Arts

BODY AWARENESS The deepest and richest of the three plays by Annie Baker that make up the Shirley, VT Plays Festival, about the domestic disruption that ensues when a photographer known for his nude female portraits becomes a guest in the home of two women in a college town that is marking “Body Awareness Week.’’ Through Nov. 20. SpeakEasy Stage Company. Roberts Studio Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts. 617-933-8600, www.speakeasystage.com

THE ALIENS There are stretches of tedium and flashes of illumination, both of them by the playwright’s design, in Annie Baker’s slice of life about two 30-ish slackers and the teenage boy they befriend and, in their way, try to guide. Through Nov. 20. Company One. Calderwood Pavilion, Hall A, Boston Center for the Arts. 617-933-8600, www.bostontheatrescene.com

THE COVETED CROWN: HENRY IV, PARTS I AND II There’s plenty of swordplay and wordplay and revelry in this sprawling, high-energy production of Shakespeare’s two-part tale of a fretful king, his wastrel son, and, best of all, Falstaff, a role the inimitable Robert Walsh chomps on with gusto. Through Nov. 21. Actors’ Shakespeare Project. Midway Studios. 866-811-4111, www.actorsshakespeareproject.org

DON AUCOIN

DANCE FALL FLAMENCO FESTIVAL: GITANO ROOTS OF FLAMENCO World Music/CRASHarts brings two programs of live music and dance direct from Spain that showcase the fiery traditions of Gypsy flamenco. On Nov. 19 at 8 p.m., icon Angelita Vargas (“Flamenco Puro’’) and young firebrand Jairo Barrull perform the Boston premiere of “Gitanerías,’’ which honors the passing down of flamenco traditions from generation to generation. On Nov. 21 at 3 p.m., rhythmic powerhouse Pepe Torres and his company present “Homenaje,’’ a tribute to his legendary grandfather and his family’s impact on the history of flamenco. Tickets: $30-$50. Berklee Performance Center. 617-876-4275, www.worldmusic.org STYLIZED MOVEMENT This collaborative of dancers, choreographers, musicians and artists joined to create “Dreams: A Journey Through Her Mind,’’ a kind of choreographic dream sequence that unfolds through a mélange of jazz, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, and tap pieces. The concert is presented as a fund-raiser for Alex’s Lemonade Stand, an organization fighting childhood cancer. Nov. 19-20, 7 p.m. Tickets: $10-$15. Dean College Performing Arts Studios, Franklin. 978-793-1055, www.stylizedmovement.com BURLESQUE MARATHON It’s pastries and pasties as nearly two dozen dancers from all over New England gather for an eight-hour all-night marathon followed by a special burlesque breakfast. Expected highlights include a performance by former Boston Babydoll and “America’s Next Top Model’’ contestant Vita Lightly (Sarah Hartshorne) and a preview of “The Slutcracker.’’ Nov. 20, show starts at 11:59 p.m. Tickets: $20-$30. Coolidge Corner Theatre. Brookline. 617-734-2501, www.coolidge.org POOL Choreographer/director Naomi Bennett and Not Just Theater use Mark Ravenhill’s “play pool (no water)’’ as inspiration for an original multimedia performance examining artistic jealousy. A work-in-progress for “FEED FUND,’’ the collaborative piece combines contact improvisation, physical theater, original music, poetry, and video, and will be followed by refreshments and a feedback session. Nov. 22, 8 p.m. Tickets: $1-$20 suggested donation. The Outpost, Cambridge. 617-780-7824, www.notjusttheater.org KAREN CAMPBELL

MUSEUMS ART OF THE AMERICAS WING The Museum of Fine Arts unveils its massive new wing dedicated to the arts of North, South, and Central America. Opens Saturday. Museum of Fine Arts. 617-267-9300. www.mfa.org.

SHEILA HICKS: 50 YEARS A career survey of this inventive textile artist who blurs the lines between sculpture, weaving, painting, design. Through Feb. 27. Addison Gallery of American Art, Andover. 978-749-4000. www.andover.edu/museums/addison

THE EMPEROR’S PRIVATE PARADISE: TREASURES FROM THE FORBIDDEN CITY The contents of an 18th-century emperor’s private quarters deep within the Forbidden City in Beijing revealed to the public for the first time. Through Jan. 9. Peabody Essex Museum, Salem. 978-745-9500. www.pem.org.

LYNDA BENGLIS A career survey of this inventive American artist, featuring wax paintings, poured latex and polyurethane foam sculptures, video, installations, fabric “knots,’’ and much more. Through Jan. 9. Rhode Island School of Design Museum of Art, Providence. 401-454-6500. www.risdmuseum.org.

SEBASTIAN SMEE

GALLERIES IMI HWANGBO: THE SPIRE SERIES Hwangbo makes 3-D drawings based on chrysanthemum patterns from 19th-century Korean wrapping cloths. To create each work, she prints, hand-cuts, and aligns 17 layers of translucent Mylar, building depth by layering light and shadow. Through Dec. 23. Miller Block Gallery, 38 Newbury St. 617-536-4650, www.millerblockgallery.com JOHN GRILLO: THE MOSAIC PAINTINGS A dozen 1950s-era paintings comprising tiny increments by the Abstract Expressionist are all exuberant, intensely colorful, and loosely based on a grid structure. Also on view, a group show including works by Robert Henry and Helen Miranda Wilson. Through Dec. 23. Acme Fine Art, 38 Newbury St. 617-585-9551, www.acmefineart.com

SOUTHERN EXPOSURE: ARTADIA AWARDEES 2009 ATLANTA Artadia: The Fund for Art and Dialogue awards grants to artists in particular cities. Now it kicks off an exhibitions exchange, bringing seven Atlanta artists to Boston, all investigating space and place. Through Jan. 2. Mills Gallery, Boston Center for the Arts, 551 Tremont St. 617-426-8835, www.bcaonline.org MICHAEL BÜHLER-ROSE: I’LL WORSHIP YOU, YOU WORSHIP ME In photographs and video, Bühler-Rose explores ritual, culture, and custom. The title piece, a four-channel video, considers a Hindu theory in which a devotee and a deity or guru acknowledge one another. Through Dec. 18, Carroll and Sons, 450 Harrison Ave. 617-482-2477, www.carrollandsons.net CATE McQUAID