivan Cherry recently did a show at the Zhou B Art Center in Bridgeport, so I’m definitely going to stop in there. The brothers behind the gallery—Da Huang and Shan Zhou—actually have a show there at the moment. While I’m in that part of town, I’ve heard so much about the Co-Prosperity Sphere that I’m going to have to check it out too. I think they just launched a big community radio station, Lumpen Radio, so there should be a lot going on there. There are also some beautiful exhibitions up at Linda Warren Gallery, and Subterra comes highly recommended as well.” —As told to John Hardberger

Freebie of the Week

Virgenes de la Puerta

Photography:The photographic series costumes the transgender women of Lima, Peru, like deities—an act in defiance of local religious and political intolerance of LGBTQ rights. This groundbreaking collection by cameramen Juan José Barboza-Gubo and Andrew Mroczek is already being lauded as an important work of activism.
11/4–12/30. Free. Schneider Gallery, 770 N. LaSalle. schneidergallerychicago.com