A circus hits town this week, leading the way for a wide spectrum of spectacle. Throw in the odd cultural curveball, and you have no reason to stay at home this weekend.

There are lots of celebrations on the horizon in Chicago — openings, closings, anniversaries, festivals — but’s it’s only a party if you show up. With a boatload of entertainment options out there, hop on board and grab a paddle.

Steppenwolf Theatre’s “You Will Get Sick” is laugh-out-loud funny and deadly serious. It’s a puzzle of a play where the pieces come together in surreal but satisfying ways.

Whether the weather ahead is pleasant or there’s a June monsoon brewing, here’s a starter list of arts and culture opportunities to get you out into the atmosphere.

Liz Callaway returns to Chicago this weekend to perform “To Steve with Love” at the Studebaker Theater and celebrate the composer through his words and music – and she’ll offer some personal recollections of the man himself.

“We can make them feel that they’re inside the main character’s head,” Make-Believe Association founder Jeremy McCarter said. “And I just thought, well, if we can do that, what would be a more interesting head to be inside than Hamlet’s?”

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ “Purpose” won best play, and Kara Young took home the award for best performance by and actress in a featured role for the production that first opened in Chicago in 2024. The play moved to Broadway and is running in New York through Aug. 31, 2025.

“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” the classic English children’s novel by Lewis Carroll, could hardly be more familiar to audiences of all ages. But the Joffrey Ballet version of the story is a wonderfully innovative take on the classic tale.

There was only a single performance of an exhilarating CSO concert this past Saturday evening. It attracted a packed house with a wonderfully enthusiastic audience.

Want to immerse yourself in the sculpture work of a World War II vet? What about a Scottish folk musician who decided watercolor was his medium of choice? That and more are available this weekend in Chicago.

Leaders from more than 100 Chicago arts groups met this week to discuss the state of the arts, new collaborations and how to fight back when creativity is under attack.

A new drama from a Pulitzer Prize winner is now running at the Goodman Theatre, plus Irish dancing and hip hop-infused ballet.

Klaus Mäkelä, a 29-year-old Finnish-born musician, will become chief conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2027. He has already demonstrated his winning connection with the CSO.

Short plays, odd plays, an artful look at sports and celebrity — how about a rare Scott Joplin opera or a rowdy celebration of the mighty tuba? This being Chicago, you can do all of the above.

Between Easter, Passover and 4/20, there will be a lot of foodstuffs consumed this weekend. But bread alone won’t sustain you, so make a meal for your mind in Chicago’s cultural kitchen.

Pair two of Chicago’s greatest cultural gems in a multifaceted program on the Symphony Center stage, and you have an ideal example of the city’s exceptional talent, writes Hedy Weiss.