Kevin's Minnesota Theatre Adventures- AX OF MURDER, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, and ANASTASIA- Page 2

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 2/29/24 at 5:52pm

Wow, that is a great season, much better than many other cities I've seen announced. And you guys getting the world premiere of Purple Rain? What a wonderful tribute to Prince in the state he called home and loved so much. Enjoy. 

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 2/29/24 at 6:14pm

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "Kevin, have you or are you seeing Clue?"

I've been too busy lately to see a lot of theatre, but I may take a day trip to MSP to see it this weekend. Will report back if that's the case!

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 3/3/24 at 10:52pm

I managed to get down to the Twin Cities to see Clue.  Was it worth a 2.5 hour drive both ways to see a 90 minute show?

Indeedy-do.

I've always enjoyed playing the board game, but have only seen the movie beginning to end once or twice, so while I can't recall all of the specific beats the play sems to be capturing them well, while adding its own specifically theatrical flair, and it's a blast.  I was laughing consistently throughout, thanks to a script with a well balanced combination of clever wordplay and dumb jokes(executed in a smart way).  The whole cast was wonderful, but this show really belongs to John Shartzer as Mr Green and Mark Price as Wadsworth.  Shartzer is particular gives a masterclass in comedic acting - it's the sort of performance that teeters on the edge of being too much (he plays up the mincing and neurotic nature of the character much more than I recall Michael McKean doing in the movie) but then he breaks out some incredible physical comedy - he has a gag involving a slow motion falling chandelier that had my audience dying.  Mark Price is also excellent, from how hard he tries to maintain a modicum of dignity on the proceedings, to how he herds the group from place to place, to a monologue he has near the end that plays like a non-musical version of "Betrayed" from The Producers. I also really liked John Treacey Egan, who plays Colonel Mustard as a galoot who is too much of an idiot to realize he's an idiot, and Michelle Elaine as Miss Scarlet, whose deadpan cracks show she's the only character who doesn't much seem to care if her secret gets out.  The set was also very impressive, with modular elements coming in and out to represent the different rooms of Boddy Manor, and there was some delightful choreography, including dance breaks to represent how the characters move from room to room (I know there's already a Clue musical available for licensing, but I could easily see this script being used as the basis for a musical as well).

The madcap nature of the script might be too much for some people, and the ending probably goes on a bit too long, but I had a wonderful time and would definitely recommend this script for local theatre groups.

Another show I saw recently was a production of The LIghtning Thief.  This was done by a community theatre, albeit one with a six-figure operating budget (my DREAM!), so it was probably as close as I've seen to one of these regional groups having production values that rival a professional production.  I'm totally unfamiliar with the Percy Jackson franchise, having not read the books or seen any of the screen portrayals, so I can't speak to whether the show is an accurate representation of them, but as theatrical entertainment it was a rock-solid show.  The story was pretty standard YA stuff we've seen a hundred times before (when's someone going to do a stage production of Animorphs?) but there were plenty of clever jokes and some really good production design, effects, and choreography.  The songs were fun in the moment, but only "The Campfire Song" and "Drive".had any staying power in my mind afterwards.  The diverse cast were all clearly having a good time - the actor playing Percy seemed a little unsteady at times, but he had a lot of charm and likeability and clear vocal chops, and played well opposite the actors playing Annabeth and Grover.  The actor playing Dionysus was also a hoot, playing up his grouchiness at just the right level of over-the-top.

As far as my own community theatre experiences go, I just wrapped up production on 12 Angry Men which was one of the best ensembles i've been honored to be a part of and went straight into rehearsals of a production of The Miracle Worker.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 3/7/24 at 11:34am

The 24-25 Broadway At the Ordway lineup was announced and like last year's, it feels somewhat underwhelming. I'll happily drive down to see Ain't Too Proud  again, but  Mean Girls? Dear Evan Hansen? Mystic Pizza? Not a lot that's jumping out to me as a must-see.

On the other hand, the Guthrie Theatre's 24-25 season sounds fantastic, a combination of classic, contemporary, and new. There's hardly a production in the bunch that reads as skippable. 

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 3/7/24 at 1:44pm

I think almost the opposite, lol! I saw the Guthrie announcement which felt very anticlimactic to me, and I love Ordway is getting Fire Shut Up In My Bones. 

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 3/17/24 at 11:54pm

I saw two more shows in St. Paul this weekend, and by sheer providence once again they were bound by a common theme - both shows were 1960s-set pieces about integration and what happens when white people who hadn't thought much about racism find themselves caught in the middle of the fights for, and against, the presence of Black people in previously white spaces. 

A Unique Assignment is the new original drama premiering at the History Theatre. This theatre earned a lifetime's worth of good will from me with their excellent production The Boy Wonder last year (and I'm still kicking myself over not being able to see I am Betty last November), so I was definitely excited for their latest fact-based show.

This play tells the story of James Merideth,  the first Black student to try and enroll in Ole Miss. It also tells the story of Henry Gallagher, a young Army lieutenant from Minnesota who was assigned to lead Merideth's security detail after racist backlash to his enrollment led to deadly riots on campus. It's natural to be wary of whether a story like this will end up being another Green Book or Driving Miss Daisy, with the white outsider being taught a valuable lesson by proximity to a Black person facing discrimination. While there are elements of that here, the script by Harrison David Rivers doesn't reduce the story to something so simplistic, and while that leads to some curious structural elements it's still overall a satisfying drama.

The story is told almost on two separate tracks. Gallagher's story, appropriately enough for a soldier who sees his historic task as just another mission,  is told in a procedural, almost Dragnet-esque manner that is infused with a lot of humor. Gallagher is played by two different actors: Pearce Bunting is the 73-year-old Gallagher whose memories provide the frame of the story while Kevin Fanshaw is the 23-year-old Gallagher in the moment, with the two of them alternating and sometimes sharing narration duties. James Merideth is played by James A. Williams, who playwright Rivers and director Richard D. Thompson wisely allow to tell his own story through a series of powerfully-delivered monologues that almost feel like excerpts from a one-man-show. There is a historical basis for this - Merideth was certainly grateful for and aware of the role Gallagher and the other soldiers played, but he never became friends with them.  As he puts it, he had his own reasons for enrolling at Ole Miss, doing his part to break the system of white supremacy and discrimination, and by  comparison the presence of the soldiers assigned to his security was mostly incidental. Gallagher, born in a working-class Minneapolis neighborhood circa the 1940s, interacted with mostly white people his entire life, so being tossed into a charged environment like Mississippi in the 60s turned into a trial by fire for him. In a nice tough, Gallagher at point says that he never saw much of a difference between white soldiers and Black soldiers,  while Merideth says of his experience serving in the Air Force that he understood every day why being a Black soldier was different (I would have liked more peeks into Merideth's personal life, but I can understand why the show preferred to focus on his experience at the Ole Miss campus)

Kevin Fanshaw as the younger Gallagher is the only actor confined to a single role. Bunting, Williams, and Kevin Brown Jr. all alternate between the various other people who find themselves caught up in the story. Sometimes this leads to some confusion as to who exactly is playing who at any given time, but once you get into the show's rhythm it works (I still would have preferred a larger ensemble, though). Kirby Moore's starkly effective set design allows for dynamic use of lighting and projections to help build the atmosphere, and Thompson's direction creates some great stage images.

