Critical list

Jonathan Dean, Camilla Long, Edward Porter and Olly Richards

Theatre

THEATRE PICK — GAME
Mike Bartlett’s new play is a satisfyingly ambivalent and genuinely creepy piece about power, inequality and human cruelty. Bold stuff. See review, in this section. CH
Almeida, London N1, until Apr 4

CROUCH, TOUCH, PAUSE, ENGAGE
This moving documentary play interlaces the stories of Gareth “Alfie” Thomas — Welsh rugby hero, covertly gay — and the self-harming youngsters of his native Bridgend. See review, in this section. DJ
Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Tue-Sat, then touring

LIPPY
Dead Centre’s show isn’t an easy watch, but it is dense with thickets of ambiguity. See review, in this section. MS
Young Vic, London SE1, until Sat

TAKEN AT MIDNIGHT
Penelope Wilton is profoundly moving as Irmgard Litten, the mother who stubbornly fought to get her son released in 1930s Germany. Final week. JE
Theatre Royal Haymarket, London SW1, until Sat

Jane Edwardes, Christopher Hart, David Jays and Maxie Szalwinska

Art

ART PICK — INVENTING IMPRESSIONISM
A champion of 19th-century art’s most enduring movement, the collector and dealer Paul Durand-Ruel is celebrated in a show assembling the fine gallery of Monets, Manets, Renoirs and Sisleys that passed through his hands.
National Gallery, London WC2, until May 31

JOSHUA REYNOLDS: EXPERIMENTS IN PAINT
We all know Reynolds, don’t we? The Wallace attempts to dust down his image by examining how he toyed with styles and techniques.
Wallace Collection, London W1, from Thu until June 7

HENRY MOORE: BACK TO A LAND
Local boy Moore at the YSP makes sense, considering the importance he gave to placing his works outdoors. There are 120 works on display.
Yorkshire Sculpture Park, near Wakefield, until Sept 6

CANALETTO: CELEBRATING BRITAIN
Covering the years the Venetian spent painting here, 1746-55, this show portrays a country entering its high Georgian splendour.
Compton Verney, Warwickshire, from Sat until June 7

CONFLICT, TIME, PHOTOGRAPHY
A thoughtful look at how the camera has portrayed the effects of our conflicts. Last week.
Tate Modern, London SE1, until next Sun

Louis Wise

Comedy

COMEDY PICK — ROMESH RANGANATHAN
Ranganathan’s shtick is his desperate attempt to rid himself of his misanthropy to live a more positive, upbeat life – rather than being a terrible husband, father and human being. I hope he fails: he withers with the strongest scorn since Jack Dee. Suzi Ruffell shares the bill with him.
Alhambra, Bradford, Fri; Engine Shed, Lincoln, Sat

GEIN’S FAMILY GIFTSHOP
Strong, dark sketch comedy from a hugely imaginative trio of desperately sick minds — riffing on serial killers and gothic horror. Jonny Pelham and Toby Hadoke complete the bill.
XS Malarkey, Manchester, Tue

SHAPPI KHORSANDI
Khorsandi has taken time off “to get knocked up like a 1950s teenager”, but she’s back with rollicking anecdotes of London hoodies, childhood friendships and her good old dad. Uplifting.
Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, Fri

AHIR SHAH
Technically, this is a split bill with Prince Abdi, a strong young talent with newbie awards under his belt. Shah is the star, though, serving up sharp, intelligent observational stand-up.
Redemption, London WC1, today

Stephen Armstrong

Dance

DANCE PICK — MODERN MASTERS
English National Ballet’s first programme as an associate company of Sadler’s Wells features Jiri Kylian’s Petite Mort, John Neumeier’s Spring and Fall (UK premiere) and William Forsythe’s In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated.
Sadler’s Wells, London EC1, Tue-Sun

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE
Scottish Ballet tour their award-winning dance adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play, with choreography by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and a score by Peter Salem. Nancy Meckler directs.
Eden Court, Inverness, Thu-Sat, then touring

BALLET DE LORRAINE
A debut visit by this French contemporary dance company, with a mixed programme including Cover, a new work by the Israeli choreographer Itamar Serussi, inspired by Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique.
Linbury Studio Theatre, ROH, London WC2, Wed-Sat

