Now See This

Get Out!

Some of us were raised on Mother Goose. Others, The Gashlycrumb Tinies. For the latter camp, schooled on those unsettling pen-and-ink drawings of proper folk engaging in all sorts of dark mischief, Edward Gorey is more than just an artist — he's an icon. In the first-ever traveling exhibition of his work, Brandywine hosts more than 180 ominous originals, everything from his macabre ABC book ("F is for Fanny, sucked dry by a leech") to the bizarre short story of an evil, parent-devouring baby. Bring your wild imagination; leave the kids at home (lest they die of ennui).

-Carolyn Huckabay

March 21-May 17, $10, Brandywine River Museum, U.S. Route 1, Chadds Ford, 610-388-2700, brandywinemuseum.org.

One might assume that a Catholic university's theater productions would be rather tame, but anyone who saw Villanova's sizzling Chicago a few years ago knows they're not shy about skin or sin. So expect a dark, sexy reprise: An American writer and a British singer fall in love amid delicious decadence, oblivious to the Nazis' rise. Everyone loves the rousing title song and the Emcee's "Wilkommen," but the score's biggest chills come from the eerily beautiful yet sinister "Tomorrow Belongs to Me," a haunting Nazi anthem of creeping fascism. Enjoy the naughty songs and skimpy costumes, but don't overlook the cautionary themes.

—Mark Cofta

March 24-April 19, $20-$24, Vasey Theatre, Villanova University, 800 Lancaster Ave., 610-519-7474, theatre.villanova.edu.

It's a good thing Chip Kidd didn't listen to his teachers. While an art student at Penn State, his professor told him he wasn't fit to be a book designer. Now Kidd whips up 70 or so book covers a year — all simple and droll, often with titles in inconspicuous places. (For example, Father's Day's title is embroidered into the tag of a yellow, paternal sweater.) He'll be chatting about his work, including Watching the Watchmen: The Definitive Companion to the Ultimate Graphic Novel (Titan Books), and how important it is to judge a book by its cover after all.

—Holly Otterbein

Tue., March 24, 7 p.m., free, Walk Auditorium, Temple University, 1301 Cecil B. Moore Ave., 215-777-9170, temple.edu.

We've been warned time and again: Do not post incriminating pictures of yourself on the Internet. In Space 1026's group exhibit, Jeannette Mundt drives this message home with her crudely rendered, cringe-worthy watercolors of women in varying states of drunkenness and nudity — based on actual Facebook photos. In stark contrast, Suzannah Sinclair's hyper-realistic watercolors-on-birch show subjects in their most private moments, unguarded and unposed. The portraits are photographic in their precision, but the whorled texture of the underlying wood makes the women appear almost wraithlike: You can literally see right through them. Mundt's images seem designed to disturb and provoke; Sinclair's voyeurism is subtler, more akin to peering through a keyhole.

—Lauren F. Friedman

Through March 27, Space 1026, 1026 Arch St., second floor, 215-574-7630, space1026.com.

Iron Age Theatre might be better known if not in residence out in Norristown, but then director-designer duo Randall Wise and John Doyle wouldn't have all that open space to build hugely theatrical sets. Their excellent stagecraft complements their play choices, which tend toward heartfelt dramas genuinely performed — so Naomi Wallace's Birdy seems another ideal choice. The coming-of-age story about a bird-obsessed boy and his loyal buddy soars when their friendship is tested by postwar trauma. "With all the wounded soldiers returning home from the Middle East," says Doyle, "this is an extremely timely play."

—Mark Cofta

March 27-April 26, $22, Iron Age Theatre at Centre Theater, 208 DeKalb St., Norristown, 610-279-1013, ironagetheatre.org.