On the far other end of the spectrum, I saw the touring company of Hairspray  at the Ordway. My only previous exposure to this material was the 2007 movie (just about a perfect movie, if you ask me) and this touring production captures every bit of the same infectious energy and joy - this is really a show that makes you want to get up and dance. This performance had a few understudies stepping in, and I want to give special mention to Amy Rodriguez who gave a brilliant performance as Tracy Turnblad, brimming with all of the energy and enthusiasm you'd want in the role.  Of the regular cast, Greg Kalafatas made a very good Edna, not making the drag element a joke in and of itself but as just one element of humor in a sincere and earnest performance.  Skylar Shields as Link felt kind of limp at first - I never really bought him as a star or heartthrob until he was able to match Rodriguez's energy during "Without Love".  After that and through the end his performance was much livelier and more exciting.  Josiah Rogers as Seaweed, Andrew Scoggin as Corny Collins, and Scarlett Jaques as Penny were also standouts. As for the production as a whole the songs were infectious, the choreography dazzling, and all of it together added up to a ton of fun.

Updated On: 3/18/24 at 11:54 PM

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 4/28/24 at 11:43am

My community theatre experiences this spring have involved three different shows:

I drove to the University of Minnesota Duluth to see their production of Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, and it was truly a remarkable show.  I had previously seen the U's production of The Spitfire Grill (a show that shares several cast members with this) and as much as I enjoyed that show, nothing could have prepared me for this much more ambitious and elaborate production.  Using the entirety of a thrust stage, the audience is catapulted into the world of Tolstoy by way of Dave Malloy's infectious music.  Director Thomas Jackson takes the complicated narrative and turns it into an experience you don't so much lose track of as lose yourself in, always finding a character or plotline to focus on and care about at any given moment.  He's helped by an immensely talented cast, who slide into their characters with ease, building upon the archetypes from the prologue into layered and real people.  One quibble I have is that the sound design felt unbalanced at times, especially with the male voices who at times risked being overwhelmed by the live musicians (even when they were performing instruments themselves a la the original Broadway production) That's a shame, because Aaron Dumalag as Pierre and Tanner Longshore as Anatole gave very powerful performances, to the point where they'll probably embody the characters in my imagination whenever I think about the show from now on.  I also want to give recognition to the ensemble, who keep the energy up and the show mo9 ving, especially during "The Abduction" where they broke out some incredibly exciting and fun choreography.  This was as good as any college production I've ever seen in my life.

I also saw a community theatre production of Something Rotten!, a show I was aware of by reputation but had not seen or heard the music from until now. I can't pretend to be objective watching this, as I have worked on various shows with many of the people involved, but for a show this broad and goofy all you really need to know is whether or not I laughed.  And I laughed a ton. The rapid-fire references to to Shakespeare and musical theatre got me every time, as did the bawdy wordplay involving poetry.  I also loved their portrayal of Shakespeare as an Elizabethan rock star.  Having worked with this director on 9 to 5 and Kinky Boots I initially thought this show lacked some of her signature high energy, but once they got to "The Black Death" everything kicked into high gear.  The cast was clearly having the time of their lives, and that level of fun is just infectious to the audience.

For my own part I had a small role in my local community theatre's production of The Miracle Worker. This production was a little rough getting going - from what I understand the (first-time) director had difficulty securing a performance space and ended up having to utilize a space other than what he wanted.  We ended up performing in a makeshift theatre in the round, which fit the material well enough.  The director also seemed to lack an overall vision - he appeared to know what he wanted to a few key sequences but the rest he seemed to be making up as he went along, which led to some confusion among the cast.  Thankfully, our actresses playing Helen and Anne were game from the jump and many of the supporting cast members had experience directing so with their help we were able to bring everything together into a satisfying show by opening night. It's really nice when a show goes from a mess to something fully formed, and the audiences really enjoyed it.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 5/19/24 at 10:47pm

Blended 和 (Harmony) at the History Theatre in St. Paul is another entertaining and insightful originsl musical highlighting a piece of local history that might otherwise be forgotten. It tells the true story of the Kim Loo Sisters, a singing group of four Chinese-Polish sisters from Minneapolis who managed to make a name for themselves on the vaudeville circuit before becoming the first Asian American act to perform on Broadway in the 1930s. With an original score by Jacinth Greywood (music director of the recent acclaimed off-Broadway revivals of ​I Can Get it For You Wholesale and Jelly's Last Jam) styled after the swing music of the era and star-making turns from Kelsey Angel Baehrens and Audrey Mojica, this showcases the excitement and heartbreak that comes from the compromises one has to make in order to pursue a career in showbiz. The core of the drama is how the sisters see their act reshaped by their white Broadway producer to be more "realistic" to their white audience (as well as movie star Ann Miller (Audrey Parker), who is the true star of the showcase) the resulting cultural mishmash is so offensive that it causes Jensen (Baehrens) to quit on the spot, while the others stay on for the sake of trying to find success, which they do to the extent that showbiz of the 30s would allow Asian women (ie very limited) other noteworthy characters are their strong-willed Polish mother (Ann Michels) and Moulin (Ethan Yaheen-Moy Chan) the big-hearted son of a Chinese general who finds himself the target of the affections of two of the sisters, but it is Mojica as the youngest sister Bubbles who walks away with the show. Funny, flirty, and with all of the vivacious energy and heart you'd expect from someone with that name, she commands attention whenever she's onstage.

I also attended a marathon day of Shakespearen history plays at the Guthrie, and it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience in every sense of the word. From the poetic dialogue and political maneuvering of Richard II to the alternately deeply drama and very funny Henry IV, to the rousing Henry V, you truly feel like you've been witness to a whole other world. All three shows are well-made, but if you have to see one, see Henry IV - as good as the others were, that one was TRANSCENDENTLY good. The portrayals of this story I'm most familiar with (Orson Welles' brilliant Chines at Midnight and the BBC's excellent The Hollow Crown) play into the characterization of Prince Hal as a schemer - someone whose loutish persona is a knowing act that he fully intends to cast off as soon as he ascends the throne. In this production Prince Hal (Daniel José Molina) is a genuine screwup. There's nothing calculating about his desire to pal around with Falstaff (Jimmy Kieffer) and his crew... he does it because it's fun. That makes his dual relationships with Falstaff and his father King Henry (William Sturdivant, who between this and Richard II does a remarkable job at portraying the whole arc of a man's life) all the more poignant because he loves them both. When he's called up to fight against Hotspur, Princely duty seems almost like an afterthought.. what he really wants to do is prove himself to his father. Late in the play, when Hal and Henry have their final conversation in the latter's deathbed, I had genuine tears in my eyes, and Hal's final rebuke of Falstaff made the whole audience gasp.

