A director friend of mine once said, “A little stupid is funny; a lot of stupid is just stupid.†The Ten Thousand Things staging of Scapin is just the right amount of stupid and it is very funny. (Ten Thousand Things…
Review | I Come From Arizona: beautifully bilingual
Childrens Theatre Company, through November 25What does “Global Perspectives†mean, anyway? Carlos Murillo’s I Come from Arizona (CTC) offers a few suggestions. In this bilingual play, 14-year old Mexican-American Gabi Castillo (Ayssette Muñoz), who, living on the South Side of Chicago, moves to the elite…
Review | Mary Poppins: timeless appeal
Artistry Theatre, though Nov 4Mary Poppins may be returning to the silver screen with a new Disney film Mary Poppins Returns but the original movie starring Julie Andrews exudes a timeless essence that continues to enchant audiences today. You can relive the magic of Mary…
Two Degrees: timely and well-played
The Guthrie’s Dowling Theatre, through Oct 21Watching Prime Productions’ staging of Two Degrees (the Guthrie‘s Dowling Stage) about a woman scientist asked to testify before a senate select committee on the effects of climate change, one might think that this play was birthed over the past weekend…
The Great Society: a fascinating look at LBJ
History Theatre, through Oct 28Pearce Bunting plays Lyndon Baines Johnson in Robert Schenkkan‘s theatrical (and loud) The Great Society (History Theatre) with none of the crude charm, the country-boy excess, the rude physical bullying that I’ve come to associate with our former president. Bunting’s LBJ…
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / when the rainbow is enuf: poetry and movement beautifully fused
Penumbra, through Oct 14The Penumbra Theater’s production of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf is nothing short of an immersive feat and it’s an experience not to be missed. The play is actually a series of choreographed poems…
Minnesota Theater Awards launches
New program celebrates area theater practionersThe Twin Cities theater community gathered last night to celebrate the year’s accomplishments and recognize its finest work. The Minnesota Theater Awards has sprung up in the vacuum left when the Ivey Awards folded earlier this year. According to Brant…
Frankenstein — Playing With Fire: a lively rebirth
The Guthrie Theater, through Oct 27The Guthrie is reviving Frankenstein — Playing With Fire, staging Barbara Field’s excellent drama. They premiered the show back in 1988 and it’s easy to see why they decided to bring it back to life. Field’s play is both moving…
Is God Is: gorgeously nasty
Mixed Blood Theatre, through Oct 14“The fire keeps tryna come out.” Mixed Blood‘s wonderfully repellent and highly original Is God Is, written by Aleshea Harris, is a clutch-popper. Credit – definitely the right word, because this play zips along like a house afire and is…