The theatre you need to see this winter

Hanafuda Denki.

The new year’s theatre season kicks off early with the 17th edition of the Wildside Festival, a showcase of indie greats to beat the mid-winter doldrums. A rotating line-up of seven plays from Montreal and beyond are presented throughout the nine-day festival, including Fringe faves Talk Mackerel and Little Orange Man, plus the Canadian premiere of NYC-based AnimalParts’ A Quiet Sip of Coffee, recent GG winner Iceland and other strong shows from the Canadian indie circuit. Centaur Theatre (453 St-François-Xavier), Jan 3–12, $12.50–$15 per show or four shows for $50

If you’re so punk you’re willing to spend more than 50 bucks on a Broadway musical, have we got the show for you! The touring production of Green Day’s American Idiot rock opera visits the Place-des-Arts for a two-day run. Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier (175 Ste-Catherine W.), Jan 4, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m., Jan 5, 4 p.m., $47.50–$84.50

The Chocolate Moose Theatre Company presents At Home at the Zoo, mixing American playwright Edward Albee’s The Zoo Story with a more recently written prequel, Homelife, revealing humans’ animal nature in personal relationships. Jan 9–11 and 16–18, Theatre Ste-Catherine (264 Ste-Catherine W.), 8 p.m., $14

The annual Bouge d’Ici festival takes over the Mainline Theatre (3997 St-Laurent) Jan 10–18, celebrating the local dance scene through myriad ways to watch and think about dance, plus dance-related takes on Mainline regulars like Confabulation and Dr. Sketchy. Check out the full program for details.

Japan’s epically awesome Ryuzanji theatre company comes to town for five nights with Hanafuda Denki, or The Dance of Death, a goth-manga-kabuki hybrid about post-death dating. Bain St-Michel (5300 St-Dominique) Jan 14–18, 8 p.m., $20–$25

Politically edgy local company Teesri Duniya offers Bhopal, about the disastrous 1984 poison gas explosion at a Union Carbide pesticide plant in India. While the subject matter’s pretty dark, the production promises a little light, too, showing the strength of the human spirit in the face of tragedy. Segal Centre Studio (5170 Côte-Ste-Catherine), Jan 15–Feb 2, Tue., Wed., Thu. and Sat., 8 p.m., Sun. 2 p.m., $15

Catch the short run of Paris, a local adaptation of Hunter Richards’ 2005 film London, the tale of two dudes partying their many, many regrets away. Jan 23–25, Théâtre Ste-Catherine (264 Ste-Catherine E.), 8 p.m., $15

Take in a little skin at Beautiful City Theatre’s live production of The Full Monty, a bit of musical theatre about working class men who take up stripping, adapted from the 1997 British film. Centaur Theatre (453 St-François-Xavier), Jan. 30–Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m., $20–$35

Finally, Chekhov’s classic bummer The Seagull plays the Segal. Peter Hinton reboots this play about a crew of late-19th-century hipsters partying at a lake house with an all-star cast, promising an early highlight to the year in drama. Feb 2–16, showtimes vary, $24–$49  ■