Henry IV was so good that the more straightforward Henry V felt almost disappointing as a follow-up. We had already seen Hal go through an entire arc leading up to this point, so where is he to go as he invades France? It doesn't help that Shakespeare's material gets off to a slow start and has a lot of interchangeable comic relief scenes (these productions in general lean into the comedy a lot, mostly succefully, but it feels most totally odd in Henry V). Molina delivers all of Henry's great speeches with verve, and when he's allowed to slow down a bit during his incognito scenes and later when he woos the French princess we get to see the range and nuance that made his Prince Hal shine so much.

Finally, I also saw the touring company of MJ at the Orpheum. As a showcase for the singing and dancing talents of its cast, it was excellent (a wooden performance by Mary Kate Moore as the MTV reporter aside). As an examination of Michael Jackson as a person, it was more superficial than insightful.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 6/16/24 at 5:29pm

I was finally able to see Come From Away when the current tour came through St. Paul. I know this show by reputation - I'm not an Apple guy so I haven't seen the proshot and I deliberately avoided listening to the music because I wanted to experience it fresh given how beloved it is, and boy did the show live up to the hype. It's another example of the rarest of objects: a musical filled with characters who feel like people you'd encounter in everyday life. Keeping the characterization low-key and grounded is the key to a lot of the show's power - it reminds you that despite the extraordinary circumstances, everyone involved was ultimately an ordinary person. The show moves quick, but you never lose track of the characters. It feels almost like the theatrical equivalent of a Robert Altman film - a wide-ranging collage of personalities that occasionally cross paths and whose shared experiences illuminate each others' roles in the story. The cast was fantastic, moving in and out of their various roles with precision, so you always knew who was who at any given time. The choreography also works wonders, helping create the various locations with minimal set (there's no turntable here as was on Broadway, which makes me curious about how the choreography was adapted) and the music was impeccable, helping guide the comedy, tragedy, and drama throughout the story.

Also, now having seen all three shows live  I can totally understand the resentment fans of Come From Away and Great Comet have towards Dear Evan Hansen for winning Best Musical at the Tonys. I enjoyed DEH a lot, though.

After seeing CFA I stopped at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre to see their current production of Beautiful: the Carol King Musical. Like so many millennials with boomer parents I had an awareness of the songs written by King from them being played on the radio growing up, but I had very little awareness of who Carol King herself was. Now having seen the show, I feel I have a better idea, but also sense that there's more that could have been explored. The first act of the musical is basically conflict free, starting with a rather truncated romance with King & Gerry Goffin and quickly moving on to the good-natured professional rivalry between them and Cynthia Weil & Barry Mann that feels largely like a song delivery system. That's appropriate in a way because they worked as songwriters in what amounts to a music factory, but it doesn't give the actors a whole lot to dig into or go into a lot of detail on the songwriting process. I have to give a big shoutout to the ensemble whose reenactments of the various pop groups were a highlight of the show, with impeccable costuming and lighting as well. A favorite part for me was the "Locomotion" sequence, starting with the way Little Eva is introduced and ending with Alan Bach's perfectly deadpan delivery of "They're making hits with their babysitter!"

The second half amped up the conflict, drama-wise, and that made it more engaging for me. It gave Monet Sable a lot more to do as an actress, and you really see both character and actress come into her own (of course Sable has previously played King on tour and in other productions, so the character issues seem to come mostly from Douglas McGrath's book) and the awesomely named Shad Hanley does a good job of showing how Gerry Goffin's mental illness and inferiority complexe fed off of each other, even if the exploration of those issues feels somewhat superficial. Shinah Hay and Alan Bach make for a fun counterpart, with Bach in particular demonstrating wonderful comic timing. Michael Gruber also made a strong impression as Don Kirschner, who avoids lots of the clichés associated with music execs in favor of being a mam who simply takes his job seriously.

Even if the drama seems superficial it's ultimately very satisfying, especially once Carol is able to take back control of her life in the rousing final sequences. It's perfectly well-suited for a dinner theatre environment such as Chanhassen.

Closer to home, a local-ish community theatre put on a production of August: Osage County - much darker material than we tend to get around these parts. But with a cast full of some of the most talented actors we have (many of whom I've worked with in the past) they were able to bring Tracy Letts's script to life with all of the energy and dark humor needed. I can't claim to be objective given my connection to a lot of the cast members, but I can say that whether they were cast within their wheelhouse or against type, everyone gave a strong performance with noone overshadowing anyone else. I especially liked the brief moments of love and warmth that were put on display, showing that the family hasn't ​​​​​always been a dumpster fire, and that maybe just maybe some of the wounds could be healed. This is the director's last production in this area, and I've very much enjoyed the other shows of hers I've seen, like Brigjton Beach Memoirs and especially Silent Sky. I wish her the best in whatever future ventures she has.

For my own part, I'm currently in rehearsals for productions of Matilda and Mary Poppins​​​​​, both of which will perform in July. I also have a whole list of other shows, both professional and amateur, that I'm hoping to see over the course of the summer, such as I'm Proud of You,  Tuesdays With Morrie, Glensheen!, Tick Tick Boom, Little Shop of Horrors, English, and Once.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 6/27/24 at 11:52pm

Most of my focus on theatre events to watch is on local events or bigger productions/tours in the Twin Cities.  But not long ago I saw on Twitter a local news story about a play about Mister Rogers being produced by Theatre L'Homme Du in Alexandria, a good-sized city Westward of me, my interest was piqued.

I'm Proud of You is adapted from the memoir of the same name written by Tim Madigan, a Texas-based journalist originally born in Minnesota who built a friendship with Fred Rogers while writing a profile of him.  If this sounds familiar, it's because this same story was fictionalized in the Marielle Heller film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood from a few years back.  This adaptation is presumably a lot closer to the real events, being co-written by Madigan himself along with Dr. Harry B. Parker.  This is, I believe, only the second time the show has been produced, the first being by the Circle Theatre in Fort Worth in 2023.

Madigan is played by Tod Petersen, a veteran Minnesota actor whose credits include work for Theatre Latte Da, Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, and the History Theatre, among others.  He guides us through the story, telling how his idea to write about violence in television in the mid-90s inspired him to reach out to Fred Rogers (as well as Captain Kangaroo, who he readily admits was his preference growing up) for commentary.  Petersen plays the part with a great deal of poignant vulnerability as well as humanity and humor.  It's a wonderful piece of acting that helps keep the audience engaged through a story that, like many memory plays, is less a narrative than a series of vignettes connected by a common theme, in this case how Madigan's friendship with Fred Rogers helped him deal with a severe depression and repair his relationship with his family.

Rogers is played by David Bukema, another local actor making his debut at L'Homme Dieu.  He doesn't bear much of a physical resemblance to Fred Rogers (and the fact that he's visibly younger than Tod Peterson when Rogers was significantly older than Madigan is initially a little distracting) but he's able to capture Rogers' distinctive tone of voice, his mannerisms, and, more importantly, his spirit.  Mister Rogers as a person and an icon is defined by his goodness and sincerity, and by all accounts from the people who knew him he was exactly the sort of person who he appeared to be.  Beukema is able to embody that completely, and soon you have no difficulty at all accepting him in th role. The ensemble is filled out by Thomas Bevan and Joy Donley who both play multiple roles, most significantly family members of Madigan and Rogers. Bevan in particular really impressed me - he plays both the father and brother Tim Madigan had become alienated from at different points.  That he manages to turn in two fully distinctive and layered performances without relying on gimmicks is a tribute to his talent - he's one to keep an eye on for sure.

Credit also goes to director Greta Grosch for keeping the show moving and carefully balancing the tone that can go from comedic to heartbreaking and back oftentimes within the same scene.  Admittedly there are some pacing or structural issues she has to deal with - the way the different subplots/vignettes jump around in time sometimes makes the show seem like it was stalling, and overall feel longer than its 90 minute runtime (I might think including an intermission might help with some of the structural issues). The set design is simple but effective, with different areas on stage simply standing in for the various locations.

Structural quibbles aside, this was an incredibly moving and special piece of theatre.  I don't know what the future of this particular play is, but I could easily see it becoming a classic of regional companies.  And as far as the talent goes, Theatre L'Homme Dieu gets a gold star for my first experience with them, and I definitely plan on returning for the productions of Tick, Tick... Boom! and Once they have planned for later this summer.

I was also planning on seeing a local production of Tuesdays With Morrie this weekend, but unfortunately the show was cancelled due to an illness in the cast. Hopefully it can be rescheduled soon.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 7/22/24 at 12:04am

The second show I've seen in two months from Theatre L'Homme Dieu in Alexandria was Tick, Tick... BOOM!, produced in partnership with Artistry MN in Bloomington and directed by Kelli Foster Warder, well known for the acclaimed Theatre Latte Da production of Hello Dolly! Her approach to Jonathan Larson's autobiographical work seems to be largely to let the music and book speak for itself.  There's not a lot of fat in this production - her three actors use a minimum of scenery and props to guide us through Larson's story of a young composer facing an existential crisis as he approaches the age of 30.  One issue I had in the production is that while I don't know the precise ages of the actors, they didn't exactly read as late 20s-early 30s to me.  It's not the biggest deal, but when so much of the drama involves insecurity about aging I couldn't help but note it.  Matt Riehle as Jon is the strong center of the show and has a great voice.  He didn't necessarily have a lot of standout moments, but he was at his best when interacting with his co-stars.  Phineas Bynum was excellent as Michael/ensemble, a definite highlight no matter who he was playing.  Suzie Juul, who I had previously seen doing solid work in a supporting role in History Theatre's Blended 和 (Harmony), impressed me even more here as she was able to dig into much more juicy roles, showing a great deal of comedic and dramatic range. These three co-stars were able to weave in and out of Jonathan Larson's story with energy and ease, culminating in a very rousing performance of "Louder than Words".  Not necessarily the most exceptional production I've seen lately, but I'm definitely happy to see this show produced in my area with this level of talent.

The Guthrie Theatre's production of Little Shop of Horrors is everything you would expect from a professional productions of the show:  broad, goofy, colorful, and a lot of fun.  The set is exceptionally well-designed, with layers of scenery, unexpected modular changes, and some cute details in the decoration.  The puppetry of Aubrey II is also very well done, aided by some skillful physical comedy from the actors.  In a show where everybody is playing a cartoon, Will Roland is laying it on the thickest, bordering on annoying at first but he eases into it as the show goes along, hitting his stride with a genuinely moving performance of "Suddenly Seymour".  As Aubrey, China Brickey does a good job of balancing the light and dark elements of her character, while Robert Dorfman is a total scene-stealer as Mr. Mushnik.  David Darrow is also very funny in his multiple roles, most notably as Dr. Orin, playing the dentist as a character so comically narcissistic he can't help but drag the show to a talk multiple times during his song.  One complaint I do have is with the sound... especially in the early crowd songs I had some trouble distinguishing the various performers' voices - the balance felt off.  I might chalk this up to this being the first show sound designer Matt Kraus has done at the Guthrie.

The Guthrie's other current show is a very different sort of comedy.  English is a co-production with the Goodman theatre in Chicago, where this same cast (Sahar Bibiyan, Nikki Massoud, Roxanna Hope Radja, Pej Vahdat, and Shadee Vossoughi) and director (Hamid Dehghani) had an acclaimed extended run of the show.  This is the sort of show that sticks with you - while the setup is rather simple, the ideas and truths explored within it have kept sneaking into my mind long after I finished watching it.  The exploration of how language can both illuminate and obfuscate one's personality and self-image is both fascinating and funny, and Sanaz Toossi's script is inspired in how you're always able to tell how a character is communicating (even beyond the use of accents to determine if the dialogue is in Fari or English).  The characters are well-defined and all likable, even when the inevitable conflicts or secrets get involved.  The laughs from the show come as much from the characters as they do from the expected comedy of people getting stuck in the language barrier.  I imagine this is a show that will improve upon repeat viewings, as various details from the characters and setting reveal themselves.I don't know if any of these actors are in discussion to join the Broadway production being staged in early 2025, but I'd be very excited if they were. I know it will be directed by Knud Adams and not Hamid Dehghani - I'm curious how the approach differs between a Brit and an Iranian in regards to the material.  Dehghani definitely made a strong first impression on me with this show, using some incidental sound and lighting to illuminate the setting while allowing his cast to remain front and center.

Finally, I was able to see SIX for the second time as the tour once again came through St. Paul. This time I had much better seating (Orchestra rather than Balcony) so I was able to get a better view of the hard work the cast was doing with the choreography  This show is just infectious in its energy - not anywhere close to subtle in what it's saying, but you're having such a good time that it doesn't matter.  The cast was perfectly balanced, with wonderful comic timing and incredible voices.  I don't know what more could be said about the show at this point except that I had a great time.

Updated On: 7/22/24 at 12:04 AM

[theaterdrew]

Posted: 7/22/24 at 10:12am

Thanks for this, KK, your write up about English inspired me to get a ticket in August.

