Best Bets: Barricade Boys and YAMATO drummers on stage at the MAC
Music at the MAC
• It’s a music-filled weekend at the McAninch Arts Center at the College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn. The Barricade Boys — consisting of “Les Miserables” alumni Scott Garnham, Kieran Brown, Craig Mather and Simon Schofield — return to perform pop, opera and musical theater selections. $60-$70. (630) 942-4000 or atthemac.org. 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21
• The MAC, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn, also welcomes YAMATO: The Drummers of Japan performing “Hito no Chikara — The Power of Human Strength,” a show inspired by the ever-evolving relationship between humans, technology and artificial intelligence. $52-$62. (630) 942-4000 or atthemac.org. 7 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23
Broadway stars headline benefit
Broadway veterans including Tony Award-winners J. Harrison Ghee and Myles Frost, Arlington Heights native Karen Mason, Aisha Jackson and Amber Iman headline the Illinois Conservatory for the Arts annual Broadway benefit gala and concert at the Wentz Concert Hall at North Central College, 171 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville. The evening includes dinner, live and silent auctions, the concert and an after party. Tickets start at $50 for the concert only; the dinner and concert is $250. Proceeds benefit the conservatory, a nonprofit educational institution. ilconservatory.org/events. Doors open at 5 p.m., dinner starts at 6 p.m. and the concert starts at 7:30 p.m.
‘Choral Connections’
Professional chamber choir the St. Charles Singers shares the stage with choruses from Batavia High School, Fremd High School and St. Charles North High School (Friday, Feb. 21) and Kaneland High School, Glenbard North High School and West Aurora High School (Saturday, Feb. 22) during performances at Baker Memorial United Methodist Church, 307 Cedar Ave., St. Charles. The program, titled “Choral Connections,” includes composer Charles Forsberg’s “Buttercup Days” from his “In Christopher’s Time: Jazz Suite for Choir in Five Movements,” written for the St. Charles Singers. $25 adults, $12 students. (630) 513-5272 or stcharlessingers.com. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 21-22
South Asian artist showcase
The South Asia Institute, 1925 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, presents “Of Women by Women: South Asian Feminist Art and Artists From the Hundal Collection,” a new exhibition that “draws upon feminist art history to examine how South Asian women artists … navigate their creative identities in a world shaped by patriarchal structures and a myriad biases.” Featured works illuminate how the intersections of gender, race and identity have shaped and continue to shape their careers and those of other South Asian feminist artists. $10 for adults, $5 for seniors and students. (312) 929-3911 or saichicago.org/. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, beginning Feb. 22 and running through December
Elgin Symphony honors Ukraine
Nearly three years to the day that Russia invaded Ukraine, the Elgin Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Bandura Ensemble combine for “Melodies of Resilience,” a concert honoring the resilience and culture of the Ukrainian people. The performance takes place at the Journey of Hope United Methodist Church, 37W040 W. Highland Ave., Elgin. $20 for adults, $5 for students. (847) 888-4000 or elginsymphony.org. 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23
Fab Five live
The stars of “Queer Eye” — Karamo Brown, Tan France, Antoni Porowski, Jonathan Van Ness and Jeremiah Brent — share personal stories, backstage tales from the Netflix series and answer audience questions during an appearance at the Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State St., Chicago. $53.50-$93.50. fabfivelive.com. 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23
Celebrating Ella Fitzgerald
Alexis J. Roston, who earned a Joseph Jefferson Award for her solo performance as Billie Holiday in Mercury Theater Chicago’s “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” channels iconic singer Ella Fitzgerald at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. Roston performs such classics as “Summertime,” “The Lady Is a Tramp” and “It Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing,” among others, during the performance, which is an Artists Lounge Live production. $49, $45. (847) 577-2121 or metropolisarts.com. 2 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25
Oscar-winning cinematographer discusses his work
Academy Award-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins (“1917,” “Blade Runner 2049”) and his longtime collaborator and wife, James Deakins, return to the Athenaeum Center for Thought and Culture, 2936 N. Southport Ave., Chicago, for a special dinner, a screening of “No Country for Old Men” and a live recording of the Team Deakins podcast. The events will be held in conjunction with the Athenaeum Center’s Roger Deakins Photography Exhibition showcasing 43 portraits and landscapes from Deakins’ collection. Dinner tickets start at $250; film $8-$75; podcast $12, $15. (312) 820-6250 or athenaeumcenter.org/. Dinner and Q&A from 6:30-9 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25; film screening and conversation from 6:30-9:45 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27; and Team Deakins podcast from 6:30-8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28