October Highlights

Praying male and female statues: gypsum; Diyala Region, 2750-2500 B.C.

The Oriental Institute Museum
“Public Opening of the Edgar and Deborah Jannotta Mesopotamian Gallery”
Opening 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 18 and noon Sunday, Oct. 19
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday; and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
1155 E. 58th St. 702-9507. Free.
The Oriental Institute invites the community to the opening of the Edgar and Deborah Jannotta Mesopotamian Gallery, which illuminates the remarkable cultural heritage of the civilization of ancient Iraq. On Saturday, Oct. 18, activities include gallery tours, documentaries on Mesopotamia and meetings with local artists who work with ancient pottery and jewelry-making techniques. Sunday’s program, titled “The Magic Carpet: A Special Day of Family Activities,” will include stories, songs and lessons in ancient arts. Families can tour the new gallery, hunt for treasures and view a children’s film with archaeologist “Arizona Smith.”

The Emerson Quartet

The University of Chicago Presents
“Opening Night: Emerson Quartet”
7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10
Mandel Hall, 1131 E. 57th St. 702-8068. http://chicagopresents.uchicago.edu. $35 general, $11 students.
In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Mandel Hall, the Emerson Quartet will kick off the University of Chicago Presents’ 2003-04 season with a performance of Beethoven’s Quartet in A Minor, Op. 132, with its fitting “Song of Thanksgiving.” In the program’s second half, the Emerson will be joined by the Pacifica Quartet, the University’s Artists-in-Residence, which will play the Mendelssohn Octet. The concert will mark a milestone in the life of Mandel Hall, a cherished music venue for the University community and for the city of Chicago.

A Kathak dance performance

International House
“Dance Africa Chicago Festival”
1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12
“Cultural Spectrum of North Indian Music and Dance”
4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12
Assembly Hall, International House, 1414 E. 59th St. 753-2274.
International House will bring a variety of dancers and musicians from around the world, beginning at 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12, with a performance by the Resurrection Dance Theatre of Haiti in the 13th Annual DanceAfrica Chicago Festival. The dance troupe consists of orphaned boys, exploring themes of cultural expression, liberation, human rights and dignity. The performance is free and open to the public. At 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12, music and dance from North India will take the stage, as internationally acclaimed vocalists Atul Desai and Sumitra Guha perform, followed by a Kathak dance performance by the Anila Sinha Foundation, with guest dancer from India, Surangama Dasgupta. The program, part of Illinois Arts Week, costs $10-50 for admission but is free for University students.

Mark Strand

Poem Present Series
“Mark Strand ”
Reading: 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16
Classics 10, 1010 E. 59th St. Free.
Lecture: 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17
Wieboldt 408, 1050 E. 59th St. Free.
Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Mark Strand, Professor in the Committee on Social Thought, will read his work to launch the 2003-04 Poem Present Series, an ongoing contemporary poetry project at the University. Strand won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for Blizzard of One. He also served as the fourth U.S. poet laureate from 1990 to 1991. After the reading at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, Strand will deliver a lecture titled “A Case from the Annals of Translation” at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 17.