[ColdClimateDude]

Posted: 7/22/24 at 12:20pm

Audrey II, not Aubrey II

Always love reading your adventures in our town :)

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 8/8/24 at 10:42pm

Two more local productions I've seen:

The Prom was put on by a community theatre I've worked with many times, so all of the obligatory caveats- they're friends and colleagues so I can't be objective, etc. The previous production of this group that I saw was Something Rotten!, and like it this show is filled with broad and silly showbiz jokes that I found irresistible. But unlike that show, this one also has a real and relatable emotional core, and at times I felt the more sincerely toned scenes involving Emma to be even more effective than the more elaborate comedic scenes involving the Broadway actors. The cast were all clearly having fun and well-cast in their roles (although the performer playing Alyssa's voice felt weak compared to her costars) and the costume and production design were excellent. I felt "Tonight Belongs to Us" could have been more energetic and rousing in its execution, but none of the other group scenes had that issue, and by the end I was truly moved.

The third production by Theatre L'Homme Dieu that I've seen in three months was Once, and this is a show that means a lot to me... not only is the movie a personal favorite, the musical was the very first show I ever saw on Broadway. And in all honesty, I think I liked this production more. It could have been as simple as the venue... Once works well as an intimate show, and that's how thus venue staged it, while on Broadway I was in the nosebleed-iest seats available. I also thought Ryan Lee as the Guy captured the character's sadsack depression perhaps better than Steve Kazee did. Anna Beth Baker as the Girl was also excellent: bubbly and charming - you believe her as the sort who could bring anyone out of their shell. The supporting cast are also really good, even if their comedic scenes play a bit broad compared to the bittersweet love at the musical's core - I can't quite tell if this was a book issue or a direction issue. Another little directing quirk I noticed... in the Broadway production they indicated when the Girl's friends were speaking Czech by projecting the words on the backdrop. In this production they seem to be doing what English does by having the characters speak naturally to each other but put on thick accents when speaking to the Irish characters, at least in their introductory scene. In the famous "Do you still love him" exchange the translation of her response *is* projected onto the scenery, however, and it makes for a beautiful backdrop to "Sleeping"  (I'd like to offer a hearty "go F yourself" to the old guy in front of me who took his phone out to take pictures of Ryan Lee as he performed that song). The songs are undeniable, and while just hearing the familiar notes and chords were enough to make me emotional, I was truly In tears by the end. Credit also goes to director Eric Morris, who I assume also handled the skillfully executed choreography. I might have been a little lukewarm on Theatre L'Homme Dieu's production of Tick, tick... BOOM! ​​​from earlier in the summer, but this one was truly beautiful.

As far as personal works go, I was in supporting roles in productions of Matilda and Mary Poppins that rehearsed and performed almost simultaneously. Both of those shows ended up being a lot of fun, and I was really impressed by talent and enthusiasm on display from the young actors we discovered. After juggling two musicals, I'm planning on spending most of the next few months of my theatre experiences as an audience member rather than an actor. There are local productions of ​​​​The Odd Couple (female version) and Radium Girls I'll be happy to see, plus ​​The Lehman Trilogy as it opens the new season at the Guthrie.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 9/13/24 at 10:50am

Not a whole lot of theatre for me lately, but in two months I saw two different productions from a local semi-professional theatre group.

Tuesdays With Morrie This well-known story of a burnt-out journalist reconnecting with his beloved college professor after learning the latter has been diagnosed with ALS is a classic tearjerker - to the point where the ushers were handing out kleenex to audience members prior to seating them.  The acting was really strong (it was not surprising to hear during the talkback afterwards that the actors playing Morrie and Mitch had a history not dissimilar to that of their characters), and I appreciated the physicality - you could see Mitch aging through different periods of his life and Morrie succumbing to the different physical ailments that came with his diagnosis.  The director also cleverly had the stagehands dressed as nurses/healthcare workers, so they could assist the actor playing Morrie from chair to wheelchair to bed as Mitch narrated to the audience, allowing us to see the character's further struggles with ALS. Again, this is a well-worn story and not full of too many surprises, but it's still hits in your emotions where it counts.

Misery is the company's newest production, and well-timed for the lead in to Spooky Season.  This is probably the group's most theatrically ambitious production yet (their mission statement is to primarily focus on actors and performances) and while it is mostly a good show, it's probably my least favorite of their productions that I have seen.  Some of it I can chalk up to opening night jitters - there were some mistakes with props, scene transitions occasionally went longer than I would have liked, and there was one one early moment where one of the actors seemed to forget which meal the scene was based around.  But others were simply decisions I disliked - primarily the use of strobe lights during the violent scenes as a substitute for makeup effects and fight choreography.  The actors did their best to sell it, but it didn't have the proper impact.  The actors were very good - the actor playing Paul did an excellent job with the physicality, really selling Paul's physical pain throughout.  The actress playing Annie was also giving a good, if a bit uneven performance.  She was good at showing the character's mood swings and layers of cruelty while also selling the show's dark comedy.  Her projection was a little off at times, so some of the one-liners didn't land as well as they could have.  The actor playing the sheriff was a last-minute replacement and was using notes, so I won't hold that against him, and he did manage to get a big laugh from the audince with one of his deadpan reactions to Annie. But while this wasn't a great production it was still a satisfying thriller, and whoever had the idea to use "Never Going to Give You Up" as the curtain call music deserves either a high five or a slap to the face.

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 10/7/24 at 12:39am

I'll rarely miss an opportunity to watch a production of Into the Woods, so when the community theatre that had previously impressed me with their production of The Lightning Thief announced it was part of their new season, I knew I had to see it.  As I have said in the past, ITW is such a perfectly assembled show that all you need is a baseline level of competence and you'll surely put on something good, and this group certainly has more talent to offer than simply that.  What struck me most was the production design - the opening of the show is set in a library, with the various actors seen reading books as the audience gathered.  As the story begins to unfold the shelves open up and slide away to form the woods, with the frames of the shelves as branches and trees and books as the tree leaves.  Even Milky White is assembled from what looks like an accordion of books.  It was a beautifully constructed set that created a real feeling of wonder and fit well with the director's simple yet effective choreography.  The actors were also impressive, with the some cast members finding new dimensions to their characters that I hadn't seem in previous productions (this Baker is positively giddy over the possibility that he could get more gold out of Jack, perhaps reflecting a bit of his father's deviousness or manipulation).  Their singing voices were all solid, although Jack was somewhat weaker in the group numbers than he was in his solos.  The lighting felt a little uneven at times, with some actors more in shadow than I would have liked.  Overall, though, this was as moving and entertaining a production of Into the Woods as any I have seen.

