Children can immerse themselves in backstage preparation, perform routines in center ring or manage the behind-the-scenes action of lights and sound. Plus, try making a circus balance toy or dress up like a clown.

Through the discovery of exoplanets, we have learned our solar system is not alone in the universe. IN this new space show, learn how, with new instruments like the Kepler Telescope and rapidly improving technologies, the discovery of exoplanets puts us one step closer to finding an Earth-like world.

Visitors become space adventurers and set off on a journey to discover the Universe in a way never done before. Travel a billion light-years and back, fly through space, orbit the Moon, zoom into a canyon on Mars, and soar through the cosmic web where a million galaxies shower down. The experience was created utilizing real telescopic data and the best scientific imagery.

Exhibit examines the ancestry and evolution of numerous species, ranging from huge to tiny, from speedy to sloth-like, and displays animals with oversized claws, fangs, snouts, and horns. Highlights include taxidermy specimens, an entire skeleton of a giant hoofed plant-eater, a life-size model of the largest land mammal that ever lived, one of the oldest fossilized bats ever found, and an impressive diorama featuring the swamps and forests of an island in the Arctic. Runs May 26, 2012-Jan. 6, 2013.

Learn about the American bicycle and Chicago's bike culture. The exhibition details the roots of America's most democratic and sustainable form of transportation and considers why human-powered locomotion could be the way of the future for our rapidly evolving urban environment.

Visitors go on an interactive journey through the world of ancient Greece, where they can meet the gods, experience ancient Greek daily life and interact with the epic poem The Odyssey through more than 25 engaging interactive components, including climbing into a 13-foot tall Trojan Horse. Kids play and learn as they navigate rocky caves and open seas on "The Odyssey: A Hero's Journey" and e-mail home their Hero Record, belt tunes in the Sirens Karaoke Cave, discover which Greek god they are most like, match wits with Aristotle in a game of 20 questions, test their arm wrestling prowess in the Gymnasium and marvel at a working replica of the Antikythera Mechanism, believed to be the world's oldest computer.

Watch men painted blue do unusual performance art and original slapstick comedy. It's fun to sit in the front, but remember to wear a plastic poncho to avoid the flying food and liquids. Buy tickets at the box office, online, via Ticketmaster or by calling (773) 348-4000.

Hundreds of school-age youth from diverse Chicago communities have come together to create this performance. Performances will be May 22-25 at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 2430 North Cannon Drive, Chicago; and May 31 in Homan Square Community Center, 3517 W. Arthington St., Chicago. Produced by Chicago's acclaimed theater spectacle company, Redmoon, the Youth Spectacle will use shadow animation, sound installation, surreal visual art and performance to transform the Nature Museum's South Gallery and Terrace into a complex celebration of commitments. The final performance will take place at the Homan Square Community Center.