Friday | October 14

Lincoln Park bakery Floriole celebrates the culinary traditions of Wisconsin and Germany with its Wisconsin Fest four-course prix fixe dinner. Appropriately, there will be plenty of cheese curds, brats, sauerkraut, and beer. A vegetarian option will also be available, as will one free drink. (1220 West Webster Avenue, seating at 6 and 7:30 p.m., $40)

Doc Films hosts a night of sheer terror. New York Times film critic Jason Zinoman (author of Shock Value) will lead a panel on How a Few Eccentric Outsiders Gave Us Nightmares, Conquered Hollywood, and Invented Modern Horror. This verbosely titled talk will be followed by a screening of John Carpenter’s Halloween for all those deadly serious horror buffs, or just the incorrigibly curious. (Max Palevsky Cinema, 7 p.m., free)

Grab a partner and head on down to Blues ‘n’ Ribs for free food, blues music, and dance lessons from the Chicago Swing Dance Society. Once you’ve gotten your fill of noshes and knowledge, dance the night away to performances by Charlie Love, Nellie Travis, and The GrandDaddys. (Ida Noyes, 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., free)

Saturday | October 15

Fly through the air with the greatest of ease to Circus in Progress: An Evening of Daring New Work, one in a series of shows hosted by The Actors Gymnasium. Professional performers from the Chicagoland circus as well as advanced students of The Actors Gymnasium will be showing off their best new acts. (927 Noyes Street, Evanston, 4:30 and 7:30 p.m., $10)

Experience two one-act plays by Hannah Moscovitch at the Signal Ensemble Theatre in one night. East of Berlin features the identity crisis of a man whose family has a Nazi-laden past, and in The Russia Play, a satirical love blooms between a flower-shop girl and a gravedigger. (1802 West Berenice Avenue, 8 p.m.,  $15-$20)

Indulge in (too much) Chicago-style and deep-dish pizza—for a good cause! SigEp fraternity hosts a pizza-eating contest sponsored by Edwardo’s to help raise money for the B+ Foundation, which helps fight cancer in kids. Six months of Netflix, an iPod Shuffle, tickets to The Second City, and t-shirts are all up for grabs if you’ve got the stomach for it. (McCormick Tribute Lounge in Reynolds Club, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., $10 to compete)

Sunday | October 16

Bear witness to a man’s hilarious and absolutely heartfelt search for his missing left hand. Profile Theatre kicks off its week of preview performances of Martin McDonagh’s wacky hit play, A Behanding in Spokane, running through December 4.  (4147 North Broadway Street, 7 p.m., $15)

Learn more about the area you live in. The Southside Solidarity Network has organized a tour of Woodlawn that includes a neighborly history lesson, casual chats with longtime locals, and plenty of ambulatory aerobics. (Leaves from South Campus, noon, free)