Animals, bugs, weird thingies

See your favorite animals and bugs this weekend from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University as the All Star Week celebration continues through Sunday. Each day features a different theme.

On Friday, Animal Day, naturalists will walk through the building showcasing birds, reptiles, and mammals, and visitors can pet some of them. At shows at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. guests can learn about the creatures. At a specimen table, the academy will bring out specimens from the collections for visitors to observe. Kids can listen to animal stories told by a storyteller throughout the day and make a craft.

Saturday is Bug Day, when handlers will showcase specimens from the entomology collection. Learn about the life of bugs and make a craft. Sunday is Weird-Thing-in-a-Jar Day, when guests can see interesting animals or insect specimens such as bats, cane toads, amphiuma salamanders that resemble eels, and axolotl salamanders that are albinos with large heads and feathery gills. Participants can make their own weird thing to take home, and there will be storytelling on Saturday and Sunday.

An elf detective is on the case on Sunday during the stage production of Murray the Elf and the Case of the Missing Mistletoe at the Act II Playhouse in Ambler.

Ms. Claus calls Murray the Elf to the North Pole to solve the case of the missing mistletoe. Murray investigates and soon finds that things aren't what they seem in Toyland, but who will turn out to be the mistletoe thief? Murray, performed by two actors, is written and directed by Bill D'Agostino and is appropriate for ages 5 to 12.

Cirque Éloize iD, part of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts Broadway series, continues at the Merriam Theater through Sunday.

Cirque is an urban spectacular where circus artistry and acrobatics meet dance. Directed by Jeannot Painchaud, it uses electronic, rock, and iambic style music along with video to create an energetic production.