6 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16
Elizabeth Berg at Girls Night Out
It’s called a Girls Night Out, but with bestselling author Elizabeth Berg joining the party, the sisterhood should make it a Girlfriends Night Out. The author of Ordinary Life and Dream When You’re Feeling Blue will be the guest at Tulipia Floral Design during the shop’s third annual get-together for local women. 7617 Lake, River Forest. 209-1323. www.tulipiafloraldesign.com
8 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16
Vumilia fundraiser
Learn about a group that helps Kenyan girls and women dealing with HIV and AIDS. Vumilia’s Rose Moon and Mary McVay will be at Buzz Café to tell what they do.
905 S. Lombard, Oak Park. 660-0894, www.thebuzzcafe.com
9 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16
Live jazz on Oak Park Avenue
The Lamplighters at Avenue Ale House. No cover. $6 martinis. 825 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park
2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17
Meet two stars in children’s literature
The picture-book dream team of Mem Fox and Helen Oxenbury will be at Magic Tree Bookstore to promote Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes. Fox is from Australia; Oxenbury hails from the U.K. Call 848-0770 to reserve a copy. 141 N. Oak Park Ave., | www.magictreebookstore.com
6 to 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17
Piano concert and wine tasting
The 23-year-old classical pianist rocking the international music scene, Di Wu, will be in Forest Park this week. Expect an all-Ravel recital from this must-watch headliner during HouseRed’s Rising Stars concert series. $10. RSVP online or by phone. 6 to 9 p.m. at 7403 Madison, Forest Park. 771-7733, www.house-red.com.
8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17
Premiere of The Medium at Large
The musical ghost comedy about an overachieving matchmaker who works the crowd in the afterlife, too, premieres this week in Oak Park. Village Players, under the direction of Carl Occhipinti, brings us The Medium at Large from the writing team of Julia Cameron and Emma Lively. Cameron is the bestselling author known for The Artist’s Way; she’s a former Chicagoan and a former spouse and collaborator of Martin Scorcese. Lively is a violist turned playwright. Starring as the medium is John Herrera, a Tony nominee. The shows on Friday, Oct. 17, and Saturday, Oct. 18, are at the bargain price of $15. Other shows in the run-through Nov. 16, at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays-are $25, $20 for seniors and students. Village Players Performing Arts Center is at 1010 Madison in Oak Park. For tickets, call 866-764-1010 or go to www.village-players.org. For interviews with the writers and director, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=25lSoeETp3U.
10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 18
Pumpkin party
Face painting and pumpkin painting for kids, storytelling and snacks. At McAdam Nursery & Garden Center, 2001 DesPlaines Ave., Forest Park. 771-4903, ask for Ana Solares. www.mcadamlandscape.com
4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18
Opening of painting and photo exhibit
Meet local artists Marianne Kinzer and Susan Bjornson for the opening of Currents: Reflections on Water, a themed exhibit of paintings and photos at Gallery Pink, in the Oak Park Arts District. Among the works will be Kinzer’s lotus series, which she’s focused on for several years both as an environmentalist-the restoration of the American lotus flower on the Illinois River-and as a teacher of yoga-the flower’s symbolism for hope of spiritual awakening. Ted May, a local poet who was one of Kinzer’s students at Oak Park Yoga, will recite his work during the exhibit opening. The event is sponsored by International Women Associates. 149 Harrison, 386-1495.
10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 18
Halloween parade for pets and their people
Outfit your pet in a comfy costume and get to River Forest’s Washington Commons Park (Washington Boulevard and Keystone Avenue). Strut the parade route down Forest Avenue. Fingers crossed for best pet costume, best pet tricks and best owner and pet costume ensemble. Free, with a treat bag for every pet from the River Forest Park District. 366-6660
8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19
A breakfast to flip for
Plan on pancakes for breakfast this Sunday at St. Bernardine Church. The annual fundraiser, which benefits the church’s CCD program, will be in St. Bernardine’s Fearon Hall for five hours. A $5 donation will get you a hearty stack. Kids will get the chance to decorate their pancakes. Save room for other treats, because the folks at St. Bernardine are hosting a bake sale, too. And save cash for the raffle, which this year is for a dollhouse. The church is at 815 Elgin in Forest Park.
1 to 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19
Cemetery walk
Local storytellers will take us on a time machine as the Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest hosts a walk through Forest Home Cemetery. During the 17th annual Tale of the Tombstones: Untimely Endings cemetery walk in Forest Park-an award-winning program statewide-costumed guides will lead tours of the gravesites of Chicagoans who died young. Names among the stops include Herman Malow, the first Oak Park police officer killed in the line of duty, and Louise Leutgert, a victim of Chicago’s Sausage Factory Murder. The two-hour tours will begin at 1 p.m. and leave every 10 minutes until 2 p.m. $15, $10 for historical society members. Rain date: Sunday, Oct. 26. Call the society at 848-6755 for details. 863 DesPlaines Ave., Forest Park.
7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19
Benefit concert for children’s choir
Soak in the music of Nathaniel Dett, Daniel Pinkham, Eleanor Daley and other greats during the Best of Unity Temple choir concert: a performance by the 40-member Unity Temple Singers, an eight-member chamber ensemble and the Chalice Singers, Unity Temple’s new children’s choir. Proceeds from the concert will go to the children’s choir program. $10 adults, $5 children 12 and younger. 875 Lake, Oak Park. music@unitytemple.org
