5 Things To Do This Weekend, From Art By Teachers To A Brand New Opera

With the cold weather upon us at last, here are five ways to engage in the arts scene and stay cozy this weekend:

Boston Jewish Film Festival | Through Nov. 19 | Various Locations

The Boston Jewish Film Festival celebrates its 30th anniversary this year with a vast crop of titles that runs the gamut from comedy to drama to animation. The ARTery's Erin Trahan says this year’s festival is particularly strong when it comes to first-person documentaries, like “Unsettling,” a film by a left-wing Israeli filmmaker who embeds in a settlement in the West Bank and attempts to engage in dialogue with her political adversaries. (Check out Trahan's top picks at this year's fest.)

'Those Who Can, Teach' | Saturday, Nov. 17 - Dec. 15 | Nave Gallery, Somerville

It’s a rare art school graduate who is able to seamlessly transition into a career as a full-time artist. Many end up teaching — a vocation that’s as valuable as it is time-consuming. “Those Who Can, Teach,” which features the work of 40 area teachers, aims to draw attention to category of artists often overlooked. (Read more on the exhibition from The ARTery's Pamela Reynolds.)

'Schoenberg in Hollywood' | Through Sunday, Nov. 18 | Emerson Paramount Center, Boston

“Schoenberg in Hollywood” is based on the life of the famed composer Arnold Schoenberg, who sought artistic fulfillment in sunny Los Angeles after fleeing persecution in Nazi-era Europe. Composed by the Boston-based artist Tod Machover, who is known for his technological innovations, the opera will make its world premiere with a futuristic, immersive sound system developed with the help of MIT’s Media Lab. (Read more about the production from arts reporter Andrea Shea.)

'Universe Rushing Apart: Blue Kettle and Here we Go' | Through Nov. 18 | Babson College, Wellesley

The surrealist insights of renowned playwright Caryl Churchill come to life in the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company's productions of “Blue Kettle” and “Here We Go.” In the first, reality and language become increasingly slippery as the audience watches a conman’s scheme unfold. In the second, a group of women wrestle with their own mortality at the funeral of a man they once knew.

Design An Infinite Park | Saturday, Nov. 17 | Atrium at 100 Federal St., Boston

The winners of the National Design Awards will be celebrated in Boston this week — and locals will have a chance to design their own park with one of this year’s winners, Mikyoung Kim. Kim is an international landscape artist with a firm based in Boston. A designer from her firm will be helping participants make 3D "landscape prototypes and collaborative parks."

Here's a video promo that shows the type of work the firm does: