No time to lounge around. Go out.

Theater

Aaron Kopec’s popular Halloween show at The Alchemist Theatre

Aaron Kopec’s annual Halloween show opens at the Alchemist Theatre, Thursday, Oct. 11, at 8 p.m. The Alchemist Eye is Kopec’s fifth Halloween play and his first original story. Modern-day treasure hunter Bryant McCartle and his fiancée track the Alchemist Eye, an ancient relic thought to grant wishes, to the creepy Hopkins Mansion. The Alchemist Eye mixes humor and horror in the intimate Bay View theater for a fun start to the Halloween season. The show runs through Sat. Nov. 3. Purchase tickets here or at the door, if available. Tickets $19 online through the Oct. 20, $23 Oct. 21 through Nov. 3.

The Milwaukee Theatre marks the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s sinking with Titanic: The Musical, Fri. Oct. 12 & Sat. Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. The musical follows passengers’ dreams and class struggles, and outlines what brought the “unsinkable” ship to the bottom of the Atlantic. Winner of the 1997 Tony Award for best musical, Titanic runs Fri. Oct. 12 & Sat. Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $38 online, at 800-745-3000 or at the box office.

The cast of November

Windfall Theatre takes advantage of election season with the Milwaukee premiere of November, David Mamet’s political satire. Fictional POTUS Charles Smith is up for re-election, but with poll numbers plunging, Smith becomes increasingly desperate to turn things around. November premieres Fri. Oct. 12 at the Village Church and runs through Oct. 27. View the full schedule here. Tickets $20 online or call 414-332-3963.

Alverno Presents welcomes Shakespeare to the fall season with Fiasco Theater’s Cymbeline at Marquette’s Helfaer Theatre. Fiasco believes that high risk garners high reward. The company will perform this epic with a cast of six, a sheet, and a trunk. The play runs Fri. Oct. 12 and Sun. Oct. 14 at 8 p.m.; Sat. Oct. 13 at 2 p.m. Tickets $30 online.

Music

The MSO opens its first Pops Weekend with My Favorite Things, dedicated to the memory of principal Pops conductor Marvin Hamlisch. The concert features tunes from America’s most beloved musicals by composer Richard Rodgers, including Carousel, Oklahoma!, The Sound of Music, South Pacific and more. The concerts will also feature a medley of Marvin Hamlisch’s best-loved music, including tunes from A Chorus Line, The Way We Were and The Sting. The concerts runs Fri. Oct. 12 through Oct. 14, 8 p.m. at Uihlein Hall. Purchase tickets online or call 414-291-7605.

The Concord Chamber Orchestra’s 37th season explores the Raw Materials that comprise the modern orchestra. Their first show Wire showcases the string section, or “wire choir,” spanning nearly 400 years of music including Pachelbel’s Canon in D and Beethoven’s Violin Concerto. The concert is at St. Matthew’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Sat. Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. Tickets $18 online or call 414-750-4404.

Frankly Music’s opening concert, Musicians of the MSO, showcases music of Brahms, Mieczyslaw, Weinberg, and Bartók. Frank Almond, the Milwaukee Symphony’s concertmaster, will work among colleagues including MSO principal clarinetist Todd Levy. At the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, 7 p.m. Mon. Oct. 15 and Tues. Oct. 16. Purchase tickets online or call 414-276-5760

The Wilson Center welcomes classical/jazz fusion artists Turtle Island Quartet, with special guest, jazz vocalist Tierney Sutton. Their latest collaborative program, Poets & Prayers, celebrates the muse in both the traditional and the contemporary. Saturday,  Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $31 online, or call 262-781-9520

MKE Unplugged features The Midwestern Charm Thurs. Oct. 11

UWM’S Peck School of the Arts continues its local free music series, MKE Unplugged, with The Midwestern Charm, Thurs., Oct. 11, at the Helene Zelazo Center. The Midwestern Charm released their self-titled debut record earlier this year, to solid reviews. The four-piece band creates pop rock reminiscent of the Gin Blossoms and Ryan Adams with lots of harmony and catchy hooks. The concert begins at 8 p.m.

**Pianist Alan Fine’s performance at Vogel Hall has been cancelled. Call the Marcus Center box office at 414-273-7206 with any questions

Film

The Milwaukee Film Festival has graced the city with over 200 films. Only two days remain to soak it up. Check out the very popular The Jeffrey Dahmer Files, Fiction Festival Favorite Found Memories (Historias) or take in a series of shorts, a la Out of This World or Date Night. TCD still has your comprehensive guide to every film.

Visual Art

The Milwaukee Art Museum brings us Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Gainsborough: The Treasures of Kenwood House, London. The traveling exhibition opens Fri. Oct. 12 and runs through Jan. 13. The collection is leaving the United Kingdom for the first time, with the MAM one of only four hosting venues in the U.S. Portraiture, landscape, and 17th century Dutch and Flemish works dominate, representing the greatest artists of their periods. A highlight of the exhibition is one of Rembrandt’s last self-portraits, Portrait of the Artist. Learn more at the MAM website.

Via and Transfer feature employee photography. Photo by Megan Peters

Sister restaurants VIA Downer and Transfer Pizzeria will launch an exhibit of employee photography, entitled side work. The black and white photos feature four photographers: Megan Peters, Kathleen Hamilton, Heidi Spencer, and Jamie Gelllings. They shot fellow Transfer and Via employees in and out of the workplace. Co-owners John Rossetto, Russell Rossetto, and Krys Zielinski created side work to showcase their staff’s creativity. Many are artists, musicians, actors, and photographers. The show runs Thurs. Oct. 11 through Jan. 11 with the work split between the two locations.

Ozaukee County, WI, is an extremely charming place, especially in the fall. For a quaint autumnal escape, take a quick jaunt north on I-43 for the Covered Bridge Studio Tour taking place Fri. Oct. 12 through Oct. 14. 50 artists will open their studios in the towns and countrysides of Cedarburg, Newburg, Port Washington, Grafton, Mequon and Thiensville. Painters, potters, sculptors, fiber artists and others offer a glimpse into their creative processes, with demonstrations and artwork available for purchase at every price level. Get more information and the schedule from the Cedarburg Artists’ Guild.

Ongoing

The Quasimondo: The Seagull 3D, through Oct. 20

In Tandem Theatre: The Nightmare Room, through Oct. 21

Lynden Sculpture Garden: Artist in Residence: Colombe Marcasiano, through Oct. 29

Milwaukee Rep: The Mountaintop, through Nov. 4

Last Chance

Danceworks Studio Theatre: What’s So Funny?, through Oct. 13

Theatrical Tendencies (@ Soulstice Theatre): [title of show], through Oct. 13

Milwaukee Rep: Gutenberg! The Musical!, through Oct. 14

Boulevard Theatre: Life (x) Three, through Oct. 14

Skylight Music Theatre: Avenue Q, through Oct. 14

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre: Broken and Entered, through Oct. 14

Next Act Theatre: Microcrisis, through Oct. 14