Our critics' picks of this week's openings, plus your last chance to see and what to book now
• Which cultural events are in your diary this week? Tell us in the comments below
Opening this week
Theatre
A Provincial Life
Russia comes to Wales as Peter Gill returns to the city of his birth to christen the rebuilt Sherman theatre with his own adaptation of Chekhov's short story. The 17th National Theatre Wales production is about the search for equality in a world of rich and poor. Sherman, Cardiff (029-2064 6901), Thursday to 17 March.
The Lady from the Sea
Joely Richardson follows in the wet footsteps of both her mother, Vanessa Redgrave, and her sister, Natasha, in playing Ellida Wangel, Ibsen's mysterious heroine haunted by memories of a sailor and the sea. Rose, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey (0844 482 1556), tonight to 17 March.
Film
Rampart (dir. Oren Moverman)
James Ellroy is the screenwriter of this gripping tale of a dirty LAPD cop. Woody Harrelson is the crooked officer, facing a brutal endgame. Out now.
Dance
Ballet Black: Short Dance Works
As always, this small-scale company punches above its weight, with brand new repertory from the likes of Christopher Hampson and Martin Lawrance. Linbury Studio Theatre at Royal Opera House, London (020-7304 4000), Wednesday to 6 March.
Classical/opera
Tristan and Isolde
Andris Nelsons continues his Wagnerian exploration, conducting the CBSO in a concert performance, with Stephen Gould and Lioba Braun as the doomed lovers. Symphony Hall, Birmingham (0121-345 0600), Saturday, 4pm.
The Turn of the Screw
Oliver Mears directs NI Opera's latest production, with Fiona Murphy as the haunted governess and Andrew Tortise as Peter Quint. Theatre at the Mill, Newtonabbey (028-9034 0202), Friday; Riverside theatre, Coleraine (028-7012 3123), 3 March; then touring to Omagh, Belfast and the Buxton festival, Derbyshire.
Jazz
Portico Quartet
Portico's music – their unique hang-drum sound and rich electronic effects – grow increasingly varied and subtle. Expect trancelike grooves, hooks and cinematic themes from the 2008 Mercury prize nominees. Komedia, Brighton (0845 293 8480), Thursday; Sage, Gateshead (0191-443 4661), 5 March. Touring until 10 March.
Art
AV Festival 12: As Slow As Possible
With concerts, walks, exhibitions and screenings throughout the north-east, the International Festival of Art, Technology, Music and Film features On Kawara, John Gerrard, Manon de Boer and a bewildering roster of film-makers, artists and musicians. Take your time. Details: 0191 227 5512, Thursday to 31 March.
Alighiero Boetti: Game Plan
The high point of the late Italian arte povera artist's major retrospective are the wonderful world maps he commissioned: embroidered by craftswomen in Afghanistan, they present a magic-carpet atlas of the modern world. Tate Modern, London (020-7887 8888), Tuesday to 27 May.
Pop
Laura Marling
Self-possessed folk-pop darling, ascending to ever-greater commercial heights with last year's A Creature I Don't Know. Cambridge Corn Exchange, Thursday (01223 357851); Then touring (0844 811 0051).
Mark Lanegan Band
Officially the scariest man in rock, Lanegan turns his attention to dance music, among other things, on his latest album, Blues Funeral. O2 Academy, Bristol (0844 477 2000), Sunday; then touring.
Last chance to see
Theatre
'Tis Pity She's a Whore
Jacobean revenge drama is very much back in fashion, and John Ford's wild and gory incest-fest gets a terrific revival by Cheek by Jowl in a production set around the teenage Arabella's bed. Silk Street theatre, London (0845 120 7550), until 10 March.
Film
Like Crazy (dir. Drake Doremus)
Here's what One Day could have been. Felicity Jones stars in a story of love and bad timing. Out now.
Classical
Norma
Christopher Alden's fierce, industrialised staging of Bellini's bel canto masterpiece for Opera North, with Annemarie Kremer as the vengeful druid priestess. The Lowry, Salford Quays (0843 208 6000), Wednesday and Saturday; Theatre Royal, Newcastle (0844 811 2121), 7 and 10 March.
Jazz
Baptiste Trotignon
Jazz and crossover pianist Trotignon has been winning rising-star prizes – for his tradition-steeped approach inflected by classical, rock, and all manner of world-music influences. This Partager festival gig pairs him with Argentinian tango drummer Minino Garay. Vortex, London (020-7254 4097), Monday.
Pop
Simple Minds
Credible once more, Simple Minds tour songs from their first five incredible albums. HMV Ritz Manchester (0843 221 0976), Saturday.
Jonathan Richman
Nothing much changes in the world of Jonathan Richman, which means he remains as entertaining a live performer as it's possible to be. Tour ends Union Chapel, London (020-7403 3331), 2 March.
Art
Hanne Darboven
Obsession and repetition, music, notation and numbers mark the passing of time in the late German artist's curious and moving art. A strange and static music plays, in your head as well as across the walls. Camden Arts Centre, London (020-7472 5500), ends 18 March.
Book now
Theatre
Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad
Baghdad's Iraqi Theatre Company re-imagine the star-crossed lovers, with the country's musical and poetic traditions infusing the story, which is given extra relevance by Sunni and Shia divisions. Swan, Stratford-upon-Avon (0844 800 1110), 12 April to 5 May.
Ann Liv Young: Mermaid Show
The provocative New York performance artist explores the allure of myth in a show in which the fairytale meets the grotesque and which could turn out to be a mite smelly, as it features raw fish. The Arches, Glasgow (0141-565 1000), 31 March to 1 April.
The Just Price of Flowers
The enormous demand for tulips in 17th-century Europe is used to explore the 2008 financial collapse as Stan's Café theatre troupe consider the futures market, sub-prime mortgages, short selling and credits ratings in playful fashion. Features origami, too. AE Harris Factory, Birmingham (0121-236 4455), 15 June to 30 June.
Film
Michael (dir. Markus Schleinzer)
This chilling movie, directed by Michael Haneke's former casting director, is a disturbing study of a paedophile who keeps a 10-year-old child locked in a basement. Out 2 March.
Dance
Royal Ballet Mixed Bill
One of the year's most exciting programmes of contemporary ballets, with new works from both Wayne McGregor and rising star Liam Scarlett, plus a revival of Christopher Wheeldon's tautly beautiful Polyphonia. Royal Opera House, London (020-7304 4000), 5-23 April.
Classical
Total Immersion: Brett Dean
The latest of the BBC's composer days is devoted to the 50-year-old Australian, and includes the UK premiere of his Grawemeyer award-winning violin concerto, The Lost Art of Letter Writing. Barbican, London (020-7638 8891) 17 March.
Art
Thomas Ruff
Photographer Thomas Ruff's pictures are derived from Nasa images of Mars and from internet pornography. His images – enlarged and adulterated, pixelated and smeared – are barely photographs at all, more a kind of painting by proxy. Gagosian galleries (Davies St and Britannia St), London , 8 March to 21 April.
Pop
Rizzle Kicks
Appealingly effervescent, Day-Glo take on pop-rap, informed more by late 1980s hip-hop than grime or rave. Tour begins at Leamington Spa Assembly (01926 311311), 26 April.