Friday | November 1
Give yourself an excuse to journey into the city by attending SOFA Chicago 2013 (Sculpture Objects Functional Art + Design) at Navy Pier. This year marks the 20th anniversary of this cutting-edge art exhibition, which features contemporary art of all types. Dubbed “the largest and longest continually running art fair in Chicago,” SOFA Chicago offers viewers the opportunity to behold the most modern art presented by galleries from across the country and around the world, and, if you fancy, to purchase pieces of your own. Check out SOFA’s special exhibits, such as Currents and Taking Shape, and be on the lookout for the glassblowing done by the legendary Corning Museum of Glass. Festival Hall, Navy Pier, 11 a.m.–7 p.m., $15.
Not quite finished with Halloween? Continue the celebration and swing by Eckhart Quad to catch a glimpse of Le Vorris and Vox’s A Circus Halloween. Don’t miss your UChicago friends and peers masquerading as goblins, ghosts, skeletons, witches, ghouls, and other classic Halloween characters as they perform stunning acrobatic feats and awe-inspiring stunts right before your very eyes. You’ll walk away captivated, entertained, and satisfied by this prolonging of the scariest day of the year. Eckhart Quad, 7:30 p.m., free (donations welcome).
Saturday | November 2
Let’s be real: What we all secretly crave on a chilly fall day is a generous slice of good ol’ American pie. This weekend, you can go crazy for pie at the Second Annual South Side Pie Challenge. Enjoy homemade pies of all types baked specifically for this contest, from fruit to nut to classic pumpkin. Judge for yourself which one takes the cake in each category, and see if your predictions are right at the awards ceremony, which will take place at 3 p.m. The money raised at this event aids the Hyde Park and Kenwood Hunger Programs. 5631 South Kimbark Avenue, 1–4 p.m., $3/slice.
Grab a group of friends, sit back, relax, and absorb A Weekend of Workshops presented by University Theater and Theater and Performance Studies. You’ll experience an evening (or an afternoon) of exciting and thought-provoking one-acts directed by our own UChicago students. Acts include David Henry Hwang’s Trying to Find Chinatown, directed by Martin So; Samuel Beckett’s Eh Joe, directed by Joshua Harris; Anna Stillman and Mark Matthews’s Smitten, directed by Michael Steffen; and Barely There, a piece combining music and theater devised and directed by Daniele Wieder. Francis X. Kinahan Theater, third floor of Reynolds Club, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., $6 in advance, $8 at the door.
Sunday | November 3
Day of the Dead? What is it, you ask? Come find out at the Día de los Muertos celebration hosted by the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán at UChicago. It’s nothing solemn or morbid, we promise—on the contrary, you’ll be met with plenty of festivities, including folkloric dancing and a colorful display of the “altars” of various RSOs. Stick around for the yummy treats, like sugar skulls, pan dulce, and Mexican hot chocolate (a.k.a. the best kind of hot chocolate). Besides the food and entertainment, you’ll no doubt gain a richer understanding of another culture and its traditions. Hutch Commons, 6:30–8:30 p.m., free.
