(The Brett Weston Archive)
THEATER
DEAD MAN’S CELL PHONE Can you hear me now? In this amusing and thought-provoking play by Sarah Ruhl, a guy drops dead in a cafe, and when his cellphone rings, the woman at the next table answers it - a fateful move that plunges her into the dead man’s tangled life. Through Nov. 14. Lyric Stage Company of Boston. 617-585-5678, www.lyricstage.comA LONG AND WINDING ROAD Through her interpretations of songs by Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, and Carole King, Maureen McGovern presents a “musical memoir’’ designed to resonate with the baby boom generation. Through Nov. 15. Huntington Theatre Company. Wimberly Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts. 617-266-0800, www.huntingtontheatre.org
SLEEP NO MORE Prepare for some close encounters with the cast in this adventurous, immersive, and mostly wordless reworking of “Macbeth,’’ a coproduction by the American Repertory Theater and Punchdrunk, the experimental British theater troupe, which is making its North American premiere. Through Jan. 3. American Repertory Theater. The Old Lincoln School, Brookline. www.americanrepertorytheater.org
LITTLE BLACK DRESS A middle-aged Kansas woman tries to break free of her unhappy marriage, first by means of a Hollywood-fueled fantasy life, then by taking more definitive steps, in this explosive drama by playwright Ronan Noone. Through Oct. 24. Boston Playwrights’ Theatre. 866-811-4111, www.bostonplaywrights.org
THE DONKEY SHOW If disco be the food of love . . . oh, wait, wrong play. In this splashy debut by new ART artistic director Diane Paulus, Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream’’ is transmogrified into a Studio 54-style phantasmagoria. Go ahead, try not to have a good time. Just try. Through Jan. 2. American Repertory Theater, Oberon. 617-547-8300, www.americanrepertorytheater.org DON AUCOIN WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? Director Diego Arciniegas draws layered performances from his actors, including Tina Packer as Martha and Nigel Gore as George, in this first-rate production of Edward Albee’s ode to dysfunction and codependence. Through Oct. 24. Presented by the Publick Theatre at Boston Center for the Arts, Plaza Theatre. 617-933-8600, www.bostontheatrescene.com TERRY BYRNE THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES Spookiness is outweighed by silliness in this marvelous, family-friendly sendup of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s chilling tale. Through Nov. 8. Shakespeare & Company, Lenox. 413-637-3353, www.shakespeare.org
SANDY MacDONALD
DANCE
WORLD PASSIONS Boston Ballet’s latest program should admirably showcase the company’s depth, with choreography ranging from Pino Alosa’s new take on the Spanish classic “Paquita’’ to a world premiere by Helen Pickett. Her new “Tsukiyo’’ (Moonlit Night), set to the haunting strains of Arvo Pärt, is the choreographer’s third Boston Ballet commission. The program also includes Viktor Plotnikov’s “Rhyme’’ and Jorma Elo’s “Carmen/Illusions.’’ Oct. 22-Nov. 1. $25-$132. The Boston Opera House. 617-695-6955. www.bostonballet.orgSTREB EXTREME ACTION Firebrand choreographer Elizabeth Streb continues to redefine the boundaries of human movement with breathtaking imagination and daring, catapulting her courageous dancers through all manner of physical virtuosity, often involving circus-like sets and contraptions. The new STREB: BRAVE explores the adventurous possibilities of the circle and perpetual motion. Oct. 22-24. $35-$40. Institute of Contemporary Art. 617-478-3103. www.icaboston.org
HORSE Taiwan’s first all-male dance troupe synthesizes elements of experimental theater, drama, and mime to reflect the changing aesthetics of contemporary urban life. This evening of dances, called “Velocity’’ and set to music ranging from Mozart to Michael Gordon, explores how the frenetic nature of our society pulls people and things apart. Oct. 24. $18. Rhode Island School of Design Auditorium, Providence. 401-421-4278. www.first-works.org
JOSÉ MATEO BALLET THEATRE This is the last weekend to catch the company’s excellent program pairing two works by Mateo about loss - the sweeping, evocative “Isle of the Dead’’ from 1991, set to the brooding romanticism of Rachmaninoff, and the world premiere of “Over and Over,’’ set to the Symphony No. 2 of American minimalist Philip Glass. Through Oct. 25. $35. The Sanctuary Theatre, Cambridge. 617-354-7467. www.BalletTheatre.org KAREN CAMPBELL
MUSEUMS
CONTINUOUS PRESENT Ten internationally renowned contemporary artists, including Dieter Roth, Roni Horn, On Kawara, and Gabriel Orozco, deal with themes of time and perception. Through Jan. 3. Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven. 203-432-0600. www.artgallery.yale.eduTOBIAS PUTRIH AND MOS: WITHOUT OUT A large-scale installation made from everyday materials following a design that plans for its own ruination. The work is a collaboration between artist Tobias Putrih and MOS, a collective of architects and designers. Through Jan. 3. MIT List Visual Arts Center. 617-253-4680. www.listart.mit.edu
RARE BIRD OF FASHION: THE IRREVERENT IRIS APFEL Eighty outfits designed by the maverick tastemaker, now in her 88th year. Through Feb. 7. Peabody Essex Museum, Salem. 978-745-9500. www.pem.org
SEBASTIAN SMEE
GALLERIES
JEREMY FOSS The painter creates otherworldly landscapes based on his plein-air observations of trees, mountains, and water. Using a theatrical palette and ethereal forms, Foss makes works that verge on abstraction, and capture transformations over time. Through Nov. 7. Victoria Munroe Fine Art, 161 Newbury St. 617-523-0661. www.victoriamunroefineart.comDISLOCATED CITY: BERLIN PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANGUS BOULTON Twenty years ago next month, the Berlin Wall fell. Boulton has been photographing the city since 1998, investigating the legacy of the Soviet military there. Through Jan. 22. Wolk Gallery, MIT School of Architecture + Planning, Building 7, Room 338, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. 617-258-9106. sap.mit.edu/resources/galleries/wolk_gallery/
SHAME: WORK BY ROBERTA PAUL Paul’s paintings reprise Masaccio’s Renaissance painting of Adam and Eve as they’re banished from Eden. She focuses on Eve, filled with shame, and wonders about the ramifications today. Through Jan. 29. Kniznick Gallery, Women’s Studies Research Center, Brandeis University, 515 South St., Waltham. 781-736-8102. www.brandeis.edu/centers/wsrc/
SMALL WORKS ’09 This little benefit exhibition for the Maud Morgan Visual Arts Center features works, by 58 Cambridge artists, each about one foot square. Participating artists include Judy Motzkin, Joseph Barbieri, Tabitha Vevers, and Mitch Ryerson. Through Dec. 4. Sacramento Street Gallery, 20 Sacramento St., Cambridge. 617-349-6287. http://agassiz.org/SacramentoStreetGallery.asp CATE McQUAID 
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