Wednesday’s bill at the 400 Bar featuring Portland, Oregon’s Black Prairie (members of the Decemberists and friends) and Chicago’s Canasta was more than enough to bring me out of music writer retirement. And I wasn’t disappointed. It turned out to…
Rock of Ages at the Orpheum Theater
Get ready to rock, folks, Broadway is finally sharing its star-building power with music’s bad boys and their millions of fans. The national touring production of Rock of Ages, which opened at the Orpheum in downtown Minneapolis last night, is…
Life’s A Dream by Ten Thousand Things Theater
At first it’s off-putting, the lack of any stage lighting at a Ten Thousand Things play. Blinking fluorescents, the glare of the late morning sun, the institutional playing space (conference rooms, cafeterias). But soon you find yourself leaning forward, eager…
Weird Tales For Halloween by Hardcover Theater, performing at Bryant Lake Bowl
Let yourself be ushered into the shadowy and dusty confines of the ancient BLB theater. A creaky wooden floor – is that the waitress? I hope so.  A blood red curtain. An eerie 19th century organ. Is that the distant…
Evita, a Theater Latte Da production at the Ordway McKnight Theater
Theater Latte Da’s production of Evita at the Ordway’s McKnight Theater is a fitting meld of visual elements set in the perfect space. A versatile cast, limited in numbers but brimming with talent, created a seamless flow of scenes from…
Robin Hood at The Childrens Theatre Company
Director Greg Banks is the maestro of the small cast classic. His m.o.: keep the story-line as simple as possible, the characters one-dimensional, and the set filled with playable levels. Bring the audience as close to the action as possible…
“String” at Yellow Tree Theatre
Yellow Tree Theatre has launched an original comedy by theater co-founder, Jessica Lind that quite obviously is a comfortable fit for the area. Tucked away in a strip mall in Osseo, the relatively new theater has turned out a reasonably…
Minor Kingdom at the Aster Café
The music of Minor Kingdom sneaks up on you like a season change. Kristian Melom’s haunting guitar seems to be tuned to his voice. As soft and solemn as Melom can be, his songs vibrate with a controlled energy. The…
A Few Good Men at The Sabes Jewish Community Center
Aaron Sorkin‘s A Few Good Men (Urban Samurai Productions, performing at the Sabes Jewish Community Center, 4330 Cedar Lake Rd., Minneapolis, through Oct 10), despite its age (it’s very nearly 20) still packs a punch. It deals with a genuine…
Photo Set: Arcade Fire at Roy Wilkins Auditorium
Photos of Arcade Fire at Roy Wilkins by Pamela Diedrich. Share on Facebook
A Cool Drink A Water at Mixed Blood Theatre
In 1959, a young writer, Lorraine Hansberry, premiered, on Broadway, A Raisin In The Sun. The play tapped a vein of intense yearning and became an instant classic. It features one of the great American heroes: an old-fashioned yet powerful…
The Master Butchers Singing Club at the Guthrie Theatre
The Guthrie Theatre presented the world premier of The Master Butchers Singing Club Sunday evening, a dramatization of Minnesota writer, Louise Erdrich’s, novel. Marsha Norman’s adaptation, developed and directed by Francesca Zambello, took a rich and wonderful book, dense with…