Next on my list was the Guthrie's first production of their new season, The Lehman Trilogy.  This production was directed by Arin Arbus, who directed the recent off-Broadway production of Waiting for Godot starring Michael Shannon and Paul Sparks that I found so entertaining and was almost able to start to understand,  Working here from the template established in Ben Power's adaptation, she helms another show that is surrealist in its own different way, with three actors playing dozens of characters in a story that spans over 150 years. I didn't see the Broadway or National Theatre at Home productions of this show, so I can't say to what degree it differs, but I can say this is a very impressive piece of theatre, wheeling through time and character with Director and Actors all finding places to shine.  The show opens on a stage covered with shredded papers almost like a layer of grass or even snow.  These shredded documents as well as the boxes containing others remain on the stage throughout the entire show, serving as a chilling reminder of where the story will inevitably end (as well as occasionally as props) The three actors playing the Lehmans (among others) are Edward Gero, Mark Nelson, and the only local actor William Sturdivant (who I had previously seen in a very different historical epic as an excellent Henry IV in the Guthrie's History Plays last summer). Gero starts out as the straight-laced Henry Lehman with Sturdivant as the more forceful and dynamic Emanuel Lehman and Nelson as the colorful and funny Mayer Lehman.  All three actors drift in and out of characters and narration with skill and precision - you're never confused as to who you they're playing, and sometimes you get so caught up in the show that you almost forget you're still watching the same actors as the find new characters to play.  Off all the parts they play, I think Gero made the biggest impact playing Phillip Lehman, Sturdivant as Emanuel, and Nelson as Bobby Lehman (in a performance that beautifully moves from infancy to old age). These performances are aided by excellent, dynamic lighting and projection effects that allow the Thrust stage to form any number of different locations.  I will admit, I found at times the story to be more exciting as as history lesson than as an epic with an emotional throughline - with the final act being the one that really grabbed me by the heart. I also felt the various Lehman's wives often felt extraneous as characters to the point where I almost wonder why they were included at all - the relationships between the fathers and sons had all of the emotional impact the show needed. And while this was one of the better examples of a story that explained how Wall Street works than most, I was a little disappointed that the script basically treated the Great Recession as an inevitable cliff and didn't go into detail about the Lehman Brothers company's role in it. Overall though, this was an exciting and engaging piece of theatre with three great performances (and Sturdivant as my personal MVP).

Finally, I saw the inaugural production of a new theatre group in my area, Kitchen Sink Productions, Lee Blessing's Two Rooms. This is a drama set in the late 80s about Michael Wells, a college professor captured and held hostage by terrorists in Beirut as well as his wife Lainie back home in the United States.  The titular rooms are the bare room where he is being held hostage as well as a room in their house Stateside that Lanie makes to approximate the room where Michael may be being held.  As days becomes weeks becomes months become years, Michael tries to cope by composing letters in his head to his wife as well as fantasies about the life they could have together and Lainie fantasizes about being able to talk to Michael.  The actors playing the pair are both good, but Faith Kern as Lainie is extraordinary.  In addition to her fantasies about Mike she also talks regularly to a representative of the State Department as well as a journalist eager to write a story about her.  These characters are a double-edged sword dramatically - on the once hand they help underline the difficulty of the situation and how neither the government nor the press have Michael or Lainie's best interests at heart. On the other hand, the characters are so obviously symbolic archetypes that no matter how hard the actors and directors try to make them human Lainie can't help but stand head and shoulders above them in terms of impact (although the State Department official fares better than the journalist, if you ask me). The staging was simple: a production in the round with a mattress on the floor, some simple lighting apparatuses, and a projection screen in the back. The venue, however, was unexpected... this production was staged in the furniture section of a thrift store run by the local Jaycees.  I'm not complaining, mind you - it worked perfectly well, and the audience had really cushy chairs to sit in.  This was a heartbreaking and impactful production - very different in tone and subject matter compared to most theatre productions in our area - and I really look forward to what this group does next.

My local community theatre is putting on a production of The Odd Couple (Female Version).  I'm not sure if I'll be able to buy a ticket, but I've sat in on enough rehearsals to know it's a rock-solid show with a really funny cast.  Next week I'll be travelling back to the Twin Cities to see the tour of Ain't to Proud as well as Behind the Sun at the History Theatre and Holmes/Poirot at Park Square Theatre (and maybe a fourth, depending on time). I also have tickets to upcoming local productions of Gaslight and Radium Girls, and I'm hoping to catch the production of Waitress opening soon that's being done by the theatre that I just saw do ITW. For my own part, I'm currently in rehearsals as the lead in a One Act Play production of The Tell Tale Heart that will be touring through local schools in the last week or two of October

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 10/13/24 at 7:57pm

The Ten Thousand Things production of HELEN is the second show I've seen in a short timespan that was located in an unconventional location - this one was in an event room in a Minneapolis Wellness Center. This is part of the company's mission statement of giving free performances at different venues for free, including various schools, health care facilities, etc. I like it, and it fits with a minimalist production like this adaptation of Aristophanes' Helen. This isn't a straight production - it's taken from Ten Greek Plays Given As a Trilogy by John Barton and Kenneth Cavander, and directed by Marcela Lorca.  Staged with seating on all four sides with a minimum of props, sets, and costumes, this tells the story of Helen (George Keller) who in this telling was never taken to Troy and instead whisked off to Egypt while an illusory duplicate went in her place, sparking what would become the Trojan War.  Helen has spent a decade hiding out, not just from vengeful Greeks who still resent her for (seemingly) causing the war, but also from the unwelcome advances of King Theoclymenus (Bradley Greenwald), who wants to marry her while she's still devoted to her husband Menelaus (Bill McCallum) who is throught lost after his fleet of ships were scattered following the end of the war. Despite all of this heavy setup, this play is a comedy, both in the literal sense of its happy ending and in the tonal sense.  A large portion of the play involves George Keller's Helen telling her story directly to the audience, playing the absurdity of her situation for laughs when you might think she would be despairing.  It's a powerful performance, both dramatic and funny, and Keller had a lot of fun playing to the audience.  The whole ensemble, most of them playing multiple parts are also up to her level (you might even call them "the hardest-working chorus in the God's almighty world!), and I want to give special notice to John Jameson II whose performances were standouts. The chorus are at their most dynamic and theatrical when performing the gorgeous original music by JD Steele (there are so many songs in this 90-minute production that it is basically a musical) In a way very true to the spirit of Greek drama, the characters' attitudes dictate their achievements.  When characters are nihilistic or believe there to be no hope, that's when everything goes wrong.  But when they find happiness and inspiration, that's when they are able to succeed.  Another interesting element of this adaptation is in its portrayal of the Greek gods.  Like most stories based on Greek drama the characters are essentially playthings of the Pantheon (Helen was duplicated by Hera and moved to Egypt by Hermes as a way of tricking Aphrodite in revenge for bribing Paris to judge her fairest of the Goddesses) but unlike most, the gods here aren't treated with any level of reverence at all.  They're treated as being unknowable, with rage or contempt, or even with the cast expressing disbelief at their existence at all.  In that regard, it's probably worth noting that all of the characters' accomplishments are due to their own actions - there no godly interventions here.  All of these elements - the script, cast, the music, combine into a uniquely entertaining theatrical experience that feels true to the spirt of Greek mythology with a modern tone and twist. It's playing at various venues through November 10, and I'd definitely recommend checking it out of it sounds like something you'd be interested in.

