Merrily We Roll Along at Lyric Arts is a Chance to See This Sondheim Musical That is Having it’s Moment Live!

Noah Hynick, Brendan Veerman, and Maureen O’Malley Photo by Dan Norman

Stephen Sondheim’s musical Merrily We Roll Along is having a moment. 2023 saw the Off-Broadway revival transfer to Broadway, starring Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe, and Lindsay Mendez. You can actually stream a recording of that revival, which was released theatrically in 2025. There is also a feature film in the works from director Richard Linklater, who is shooting it over a 20-year period so that the actors can age with the characters. It began shooting in 2019, so watch for that in 2039 or 2040. Tickets are not on sale yet. I recommend not waiting for the film and getting out to see it at Lyric Arts.

This is not one of Sondheim’s better-known works. In fact, it was a bit of a flop when it made its Broadway debut in 1981. To be fair to audiences then, it has been extensively rewritten since. So what we see now is not what the 1981 audience saw that caused the show to close after 16 performances. This version buries that reputation and allows fans to experience what a musical would look like if Christopher Nolan directed one.

Merrily We Roll Along’s book is by George Furth, with music and lyrics by the late, great Stephen Sondheim. The story is told in reverse chronological order, following the relationships and careers of three friends: Frank and Charley, who collaborate on musicals together, and Mary, who is a writer. So we start with a Hollywood party celebrating the release of Frank’s new movie. His old friend Mary is there, and they discuss their friend Charley, who does not appear, as he and Frank are estranged. Mary drinks too much, it’s revealed that Frank is having an affair, and he and his wife are not happy together. Ultimately, Frank declares that if he could go back to the beginning to write with Charley and give all his success up, he would, because he’s not happy.

Each successive scene is a time jump backwards. We see the moments that destroyed friendships and marriages, and then we see the ones that began to fracture them. The play ends with the moment that Charley and Frank met Mary for the first time.

In a way, this feels like Sondheim’s commentary on the musical form. He has the theatrical producer Joe comment on Frank and Charley’s musical audition, saying that they need to add a melody to the songs, give the audience something to hum and tap their toes to. This attitude is presented as the sellout commercial view. Frank and Charley’s songs reflect Sondheim’s own approach to music, which is far more complex than verse, bridge, chorus.

The structure is a 50-year-old realist’s version of the way to give your show a happy ending. The older we get, the more we come to terms with, like the characters in Merrily We Roll Along, what our life has been and what it’s leading towards. Rarely do we realize all of our ambitions; rarely does our love life play out like the great romance we envision when it begins.

The way to achieve the happy ending that a musical audience wants, but maintain the reality of the world, is to tell it in reverse. In the movies, the climax is the high point of the story. In life, we find, as we look back, that most of the exciting stuff was the beginnings. What’s more exciting, the first kiss or the 2001st? Why do so many people who achieve success seem to feel unsatisfied? Because it is the effort to succeed that is exciting. The success is the end, it’s a period at the end of an exciting sentence that you thought would be an exclamation point.

It begins with the old, disillusioned, drunk, and absent, then ends with the young, idealistic, and hopeful. It’s the age-old cautionary story of the cost of success. Frank is successful at the beginning, but at the cost of many things, most dearly of which is happiness.

The show has a great trio leading the cast. Brendan Veerman as Frank was in good voice. I really enjoyed his quieter moments of song, such as in “Not a Day Goes By (Reprise)” and the final song, “Our Time.”

It appears that Lyric Arts has renewed their contract on Noah Hynick. It’s a smart move, as it will keep people coming out from the city to see his performances. Hynick plays Charley and does what he always does, which is make it his own. No one reacts or speaks dialogue quite like Hynick. There is always something special in everything he seems to do. It’s subtle, but constant. I’ve dubbed it the Hynick Nuance. He’s great as always, which may sound boring, but it isn’t.

