On the Blog
E. L. Doctorow was the author of two respected but not widely read novels when in 1975 he thundered onto the literary scene with Ragtime. Set 1902-17, the novel blends history and fantasy, private characters with oversized historical figures (J.P. Morgan, Booker T. Washington, Henry Ford, et al), all rendered in sharp but refined...
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In Harold And The Purple Crayon (at Children’s Theatre Co, through Feb 26) a company of first rate artists and performers collaborate on a deceptively simple, sweetly accessible and yet highly sophisticated… Well, what would you call Harold? A play? I suppose, but it’s really more a celebration of elegant design, tuneful music, astute...
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Produced by the History Theatre at the Minnesota History Center, in tandem with the exhibit that opened last fall, 1968 is also a collaborative project with the Playwrights Center. Seven scenes written by PWC members tell personal stories that are representative of significant events during that year. The scenes were ingeniously connected by a...
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In Flesh And The Desert (Workhaus Collective performing at the Playwrights Center, through Jan 28), playwright Carson Kreitzer doesn’t concern herself with the air-conditioned glitter of contemporary Las Vegas – the Bellagio, the Venetian, pot-bellied cowboys meandering through the neo-fascist splendor of Caesar’s Palace. None of this. Rather, Kreitzer wants to examine the Vegas...
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Julius Caesar, asserts the officious and buttoned down Brutus in his oration at Caesar’s funeral, “was ambitious, I slew him.” But isn’t ambition the assassins’ over-riding motivation? They pay poor lip service to serving “great Rome,” but “lean and hungry” Cassius and his furtive cohorts react mostly to the man’s raw power. ...
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“I don’t do children’s theater,” director Julie Taymor informed the powers-that-be at the vaunted Disney Corporation “and I don’t do cute.” To their immense credit, they hired her anyway. The inventive Ms. Taymor then proceeded to transform the animated Disney film, with its simple story of a young lion, Simba, coming into his own...
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The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts is offering up a magical evening for families this holiday season with Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. No, it’s not about Christmas, but it’s a gentle and satisfying story full of sparkle and spectacle that’s sure to create a warm memory, particularly for the little girl in your...
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For the holiday season, Park Square Theatre has chosen to revive the warmly received show about George Gershwin that premiered there in 1999. The Soul of Gershwin: The Musical Journey of an American Klezmer is a delightful musical offering: a well-researched and interesting story backed by wonderful music – with not one single holiday...
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There is at least one theater in Minnesota that is not trying to be “relevant,” or “important.” They just want to get people in the door and show them a good time. In fact, that is exactly their mission and it appears to be working. A full house guffawed their way through “Bob’s Holiday...
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“Leaves leaving the branches… Winter is coming…” such is the opening line to this delightful winter’s tale chanted in ethereal tones reminding the audience that the curtain has just raised on the opening act of this region’s coldest of seasons. While there are several holiday shows vying for attention this time of year Winter...
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