Witches & Wizards in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia Film Festival, AIDS Walk Philly, and other events around Philadelphia, Oct. 19-25

More than 100 films from across the world are set to screen during the 11-day Philadelphia Film Festival, unfolding at multiple theaters throughout the area. Choose from themes including American Independents, New French Films, Nordic Voices, Documentary Showcase, Masters of Cinema, and more. — Grace Dickinson

Through Oct. 28, various locations, $15 and up, filmadelphia.org/festival

Dress your kiddos in costume for an early Halloween celebration and head out to LEGOLAND, where spiders, skeletons, pumpkins, batwings, and other decorations — many made of Legos — abound during their Brick-or-Treat celebration. Families will be invited to build Lego pumpkins, embark on a spooky scavenger hunt, grab photos in a pumpkin patch display, and more. — G.D.

10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, LEGOLAND Discovery Center, Plymouth Meeting Mall, 500 W. Germantown Pike, Plymouth Meeting, $18 and up, philadelphia.legolanddiscoverycenter.com

Dozens of Philadelphia-area artists and makers will gather at Dilworth Park for the Made in Philadelphia market, allowing you to shop local for all sorts of gifts and goods. Look out for everything from bath products to botanicals, poundcake to popcorn, handmade jewelry, and much, much more. — G.D.

Oct. 19-21, Dilworth Park, 1 S. 15th St, pay as you go, centercityphila.org

This grown-up Halloween party will fulfill all of your holiday desires: Come early for an autumnal market and stay into the evening for a night of dancing and drag performance. Ghoulish drinks, classic Halloween treats, and some great music should make for the perfect October night. —Thea Applebaum Licht

7 p.m. to 9 p.m. market and activities, 9 p.m. dance party, 10 p.m. performances, Warehouse on Watts, 923 N. Watts St., $5 before 9 p.m., $10 after 9 p.m., ages 21 and over. 215-853-6358, http://wowphilly.com/.

Bats are more than just the friendly, honorary symbols of Halloween. They are also Philadelphia natives, emerging at night to feed on pests like mosquitoes, then sleeping through the day around the city. If you want to build a bat house and learn how to help these endangered animals right in your backyard, this workshop is for you. —T.A.L.

3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, The Open Kitchen Sculpture Garden, 2241 N. Phillip St., $15, 267-850-5445, pnospina3.wixsite.com/pedroospina.

Learn about food's role in obscure death rituals, attempt to make contact with the dead in a seance, and engage in other ceremonial afterlife activities at Shane Confectionery during a special sweet and spooky event. As America's oldest confectionery, the Old City spot will, of course, also offer tons of treats to sample and take home. — G.D.

6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Shane Confectionery, 110 Market St., $25, shanecandies.com

Take on a haunted tour of historic Fort Mifflin — no artificial light allowed! This candle-lit expedition will take you through the fort's history, both worldly and supernatural, and put you in the spirit of the spookier seasons. If you're willing to drop a few extra bucks, Tarot card reading, food, and hot drinks are available for purchase. —T.A.L.

7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Fort Mifflin, 6400 Hog Island, $20 adults, $15 children under 12. 215-685-4167, www.fortmifflin.us/.

Formerly the Harry Potter Festival, the Witches and Wizards weekend brings magical witchcraft and wizardry of all sorts to Chestnut Hill. The fun kicks off with a ticketed "Brews & Broomsticks" pub crawl on Friday night, to be followed by an array of Saturday activities, including a Quidditch tournament, a meet-and-greet with live owls, mad science demonstrations, harvest hayrides, and more. — G.D.

Friday and Saturday, various locations across Chestnut Hill, pay as you go, chestnuthillpa.com/events

Back for its 32nd year, the AIDS Walk Philly is designed to raise money for those with HIV in the Greater Philadelphia area and awareness around advances in treatment and new preventative strategies. Choose to participate in the 7:30 a.m. run or the 8:30 a.m. walk, both 5K distances that start and end at Eakins Oval in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Be sure to arrive early for registration. — G.D.

7:30 a.m. (run) or 9:00 a.m. (walk) Sunday, free (donations are encouraged), walk and run begin at Eakins Oval, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy, aidswalkphilly.org

Join Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley, Hagrid, and other beloved Harry Potter characters in a special night of drag going down at L'Etage this Tuesday. The night club and cabaret space will also offer all sorts of potions for you to imbibe and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans to snack on throughout the evening. — G.D.

