Architecture
Antony Wood: Tall, Taller, Tallest … ! (401). 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Nov. 2 at the Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 S. Michigan Ave.; $5. The executive director of the Chicago-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat looks at today’s worldwide spate of skyscraper construction and the even taller visions for tomorrow. — Blair Kamin
The Plan of Chicago: 100 Years of City-Building (404). Noon-1:30 p.m., Nov. 2 at Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph St.; $5. Chicago is the city it is today in large part because of the blueprint that this plan provided, prepared by Daniel Burnham and Edward Bennett, in 1909. A panel of urban experts discuss the plan’s impact and the future of city planning. — Patrick T. Reardon
Constructing Community in Public Housing (406). 1:30-3 p.m., Nov. 2 at the Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 S. Michigan Ave.; $5. A panel of activists and scholars examines the tensions — social, cultural and political — as public housing is remade in Chicago and around the nation. Roosevelt University’s Brad Hunt, author of “The Unraveling of Public Housing in Chicago,” moderates. — B.K.
Bruce Mau and Elva Rubio: Designing Chicago’s Next Century (703). Noon-1 p.m., Nov. 9 at DePaul University’s Merle Reskin Theatre, 60 E. Balbo Drive; $5. The team from Chicago’s Bruce Mau Design offers its radical vision for the city’s built environment, prepared in collaboration with students from the School of the Art Institute and the University of Illinois at Chicago. It’s a preview of the Chicago Pavilion at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai. — B.K.
Burnham 2.0 Judges Panel (710). 3:30-5 p.m., Nov. 9 at the Chicago History Museum, 1601 N. Clark St.; $5. A jury of architects and designers including Stanley Allen, dean of Princeton University’s architecture school, announces the winner of the Chicago Architectural Club’s ideas competition for a high-speed rail hub in Chicago. They’ll also critique other entries. — B.K.
Mary Beard: The Parthenon (311). 1-2 p.m., Nov. 1 at First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington St.; $5. A professor of classics at Cambridge University and classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement digs into the past of this classical masterpiece and explains why it continues to inspire us today. — B.K.
Art
Tour: Chicago’s Historic Murals (300). 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Nov. 1, meet at The Nettlehorst School at 3252 N. Broadway, $10. This bus tour, led by Heather Becker of the Chicago Conservation Center, will visit three murals produced by federally funded Works Progress Administration (WPA) artists during the Depression. — Patrick T. Reardon
Erika Doss: Terra Foundation Lecture on American Art (603). 10:30-11:30 a.m. Nov. 8, Harold Washington Library Center, Cindy Pritzker Auditorium, 400 S. State St. $10. The chair of the department of American studies at Notre Dame University speaks on “Picturing New Deal America: Visual Art and National Identity,” which examines federal art programs from 1933 to 1945. — Alan G. Artner
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Nancy Barr: Art, Life, Science, and the Nature of Perception in Recent Work by Mike and Doug Starn (613). 1-2 p.m. Nov. 8, Art Institute of Chicago, Fullerton Auditorium, 111 S. Michigan Ave. $5. A Detroit Institute of Arts curator discusses the photographic, sculptural and video works by identical twins who have collaborated for more than 20 years. (In conjunction with an exhibition , through Jan. 3, at the David Weinberg Gallery, 300 W. Superior St.) — A.G.A.
Robert Irwin: Richard Gray Visual Art Series (700). 11 a.m.-noon. Nov. 9, Art Institute, Fullerton Auditorium, 111 S. Michigan Ave. $10. Few contemporary artists speak about their work with the clarity and eloquence Irwin has brought to his; at 80, he is the greatest of all the California Light and Space artists and an American original. — A.G.A.
The Achievement of Robert Irwin (704). 1-2:30 p.m. Nov. 9, Art Institute, Fullerton Auditorium, 111 S. Michigan Ave. $10. Five longtime observers, including a museum director, former student, art historian and photographer, discuss Robert Irwin’s extraordinary development from painter to perceptual artist. — A.G.A.
