From outdoor Shakespeare and classic musical revivals to important contemporary plays, this summer is jammed with compelling, thrilling theater. This summer also marks your last chance to see the spectacular Off the Wall exhibition at the Gardner Museum and to study the works of Rodin at the Peabody Essex Museum. From Judy Garland and Anna Deavere Smith to Childe Hassam and Luca della Robbia, there is much to get excited about in Boston this summer.

PERFORMING ARTS

Get Happy: The Musical Biography of Judy Garland

Open-ended run through the summer

Club Café, Boston

A bittersweet, life-affirming evening of stories and songs performed by the sensational Peter Mac. Mickey Rooney himself presented Mac with the Southern California Motion Picture Council Golden Halo Award for this show, so catch it while you can. thejudygarlandshow.com

Bedlam’s Twelfth Night & What You Will

June 9-July 10

Central Square Theater, Cambridge

Bedlam is back at it again, presenting the same play two different ways with the same set of actors and the same director. After they earned raves in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, you should see one, or see them both. centralsquaretheater.org

If/Then

July 5-17

Boston Opera House

A fascinating contemporary musical by the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning creators of Next to Normal about what is and what might have been. Original Broadway cast member Anthony Rapp (Rent) reprises his role on tour.broadwayinboston.com

Thoroughly Modern Millie

July 7-17

Reagle Music Theatre, Waltham

The perfect summer musical. An infectious score and a side-splitting book make this a sure bet for all ages.reaglemusictheatre.com

Hamlet

July 13-31

Apollinaire Theatre Company @ PORT Park, Chelsea

The best play ever written being performed outside on the harbor. And it’s free. Bring blankets and food and make it an evening. The terrific Brooks Reeves stars as Hamlet. apollinairetheatre.com

The T Party

July 15-Aug 13

Company One @ Roberts Studio Theatre, Boston

Leave it to Company One to throw the party of the summer. Playwright Natsu Onoda Power directs this New England premiere of her play, which promises to take a one-of-a-kind look at gender expression in contemporary America. companyone.org

Love’s Labour’s Lost

July 20-Aug 7

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company @ The Boston Common

Free Shakespeare on the Common is undoubtedly one of the best parts about summer in the Hub. Feel free to bring food, but a variety of food trucks will also be on site. commshakes.org

Notes from the Field: Doing Time in Education

Aug 2016

American Repertory Theater, Cambridge

Created, written, and performed by the indispensable Anna Deavere Smith, ART kicks off its new season on a serious note, exploring the connections between America’s education system and its mass incarceration crisis. americanrepertorytheater.org

Crazy For You

Aug 4-14

Reagle Music Theatre, Waltham

I’m not a fan of shoehorning music catalogues (in this case, the Gershwin songbook) into a ridiculous plot and calling it a musical, but this one works. As far as musical comedies go, this one s’wonderful. reaglemusictheatre.com

Singin’ in the Rain

Aug 16-Sept 4

North Shore Music Theatre, Beverly

It will be hard to duplicate the magic of Gene Kelly and the original film, but I have a lot of faith in NSMT. And they’re promising real rain. nsmt.org

VISUAL ARTS

Drawings from the Age of Bruegel, Rubens, and Rembrandt

Through Aug 14

Harvard Art Museum, Cambridge

An exhibition containing about 40 of the Harvard Art Museum’s Netherlandish, Dutch, and Flemish drawings from the 15th-18th century. harvardartmuseums.org

Rodin: Transforming Sculpture

Through Sept 5

Peabody Essex Museum, Salem

Organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in collaboration with the Musée Rodin, Paris, this exhibition explores the work of Rodin and his impact on the art of sculpture. pem.org

Liz Deschenes

June 29-Oct 16

Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston

In the first mid-career survey dedicated to Boston-born Deschenes, 20 years of her artwork will be on display. icaboston.org

American Impressionist: Childe Hassam and the Isles of Shoals

July 16-Nov 6

Peabody Essex Museum, Salem

The first exhibition in more than 25 years to focus on Hassam’s paintings of the Isles of Shoals, located off the coast of New Hampshire. More than 40 of his works will be on display. pem.org

Off the Wall: Gardner and her Masterpieces

Through Aug 28

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston

An unprecedented look at some of Gardner’s finest treasures, featuring work by Rembrandt, Rubens, Fra Angelico, Botticelli, Raphael, and Michelangelo. gardnermuseum.org

Della Robbia: Sculpting with Color in Renaissance Florence

Aug 9-Dec 4

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

About 50 of Luca della Robbia’s 15th-century sculptures will be shown, including some never before seen in the United States. mfa.org