7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, L'Etage, 624 S. 6th St., $17, johnburdpresents.com

A marathon reading of the entire text of Herman Melville's whale of a fish story. Food (including something called Queequeg's Chowder) and nonreading activities will be on hand. — Stephan Salisbury

Oct. 19-20, Rosenbach Museum and Library and the Independence Seaport Museum, rosenbach.org

Two terrific, rocking acts on one bill, and with one link: Their fine new albums were both produced by  Eric "Roscoe" Ambel, who also plays on both.

The Bottle Rockets have done their best work with Ambel going back to 1994's The Brooklyn Side, and that holds true for the new Bit Logic. Singer-guitarist Brian Henneman serves up more pointed and sometimes poignant dispatches from a Midwestern working-class perspective, set against crisp roots-rock and country. Sarah Borges and her band, the Broken Singles (including Ambel for this tour) rock even harder on Love's Middle Name, with songs as tough-minded and hard-hitting as the music. –Nick Cristiano

8 p.m. Friday, at Milkboy, 1100 Chestnut St. Tickets: $18 to $20, 215-925-6455, www.milkboyphilly.com.

Although she first surfaced with the 1993 neo-soul pop hit "I'm Diggin' You (Like an Old Soul Record)," Meshell Ndegeocello quickly became an unpredictable experimenter, exploring jazz, hip-hop and funk as a bassist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. On this year's Ventriloquism, she's diggin' old hits, mostly from the 1980s, reimagining tunes such as Lisa Lisa and the Cult Jam's "I Wonder If I Take You Home," TLC's "Waterfalls," George Clinton's "Atomic Dog," and Sade's "Smooth Operator." They're thoughtful, loving, full of subtle funk, and, in the case of Prince's "Sometimes It Snows In April," elegiac. She plays Wilmington's Queen Sunday night. — Steve Klinge

8 p.m. Sunday at the Queen, 500 N. Market St., Wilmington, $30, 202-730-3331, thequeenwilmington.com.

Best known as a sidekick – to both Bruce Springsteen and Tony Soprano – Steven Van Zandt is also a formidable rocker in his own right, as we're reminded by his stirring work with his newly resurrected Disciples of Soul. The musician, actor, and radio mogul/DJ, who has also developed a curriculum to teach rock-and-roll in schools, is now combining music with some of his old '80s activism. For the shows on his current  Soulfire Teacher Solidarity Tour, teachers can attend for free. (Go to teachrock.org for more information.) — Nick Cristiano

8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 23, at the Mark G. Etess Arena at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, 1000 Boardwalk, Atlantic City. Tickets: $99 to $179.

Although she's from Melbourne, Australia, Courtney Barnett is a regular visitor here. Philly was an early adopter of her plainspoken, observant narratives, starting with her 2013 Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas. Last year, she collaborated with Kurt Vile for Lotta Sea Lice, and now she's drafted Katie Crutchfield's Waxahatchee to open the current leg of the tour for this year's excellent Tell Me How You Really Feel with her newly expanded quartet. Vile's touring in Europe at the moment, so he won't be dropping in, but Barnett's been sharing the stage with Crutchfield, who is touring solo, for a cover of Elyse Weinberg's 1968 folk rock song "Houses." — Steve Klinge

8 p.m. Tuesday at the Fillmore, 29 E. Allen St., $35, 215-309-0150, thefillmorephilly.com

The daughter of caustic British comic writer-actor Keith Allen has always included a similarly fanciful and funny strain in her music, courtesy albums such as Alright, Still; It's Not Me, It's You; and Sheezus. Yet, Lilly Allen has remained something of a (fabulous) cult figure in the U.S. The warm-voiced Allen's new album, No Shame, could change those fortunes (if she cares) as it invests itself in the nuances of social media takeovers, single motherhood, and a past that wasn't as comedic as we were lead to believe. — A.D. Amorosi

8:30 p.m. Tuesday at Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St., $35.50, utphilly.com

Digital Buddha

The komungo – a five-foot-long Korean zither – has its origins in the fourth century, and the playing of virtuoso Jin Hi Kim bridges the full 1,700 years of that history. Kim evokes the instrument's ancient tradition while placing it in decidedly modern contexts. In Digital Buddha, Kim and renowned percussionist Gerry Hemingway conjure meditative sounds accompanied by entrancing video art triggered by a MIDI computer on Kim's electric komungo – the only one of its kind in the world. Speaking of rarities, this show, presented as part of the Won Institute's annual K Now series, will be the long-standing duo's debut in Philly and Kim's first show in the city in nearly 20 years. – Shaun Brady

7 p.m. Thursday, Ibrahim Theater at International House, 3701 Chestnut St., $20, know.splashthat.com