This week in theatre rounds up the most noteworthy live theatre playing right now in Toronto. It includes just-opened shows as well as productions that are about to close.

Quidam / Cirque du Soleil - Ricoh Coliseum / 7:30pm / 60+
Toronto has been lucky enough to have two Cirque shows — Totem and MJ The Immortal World Tour — make stops in our city. Quidam is the final offering of the year from the expanding Canadian circus troupe, which currently has 23 shows touring the globe. Young Zoé, neglected by her parents and seeking excitement, enters Quidam, a world of imagination in which embracing her own individuality allows for Zoé to find her true self.

Hair / Mirvish - Royal Alex / 8:00pm/2:00pm / $25+
Hair, one of the most important rock musicals of all time, was remounted on Broadway in 2009. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical Revival. Since then, it completed a successful stint in London, before coming to the Royal Alex for a short engagement. You probably know the story — draft cards are circulating in the 1960s for a war in Vietnam that many young people don't believe in. Turn on, tune in, and drop out with the hit songs of Hair.

2000 Candles / Walmer Centre Theatre / 8:00pm / $16-28
A series of vignettes and scenes, 2000 Candles journeys through a host of Christmas traditions to get to the heart of the Christian holiday. Touting itself as a contemporary and evocative Christmas performance, you're sure to find original ideas about the nature of the holiday and the role of friends and family. Featuring Ins Choi and Andrea Cross, 2000 Candles promises to reach beyond the usual rumination on Christmas.

Parfumerie / Soulpepper - Young Centre / 7:30pm / $28-$65
Miklós Laszló's Parfumerie is an homage to the playwright's hometown of Budapest. The play profiles the affluent citizens of the capital, along with the hardworking clerks and service people. The most important pairing is the two co-workers who can barely tolerate one another, yet have unknowingly been writing love letters to each other for more than a year. A hit from Soulpepper's 2009 season, Parfumerie, set during Christmas, makes its return to the Young Centre stage.

The Wizard of Oz / Elgin Theatre / 7:00pm/2:00pm / $32-$80
You know it's the holiday season when the annual Ross Petty pantomime, an imported British tradition, hits the stage. This time around The Wizard of Oz is the show of choice, with The Sound of Music's Elicia Mackenzie as Dorothy and Rock of Ages' Yvan Pedneault as the Tin Man. With Petty in tow as, who else, the Wicked Witch of the West, the panto camp will transform the story from heartwarming tale to over-the-top Oz-fest. And that's why audiences love it.

Photo of Cirque du Soleil's Quidam