concerts Don Byron: The Music of Mickey Katz
When we heard the New York clarinetist Byron was revisiting his 1993 album dedicated to Katz, a kitschy 1950s entertainer, as part of the Chicago Humanities Festival, we were curious: Jazz meets klezmer? What’s the deal? We asked someone in the know. "Not too many people would have thought to attempt this type of thing," Chicago jazz writer Mark Loehrke says of Byron’s album. "Katz was definitely better known for his schtick than his music, so this was a concept that had the potential to go off the rails. Not only did it not crash, it surpassed the novelty to become a solid jazz record that ushered a few new players—Katz, plus guys like Uri Caine and Dave Douglas, who weren’t that familiar outside of New York jazz circles—onto the big stage." Well said.
GO: Nov 14 at 7:30 and 9:30. $20. Chicago Humanities Festival at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago. mcachicago.org

ALSO THIS WEEK: More big names hit town as part of CHF, including the composer John Adams on Nov 12, and the scientist and parrot whisperer Irene Pepperberg on Nov 14.

theatre All the Fame of Lofty Deeds
The House Theatre (The Sparrow) meets Jon Langford (Waco Brothers, Mekons) in a supernova of rock ‘n’ roll energy. The script, by Chicago contributor Mark Guarino and inspired by Langford’s songs and art, features talking tumbleweed and singing paintings. What’s next: killer cacti?
GO: Previews Nov 12-14; $15. Run continues through Dec 20; $25-$29. The House Theatre of Chicago at Chopin Theatre, 1543 W Division. thehousetheatre.com

ALSO THIS WEEK: A little musical called The Addams Family begins previews at the Oriental Theatre. Maybe you’ve heard of it?

classical Fulcrum Point New Music Project
FPNMP composer-in-residence Randall Woolf provides the soundtrack for Holding Fast, a short documentary about a Tibetan refugee camp from the director of American Psycho, Mary Harron. Also on the movie-themed bill: bits from Bartók’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta (aka "Craig’s Dance of Disillusionment and Despair" from Being John Malkovich) and Nico Muhly’s score for The Reader.
GO: Nov 12 at 7:30. $15-$30. Harris Theater, 205 E Randolph. harristheaterchicago.org

ALSO THIS WEEK: Eighth Blackbird do-si-dos with two different partners at the U of C: first, with fellow Grammy winners Pacifica Quartet on Nov 14; then with the Chicago soprano Dawn Upshaw in Osvaldo Golijov’s Ayre on Nov 17.

parties Robie House After Hours
Think of it as a birthday preparty: Next year the Robie House, that high-karat rock in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie School crown, celebrates its centennial. Renovations on the property are still underway, but you can get a peek at the progress at the first in a string of evening soirees. Cocktails and culture? Now that’s so Wright.
GO: Nov 13 at 6. $35. Robie House, 5757 S Woodlawn. gowright.org

ALSO THIS WEEK: Speaking of the Prairie School—not to mention cocktails—the afterhours event Unveiled offers a peek at the Art Institute’s new Arts and Crafts exhibition, Apostles of Beauty, on Nov 12.