Seminal Notions: The Idea and Practice of Perspective (712). 4-5 p.m. Nov. 9, Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies, Theater, 610 S. Michigan Ave. $5. Visual perspective will be explored by an art historian and contemporary artists Trevor and Ryan Oakes, twins who have worked out an elaborate drawing technique that purports to render the visual world with a minimum of distortion.
(In conjunction with an exhibition, through Nov. 30, at the Spertus.) — A.G.A.
Humanities
Lawrence Lessig: Ending Political Corruption (202). 7:30-8:30 p.m. Oct. 30, Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave.; $5. The Stanford Law School professor and leading advocate for fair-use in the debate over Internet technology and copyright law, shifts his focus toward reforming the way big money influences Washington politics. — Greg Kot
The Future of the American Newspaper (411). 3:30-4:30 p.m. Nov. 2, First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington St.; $5. Does the American newspaper have one of those — a future, that is? John Darnton, veteran New York Times editor and reporter and fiction writer (“Black and White and Dead All Over”), grapples with the big question. The answer, one suspects, lies somewhere between “Waiting for Godot” (nothing to be done) and Ethel Merman (everything’s coming up roses). — Michael Phillips
Patricia Nelson Limerick and Erin Hogan: Manifest Legacies and the American West (612). 12:30-2 p.m., Nov. 8 at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, South Gallery, 2430 N. Cannon Drive; $5. Limerick is a foremost authority on the history of the West. Hogan recently published an account of her auto trip throughout the West searching out works of land art. — Patrick T.Reardon
Literature
Lisa Randall: The Universe’s Hidden Dimensions (200). 6 p.m., Oct. 29. $10. Northwestern University School of Law’s Thorne Auditorium, 375 E. Chicago Ave. Quarks, leptons, string theory, multiple dimensions: Welcome to the deliciously crowded mind of Harvard University theoretical physicist Randall, whose work is helping to solve the mysteries of the universe. — Julia Keller
The Great American Novel, Revisited (312). 1:30-3 p.m., Nov. 1, Museum of Contemporary Art, theater, 220 E. Chicago Ave., $5. Literary scholars debate the value of attempting to create, find or determine “this great white whale of American letters,” as the program notes characterize it. “Moby Dick” anyone? — Patrick T. Reardon
Robert Darnton (314). 2:30 p.m. , Nov. 1. $10. Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St. A book is a book is a book — unless its significance is being explored by Darnton, the witty and pioneering 18th Century scholar who has rejuvenated the study of books and book culture. He will deliver the Baskes Lecture in History. — J.K.
David Levering Lewis, “God’s Crucible” (319). 6-7 p.m., Nov. 1, The Art Institute of Chicago, Rubloff Auditorium, 111 S. Michigan Ave., $5. Lewis, the Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of W.E.B. DuBois and MacArthur “genius” grant winner, discusses his recently published history of the interplay between Christian Europe and the Muslim world during the Dark Ages. — P.T.R.
David McCullough, winner of the 2008 baiduhai Literary Prize (400). 10-11 a.m., Nov. 2, Symphony Center, Armour Stage, 220 S. Michigan Ave., $15. At a time when many histories are drained of sap by academic preoccupations, McCullough has put the humanity of his subjects front and center, whether they’re an embattled president fighting for his political life, the builder of a great bridge linking a growing metropolis or a 25-year-old Boston bookseller who became a revolutionary general. McCullough’s books are important — and addictively readable — because they show us the people who made history. — P.T.R.
David Kennedy: FDR and the New Deal — A Visionary and His Vision (609). Noon-1 p.m., Nov. 8. $10. Northwestern University School of Law’s Thorne Auditorium, 375 E. Chicago Ave. Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal changed American politics and culture forever; Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Kennedy, who teaches at Stanford University, explains how and why. — J.K.
Francine Prose: “Goldengrove” (303). 10:30-11:30 a.m., Nov. 1. $10. Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St. A novelist of great lyrical skill and trenchant social observation, Prose’s new work is about a young girl facing an emotional crisis. — J.K.