BEHIND THE SUN at the History Theatre is a play of many tones, for better and for worse.  Co-written and co-directed (with Laura Drake) by Stanley Kipper based on his own family history, this play tells the story of a Black family living in Minneapolis who, in an attempt to subvert redlining and escape the crime in their own neighborhood, get some white friends to pose as them to buy a house in an all-white neighborhood.  The first act depicts the plan to purchase the house, while the second shows the family standing strong against resistance from their new neighbors.  Darius Dotch plays Obie Kipper, the driven patriarch of the family, with Charla Marie Bailey as his strong-willed wife Mary and Joshaviah Kawala as their young sun Tyler.  The play is often at its best when exploring the highs and lows of everyday life for a Black family living in the Twin Cities in the 1950s.  The actors have an easy chemistry (although Joshaviah Kawala gives an unfortunately one-note performance) and you readily accept them as a family.  When the writing moves away from slice-of-life and into plot territory is when it feels more "writerly", as Obie conspires with his Jewish army buddy Abraham (Scott Witebsky) to trick the real estate agent (James Remalt) into "selling" a house to Abraham as proxy for Obie.  The scenes where Abraham and his wife Angela (Jane Frolland) try to buy the house are played almost like a farce, which is at odds tonally with the serious scenes throughout the act where Obie and Mary talk about the dangers and discrimination they have faced in their own lives. Mary has a monologue about being hit by a car and having to wait hours for an ambulance that is definitely harrowing and well-delivered, but is staged in such a way that it feels like a soliloquy, which doesn't match her more naturalistic dialogue elsewhere.  There is a very different sort of tonal shift in the second act, where the mounting discrimination and harassment from the Kippers' unseen neighbors builds more and more suspense, to the point where it almost feels like a horror play.  It's really effective, especially as it shows the family steadfastly refusing to surrender, even when they stumble, make mistakes, or take unnecessary risks. The strength at the core of the family unit is the heart of the play, and the strong performances from the actors portraying their strength and love are enough to carry the story over the tonal stumbles it makes along the way.

The tour of Ain't Too Proud came through Saint Paul, and after having such a great time seeing it at the Orpheum I was definitely going to see it at the Ordway.  Overall, it was a good show, even if it didn't quite hit the level of the previous tour performance.  Aesthetically, it felt notably cheaper, relying more heavily on projections and with costumes that look more plain and less dazzling.  I also don't know if its an issue with the cast, sound mixing, or the venue, but the cast's voices didn't seem to pop as much as I remember the last show.  That said, we're here for the singing and dancing, and this show delivers.  I had previously seen Josiah Travis Kent Rogers as Seaweed in the tour of Hairspray, and his casting as David Ruffin here feels like a natural evolution.  He captures the energy of Ruffin's singing and dancing beautifully, and also does an excellent job of showing the darkness simmering beneath his charismatic surface. The rest of the cast are also gangbusters in their roles as the Temptations, slipping from song and dance into the dramatic and comedic scenes with ease. Despite my worries about the aesthetics, the emotional core of the story still works, and I was genuinely moved again by the finale.  This might be the best of the modern bio-musicals, and I'm sure it will continue to tour as well as audiences are attracted by electrifying R&B song and dance.

The Park Square Theatre starts out their comeback season with Holmes/Poirot, a world premiere play with a premise so ingenious you wonder why it hasn't been done before - a mystery where two of the most famous fictional detectives are both involved.  I admit I am most versed in Holmes than Poirot - I've read plenty of Holmes stories but my only experiences with Poirot are seeing a handful of the screen portrayals and reading Agatha Christie's play Black Coffee. This play (by the prolific genre playwright Jeffrey Hatcher and the play's co-star Steve Hendrickson) is an adaptation of the Poirot novel Murder on the Links, a story with which I am completely unfamiliar.  To that end, I'm proud to report the Sherlockian elements of the play feel perfectly like Sherlock Holmes - that Steve Hendrickson has been playing Holmes in Minnesota for years is probably why.  In a fun structural and casting gag, the role of detective and assistant are swapped between the acts, in Act 1, centered around Holmes, Hendrickson plays Holmes with Bob Davis as Watson, while in Act 2 Bob Davis plays Poirot with Henrickson as Arthur Hastings.  The twosome embodies their roles with energy and verve, and if I absolutely had to choose a preference between the detectives, I'd probably say I had more fun watching Davis as Poirot.  The doubling and alternating also works with the rest of the cast, when due to the 25-year gap between acts there are twists and revelations involving parentage, disguise, all the usual suspects in a decades-long mystery.  An audience member familiar with mystery tropes can probably see where the story is going, but it's still a lot of fun getting there thanks to the cast, the dynamic and effective lighting by Kurt Jung, and the fun music by Frederick Kennedy, all operating under the skillful direction of David Ira Goldstein.  Among the supporting cast, I particularly appreciated Stacia Rice as a wife whose worries about the danger her family may be in could be hiding secrets. The best way to summarize this show is to say the Holmesian elements felt like Holmes and the Poirot elements felt like Poirot, and the connections felt natural.  This is a really fun night of theatre and fans of murder mysteries will be delighted by it.

 

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 11:23am

The Brainerd Community Theatre production of RADIUM GIRLS by D.W. Gregory is the sort of show that unfolds greater and greater outrages as the narrative progresses, showing the lengths businesses will go to in order to protect their profits and how the human cost is just seen as another cost to be calculated.  The set for this production was beautiful, with the events unfolding in front of a giant watch face which looms over the cast like an imposing figure of death.  The cast is also very good, with a standout being the actor playing Arthur Roeder, who while clearly in the wrong is painted in shades of grey, getting a few humanizing scenes where he tries to do the right thing but is inevitably steered back into the dehumanizing world of corporate greed.  All of the character are painted in shades of grey, as a matter of fact, and I particularly appreciated how the media is clearly depicted as being out to make money from the story rather than purely being on the side of the angels.  Somehow, though, this production didn't quite land with me the way I think it could have.  The direction seemed to lack the sort of melodramatic punch this material deserves, particularly in Act 1.  The early signs of danger and disease from the radium are almost underplayed until the characters start getting sick, and their callous treatment at the hands of management isn't initially portrayed as cruel, just as the way things are.  I can see the thought process behind this directorial strategy, letting small outrages slowly accumulate until it becomes an avalanche of drama by the end, but I think really hammering home the lack of care from the start might have helped build more suspense.

