The jewelbox Jungle on a stinky, gruesomely hot summer evening: the gorgeous lobby, perfectly sized with actual comfy furniture; then the beautiful performing space, polished wood and rich lighting, small but substantial, highlighting the always wonderful set design, in this…
Review | Samuel J And K: a celebration of the unbreakable bonds of family
The Gremlin Theatre, through August 4Mat 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
Guthrie Theater, through August 25A 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
Dark & Stormy Productions, through June 29
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…
Review | To Let Go And Fall: an affecting study of love and aging
Theater Latté Da, through June 30Cello music is, it has to be said, mournful, lugubrious and, well, a little creepy. “It’s not gloomy,” asserts the young son in A Little Night Music. “It’s profound.” IOW, ya gotta be in the mood and, luckily, at the…
Review | Dear Evan Hansen: a musical for today
Orpheum Theatre through June 9“Dear Evan Hansen” has arrived in Minneapolis and it’s a hot ticket; the Orpheum Theatre was packed for opening night. Winner of multiple 2017 Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Score, the show astonishing technical flash with a moving…
Review | Blood Knot: apartheid redux
Pillsbury House Theater, through June 16What a difference a production can make. I saw Blood Knot by Athol Fugard some time ago at an out of state venue and was not impressed. The play seemed to have little depth past the rather obvious conceit of…
Review | Small Mouth Sounds: meditative comedy
The Jungle Theater: through June 16Six characters in search of an authorial presence. Bess Wohl‘s amusing Small Mouth Sounds (at the Jungle, through June 16) suffers from this. The primary problem with the play – essentially a portrait of six people at a wilderness (apparently;…
Review | The Sins Of Sor Juana: a nifty combination of religious and poetic fervor
Ten Thousand Things Theater; various venues (check the TTT website), through June 9Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was a gifted poet in Nueva España (as México was called in the olden days). Born a bit too late to be part of the Spanish Golden Age (Lope de Vega, Miguel de Cervantes,…