But the big question, and not even the folks at Lyric Arts seem to know the answer to, is: Who is Maureen O’Malley, who plays Mary? The program says, “Bio coming soon?” I’m sure I’ve seen her before in one of the Christmas at Pemberley plays. Well, whoever she is, she does a great job, particularly in conveying her unrequited love for Frank, which is apparent in every glance.

There are several other familiar faces in the cast that it’s always nice to see, including Emily Grodzik, Steven Ramirez, and France A. Roberts. Also great to see Faith Winship Smith and Nykeigh Larson, both of whom I feel like we haven’t seen much from lately, but have always been notable additions to any cast.

Merrily We Roll Along is a very good production of a less well-known Sondheim work that is enjoying a well-deserved reappraisal. Engaging, funny, moving, and thought-provoking, it makes us confront our own unfulfilled dreams but also gives us that all-important happy ending.

Merrily We Roll Along runs through October 4th at Lyric Arts in Anoka. Make the trip; you won’t be sorry. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.lyricarts.org/merrily-we-roll-along

I want to alert you faithful readers to a new Website that has just started up in the Twin Cities. It’s called 79 Seconds on Stage and it is a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

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Ball: A Musical Tribute to My Lost Testicle Will Only Be Bouncing Around Artistry’s Black Box Theater Thru 9/20

Ball: A Musical Tribute to My Lost Testicle celebrates its 10th anniversary with a short run at Artistry in Bloomington. Max Wojtanowicz, who wrote and performs the show, began performing it in 2016. The show is about Max’s battle with testicular cancer. Wojtanowicz is a favorite of, well, probably everyone who has ever seen him perform or worked with him. He’s a walking encyclopedia of musical theater, a gifted actor and vocalist, and if anyone could make a show about testicular cancer shine, it’s him. But it does more than shine. It encourages the audience to internalize it and, in a way, allows it to become a cathartic outlet for their own story.

The show deals with the specifics, which allow it to become universal. One detail here and another detail there will ring true to different audience members. By the end of the show, we have all found something to relate to.

Originally a show at the 2016 Minnesota Fringe Festival, Wojtanowicz gives us a few winks and a couple of saucy signals, but keeps it at a PG-13 level. Which is good, because it means you don’t need to feel any hesitation about bringing your teenage sons to the show. Because the point is to help others either discover they need treatment or show them how you can get through it, you just have to make a start.

And Wojtanowicz knows exactly how to make that message land. He’ll make you laugh, think, feel, then laugh again. It’s ultimately a genuinely uplifting experience, but not in the sweet and sugary way. It gets there through humor and honesty. And song, one of it’s biggest selling points is surely not just the chance to listen to Max sing, but to sing about his testicles.

This is a very special show with a very short run. Only five performances remain, so don’t miss this remount of Ball: A Musical Tribute to My Lost Testicle. It’s a show about cancer, loss, survival, and finding your way forward, and somehow, it’s also a hell of a good time.

Ball: A Musical Tribute to My Lost Testicle runs through September 20th at Artistry in Bloomington. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://artistrymn.org/ball

The Great Gatsby Launched TRP’s 75th Anniversary MN Themed Season

Cast of the Great Gatsby Photo by Tom Taintor

The Great Gatsby kicks off the 75th season of Theatre in the Round, a season they have devoted to telling stories with Minnesota connections. Gatsby, of course, is written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a native of St. Paul. One of the greatest American novels ever written, it’s a solid choice for TRP to open this landmark season. I encourage everyone to be a part of this historic season of what is the longest-running community theater in Minnesota.

It was interesting to see this smaller-scale play version after seeing the lavish touring Broadway musical earlier in the year. They both have their advantages. This version is a much less glamorous affair, but the intimacy of the venue also allows for the story to take center stage.

Set in 1922 on Long Island, the story is told by Nick Carraway, a young war veteran who rents a small cottage next to the estate of Jay Gatsby. After receiving an invitation to a party, Nick meets Gatsby, who asks for his help in reuniting with the girl he fell in love with before going off to the war, Daisy. Daisy is Nick’s cousin, who is now married with a child, though not happily. Her husband, Tom, carries on affairs, which everyone, especially Daisy, is aware of. Daisy’s childhood friend Jordan Baker is also on hand as a possible love interest for Nick. The other major characters are George and Myrtle Wilson. George runs a gas station while his wife is having an affair with Tom.

