Weekend picks: Road trip to the Chicago Auto Show

Auto ogling

See an amazing range of domestic, imported and futuristic concept cars and trucks at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show this weekend at McCormick Place, 2301 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. $11; $7 seniors ages 62 and older; $7 for kids ages 7-12. (630) 495-2282 or chicagoautoshow.com. 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, to Saturday, Feb. 18, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 19

Motorcycle mania

If two-wheelers are your type of transportation, head on over to the Chicago Motorcycle Show this weekend at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, 5555 N. River Road, Rosemont. $15; $6 kids ages 6-11. (800) 331-5706 or motorcycleshows.com. 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

#8216;Trip' to Africa

Shanta Nurullah of Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music presents a #8220;trip#8221; to Africa through poetry, chants and musical instruments at the Mount Prospect Public Library, 10 S. Emerson St., Mount Prospect. Youngsters of all ages are invited to take this journey of music and storytelling. Registration is required. Call (847) 253-5675 or visit mppl.org. 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

#8216;The History of Toy Trains V'

The Highland Park Historical Society hosts the fifth installment of its #8220;History of Toy Trains#8221; at the Highland Park Historical Society, 326 Central Ave., Highland Park. See American Flyer and Lionel Standard Gauge trains built between 1910 and 1935, along with more than 100 standard gauge trains, passenger cars, freight cars, buildings and accessories. Youngsters can take part in interactive activities and push buttons and activate operational cars. $5 per person (family passes cost $12). (847) 432-7090 or highlandparkhistory.com. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Dancing Disney princesses

Rapunzel from #8220;Tangled#8221; joins the pantheon of Disney princesses like Tiana from #8220;The Princess and the Frog#8221; and Cinderella who each don ice skates for the latest Disney on Ice show #8220;Dare to Dream#8221; at the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago. $15-$75. (800) 745-3000 or disneyonice.com. 11:30 a.m., 3:30 and 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 11-12

Imaginary flight

Cirque du Soleil describes its touring arena show #8220;Quidam#8221; as #8220;a young girl's escape into a world of imagination.#8221; See what colorful and acrobatic characters Cirque imagines at the Sears Centre Arena, 5333 Prairie Stone parkway, Hoffman Estates. $38-$103. (888) 732-7784 or searscentre.com. 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11; and 1 and 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Keep on truckin'

Head over to the Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam to see mobs of monster trucks racing around and crushing various things this weekend at the Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Road, Rosemont. $20-$55; $10 kids ages 12 and younger. (800) 745-3000 or allstatearena.com. 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 11-12

Musical cafe

Reid Olson performs folk and Americana music at the Beans Leaves Coffee Tea Cafe at 320 Old McHenry Road, Long Grove. For all ages. Free. (847) 821-0011. 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

Almost #8216;Perfect'

Williams Street Repertory celebrates the holiday with the pop-infused #8220;I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change,#8221; a musical revue celebrating romance and relationships, at the Raue Center for the Arts, 26 N. Williams St., Crystal Lake. $33-$39. (815) 356-9212 or wsrep.org. 4 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

#8216;Love Letters'

Steel Beam Theatre founder Donna Steele and Villa Park native Jay Cook star in Steel Beam Theatre's revival of A.R. Gurney's #8220;Love Letters,#8221; an epistolary play about the relationship between a buttoned-up man and a free-spirit woman. See it at 111 W. Main St., St. Charles. The $35 ticket includes champagne, Graham's Fine Chocolates and hors d'oeuvres from Preservation Bread Wine. (630) 587-8521 or steelbeamtheatre.com. 5 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

All lit up

Chicago-based artists at Luftwerk present the site-specific light and sound installation called #8220;Luminous Field#8221; based around Millennium Park's #8220;Cloud Gate#8221; sculpture by Anish Kapoor. See the installation in addition to several related family and performance events near Randolph Street and Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Free admission. (312) 742-1168 or explorechicago.org/winter. 6 to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 6 to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays now through Monday, Feb. 20

Shakespeare, improv style

Members of the Improv Playhouse ensemble riff on love, Elizabethan style, in their improvised Valentine's Day show, #8220;Shakespeare's in Love,#8221; at the theater, 735 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. $10 for the show, $25 for the show and dinner at Trattoria Pomigliano, 602 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville. (847) 968-4529 or improvplayhouse.com. 7:30 and 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

A new direction

Veteran singer, musician and songwriter Jim Peterik, a founding member of the rock bands Survivor and The Ides of March, has taken his career down a new path with a smooth-jazz project called Jim Peterik's Lifeforce. The band gives Peterik a chance to explore different musical influences, such as jazz-fusion band Spyro Gyra and guitarist Pat Metheny. Suburbanites will have a chance to see this new side of Peterik at the Montrose Room, located inside the InterContinental Chicago O'Hare Hotel, 5300 N. River Road, Rosemont. $20. See montroseroom.com. 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

#8216;When Did You Last See Your Trousers?'

