We can’t review plays when there are no plays to be reviewed. Therefore, until Gov. Walz decides to “re-open” live theaters, we will, unfortunately, be on hiatus. There is, however, movement in the theater world: the estimable Sarah Rasmussen, artistic…
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Review | The White Card: guess who’s coming to dinner 2020
In The White Card, at Penumbra Theatre things don’t go awry in the way you might expect. Playwright Claudia Rankin dives head first into the American race relations. The play starts with Charles and his wife, Virginia (both white) who…
Review || Blue Man Group: Slapstick for the digital age
Do you feel the need for some silliness? Just letting go and laughing? You’re not alone. Millions of people worldwide have felt the same way—since 1987! Now, that’s what I call a run! The Blue Man Group (“Still Blue, the…
Review || Becky Sharp: cynical chic
It is almost halfway into Becky Shaw (at the Gremlin Theatre, through January 26) before the character of that name makes her first appearance. By that time, the extended Slater family has suffered financial collapse upon the death of the father and…
Review | Chicago: loud, brassy, charming — and a great story
Veteran HWTS reviewers Janet Preus and John Olive attended the opening of Chicago (Theater Latté Da, performing in the old Ritz Theater, through Nov 3). They then went down the street for cold beverages and a discussion, which is excerpted…
Review | Ride The Cyclone: step right up for a rip-roaring good time
Every roller coaster worth its ride has thrills, suspense and a brief glimpse of your own mortality as you loop, flip, and zoom around the track. Ride the Cyclone, the mad-cap musical dramedy playing at Jungle Theater through October 20th doesn’t…
Review | Floyd’s: a play with heart — that will make your stomach rumble
Whatever you do, don’t go to Floyd’s hungry. Set in a greasy spoon truck stop in Pennsylvania, Floyd’s tells the story of the café’s kitchen staff, all formerly incarcerated and desperate for a paycheck (and a second chance). Floyd’s, written…
Review | Samuel J And K: a celebration of the unbreakable bonds of family
Mat Smart is, imo, an unsung master. His plays reveal astonishing diversity, of subject matter, and narrative intensity. Here are some Smart titles, many of which I would wager you’ve never heard: the deliciously funny The Royal Society of Antarctica;…
Review | Guys And Dolls: a stand-up production
A love story played out last night at the Guthrie. The actors playing the beloved stock characters — street-wise gamblers, Chicago gangsters, Bible toting missionaries and air-headed show girls made the audience fall head over heels in love with Guys…
Review – Dry Powder: throws you headfirst into a world of deals and moral qualms
Dry Powder, (Dark & Stormy Productions, through June 29), written by award-winning playwright Sarah Burgess, is a dark comedy set in the flashy high-rises of high finance and private equity. The play does not ease into the dizzying dance of…