Best bets: The New Philharmonic concludes its season and Lyric celebrates ‘Mary Poppins’

New Philharmonic concludes season

The New Philharmonic concludes its 2025-2026 season at the McAninch Arts Center, College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn. Harpist Nichole Young joins the orchestra for Michael Daugherty’s suite “Harp of Ages,” whose seven movements are inspired by a memorable historic or cultural individual associated with the harp, including Harpo Marx, “Star Trek” communications officer Nyota Uhura and Mexican poet Sister Juana. The program also includes Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition,” memorializing the paintings of artist Viktor Hartmann. $60, $10 students. (630) 942-4000 or AtTheMac.org. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 11, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 12

Giordano Dance in concert

Giordano Dance Chicago premieres three works during its upcoming residency at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph St., Chicago. The new works include the swing-inspired “Dumb Luck!”; “numah,” which combines jazz and street dance “for an urban funk sensibility”; and a tap duet titled “My Kind of Girl.” The program also includes 2025’s “Sana,” set to an original score by Stahv Danker; 2011’s Latin ballroom showcase “Sabroso”; 2016’s “Crossing/Lines”; and a large ensemble piece titled “A Ritual Dynamic.” $36.80-$117.30. harristheaterchicago.org. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 10-11

Student film fest

Al Larson Prairie Center for the Arts, 201 Schaumburg Court, Schaumburg, hosts its 19th Screen Test Student Fest, a primarily Midwest-based festival showcasing short films by student filmmakers at 7 p.m. Friday, April 10. On Saturday, April 11, Screen Test Jr. showcases short films from students in grades K-8 from 4-6 p.m., and the International High School Competition starts at 7 p.m. Free. prairiecenter.org.

‘Mary Poppins’ at the Lyric

The Lyric Opera Orchestra, under conductor Anthony Parnther, performs Richard Sherman and Robert Sherman’s award-winning score during screenings of the 1964 film “Mary Poppins” at the Civic Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago. Tickets start at $39. lyricopera.org/MaryPoppins. 7 p.m. Friday, April 10, and 2 p.m. Saturday, April 11

Driehaus Museum salutes newly restored auditorium

Brendan Fernandes, the Driehaus Museum’s first artist-in-residence, premieres his newly commissioned choreographic work, “Score for the Murphy Auditorium,” as part of a series set in the museum’s newly restored Murphy Auditorium, 50 E. Erie St., Chicago. Each improvisational performance features a rotating cast of dancers that interact with minimalist, site-specific installations designed by AIM Architecture; textiles developed in collaboration with Philadelphia’s Fabric Workshop and Museum; and a sound installation by Chicago-based experimental musician Alex Inglizian. Free with museum admission: $23 adults, $18 seniors, $13 students. Driehausmuseum.org. 6-9 p.m. Friday, April 10, and 5-7 p.m. May 7

WNDR hosts ‘algorave’

The immersive art museum WNDR, 1130 W. Monroe St., Chicago, launches a first-of-its-kind live coding event titled “.audio.visual.code.” Described as an “algorave,” it features artists’ collaboration with one another “to produce unique, sensorial pieces through the use of computer coding on large display screens for attendees to see.” Tickets start at $12.51. wndrmuseum.com. 7-11 p.m. Friday, April 10

Chicago Humanities Fest

Authors R.F. Kuang, Yann Martel (“Life of Pi”), Joe Abercrombie, Ann Patchett and others; comic artist Art Spiegelman; travel author and host Rick Steves; political strategist David Axelrod and commentator David French; “Top Chef’s Padma Lakshmi; historian Jelani Cobb; filmmaker John Waters; and U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood are among the individuals making appearances during the 2026 Chicago Humanities Festival at venues throughout the city. Chicagohumanities.org. Saturday, April 11, through June 28

Blues in Evanston

Blues singer/songwriter/guitarist Selwyn Birchwood — described in Rolling Stone as a “powerhouse young guitarist and soulful vocalist” — celebrates his latest Alligator Records album, “Electric Swam Funkin’ Blues,” at SPACE, 1245 Chicago Ave., Evanston. $22.79-$36.06. (847) 492-8860 or evanstonspace.com. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 13

New MCA exhibition

The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, 220 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, presents the exhibition “Dancing the Revolution: From Dancehall to Reggaetón.” The first-of-its-kind exhibition to explore the visual, political and spiritual histories of dance hall and reggaeton, which examines music and dances “as a revolutionary practice for collective liberation” rooted against colonial oppression. Chicago residents: $19 adults; students, teachers, seniors $10. Non-Chicago residents: $22 adults; $14 students, teachers, seniors. (312) 280-2660 or mcachicago.org. Tuesday, April 14, through Sept. 20

Festival spotlights South Asian artists

The multidisciplinary Mandala Makers Festival, a monthslong arts festival showcasing contemporary and traditional South Asian performing artists, takes place at various Chicago venues, including Constellation, 3111 N. Western Ave.; Visceral Dance Theater, 3121 N. Rockwell Ave.; iO Theater, 1501 N. Kingsbury St.; and the Old Town School of Folk Music, a co-presenter, at 4544 N. Lincoln Ave. Organizers say performances shine a spotlight on “live composition,” with skilled performing artists creating in the moment. The festival opens with “Jugalbandhi,” a “north-meets-south” Indian classical music concert featuring South Indian classical violinist V.V.S. Murari; Ashwani Shankar, who plays the shehani, a traditional Indian double reed woodwind instrument; and drummer Sai Giridhar, that takes place at 3111 N. Western Ave., Chicago. $25.91. mandalaarts.org/events/mandala-makers-festival-2026. Opens at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, and runs through October