Spotlights: 'Nina Simone: Four Women,' 'Beauty and the Beast,' Carly Rae Jepsen and more

Singer, pianist and soul priestess Nina Simone became an American icon not just by sheer brilliance but also because of her conviction to live a life of freedom and dignity. "Nina Simone: Four Women," a new play by Christina Ham, uses her story and music — including "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "To Be Young, Gifted and Black" — to tell a larger narrative of female solidarity. Regina Marie Williams, who headlined "Sister Act" at Chanhassen, plays the title role alongside powerhouse performers Aimee K. Bryant, Thomasina Petrus and Traci Allen Shannon. Rohan Preston

7:30 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 2 & 7:30 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. next Sun. $27-$60. Ends March 26. Park Square Theatre, St. Paul. parksquaretheatre.org

Robert O. Berdahl and Ruthanne Heyward head a strong cast in Chanhassen Dinner Theatre's new production of "Beauty and the Beast" that steers away from the bright, cartoonish Disney template. Aleks Knezevich plays Gaston, Susan Hofflander is Mrs. Potts and Mark King is Lumiere. Michael Brindisi directs, and Andrew Cooke heads the music program. Chanhassen last produced this show in 2005.

Graydon Royce

6 p.m. dinner, 8 p.m. show Fri.-Sat., 4:30 & 6:30 p.m. Sun. $45-$85. Ends Sept. 3. Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Chanhassen. chanhassentheatres.com

Like Taylor Swift's "1989" in 2014, Carly Rae Jepsen's "E.MO.TION" in 2015 was a frothy, carefully crafted salute to 1980s pop. And that was a good thing for Jepsen, who appeared to be headed to two-hit-wonder status for the wonderful "Call Me Maybe" and the so-so "Good Time." At 30, she still sounds like a 19-year-old whose world is full of flirtation, joy, frustration – and beats you can dance to.

Jon Bream

Csilla Boross makes her Minnesota debut in the title role as Puccini's epic story of deceit and honor opens Saturday, with Leonardo Capalbo ("The Manchurian Candidate") as Mario Cavaradossi and Stephen Powell as the evil Scarpia. Italian director Andrea Cigni makes a U.S. debut with this Minnesota Opera production, with a modern-day scenic design by Lorenzo Cutuli. Anne ­Manson will conduct.

Graydon Royce

7:30 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. next Sun. $25-$200. Ends March 26; Ordway Center, St. Paul. mnopera.org

With the resilient, hard-driving approach that has defined their music for three decades, thrash-metal heroes Slayer have carried on without co-founding guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who died in 2013. Gary Holt of their peer band Exodus was brought in as Kerry King's new dueling partner on tour and on the above-average new album, "Repentless." Fellow thrash pioneers Testament open.

CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER

While his buddy Bruce Springsteen was just here for his eighth concert in 11 years, soul-soaked Jersey rocker Southside Johnny is returning for the first time since 2005. A classic barroom entertainer since the 1970s, Johnny Lyon puts his heart, soul and sandpaper voice into tunes that Springsteen and Steve Van Zandt wrote for him, R&B classics and some spiffy new horn-accented, vintage-sounding originals from 2015's "Soultime."

Jon Bream

7 p.m. Tue.-Wed. $40-$60. Dakota Jazz Club, Mpls. dakotacooks.com

What would happen if butoh dance inventor Tatsumi Hijikata met up with Dominique Bagouet, leader of the 1980s nouvelle danse movement, and New York performance-art matriarch Ellen Stewart? The answer lies in a new piece by choreographer Trajal Harrell. "The Ghost of Montpellier Meets the Samurai," commissioned by Walker Art Center, imagines this chance meeting to explore the creative process and the meaning of art.

SHEILA REGAN

More than shamrocks and leprechauns, St. Patrick's Day is an important holiday that recognizes Irish culture. Irish Heritage Weekend at the James J. Hill House explores the history of one of the most influential families of the Gilded Age. Walk through the home of Mary and James Hill, who were the children of Irish and Scotch immigrants; listen to Irish songs and organ music, and see needlework demonstrations.

MELISSA WALKER

10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-next Sun. $6-$10. J.J. Hill House, St. Paul. sites.mnhs.org/historic-sites/james-j-hill-house

Launched in 1914 with bombastic pageantry, World War I was billed as a jolly little war. Instead it slogged on until 1918, killing 15 million and ending four empires. That harrowing story is vividly told in "Faces of War: Russia in WWI," an extraordinary display of rare films, photos, posters and artifacts ranging from weapons, banners and medals to fragile porcelain Easter eggs that Russia's Empress Alexandra gave to wounded soldiers.

Mary Abbe