Snappy. Snazzy. Fizzy and frothy. Abrim with pizzazz and pure musical intensity. Real good. All these adjectives (and then some) apply to Artistry Theater‘s amazing production of Legally Blonde (in Artistry’s comfortable Schneiderman Theatre, through August 19). The plot of…
Review | Hand To God: brilliant puppetry
The Jungle Theater, through Aug 19By far the most interesting character in Robert Askins‘s hootful Hand To God (the Jungle Theater, though Aug 19) is a puppet, Tyrone. Seriously. Tyrone goes from a meek rendition of “Jesus Loves Me” to laugh-out-loud potty-mouth, to owning a…
Review | Carmen : steamy summer entertainment
Mill City Summer Opera, though July24The summer opera staged each year in the Mill City Museum courtyard by Mill City Summer Opera company has become one of the premier outdoor events in the Twin Cities often playing to sold out audiences. On preview night, the…
Review | West Side Story: a lovely production of a true American classic
At the GuthrieTheater, through August 26West Side Story (at the Guthrie, through Aug 26) was first produced on Broadway in 1957 and since then it has emphatically entered the international canon, averaging 5,000 productions per year. No other play has this kind of presence. Shakespeare?…
Interview With Janet Preus: author of Welcome To Hell
Editor’s Note: Janet Preus’s wonderful Welcome To Hell recently closed at Open Eye Figure Theater. Because it had a very short run (a single weekend) and because Preus is a longtime reviewer at www.HowWasTheShow.com, we chose not to fully review…
Review | Equivocation: Jacobean swells having fun
Walking Shadow Theatre Company, performing at the Gremlin, 550 Vandalia, St. PaulSince 2004, Walking Shadow Theatre Company has been the area’s premier provider of historical drama: Hatchet Lady, Carrie Nation, Angel Of Destruction (19th century U.S.); Marie Antoinette (18th century France); Gross Indecency, The Three Trials Of Oscar Wilde (19th century…
Review | Underneath The Lintel: a hoot
Theater Latté Da, through July 1Underneath The Lintel (Theater Latte Da, at the Ritz Theatre) is, to say the least, an unexciting title, but Glen Berger‘s rollicking and rip-roaring play is the bomb. In it, a “librarian” (she has no other name) finds a book returned…
Review | dat Black Mermaid Man Lady/The Show: promising
Pillsbury House Theater, through June 24Editor’s Note: due to an injury to a cast member, Pillsbury House Theater decided to mount a “reader’s theater” version of the play. I.e., script-in-hand. This is the version being reviewed by Mari Wittenbreer, below. HWTS will use its best…
Review | Lady Day At The Emerson Bar And Grill: gritty and translucent
The Jungle Theater, through June 24Lady Day at the Emerson Bar and Grill is a day-in-the-life story of singer Billie Holiday, a.k.a. Lady Day. It is more accurate to say the play is a night-in-the-life story of this popular and singularly talented, jazz singer as…