Entertainment events calendar

Eastern State Penitentiary

Oct. 1-Nov. 8

Thrill-seekers celebrate Halloween season at Eastern State Penitentiary by visiting this spooky haunted house inside an abandoned prison. For more information, call (215) 236-3300 or visit easternstate.org.

Chocolate: The Exhibition

The Academy of Natural Sciences

Oct. 11-Jan. 24

The exhibit explores the delicious history of the world’s favorite treat. Visitors discover chocolate’s impact on human cultures and tropical ecosystems through 150 fascinating objects, including a life-size cacao tree, touchable pods and seed, European silver and porcelain servers and a range of creative packaging and advertising from the 1800s and 1900s. For more information, call (215) 299-1000 or visit ansp.org.

Philadelphia Film Festival

Various Locations

Oct. 16-26

This festival showcases the best in independent and foreign cinema in theaters and venues through Philadelphia. For more information, call (267) 239-2941 or visit filmadelphia.org.

Universoul Circus

52nd and Parkside

Oct. 24-Nov. 9

This show is fresh, funky, bold, fun and challenges your imagination like no other circus. Universoul Circus embraces and celebrates the unique and familiar aspects of urban pop culture globally by bringing them center stage with a cast of intentional performers that reflect cultural diversity of the world in which we live. For more information, visit ticketmaster.com.

Tommy Davidson Comedy Show

Helium Comedy Club

Oct.30-Nov. 1

Tommy Davidson’s exceptional range from stand-up comedy and acting to versatile music ability have earned him a reputation as an extraordinary performer. Best known as one of the original stars of the hit television show “In Living Color,” Davidson’s reach is built on the show’s and its stars ground breaking and innovative talent. For more information, visit heliumcomedy.com.

Powerhouse

Wells Fargo Center

Oct. 31

End the workday with a concert from Power 99. This concert will feature today’s biggest hip-hop and R&B artists including Ne-Yo, TI, J. Cole, Jeezy, Chris Brown and Trey Songz. For more information, call (800) 298-4200 or visit wellsfargocenterphilly.com.

An Evening with Ailey II

Grand Opera House, Wilmington, Del.

Nov. 8

For 40 years, Ailey II has merged the spirit and energy of the country’s best young dance talent with the passion and creative vision of today’s most outstanding emerging choreographers. For more information, visit ticketsatthegrand.org.

Wanda Sykes Comedy Show

Music Box at the Borgata, Atlantic City

Nov. 7-8

This TV star, writer, and stand-up comic will bring a no-holds-barred evening of laughter.

Lauryn Hill Concert

The Electric Factory

Nov. 15

Known for the hits “The Sweetest Thing,” “Ex-Factor,” and “Doo Wop (That Thing)” The R&B singer, writer, and producer will be singing all of her hits live. Hip-hop artists include Talib Kweli. For more information, visit ticketmaster.com.

THEATER

Flight by Charlayne Woodard

Bushfire Theatre

Nov. 11-23

In 1858, on a plantation in Georgia, a young mother is suddenly sold, leaving behind her husband and their five-year-old son. Through a magical evening of storytelling, music and dance, the enslaved community comes together, not to comfort father and son, but to heal and strengthen themselves.

MUSEUM

Stephen Hayes Cash Crop

African American Museum in Philadelphia

Oct. 1-Jan. 5

The core sculptures in this exhibit are inspired by the infamous diagram of The Brooks slave ship. The cornerstone of this exhibition is a life-sized installation comprised of 15 chained forms that represent the 15 million men, women and children who endured the Middle Passage.

The exhibition will be augmented by historic slave dockets on loan from the Delaware County Bar Association and objects from the “Lest We Forget Black Holocaust Museum of Slavery.” There will also be a video by Dario Moore, artistic director of Moore Dance Project comprised of a series of modern dance vignettes entitled “Sacred Slave Stories.” Visit aampmuseum.org.

NIGHT LIFE

Club Polaris

460 N. 9th St. (9th and Spring Garden streets)

(215) 893-9912

This is a place where jazz is played and music reigns supreme.

Cobre Restaurant and Lounge

812 N. Broad St.

(215) 235-1881

SoulFul Fridays: The restaurant and lounge will be offering a different type of getaway on Friday, as the week can be washed away with neo-soul and classic R&B. Old school hip-hop will also be played. This setting is intended to create a smooth adult atmosphere. Up to $10.

Luxe Lounge

724 Arch St.

The lounge is designed with the urban professional in mind and targets the social elite. Plasma TVs, hand-painted murals and illuminated bar and walls highlight the new structure. “Sultry Thursdays” will be a staple to the establishment as neo-soul genius Eric Roberson will bring in up-and-coming artists from throughout the country. There will be dance hall, reggae and soca played every Friday.

Mint Lounge

50 S. 2nd St.

(215) 529-1610

Only for 21 and older, this nightspot holds “Hot and Sexy and Hollywood Wednesdays.” The dress for the club is stylish, so come dressed to impress.

Urban Educational Center

7571 Haverford Ave.

(610) 529-7054

WDL Oldies Cabaret — This event happens every third Saturday and the dress is very fashionable. The cabaret provides vintage oldies and R&B. This place will be playing all the old-school jams.

Xandu

520 N. Columbus Blvd.

(215) 627-7067

Party like a rock star each and every Sunday at Xandu night club. You never know which star will grace the place on “Celebrity Sundays.”