[Read about the events that our other critics have chosen for the week ahead.]

‘FUNIKIJAM’S TOTALLY AWESOME SUMMER’ at the Actors Temple Theater (Aug. 25-30, 11 a.m.). The season may be waning, but it’s still possible to jam in some sandy shores and intercontinental destinations, especially if you visit them in a theater. That’s what FunikiJam World Music, an early-childhood education program, is offering in this Off Broadway show, which is led by the production’s writer and star, Brian Barrentine (a.k.a. Captain Jam). Geared toward children 2 to 10, the performance transports the audience and actors to the beach, Australia, various islands, a birthday party for America and even a decade that may seem highly mysterious to young theatergoers: the 1980s. All attending are invited to dance and jam along.

347-913-5267, funikijam.com

‘NOTHING HERE IS REAL’ at the Oxbow Tavern (Aug. 27, 7:30 p.m.). The title of Gary Ferrar’s show is both a provocation and a reassurance: If everything you see didn’t depend on some form of illusion, you’d wonder just what superpowers this man possesses. A magician and a mentalist, Ferrar says he makes his living by “influencing people’s choices,” but how he does that remains a mystery. During a riveting 90-minute show that he presents on the last Tuesday of every month (he hasn’t yet determined next year’s schedule), he amazes members of his intimate audience by elaborate sleight of hand and feats like knowing exactly what they imagined or wrote down in the last few minutes or what they experienced hours ago. Although he performs in a Manhattan restaurant’s downstairs cocktail lounge, the setting is family-friendly and the material appropriate for anyone over 10. Young people will especially appreciate the many opportunities to assist Ferrar in his entertaining exploits.

garyferrar.com

‘SPIRITED AWAY’ at the Museum of the Moving Image (Aug. 23, noon; Aug. 24-25, 11:30 a.m.) and ‘MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO’ at select theaters nationwide (Aug. 25, 12:55 p.m.; Aug. 26 and 28, 7 p.m.). The renowned Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki has created many extraordinary beings in his career, and children can encounter some of the most intriguing in these animated works, which are mostly being shown in English. (Two screenings are in Japanese with subtitles.) The Oscar-winning “Spirited Away” (2002), the final title in the Museum of the Moving Image’s series Summer Matinees: Fantastic Worlds, focuses on Chihiro, a 10-year-old girl whose family is moving to a new town. On the way there, they stumble on what appears to be an abandoned theme park, and before long, Chihiro’s parents turn into hogs, and she finds herself working for a witch in a bathhouse populated by gods and demons. (And you thought your preadolescence was tough.) A more purely benevolent creature dominates “My Neighbor Totoro” (1988), which GKids and Fathom Events are briefly restoring to theaters. The fuzzy, catlike spirits known as totoros provide cheer and comfort to two young sisters whose mother is hospitalized in this endlessly charming and unexpectedly moving film.

718-777-6888, movingimage.us

fathomevents.com