OPENING
'The Elixir of Love'
Minnesota Opera has brought in soprano Nicole Cabell and tenor Leonardo Capalbo to sing the roles of a wealthy woman who is pursued by a handsome but simple peasant in Gaetano Donizetti's romantic comedy. It is the company's first production of this opera since 1986 and is set in the early years of the 20th century. Director Helena Binder (who staged 2007's "The Italian Girl in Algiers") returns to Minnesota for this production. Leonardo Vordoni is in the pit. The cast also includes the familiar baritone Andrew Wilkowske. (7:30 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. $25-$200. Ends Feb. 1. Ordway Center, 5th & Washington Sts., St. Paul. 612-333-6669 or www.mnopera.org.)Graydon Royce
'Rehearsing Failure'
Conceived six years ago by director Lisa Channer with playwright Cory Hinkle and composer Annie Enneking, "Rehearsing Failure" is set during rehearsals of Bertolt Brecht's "The Life of Galileo" in summer 1947. The show orbits the iconic German theater-maker and his relationship with three female collaborators who, in the past and present, shared his bed. But the women — his wife, Helene Weigel, and former lovers Elisabeth Hauptmann and Ruth Berlau — were not muses. They were creative equals who worked with Brecht. Channer helms a cast that includes Barbra Berlovitz, Sarah Richardson and Pearce Bunting, who plays Brecht. (7:30 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. Ends Feb. 22. Southern Theater, 1420 Washington Av. S., Mpls. $24. 612-326-1811 or southern.ticketworks.com.) Rohan Preston
'Like a Fiery Comet, Jean Michel Basquiat Shoots Across the Sky'
Paul Herwig's Off-Leash Area dance-theater company has become known for its neighborhood garage tours, which literally take shows to neighborhood garages. He is bringing the company's latest show, about the meteoric life of iconic '80s Haitian-American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, to his own home. "SAMO: Like a Fiery Comet, Jean Michel Basquiat Shoots Across the Sky" will be performed by dancer Brian Evans as the title character and Herwig as Death. The show is being produced in Herwig's heated garage for two weekends. (8 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 7 p.m. Sun. 3540 34th Av. S., Mpls. $10-$20 donation. 612-724-7372 www.offleasharea.org.) R.P.
'Calvin Berger'