See #8220;When Did You Last See Your Trousers?#8221; at the Riverfront Playhouse, 11-13 S. Water Street Mall, Aurora. This British farce by Ray Galton and John Antrobus looks at an aging playboy who faces the loss of his clothes. $12-$15. (630) 897-9496 or riverfrontplayhouse.com. 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

Dance passion

River North Dance Chicago dances up a lot of passion in its repertory program #8220;Love Is ...#8221; for its annual Valentine's weekend engagement at Millennium Park's Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph Drive, Chicago. $30-$75. (312) 334-7777 or rivernorthchicago.com. 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

#8216;Bell, Book and Candle'

Paradise Playhouse revives John van Druten's comedy #8220;Bell, Book and Candle#8221; about a comely witch who casts a love spell on an unsuspecting publisher. The show opens Friday, Feb. 10, at Open Door Theatre, 902 S. Ridgeland, Oak Park. (708) 829-5050 or paradiseplayhouse.net. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays now through Feb. 26

Anti-romance

Not in a lovey-dovey mood? Then see Jim Jarvis and Scott Woldman take on tales of romance in their show #8220;Bikerman The Jewish Avenger: Happy Anti-Valentine's Day#8221; at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. $18. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com. 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11

Collecting collectibles

Shop for bobble heads, Pokemon items, sports cards, coins, Hot Wheel cars and more at the Collectibles Show at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites, 495 Airport Road, Elgin. Free admission. Call Corky at (847) 658-4981. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Meet the author

Author Eric Dregni discusses his new book, #8220;Vikings in the Attic: In Search of Nordic America,#8221; at Viking Treasures, 438 Robert Parker Coffin Road, Long Grove. (847) 634-1009. 11 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

#8216;Amadeus'

See a screening of the 1984 Academy Award winning film #8220;Amadeus#8221; at the York Theatre, 150 N. York St., Elmhurst. The film, which looks at the life of composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, features music that the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra will perform at upcoming concerts this year. The film screening is sponsored by the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra. Tickets are $5. (630) 941-0202 or elmhurstsymphony.org. 1 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Meet the Beekeepers

Learn about the important role that bees serve in our food supply, and see how beekeeping equipment is used at the Meet the Beekeepers program at Kline Creek Farm, 1N600 County Farm Road, West Chicago. Beekeepers will be on hand to talk about caring for bees. Demonstrations are ongoing. Free. (630) 876-5900 or dupageforest.org. 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

#8216;Valentine Romance' concert

The Park Ridge Civic Orchestra gets into the spirit of Valentine's Day with its #8220;Valentine Romance#8221; concert at the Pickwick Theatre, 5 S. Prospect Ave., Park Ridge. Soloists include bass singer Alan Steiner, Joe Lill on the trumpet and Lisa Taylor on the French horn. Works include #8220;Romeo and Juliet, Opus 64#8221; by Prokofiev and #8220;A Suite From West Side Story#8221; by Leonard Bernstein. $20-$25. Call (847) 692-7726 or (847) 823-8861 or visit ParkRidgeCivicOrchestra.org. 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Garland gems

Lorna Luft, the daughter of film star Judy Garland and producer Sid Luft, does honor to her showbiz origins in the concert #8220;Songs My Mother Taught Me#8221; this Sunday at the Paramount Theatre, 8 E. Galena Blvd., Aurora. $42-$55. (630) 896-6666 or paramountaurora.com. 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

An evening with the #8216;Lincolns'

Husband-and-wife re-enactors Max and Donna Daniels portray President Abraham Lincoln and his wife, Mary, in #8220;An Evening With Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln at the White House#8221; at the Century Memorial Chapel at the Naper Settlement, 523 S. Webster St., Naperville. Tickets at the door cost $6-$7. (630) 420-6010 or napersettlement.museum. 4 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Cabaret Valentine

Acclaimed Broadway and cabaret performer Sally Mayes (#8220;Closer Than Ever,#8221; #8220;She Loves Me#8221;) sings songs from her romantic album #8220;Valentine#8221; in concert on Sunday at North Central College's Madden Theatre, 171 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville. $25-$30. (630) 637-7469 or northcentralcollege.edu/show. 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12

Singles Valentine's Evening

Singles can socialize, unlimited mini golf, nosh on pizza and get into the Valentine's Day spirit at the Singles Valentine's Evening at the Wild Fun Center indoor mini golf course at the Charlestowne Mall, 3800 E. Main St., St. Charles. $10 per person. To reserve a spot, call Mark at (630) 730-6072. 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12