Neil Diamond In Chicago, And More To Read, Watch, And Do This Weekend

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By Talya Zax May 25, 2017

Chicago Neil Diamond fans, you’re in luck: The singer-songwriter will play the United Center this Saturday. If a rousing chorus of “Sweet Caroline” isn’t quite your vibe, head to Skokie’s Northlight Theatre instead for a performance of “Relativity,” Mark St. Germain’s play about late-in-life moral and emotional dilemmas facing Albert Einstein. The scientist is played by Mike Nussbaum, the country’s oldest active union actor who The Chicago Tribune’s Chris Jones deemed “as unique as was the man he plays.”

In New York, check out the offerings at Quad Cinema’s series “Immigrant Songs,” a survey of films focused on the lives of immigrants in the United States. Highlights include the 1975 drama “Hester Street,” the 1985 crime epic “Once Upton a Time in America,” and Elia Kazan’s 1963 masterpiece “America, America.” If that’s not enough Jewish history for you, spend Sunday at The Jewish Heritage Play Festival at Ansche Chesed, which will pay homage to Jewish culture through a series of short plays. And if ABC’s much-ridiculed made-for-TV reboot of “Dirty Dancing,” which premiered on May 24, left you longing for the original, catch one of three sing-along screenings at Williamsburg’s Videology Bar and Cinema on Monday.

In Washington, D.C., don’t miss the last weekend of the Edlavitch DCJCC’s Washington Jewish Film Festival, with a full slate of documentaries, comedies, and dramas. And if you’re feeling musical, spend Friday or Saturday night at a performance of harmonica-player Corky Siegel’s Chamber Blues.

Los Angeles also has film on the mind — well, when does it not? — with a Friday night screening of the Coen Brothers classic “Fargo” and Friday and Saturday night lives performances of the music of “La La Land,” conducted by the film’s Oscar-winning composer Justin Hurwitz.

If you’re looking for a good read, start with three notable longform pieces of the last week. First up is ProPublica’s investigation into the practices of President Trump’s son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner as a landlord; what they found isn’t pretty. More pleasant reads include Rachael Combe’s profile of New York Times White House correspondent Maggie Haberman for Elle, and Michael Paterniti’s profile of television “godfather” Norman Learn for GQ.

And if you’re hoping to hit the beach for Memorial Day with a new read in tow, look to “Natural Attraction,” Iris Gottlieb’s illustrated guide to the relationship habits of animals, or “In Their Lives,” an anthology of great writers’ musings on great Beatles songs. Edited by Andrew Blauner, the book’s contributors include Roz Chast and Chuck Klosterman.

Talya Zax is the Forward’s opinion editor. Contact her at [email protected] or on Twitter, @TalyaZax.

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