Mark Salzman: Writer’s Block (321). 8-9 p.m., Nov. 1. $10. Northwestern University School of Law’s Thorne Auditorium, 375 E. Chicago Ave. He has written about everything from martial arts to nuns with mysterious afflictions — and always with grace and flair. Now he’s revealing the secrets of his writing process. — J.K.
Naomi Klein: “The Shock Doctrine” (713). 5:30-6:30 p.m. Nov. 9, Northwestern University School of Law, Thorn e Auditorium, 375 E. Chicago Ave., $10. The journalist’s “No Logo” remains one of the most influential books of the last decade in its clearheaded take on the way branding and marketing corrupt culture, and now she takes on the relationship between free-market economy and global catastrophe. — Greg Kot
Movies
“The Lost Generation” (506). 7:30-9 p.m. Nov. 6, First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple, 77 W. Washington St.; $5. Lest we forget, there’s a war on, and those made homeless by the war in Iraq may total 4 million Iraqis, an estimated 20 percent of the populace. This documentary focuses on the refugees living in Syria and Jordan, trying to sort out and stabilize lives that resist stability. Journalist and director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will discuss the film afterward with law scholar Haider Ala Hamoudi. — Michael Phillips
Music
Alex Ross: “The Rest Is Noise” (315). 2:30-3:30 p.m. Nov. 1, Northwestern University School of Law, Thorne Auditorium, 375 E. Chicago Ave.; $5. New Yorker music critic Alex Ross addresses the themes in his fascinating, award-winning book, in which he investigates how seemingly “difficult” avant-garde music permeates mainstream culture, from Hollywood movie soundtracks to rock and jazz. — Greg Kot
Meet the Creators of “Margaret Garner” (MG). 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Nov. 2, Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, 50 E. Congress Pkwy.; free, but reservations required ( [email protected]). Here’s your chance to get an inside look at the recent American opera by composer Richard Danielpour (libretto by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison) that will receive its Chicago premiere Nov. 1-9 at the Auditorium Theatre, with Denyce Graves and Tracie Luck sharing the title role. Morrison’s text is based on the true story of a fugitive slave who chooses death for herself and her children over returning to a life in shackles. The opera’s creators will discuss the genesis and development of the production in a panel discussion moderated by David DiChiera, general director of Michigan Opera Theatre, which is co-producing the Chicago presentation. — John von Rhein
Latino Music Festival concerts (LMF and LMFC). 3-5 p.m. Nov. 2, Preston Bradley Hall, Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St.; free. Chicago’s stylish period-instrument orchestra performs Latin American music from the Baroque era. And 7-9 p.m. Nov. 6, Instituto Cervantes of Chicago, 31 W. Ohio St.; $15. The Chicago-based contemporary music groups MAVerick Ensemble and Ondas Ensemble perform works by local composers Gustavo Leone and Elbio Barilari. — J.v.R.
Michael Miles: “Transcontinental: Songs and Stories of the Steel Rail” (414). 7-8:30 p.m. Nov. 2, Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph Drive; $15. The tale of America’s inexorable journey westward has been chronicled copiously in books and on film, but less frequently in concert. Chicago troubadour Miles, a superb banjoist and puckish raconteur, will partner with Corky Siegel and others to perform classic songs and novelties re-creating a vanished era. — Howard Reich
David Amram featuring Fareed Haque (415). 8:30-10 p.m. Nov. 2, Morse Theatre, 1328 W. Morse Ave.; $15. A destroyer of musical boundaries if ever there was one, composer and multi-instrumentalist Amram has thrived in music for film, the concert hall and the jazz club. On this occasion, he’ll collaborate with a similarly inclined musical adventurer, Chicago guitarist Haque. — H.R.
CUBE with Reginald Robinson, “The Big Gesture” (618). 3-4:30 p.m. Nov. 8, Claudia Cassidy Theater, Chicago Cultural Center, 77 E. Randolph St.; $15, free for educators and students. Chicago’s dauntless contemporary chamber ensemble joins forces with the Chicago Clarinet Ensemble and composer-pianist (and MacArthur Fellow) Robinson for a program that aims big. There’ll be works by Jerome Kitzke, John Harbison, Joan Tower, Charles Wuorinen, Steve Reich and Margaret Brouwer, along with three original rags by Robinson. — J.v.R.
