Fall theater preview: A glittering parade

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Here and elsewhere, the fall theater season is unusually starry. Local highlights include Annette Bening in “Medea” and the return of that overgrown enfant terrible Pee-wee Herman.

On Broadway, Jude Law takes the “Hamlet” plunge, while Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig adorn their adored physiques in police uniforms for Keith Huff’s two-hander, ‘A Steady Rain.’ Meanwhile, Cate Blanchett, not needing to depend on the kindness of critics, travels to Washington, D.C., and Brooklyn with the Sydney Theatre Company’s production of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire,’ directed by Liv Ullmann.

And if that’s not enough, there are shows about Mr. Wonderful, Sammy Davis Jr. and that all-time superstar William Shakespeare. But the event that probably has fans most amped up is the world premiere of ‘American Idiot’ at Berkeley Rep, a musical spun from Green Day’s hugely popular album. Theater buffs are pretty avid, but rock groupies take it to a whole other level.

See the season’s most anticipated theater by clicking on the photo gallery.

-- Charles McNulty

.