The novel deals with the themes of the American Dream, class, and how the two collide. Much as it is becoming more and more the case today, the dreams of the lower class are decimated by the excesses and disregard of the wealthy. This stripped-down version is less concerned with those larger issues and focuses on the love story and interpersonal relationships between the characters.

The acting overall is done in a slightly mannered fashion. It’s off-putting at first because it’s not what we expect, but I came to enjoy the put-on, old-timey cadences. Gatsby, played by Jake Leif, is scripted to say the phrase “Old Sport” 87 times in his dialogue. There is no way to make that feel organic. The choice is to stylize the entire performance, which works. Likewise, Tom Buchanan, played by John Blocher, affects a unique delivery for all of his dialogue, which works equally as well. It is heightened and a little removed from humanity, which is a perfect representation of the character. Nick, the narrator, played by Gavin Webb, is much more naturalistic in his delivery, which reflects his character’s more genuine nature.

The set design by Michael Haas is limited by the venue, but he utilizes the upper portions of the theater, with each point of a triangle used for a vital piece of the design. In one corner, we have the Saxman, Maje Adams, who plays some tone-setting music. For the most part, it’s an interesting choice, but I was worried at the opening when the sax was threatening to overpower Nick’s opening narration. They should work on lowering the strength of the sax if they can. In the other two corners, we have the iconic billboard with the spectacles and eyes that light up, and the third is the green light that Gatsby can see from his property that marks where Daisy’s house is. I thought all of these design elements were very well done.

The Great Gatsby runs through October 4 at Theatre in the Round. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/greatgatsby/

I’m So Glad I Came From Away to See Come From Away at The Phipps in Hudson WI.

There is something about Come From Away. No matter the cast or the venue, there is a feeling that comes over you in the audience where you think, “And here we are. Where the world has come together.” Because more than any other show, there is a feeling of being in the moment with these characters, probably because, for many of us, we were. We were not in Gander or New York, but it was a moment, possibly the only one in my lifetime so far, where it felt like the whole world had come together.

The power of art is to make us feel that we are not alone, and in a world where we are becoming the joke of the world, there is something so necessary about this show that allows us, for 110 minutes, to recall a time when the world had our back and was on our side. It also reminds us of all the qualities lacking in our country’s leaders: empathy, decency, putting others first, the ability and the desire to comfort and care for each other.

This show is truly a moving and uplifting experience. This is my sixth time seeing it, and I’m already excited to see it again next spring when Lakeshore Players puts it on. Some shows, when they come around for the third or fourth time, I’ll give them a miss to see something new. I think this is like RENT, where I’m always going to say yes. I cannot ever imagine regretting attending a performance of this show. This production at The Phipps Center for the Arts has all the power and joy that every other production I’ve seen has.

Come From Away is the musical written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, based on the true events of September 11, 2001, and the days following. After two airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City and another crashed into the Pentagon, all air travel was grounded and the airspace above the U.S. was closed. All airplanes inbound were diverted to the nearest airfield outside the U.S. Thus, 38 airplanes carrying about 7,000 passengers found themselves stranded in the small town of Gander on the island of Newfoundland. This small town and its neighboring towns took in these 7,000 passengers from all over the world, fed them, gave them shelter, clothed them, and made them honorary Newfoundlanders.

The show does what must always be done with stories about something as large as 9/11: It focuses on a specific aspect and a smaller group of people. This approach allows us to comprehend the incomprehensible by taking a huge event and bringing it down to a personal level. We get to know key members of the community, passengers, and the pilot of one of the planes, and through them we see this moment in history from a new perspective. The overall focus of the play is on the community coming together and caring for these stranded people, these strangers. Relying heavily on humor that seems very Newfoundlandish but also very Minnesotan.

