Best bets: Chicago Auto Show, monster trucks, David Cassidy
All about autosNorth America's largest auto show returns when the The 2010 Chicago Auto Show displays nearly 1,000 different vehicles alongside hundreds of auto-related exhibits for the next two weeks at McCormick Place, 2301 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. $11; $7 kids ages 7-12, and seniors; kids under age 6 admitted free. (630) 495-2282 or chicagoautoshow.com. 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12, through Saturday, Feb. 20; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21Truck crushCall it counter-Valentine's Day programming. But monster truck enthusiasts can show their love for huge, high-vaulting vehicles at Monster Jam. See star trucks like Grave Digger, Taz, The Felon and more at Allstate Arena, 6920 Mannheim Road, Rosemont. $20-$52; $10 on opening night (except front row and Gold Circle seats). (800) 745-3000 or monsterjam.com. 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13; 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14South-African songThe world-famous eight-member South African music group Ladysmith Black Mambazo has performed with music greats like Paul Simon, Pete Seeger and Melissa Etheridge. See them tonight at the McAninch Arts Center, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn. $44; $42 seniors; $34 kids. (630) 942-4000 or atthemac.org. 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12African rhythmChicago's very own Muntu Dance Theatre preserves traditional African dance while creating new works that build upon contemporary African, Caribbean and African-American traditions. See the company tonight at North Central College's Pfeiffer Hall, 310 E. Benton Ave., Naperville. $15 and $25. (630) 637-7469 or muntu.com. 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12An odd coupleThe comic duo of Bikerman and the Jewish Avenger (respectively Executive Director Jim Jarvis and resident playwright Scott Woldman of the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre) take on love, dating and Valentine's Day in their adult-only show "Love Hurts." It plays Saturday at the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, 111 W. Campbell St., Arlington Heights. $16.50. (847) 577-2121 or MetropolisArts.com. 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13Cassidy croonerDavid Cassidy rose to fame in the late 1960s and early '70s as a teen pop icon with his hit single "I Think I Love You" and from his famed stint on TV's "The Partridge Family." Now see him live this Saturday at the Hemmens Cultural Center, 45 Symphony Way, Elgin. $25-$75. (847) 931-5900 or hemmens.org. 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13Home, sing, homeThe DuPage Symphony Orchestra and the North Central College Women's Chorale team up on the concert "Our Home, Our Earth," which features the world premiere of James Falzone's "who, if not I?" Also on Saturday's bill is Edward MacDowell's "Indian Suite" and Ferde Grof#233;'s "Grand Canyon Suite" at Wentz Concert Hall, 171 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville. $28; $25 seniors; $11 students. (630) 637-7469 or dupagesymphony.org. 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13Bonne temps roulletStart celebrating Mardi Gras early by getting your taste buds ready for the 16th Annual Jambalaya Cookoff and Mardi Gras Party 2010 on Monday at FitzGerald's, 6615 Roosevelt Road, Berwyn. Also featured is a music set by Beausoleil avec Michael Doucet. $15. (708) 788-2118 or fitzgeraldsnightclub.com. 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 15Ballet princessIf your kids only think that princesses exist in animated films, then take them to see The Joffrey Ballet perform Sir Frederick Ashton's acclaimed interpretation of Sergei Prokofiev's ballet version of "Cinderella." Performances begin Wednesday at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt Theatre, 50 E. Congress Parkway, Chicago. $25-$145. (800) 982-2787 or joffrey.org 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17, then from Feb. 19-21 and Feb. 26-28False11391767Harry Detry and Tosha Alston perform with Muntu Dance Theatre. The dance company appears at North Central College in Naperville on Friday, Feb. 12Laura Stoecker | Staff PhotographerFalse