Ars Antiqua (620). 3:30-4:30 p.m. Nov. 8, Fullerton Auditorium, Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Ave.; $15, free for educators and students. Travel to late-Renaissance Italy and England to hear important examples of the then-nascent art form we know as opera. Composers of the Florentine Camerata will be represented along with music by Henry Purcell, sung by Terry Barber and Kathryn Mueller and supported by the period-instrument string ensemble under Jerry Fuller. — J.v.R.
“Klea Blackhurst in Concert: Everything the Traffic Will Allow (714). 7-8:30 p.m. Nov. 9 at DePaul University’s Merle Reskin Theatre, 60 E. Balbo Drive; $15. Considering the outsize nature of her pipes and personality, Blackhurst can render practically any repertoire exciting. This show, though, holds particular promise, because she’ll be paying homage to a diva who clearly influenced her greatly: Ethel Merman. — H.R.
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Ordering tickets for the festival
The Chicago Humanities Festival runs through Nov. 16 at various locations.
Online: chfestival.org. Orders are processed within one business day.
By phone: 312-494-9509, Mon.-Fri. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
Prices: $5-$15 in advance. A $5 per ticket surcharge applies to all purchases at the door.
Payment: Visa, MasterCard, American Express or check for online and phone orders; cash for tickets purchased at the door. A $5 processing fee will be added to all orders online or by phone.
Special offers: Free tickets to most programs are available for students and teachers with valid ID, and 2008 registered volunteers. Volunteer ticket orders must be made over the phone.
Refunds/exchanges: All ticket sales are final. Tickets are non-exchangeable and non-refundable, except in the event of program cancellation. If you are unable to attend an event for which you have purchased a ticket, please call the box office for information on ticket donation.
Admission policy: Only ticket-holders and Red Badge members are guaranteed admission 10 minutes prior to the program start time. Unclaimed seats may be reassigned.
Programs, dates, venues, presenters and artists are subject to change without notice.
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Sold-out shows
The Chicago Humanities Festival limits its advance reservations and ticket sales to the capacity of its venues. However, seats may be available at sold-out programs. If available, tickets will be sold at the door, first-come first-served, 10 minutes prior to the start of each program. There is a $5 surcharge on all tickets sold at the door.
Here is a list of sold-out programs, as of Friday:
(105) Orville Schell, Deirdre Chetham
(108) Silk Road Theatre Project — “Gilgamesh” at Hyde Park
(201) Franke Lecture in Economics: Jeffrey Sachs
(202) Lawrence Lessig: Ending Political Corruption 300 Tour: Chicago’s Historic Murals
(300) Tour: Chicago’s Historic Murals
(308) Workshop for Kids: Story/Book
(312) The Great American Novel, Revisited
(312GB) Great Books Discussion: “The Great Gatsby”
(320) Silk Road Theatre Project — “Gilgamesh” at Museum of Contemporary Art
(320GB) Great Books Discussion: “Gilgamesh”
(401) Antony Wood: Tall, Taller, Tallest…!
(403) Remy Bumppo Theatre Company: “The Life of Galileo”
(406) Constructing Community in Public Housing
(413) Adam Bly: Our Renaissance
(501) ASCAP Cabaret: The Big Moment
(502GB) Great Books Discussion: “On the Road”
(507) 2008 Election Results: A Distinguished Roundtable
(601) Jeffrey Stern: “Macbeth’s” Vaulting Ambition
(606GB) Great Books Discussion: Carl Sandburg
(607) Lawrence Bergreen: Venice to Xanadu
(614) Sean Wilentz: The American Democratic Experiment
(615) Ourselves as Others See Us
(617) Roy Blount Jr.: Alphabet Juice
(619) “Flatland, A Romance of Many Dimensions”: A Miniature Opera
(621) Our Legal Foundation: The Invisible Constitution and the Rule of Law
(622) “Flatland, A Romance of Many Dimensions”: A Miniature Opera
(705) Stephen Kinzer with Kizito D. Kalima: Rwanda’s Rebirth and the Man Who Dreamed It