Come From Away is an important work of art, but it doesn’t feel like it should be. A lighter, more energetic musical would be hard to find. The show moves with the pace and humor of a broad comedy. While the play doesn’t dwell on the tragedy of 9/11 and the negative reactions that came from it, it also doesn’t ignore them. There will be tears, but the kind that come from well-earned moments of genuine empathy, and any moments of sadness are met with feelings of joy at the capacity of the characters to support each other.

Still, while the show barrels ahead from one witty lyric to the next, with all the joy we are feeling, we are also constantly aware of 9/11. In some ways, it reopens a wound that I felt had long ago healed over. But in doing so, it also begins to heal that wound again at the same time. This is a tightrope walk I can’t really wrap my head around. It’s at once life-affirming, joyous, funny, and moving, while also reminding us of a tragedy that changed our world, that shocked and saddened us to our very cores. Yet these disparate elements are not at war with each other; they live organically intertwined, as if the one wouldn’t work without the other.

I imagine if I ever see a production of Come From Away that I don’t like, it will have to do with the cast, because the music and book are perfection. This cast is a great match for the material. There are certain characters that are favorites, like Nick and Diane, fellow travelers from different countries who fall for each other. Here they are played by real-life husband and wife Ben Thietje and Amanda White, who are just darling in the roles. Or the Kevins, the gay couple played here by a Stages of MN favorite, Ryan Lee, and Jeremy Johnson. Again, just ideal in these roles. Then there are characters that stand out in certain productions. Here, the character of Bob, played by Erebi Nyenkan, always gets some laughs, but there was something extra that drew me to the character this time and made her performance one of my favorites.

But the one that pulled the most out of me emotionally was DeZhané Antoinette as Hannah, the mother of a NYC firefighter who cannot get word of her son. It’s a role that is written to pull at your heartstrings, but no one has quite made all of the fear, worry, and uncertainty so palpable as Antoinette. Every line spoken, every note sung, is underlined with a sense that her heart may break at any moment. I cry a lot at this show. She earned by far the most tears of anyone in the cast.

In terms of differences besides the cast, the set design by Taylor English adds a substantial raised walkway that is well used, particularly in Nick and Diane’s sweet song, “Stop the World.” The one minor disappointment is the lack of live musicians. It doesn’t really affect our enjoyment of the show, but it’s always fun at the end or in the bar scene when you get to experience the band playing in front of you and getting to take a bow.

If you’ve never seen Come From Away, I urge you not to miss this opportunity. This is a wonderful production of one of my all-time favorites. This is definitely Top 10, probably Top 5 for me. Subject matter turning you off? Just trust me. It will be a powerful, inspiring, and ultimately uplifting experience.

Come From Away runs through September 27 at The Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson, WI. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://thephipps.org/26-27/come-from-away

Pinocchio is Great Fun for the Whole Family, Ignore the 5 to 10 Year Olds suggestion, It’s for Everyone at Children’s Theatre Company

Antonisia (Nisi) Collins, Reed Sigmund, and Dean Holt Photographed by Glen Stubbe

The Children’s Theatre Company’s production of Pinocchio, according to the website, is geared toward ages 5 to 10. I hope that won’t dissuade people from bringing their older children as well, because it worked for me, so I’m sure it will work for them as well. This production is adapted and directed by Greg Banks, whose scripts for Robin Hood and The Hobbit we’ve seen produced over the last two years at Zephyr Theatre and Theatre in the Round. I’m getting a sense of Banks’ style at this point: he takes a classic story and retells it in a non-traditional way. Banks likes to acknowledge that we are sharing a story and shares openly the importance of the audience’s role in bringing their imagination into the theater.

Pinocchio opens not in Italy but in a theater. Company member Dean Holt comes on stage in his painter clothes, ready to get to work painting the set for the upcoming production of Pinocchio. He’s surprised to see us all there and tells us we’ll have to leave. When he discovers we all have tickets for Pinocchio, he convinces the other four members of the painting crew that they should tell us the story since we are there.