David Dougill

Pop

POP PICK — MORRISSEY
Catch Mozza now. Or better yet, his rabid Mexican fan base, Mexrrissey, giving his back catalogue a mariachi revamp, on tour in April.
Capital FM Arena, Nottingham, Fri; BIC, Bournemouth, Sat; touring until Mar 27

JOSE GONZALEZ
The soulful Swede has tried a new sound with his latest album, Vestiges & Claws, but the beard and the emotion remain.
Scala, London N1, Wed, Thu; Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, Fri; Manchester Academy, Sat

USHER
The R&B veteran Usher Raymond launches his UR Experience tour. (It’s a play on words.)
Capital FM Arena, Nottingham, Sat; touring until Mar 26

MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS
Marina Diamandis defiantly pursues her own route, with her forthcoming third album, Froot, promising to be an eccentric indie-pop odyssey.
Oslo, London E8, Wed

CARIBOU
Dan Snaith comes back to celebrate his 2014 gem, Our Love, one more time.
O2 Academy Brixton, London SW9, Sat

Louis Wise

Classical

CLASSICAL PICK — RISE AND FALL OF THE CITY OF MAHAGONNY
Banned by the Nazis in 1933, Brecht and Weill’s sardonic indictment of capitalism comes belatedly to Covent Garden in John Fulljames’s new Royal Opera production, with Anne Sofie von Otter as Leokadja Begbick, co-founder of the “city of gold”, where men do what they want. Kurt Streit sings Jimmy, Christine Rice Jenny and Willard White Trinity Moses. Mark Wigglesworth conducts. HC
ROH, London WC2, Tue, Thu, Sat

ENGLISH TOURING OPERA
The company’s latest productions are a new La bohème and a super-rare Donizetti, Il furioso all’isola di San Domingo (performed as The Wild Man of the West Indies). HC
Hackney Empire, London E8, Thu (Wild Man); Fri, Sat (Bohème)

CITY OF BIRMINGHAM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Ilan Volkov conducts Bach’s Violin Concerto No 1 in A minor (soloist Ilya Gringolts) and Bruckner’s Symphony No 5. PD
Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Wed, Sat

ALEXANDER MELNIKOV
The Russian pianist undertakes Morton Feldman’s 90-minute, uninterrupted (no interval) Triadic Memories, described by the composer as “probably the largest butterfly in captivity”. PD
Wigmore Hall, London W1, Thu

BBC SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Kirill Karabits conducts a concert performance of Bartok’s opera Duke Bluebeard’s Castle, with Gabor Bretz in the title role. We also get the world premiere of Albert Schnelzer’s Tales from Suburbia. PD
Barbican, London EC2, Fri

Hugh Canning and Paul Driver

Book it now

NATIONAL VIDEOGAME ARCADE
The UK’s first cultural centre devoted to the history and practice of gaming opens this month, spread across five floors. One exhibit tells the History of Games in 100 Objects, from 1951 until today.
Nottingham, opens Mar 28

SUSPICIOUSLY CHEAP COMEDY
This evening functions as a quick guide to the best of cutting-edge comedy, with Gein’s Family Giftshop and Goose co-hosting a night starring Tim Key, The Boy with Tape on His Face and a duo called Beard. Because they are.
Backyard Comedy Club, London E2, Mar 29

THE ICE BREAK
Birmingham Opera Company, directed by Graham Vick, stages a new production of Michael Tippett’s 1977 opera in a local warehouse. Once again, both professionals and volunteers feature in the cast.
B12 Warehouse, Birmingham, Apr 3-9

VINCENT VAN GOGH: A NEW WAY OF SEEING
A brand-new documentary about the artist, made with unrivalled access to paintings and archives from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Various cinemas, from Apr 14

LATITUDE
The music line-up for the all-arts summer bash is excellent: Alt-J, Portishead, Lianne La Havas, Laura Marling, Noel Gallagher, James Blake, Caribou... There’s also comedy from Alan Davies and Rob Delaney, and dance from Sadler’s Wells, as well as literary types such as Simon Armitage.
Henham Park, Suffolk, July 17-20

YOUNG CHEKHOV: THE BIRTH OF A GENIUS
Chichester’s new season is another feast for theatre fans. One highlight: fresh versions of Chekhov’s Platonov, Ivanov and The Seagull, furnished by David Hare, with Anna Chancellor as Arkadina and Samuel West as Ivanov.
Chichester Festival Theatre, Sept 28-Nov 14