It's a big weekend of theater as Twin Cities companies launch their fall seasons. The highlights:
"Romeo and Juliet": Guthrie artistic director Joseph Haj kicks off the theater's 55th season with Shakespeare's comic/tragic blend of youthful romance and heartbreaking impetuousness. Ryan-James Hatanaka and Kate Eastman make their Guthrie debuts in the lead roles with a solid ensemble that includes Candace Barrett Birk, Shá Cage, John Catron, Lamar Jefferson, Charity Jones, Bill McCallum and James A. Williams. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat.& Tue.-Thu., 1 & 7 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 28. Guthrie Theater, 818 S. 2nd St., Mpls. $29-$77. 612-377-2224 or guthrietheater.org)
"In the Heights": Compared with the Richter-scale success of "Hamilton," this was just a modest hit. But Lin-Manuel Miranda's breakout musical had glimmers of the imaginative power and hip-hop invention that powered his later smash. At the Ordway, co-directors James Rocco and Al Justiniano (of Teatro del Pueblo) steer a cast whose characters include a bodega owner, a graffiti artist and a community matriarch, all in the service of a valentine to Miranda's Washington Heights neighborhood in Manhattan. (7:30 p.m. Fri. & Tue.-Thu., 2 & 7:30 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Ends Sept. 24. Ordway Center, 5th and Washington Sts., St. Paul. $34-$116.50. 651-224-4222 or ordwaycenter.org.)
"Disney's Aladdin": After a stay in Chicago, where it launched its national tour in the spring, this show is finally taking its magic carpet on the road. Director Casey Nicholaw ("The Book of Mormon," "Spamalot") takes us to "A Whole New World." (8 p.m. Fri., 2 & 8 p.m. Sat., 1 & 6:30 p.m. Sun., 7:30 p.m. Tue.-Thu. Ends Oct. 8. Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls. $39-$155. 1-800-982-2787 or hennepintheatretrust.org)
"The Nether": When Jennifer Haley's sci-fi drama premiered in 2013, it seemed like the future she described would be far away. The world is connected by a network of virtual-reality realms where users can choose their identities and do as they wish. But the virtual and the real impinge on each other in a corner of the internet where pedophiles lurk. Casey Stangl directs. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. & Wed.-Thu., 2 & 7:30 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 15. Jungle Theater, 2951 Lyndale Av. S., Mpls. $35-$45. 612-822-7063 or jungletheater.com)
"Man of La Mancha": Did you know that poet W.H. Auden was the original lyricist chosen for this 1964 "Don Quixote"-inspired musical? The backers were reportedly displeased with his biting humor and opted instead to team Joe Darion with composer Mitch Leigh. The show became a Broadway success. Theater Latté Da's Peter Rothstein revives it with Martín Solá, Zachary Garcia and Meghan Kreidler. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. & Wed.-Thu., 2 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 22. Ritz Theater, 345 13th Av. NE., Mpls. $37-$45. 612-339-3003 or theaterlatteda.org)
"Henry and Alice: Into the Wild": Actors John Middleton, Carolyn Pool and Melanie Wehrmacher team up for playwright Michele Riml's three-hander about a middle-aged couple in upheaval after the husband gets the ax at work. The pair try to rekindle romance by camping. Cue bears, mosquitoes and a pesky relative. Mary Finnerty directs the regional premiere of this follow-up to Riml's "Sexy Laundry," staged by Finnerty at Park Square in 2014. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 22. Park Square Theatre, 20 W. 7th Pl., St. Paul. $25-$60. 651-291-7005 or parksquaretheatre.org)
"When I Nod My Head You Hit It With the Hammer": Jon Ferguson's Theatre Forever has a new name without vowels: Wldrnss. But presumably the company that brought us "Please Don't Blow Up Mr. Boban," "Super Monkey" and "The Nature Crown" is just as inventive. This latest collaborative work is about some walk-on actors who are having second thoughts about their career choices. (7:30 p.m. Fri. & Sun., 2 & 7:30 p.m. Sat. Ends Sept. 23. Southern Theater, 1420 Washington Av. S., Mpls. $12-$20. 612-340-1725 or southerntheater.org)
"Sabra Falling": Ismail Khalidi's new play is set in a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut that was the site of a shocking massacre. Dipankar Mukherjee, founder of Pangea World Theater, directs this premiere whose cast includes Adlyn Carreras, Lina Jamoul, Michael Karadsheh, Adri Mehra, Jawdy Obeid and Mohamed Yabdri. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. & Thu., 2:30 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 1. Avalon Theatre, 1500 E. Lake St., Mpls. $12-$18. 1-800-838-3006 or pangeaworldtheater.org.)
ROHAN PRESTON