They then proceed to perform a seemingly makeshift telling of Pinocchio, using the ladders and scaffolding, paint cans and drop cloths, and even the head of a mop to take the place of props and costumes. This open communication with the audience allows the cast to engage directly at times with the audience, helping to keep the little ones engaged throughout. There was also a nice peppering of clowning throughout. There is nothing like a little good clowning to get an audience laughing together.

The cast is filled with the theater’s core company: Holt, Autumn Ness, Reed Sigmund, and the newest member and 2025 Twin Cities Theater Bloggers Favorite New Artist Award winner Antonisia Collins as Pinocchio. Also joining in, mostly providing instrumental accompaniment, is Victor Zupanc.

Zupanc, as with the style of telling this story, provides young audience members a chance to think about where the sounds they hear in entertainment come from. To see how creatively certain instruments can be used to conjure more than just music.

Holt and Sigmund playing schoolhouse bullies was brilliantly realized, the timing and the facial expressions priceless. Ness gets to pull at our heartstrings, first because the only role they’ll give her is the neighbor, who’s sleeping, later as she tries to deviate from the story to help Pinocchio.

And Nisi Collins… man, did we pick that one right. Pinocchio has a lot in common with the role she played last year in Once on This Island. There is a naivete and a trusting nature to both roles, but there is zero overlap in her performances. She plays the same traits but in a completely new way. I cannot wait to see what she does next.

Pinocchio is perfect for 5- to 10-year-olds, so bring them. But trust me, don’t leave the tweens or teens, or Grandma and Grandpa, at home. This is a very fun show. What I love most about it is the way in which it engages with the audience, not only telling them a story but sharing how we tell a story in theater. It’s the kind of show that could get some young mind thinking about more than just acting, but directing as well.

Pinocchio runs through October 18 at Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://childrenstheatre.org/whats-on/pinocchio/

Mothership a Space Allegory For Our Troubled Times. This Penumbra World Premiere Science Fiction Play is Far Out!

The Cast of Mothership Photo by Caroline Yang

Penumbra opens its 50th season with the world premiere of a science fiction play titled Mothership. Set in the not-too-distant future, the Earth has been all but destroyed by man, and in order to protect itself, it has turned on mankind, forcing people to flee in rockets, many of which exploded, or go deep underground to try and survive. Those who remain, the ones not allowed on the initial rocket ships, are all Black.

Now the survivors have been invited onto a sentient spaceship called the Mothership to be taken to a new planet to start over. But in order to reach that destination, the five survivors in the pod where the play takes place must grow, change, heal, and transform. They must unfurl themselves from the past in order to gain the chance to begin again.

The pod is filled with five characters, each with trauma, secrets, or unacknowledged truths they carry with them like burdens. The new planet will not accept them if they have not freed themselves from the bonds of the past and become who they truly are meant to be. This planet will not allow them to devastate it as they have Earth.

Mothership uses this future world and situation to speak to us about our world today. It’s a little on the nose, but that’s because the extrapolations from our time to the future time of this play feel as though they might be ripped from next year’s headlines. Co-authors Resmaa Menakem and Kristen Adele Calhoun infuse the story with enough humor and unique character details to keep the play entertaining and from feeling like a lesson being preached.

A strong cast helps ground the futuristic tale, the standout being Ashambaga Jaafaru as Harper. Starting out full of attitude and defiance, Harper will evolve into the group’s leader. Jaafaru is equally compelling at both ends of the spectrum.

The role of the youngest member of the pod is played in rotation by two young actors, Juliah Jefferson and Michelle Kanyugi. I saw Jefferson, whom I’d seen last season in Penumbra’s production of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. I hope she continues on with acting. I see a lot of potential in this 12-year-old, and she’s getting the opportunity in both those productions to work with some really gifted performers.

Outside of the Twin Cities Horror Festival or Minnesota Fringe Festival, we don’t often see science fiction plays. I can only think of a couple off the top of my head: Fahrenheit 451 and Marjorie Prime, both of which, at least in the productions I saw, took a very low-tech approach.

