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Live from New York!

by Robert David Sullivan

With their Christmas baubles put back into storage for another year, Boston theater companies are ready to give us shows with a little more weight. A pre-Broadway production of one chestnut -- You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown -- has been canceled, but we can look forward to several Boston premieres of shows that generated a buzz in New York. We'll also get a new take on Ibsen, a new work by Don DeLillo, and a new direction from a favorite Boston performer.

Sing Me to Sleep (Coyote Theatre, January 8 through 31). John Kuntz wrote and stars in this production, which is all that a lot of theatergoers need to know before heading to the box office. Having reinforced his credentials as a first-rate comic actor in three productions last fall (Mere Mortals, After School Special, and SantaLand Diaries), Kuntz now aims for a more-serious tone, examining the lifelong repercussions of a young boy's run-in with a bully. The production's several Elliot Norton Award winners include Kuntz, co-star Paula Plum, and director Eric Engel.

Full Gallop (Merrimack Repertory Theatre, January 8 through 31). The one-woman comedy about longtime Vogue editor and "fashion oracle" Diana Vreeland premieres in Massachusetts after a highly successful off-Broadway run starring Mary Louise Wilson (who wrote the play with Mark Hampton). David Zoffoli directs this production, and Geraldine Librandi (last seen at the Merrimack in 'night, Mother) stars.

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Beast on the Moon (New Repertory Theatre, January 13 through February 14). Richard Kalinoski's drama about a refugee from the Armenian genocide and his mail-order bride in America (billed as a "shattering tale of survival") began as a staged reading last year and is slated to premiere in New York this spring.

A Coarse Evening (Mill 6 Collaborative, January 14 through 30). Michael Green, author of The Art of Coarse Acting, put together this string of intentionally hammy one-act sketches, including such alleged works as Chekhov's The Cherry Sisters and Shakespeare's Henry the Tenth, Part Seven. Mill 6, a new company, performs at the Beau Jest Moving Theatre.

Ragtime (Colonial Theatre, January 20 through March 28). Apparently, even bankruptcy proceedings can't stop this blockbuster musical from rolling into Boston. The touring company went broke in November, prompting rumors of a cancellation, but a court agreement allowed the show to go on to Seattle and keep its dates here. Winner of four Tonys, Ragtime begins in 1900 and encompasses the growth of the American labor movement, the birth of the automotive and film industries, and the onset of World War I. Terrence McNally wrote the book; Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens wrote the music and lyrics.

The Wizard of Oz (Wang Theatre, January 28 through February 7). Coinciding with the 60th anniversary of the Judy Garland film, this version of the children's classic features Mickey Rooney (who co-starred with Garland in 10 other films) as the Wizard.

Valparaiso (American Repertory Theatre, January 29 through March 17). Don DeLillo's "searing, hallucinatory" play is about a man who takes a wrong plane flight and ends up in a funhouse version of American society. The award-winning novelist (White Noise, Underworld) also premiered his previous play, The Dayroom, at the ART. David Wheeler directs.

Triumph of Love (SpeakEasy Stage Company, February 4 through 21). An 18th-century work by Pierre Marivaux inspired this musical farce about mistaken identity and true love, written by James Magruder (book), Jeffrey Stock (music), and Susan Birkenhead (lyrics). Last year's Broadway version starred Betty Buckley. The Boston production will be directed by Richard Carey, best-known for directing Kuntz in Freaks! and Actorz -- with a Z!

Solness the Master Builder (American Repertory Theatre, February 12 through March 21). ART artistic director Robert Brustein and Kate Whoriskey co-direct Brustein's own adaptation of the Ibsen masterpiece.

The Baltimore Waltz (Lyric Stage, February 12 through March 14). Before her Pulitzer-winning How I Learned to Drive, Paula Vogel wrote this drama about the ties between a brother and sister. Directed by Paula Plum.

Side Show (The Boston Conservatory, February 25 through 28). A cult Broadway musical is even more rare than Siamese twins -- which are the subject of this show by Bill Russell (book and lyrics) and Henry Kreiger (music). It puzzled many during its brief New York run, but a core of fans has been working diligently to keep the show alive in one form or another. Neil Donohue directs the Boston premiere at the Emerson Majestic Theatre.

The Steward of Christendom (Huntington Theatre Company, March 12 through April 11). Edward Gilbert directs the Boston premiere of Sebastian Barry's 1995 drama. Set in Dublin, it concerns an aging Catholic police chief with the unenviable job of protecting the seat of the British government against Irish rebels.

And in dance: The BankBoston Celebrity Series and Dance Umbrella team up to present the Mark Morris Dance Group with Mikhail Baryshnikov and cellist Yo-Yo Ma (February 25 through 28 at the Wang Theatre) in a program that includes the Boston premiere of Falling Down Stairs, set to Bach's Third Suite for Unaccompanied Trio. The Celebrity Series also brings us the Moiseyev Dance Company (January 10 at Symphony Hall) and Donald Byrd/The Group (March 26 through 28 at the Emerson Majestic Theatre), with choreography set to the music of jazz composers Max Roach and Vernon Reid. Dance Umbrella's other offerings include the Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre (March 11 through 14 at the Emerson Majestic Theatre). And Boston Ballet's springtime highlight is Balanchine! (March 8 through 29 at the Wang Theatre), featuring three masterworks by choreographer George B.