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If you give a Wimpy Kid a Minneapolis premiere, he's going to ask for a Broadway hit. 

 now in production at Children's Theatre, is proving itself a popular heir to the mega-popular "Wimpy Kid" line of books and movies. And the Kid's creator, Jeff Kinney, makes no secret that he'd like this show to have a shot at the big time. "I think most people would hope that their play would go on to Broadway and to be successful," 

. "I mean, that would be something." At Children's Theatre in Minneapolis, with a run just extended through June 12.

 You should see the show before Broadway ruins it.

But before you see "Wimpy Kid," hustle over to the Ritz in northeast Minneapolis. This weekend is your last chance to see 

 a splendid musical adaptation of the Cyrano de Bergerac story dreamed up by Bradley Greenwald and performed by him and 

 is well worth seeing, both for the talents of the two-person cast (Anna Sundberg and Ron Menzel) and for the smart and compelling script. And it confines itself to one act, performed in 85 minutes with no intermission. That's a blessing in this universe, with its babysitters who have to be taken home and dogs that need to be let out. It continues through the end of May. ... The science on parallel universes is better than the science on giant rabbits, but even so, 

, and it has about two weeks left in its run at the Guthrie. ... Meanwhile, Theatre in the Round opens 

Maybe you're in a relationship with someone who doesn't enjoy dance and especially doesn't like ballet. Before you give up on that person, give the 

 a shot. It's a company that takes an inventive and wry approach to its art, and seems flatly uninterested in doing what you've seen before. This weekend, for example, it continues its spring show with "Band It," in which ballet meets band music. Yes, band music, as in high school band music, courtesy the Edina High School band. There will also be hover boards and giant inflatable balls. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, at the Cowles Center in Minneapolis.

 concludes its 20th season with a program that should appeal to early-music fans: Byrd, Purcell, Bach, Handel and more, plus the world premiere of a commissioned piece by Minnesota composer 

. It's the Roses' first performance in the Ordway Concert Hall in St. Paul, and it comes sandwiched between a pre-concert brunch and a post-concert party. Or you can just attend the concert, at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Oh, this is awkward — besides the Rose Ensemble, another superb choral organization is celebrating a major birthday this weekend. The National Lutheran Choir is concluding its 30th season with a concert titled 

 Under the leadership of David Cherwien, the choir will tackle the work of F. Melius Chistiansen, the founding father of choral music in Minnesota, as well as some of the founding uncles who followed him — names like Kenneth Jennings, Rene Clausen and Cherwien himself. At 

7:30 p.m. Friday at St. John's Lutheran Church in Northfield

4 p.m. Sunday at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis

Arts and Culture

Eric Ringham

Author

"Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Musical" tops our recommendations for arts to-dos this weekend. But you have many options.

'Wimpy Kid' and other arts events not to be missed this weekend

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