Mothership’s production design, by contrast, is very creatively executed. There are three video screens that appear to show the space through which the ship is traveling, though they are also used to visually represent some exposition and give us a somewhat distorted visual of the entity that is the Mothership’s sentient split personality. There are also unexpected transformations of the set itself that help to achieve a larger scope visually. Great work from Scenic Designer Chelsea M. Warren and Associate Scenic Designer Sebastian Zavalza. Likewise, Projection Designer Miko Simmons and Video Programmer Bevibel Harvey.

This world premiere from Penumbra is a great start to their 50th season and a rare chance to see a science fiction stage play. Under the skillful direction of Candis C. Jones, it reminds us of the path we are on, but also allows us to leave with hope.

Mothership runs through October 4 at Penumbra Center for Racial Healing. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://penumbracenter.org/event/mothership/

Wait Until Dark Is So Good Even a Blind Person Can See It’s the Perfect Twisty, Turny, Edge of Your Seat Thriller to Close out the Season With.

Paul de Cordova, Paul LaNave, and Sara Marsh Photo by Alyssa Kristine

Dark and Stormy Productions finds the perfect show to fill the vacuum that is the theater scene between the end of Fringe and the post-Labor Day launches of the new theater seasons with their new production of Wait Until Dark. I had, of course, seen the classic film adaptation years ago, and I’ve actually seen a stage production of the play pre-blog at Lyric Arts. That was a while ago, but even with all the shows that have come between, I have no doubt this is the superior production. Everything works: the pacing, the performances, the lighting, and the set design. This is a show that works like clockwork, if you don’t count the start time.

That’s a little joke. There was a performer who had some travel issues, and our performance started a half-hour late. The company’s Artistic Director and star of the play, Sara Marsh, came out, explained the situation, and smoothed things over with free wine and bottled water. The biggest compliment I can pay the show is to tell you that, even on a Thursday night, it was worth the wait.

For those unfamiliar with the story, three criminals prey upon a blind woman, Susy, in an attempt to retrieve a doll full of drugs. They send her husband off on wild goose chases and then move in. One poses as an old friend of her husband’s, another as a policeman, and the third as someone looking for a woman. Not content to try and find the doll by stealth, they conceive of an elaborate con to try and convince her that her husband has been unfaithful and murdered his mistress. Their big mistake is underestimating Susy, mistaking her blindness for helplessness.

Marsh plays Susy’s intelligence rather than her blindness as her defining characteristic. Marsh knows just how to show us this intelligence, it’s in the way she listens and reacts to events as small as the opening and closing of window blinds. I’m thinking of a particular moment when a phone ringing signifies a 180-degree turn in Susy’s understanding of the events that have been unfolding. It’s a moment that could give a less capable actor and director difficulty in how to convey it to an audience. Marsh and Director Benjamin McGovern make the moment crystal clear.

The entire cast is terrific, but I have to give a shout-out to Paul de Cordova, who stepped in rather late into the show’s rehearsal process for Luverne Seifert, who ran into some health issues. Playing the leader of the criminals, de Cordova is wonderful as the ruthless Mr. Roat, able to seem harmless or menacing on the turn of a dime. Also deserving of a special shout out is Madelyn Tax as the young neighbor girl Gloria. A twenty something woman playing a young girl around 14 years of age can be tricky and very easily veer into annoying territory. Tax completely avoids the usual landminds of such a performance and completely realisticly pulls off a convincing performance.

McGovern directs with precision. This production speeds along; not a moment feels wasted or drawn out. The blocking, particularly in the blackout climax of the show, has a natural stumbling element that only successfully comes from a cast that has their blocking down pat. Lighting Designer Shannon Elliott’s contributions are key to the climax of the show and are executed perfectly.

I’m surprised, given the multiple productions we’ve seen of Dial M for Murder and Misery over the last few years, that we don’t see this classic staged more often. This is tense, edge-of-your-seat stuff, and it plays with the audience in a way few thrillers can pull off. Wait Until Dark runs through September 13 at the Gremlin Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.darkstormy.org/