This is the Week That Is hits its political targets often, but they’re such easy targets. Or do you still get your jollies from jokes about McCain’s age, Obama’s slickness or Palin’s vapidity?

This Is the Week That Is. Conceived and directed by Jennifer Childs. Presented by 1812 Productions through November 2, 2008 at Plays and Players Theatre, 1724 Delancey Pl. (215) 592-9560 or www.1812productions.org.

I've seen my share of disturbing theater in Philadelphia over the past five years. And goodness knows stage nudity is no longer a big deal in the City of Brotherly Love. But nothing that I've seen in Philadelphia could have prepared me for what I watched in Athens the other night. Who in Philadelphia would have the courage to stage it?

Waterfront Wasteland/ Medea Material/ Landscape with Argonauts. Triptych by Heiner Müller. Asipka Theater Company production in Athens, Greece.

"Jon Schueler: Paintings from the 1950s and ’60s" displays work from the prime years of a neglected master of second-generation Abstract Expressionism who must be reckoned with in any accounting of what remains the most significant movement in modern American art.

Jon Schueler: Paintings from the 1950s and ’60s. Through October 25, 2008, at David Findlay Jr. Fine Art, 41 East 57th St., New York. (212) 486-7660 or www.davidfindlayjr.com.

Luna Theatre Company’s production of Neal Bell’s Monster has evoked conflicting reviews from the Inquirer’s Toby Zinman (who found it shallow) and Broad Street Review’s Lesley Valdes (who called it “art on a shoestring”). Our resident philosopher suggests both of them missed the big picture.

Monster. By Neal Bell; adapted from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; directed by Gregory Scott Campbell. Luna Theatre Co. production through November 2, 2008 at Independence Studio on Three, 825 Walnut St. (215) 704-0033 or www.lunatheater.org.

Charles Dutoit may have emphasized Berlioz in his pre-season remarks, but the Philadelphia Orchestra’s first three concerts indicated he’s prepared a more balanced menu. The big winners in all three events were the concertos.

Philadelphia Orchestra: Haydn Sinfonia concertante in B-flat major. Juliette Kang, violin; Daniel Matsukawa, bassoon; Hai-Ye Ni, cello; Richard Woodhams, oboe; Rossen Milanov, conductor.
Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat major; Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 1 in C-minor. Martha Argerich, piano; David Bilger trumpet; Charles Dutoit, conductor.
Penderecki Concerto Grosso No. 1 for three cellos and orchestra. Han-Na Chang, Daniel Miller-Schott, Arto Noras, cello; Charles Dutoit, conductor.
September 30, October 2 and 11, 2008 at Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center. (215) 893-1900 or www.philorch.org.

Beethoven’s Fidelio, like his Ninth Symphony, is a triumphal ode to freedom and love. This production does the piece proud.

Fidelio. By Ludwig van Beethoven; directed by Robert Driver. Opera Company of Philadelphia production through October 24, 2008 at Academy of Music, Broad and Locust Sts. (215) 732-8400 or www.operaphilly.com.

For all Mum Puppettheatre’s unique creativity and intelligence, it just ceased to exist after 23 years— and, sadly, not many people seem to have noticed.

For its production of Beethoven’s Fidelio, the Opera Company of Philadelphia spent $2 million on towering sets and costumes by the sculptor Jun Kaneko. The result is a succession of visually disconcerting images that overwhelmed a great opera and some excellent voices.

Fidelio. By Ludwig van Beethoven; directed by Robert Driver. Opera Company of Philadelphia production through October 24, 2008 at Academy of Music, Broad and Locust Sts. (215) 732-8400 or www.operaphilly.com.

Luna Theater’s season opener, Neal Bell’s The Monster, plays fast and loose with the Frankenstein legend, but not so fast or loose that you won’t recognize its pathos or its moral scrutiny.

Monster. By Neal Bell; adapted from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; directed by Gregory Scott Campbell. Luna Theatre Co. production through November 2, 2008 at Independence Studio on Three, 825 Walnut St. (215) 704-0033 or www.lunatheater.org.

Astral Artists protégé cellist Susan Babini will give her Philadelphia solo debut on Sunday Oct 19th at the Trinity Center for Urban Life. If Pablo Casals or Jacqueline DuPré had selected this program, the concert would have sold out months in advance.

Susan Babini: Solo Cello Debut Concert. Presented by Astral Artists October 19, 2008 at Trinity Center for Urban life, 2212 Spruce St. (215) 735-6699 or www.astralartists.org.