GASLIGHT at Stage North Theatre is an example of a show whose very relevant themes are at odds with the dated storytelling of the script.  Those most familiar with the George Cukor/Ingrid Bergman film from 1944 might be confused by how much more sedate the play is - everything takes place in one location and most of the drama involves the characters talking about things that have already happened or are happening offstage.  A script with this lack of dynamism requires strong actors to work as a thriller, and thankfully the core cast here is very strong. Baird Brutscher, who  I've seen in many local productions, is terrific as a husband who hides his brutality and cruelty behind a refined exterior, while Erin Caswell shows powerful vulnerability as his wife who is pushed to the breaking point by his abuse and Brad Busse as the Inspector investigating her husband is an effective contrast as an affable old man who nonetheless takes his job deadly seriously. Of the supporting cast we have two actors playing maids, with one unfortunately giving a rather wooden and monotone performance as the older maid Elizabeth while the younger maid Nancy creates a much more effective character. The show is very effective while the core three actors are engaging in a battle of wits, and the show's depiction of an abusive and manipulative husband is still very sadly relevant today.  

The third show I've seen recently (and it appears I have once again unintentionally had a thematic throughline - in this case women living in awful situations) is the GREAT Theatre's production of WAITRESS.  Now, I've seen and really enjoyed the movie (by the late, great Minnesotan Adrienne Shelly) but have not yet watched the proshot of the musical, so I went into his one more or less cold, which is probably a good idea for such a warm and lovely show.  The musical hits all of the familiar beats I remember from the movie, telling the story of a waitress having to navigate an unwanted pregnancy from her hateful husband while working at a diner with her colorful friends, and adds some really wonderful and catchy songs along the way.  Brie Stole as Jenna has a terrific voice and is able to carry both the comedic and dramatic scenes with heft.  James Person (a very talented who I know from college) plays just the right notes of warmth and neuroticism as Dr. Pomatter, and the rest of the cast are also mostly excellent - I particularly appreciated Grace Steinhofer's Dawn, who brought wonderful physical and vocal comedy to the role.  Once minor exception might be Dave Olsen as Joe - he didn't bring much of the curmudgeonly energy I'd expect for the character, but his natural warmth really does make his performance of "Take it from an old man" shine.  The production is aided by dynamic lighting and effective choreography.  This was just a very fun night of musical comedy, and aside from a few moments of sound imbalance there wasn't much to criticize about it.

For my own part, the One Act Play adaptation of THE TELL-TALE HEART that I'm leading has started performances - one at a middle school and a public performance at the community college producing the show - and we have three more performances scheduled for another local school on Halloween.  I don't have a whole lot of theatre on my docket for November (although I might try to drive to Minneapolis to see ALL THE DEVILS ARE HERE before it closes at the Guthrie) but there are quite a few shows I'm planning on seeing both locally and out-of-town during December.

Updated On: 10/27/24 at 11:23 AM

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 12/7/24 at 11:14am

AX OF MURDER by Pat Cook was the show my old high school put on for their Fall Play this year, and it's classic high school drama material.  It's broad, silly, and includes a lot of interaction with the audience.  The story is set around an acting troupe who are trying to decide what play to do next (sometimes with input from the audience).  When the director decides the script "Ax of Murder" is to her liking, the writer becomes spooked - a year earlier, a member of their troupe died mysteriously while reading the script and since then the writer has been convinced the script is haunted.  Indeed, as the company starts to read the script, its stage directions seem to dictate the actions they take, which includes several murders and a police sergeant involving himself in the proceedings. This is all good fun, and I appreciated how the large cast always had something to do - it was controlled chaos in every sense of the term, with cast members moving constantly on and off stage and reacting to the various events going on throughout the plot.  The performances, as is usually the case in high school productions, are uneven, but I really appreciated the performances of the actors playing the ever-exasperated police sergeant and the writer, whose short stature was utilized for some vey funny physical comedy.  The only other note I have is on the script itself - this is the kind of the show where the setup is more interesting than the payoff.  I guess I should have seen the twist coming, but the idea of a haunted script was so intriguing to me that I never suspected it would end up being a rehash of Levinson and Link's Rehearsal for Murder. That said, this was all good fun and the audience ate it up.

One of the community theatres in my area put on a production the A CHRISTMAS CAROL, using the adaptation by Patrick Barlow.  I was broadly familiar with Barlow's work, having previously read his adaptation of The 39 Steps, but his take on Dickens' classic went in directions I didn't expect.  The even more exaggerated nastiness of Scrooge combined with the added comedic elements went so far that I was afraid at times the sincerity of Scrooge's redemption might end up ringing false.  Thank fully, I was wrong, and the ending was just as moving as ever.  A lot of credit goes to the cast, who are five of the best actors we have in the area.  The actor playing Scrooge was an interesting casting choice - until now he's mostly played likeable parts like Albert in Bye Bye Birdie or Juror #8 in 12 Angry Men so seeing him dig into a Scrooge who was not just a greedy grump but a genuine sadist who relished in exploiting all of those around him was an unexpected pleasure.  The other actors playing the dozen or so parts were all up to the task, and the use of them as props always worked for comedy, gave a theatrical flair that led to a very satisfying payoff by the end.  The addition of live music was also very welcome.

ANASTASIA was the first production I have seen from the Andria Theatre, a community theatre based out of Alexandria, and it was a very good show. Like most millennials I was familiar with the Don Bluth movie (one of the first movies I have a memory of seeing in a theater, as a matter of fact) so seeing it adapted to the stage in a more grounded way was a treat.  The set dressing was fairly minimal, with a few pieces moved on and off the stage, enhanced by very well designed projections (although the projections were at times obscured by the set pieces, which was a little distracting).  The acting was mostly very good  - the core trio of Anya, Dimitri, and Vlad Popov were excellent, giving a warm and charming chemistry.  The actor playing Dimitri was particularly note-perfect, showing great charisma and developing the character's feelings towards Anya very delicately. Anya herself was also very good, nailing both "Once Upon a December" and "Journey to the Past" as well as showcasing the vulnerability and resilience of the character very well. I was not particularly impressed by the actor playing Gleb - I don't know if this was a casting or a book issue, but the character never felt particularly intimidating as a villain.  The actor didn't read as an fiery revolutionary or a looming threat. He played the sympathetic elements of the character much better, making him seem more like an overgrown kid playing the part of a villain rather than a villain with humanizing elements (his singing was excellent, though). The actress playing the Dowager Empresses' lady-in-waiting was an unexpected delight, adding a bunch of energy to the second act.   This was also one of the only shows I've ever seen where there was a notable different in choreography between acts... the choreography in Act 1 wasn't very good, at times clunky and more distracting than integrative.  Act 2, however, had excellent dance sequences all throughout (credit to them for using actual ballerinas for the ballet sequence).  The difference was so pronounced that it almost feels like there were different choreographers for the acts - it was strange.  Minor issues aside, I had a good time and I look forward to returning to the Andria Theatre in February to see their production of Calendar Girls

I haven't been personally involved in any theatre productions lately, but there are some coming up that I look forward to auditioning for.  I also have a slate of shows I'll be seeing in the coming weeks, including A Don't Hug Me Christmas Carol locally and in the Twin Cities where I plan on seeing A Christmas Carol and The Heart Sellers at the Guthrie as well as I Am Betty at the History Theatre and Cinderella at Theatre Latte Da.