Cheap stuff: Corn boil, Fox Lake Boat Show, Alpine Days
Free
Have another ear?
Be one of the visitors who will gobble up thousands of ears of corn at the annual Sugar Grove Corn Boil. Along with plenty of sweet corn, the annual festival features music, carnival rides, a craft fair, bingo, a used-book sale and fireworks.
Info: 4 to 11 p.m. Friday, July 24; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, July 25; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 26, at Volunteer Park, Main and Cross streets, Sugar Grove. Fireworks at 9:30 p.m. Saturday, July 25. Free admission. (630) 466-5166 or sugargrovecornboil.org.
Boats and more boats
The Annual Fox Lake Boat Show features more than 125 boats from 25 boat manufacturers. Food is available for purchase.
Info: Noon to 8 p.m. Thursday, July 30, and Friday, July 31; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2, at Lakefront Park, 71 Nippersink Blvd., Fox Lake. Call the Fox Lake Area Chamber of Commerce for information at (847) 587-7474.
Morning Will Break
The group Morning Will Break presents an evening of Christian and alternative rock music on the grounds of the Grayslake Area Public Library. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for seating. In the event of rain, the concert will be moved indoors, into the library's meeting rooms.
Info: 7 p.m. Monday, July 27, at the Grayslake Area Public Library, 100 Library Lane, Grayslake. Free. (847) 223-5313.
Now that's a parade!
Lake Zurich's annual Alpine Days celebration features carnival rides, concerts, plenty of food and the largest parade in Lake County. Other highlights include the Ela Theater company's production of "Fiddler on the Roof" with 60 youngsters from the Lake Zurich area and performances by magicians and a ventriloquist.
Info: 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, July 24; 1 to 11 p.m. on the Saturday, July 25; 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, July 26, at Lions Park, 81 E. Main St., Lake Zurich. Free admission. (847) 847-2171 or visit lzlions.org.
$10 and under
'Flying High BBQ'
The Lima Lima Flight Team and the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana will host a "Flying High BBQ" event to raise funds for Ronald McDonald House charities. Guests can meet Ronald McDonald himself, ride in a flight simulator, ask questions of Lima Lima stunt pilots and dig into favorite barbecue fare.
Info: 4 to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 25, at the DuPage Airport, 2700 International Drive, West Chicago. Admission is $5 adults and $2 for youth under age 16. Children under 5 are free. (630) 623-5300 or rmhccni.org.
Classic Shakespeare
The Riverview Theatre Company presents "Much Ado About Nothing," William Shakespeare's romantic drama about a nobleman's daughter who is wrongly accused of infidelity on her wedding day.
Info: 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 24; 1 and 6 p.m. Sunday, July 26, at Petersen Park, on McCullom Lake Road west of Route 31, McHenry. $8-$10. (815) 354-7796 or riverviewtheatre.org.
Musical macaroni
The performance team of Carole Peterson and Alvin McGovern - known onstage as Macaroni Soup - present a program of music and dancing for children of all ages. Bring blankets or lawn chairs for seating.
Info: 11 a.m. Sunday, July 26, at Cantigny Park and First Division Museum, 1S151 Winfield Road, Wheaton. Free with paid $2-$5 parking fee. (630) 668-5161 or cantignypark.com.