Annie Returns to Chanhasen Dinner Theaters in Fantastic New Production With Rising Star Eve Scharback as Annie

Annie acts as sort of a stealth missile of a musical. Everyone knows it, either from the movie or having seen it previously on stage. Just about every theater company has mounted a production, particularly community theaters. So when it comes up, there is an instinct to dismiss it or, when choosing between two shows, go with the less familiar. What we forget is just how good a production of Annie can be. Case in point: Chanhassen Dinner Theatres’ new production is the best I’ve ever seen! The cast is phenomenal, with a special emphasis on the juvenile performers who make this classic musical feel fresh and new!

As with all long-running professional productions featuring school-age performers, the children’s roles are double-cast. The performance I saw featured Eve Scharback as Annie. Scharback had already impressed me in multiple productions at Theatre Latté Da as Small Alison in Fun Home and Young Alice in their Next Festival reading of Alice in Neverland. It’s unclear if she is trying to corner the market on roles that begin with the letter “A,” but if that is her goal, I’ve no doubt she will achieve it. My prediction is that we are seeing the start of a career actor, one destined to be one of the Twin Cities’ go-to performers. Want to see a star born? Get out to CDT’s production of Annie. Eve Scharback is already shining with a brilliance akin to the North Star. I’d love to go back and see the show with the other cast as well, if they are as good as this, I’d say CDT has locked in the best young performers in the area.

Scharback is surrounded by six or seven other young actors, any of whom would outshine most performances in any community theater production. Special mention has to be given as well to Lucy Anderson, who played Molly this night. Director Tamara Kangas Erickson has guided Anderson straight into the hearts of the audience with her perfectly timed moments of comic relief. The audience was eating out of her hand as she was wheeled offstage in her bed while changing into different poses.

The adult cast is stellar as well. The role of Miss Hannigan, played to perfection by Carol Burnett in the film version, must be a daunting role, knowing that much of the audience will subconsciously be measuring your performance against hers. Serena Brook easily overcomes any resistance to her performance, and it is the standout of the adult cast. Also very impressive, as always, is Anna Hashizume as Grace Farrell, whose voice stands out due to her complete control of every note and the fullness of her sound. In the role of Daddy Warbucks was Dante Jamar Lamonte Murray, whom I’m unfamiliar with, but he’s a welcome surprise, with a nice, rich voice and an easy chemistry with Scharback’s Annie.

If you don’t know the story of Annie, all you really need to know is that it’s a show perfect for the whole family. Kids will love it, adults will love it, even the family dog will love it, though they probably aren’t allowed in. Annie’s dog Sandy is played by Addison, a professional “Sandy” who has performed the role all over the country. The role is small, but when Addison is on stage, she always hits her mark.

Annie runs through February at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres in Chanhassen. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://bit.ly/ANNIECDT. The wonderful thing about CDT is that not only do you get a great show, but a delicious meal as well. And don’t forget to add a dessert. I can personally vouch for the tiramisu and the salted caramel cheesecake, both are to die for.

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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A Message About the Weeks Ahead

Hello, faithful readers, how are you? Good, glad to hear it. I’ve been having some issues myself since last February, actually. That’s part of the reason for the abrupt stop in terms of the YouTube episodes. Without going into too much detail, I’ll be having surgery on Monday, 10/5/26. They know why they are doing it, but what all it will involve is unknown until they get inside me.

So there will not be any new reviews for a bit. The next show I have scheduled is Annie next Friday. To say I’ll be able to attend and review feels optimistic, but I’m leaving it open for now because I choose to be optimistic. But it’s going to be a little bit of a wait-and-see, one-day-at-a-time deal. I had made my schedule for October before I knew when the surgery would be, so if I’m planning to attend a show, it’s been scheduled, and I’m going to do my best to stick to my schedule. But recovery has to come first. I’ve tried to leave the last week or so of October a little lighter schedule-wise so that I can try and reschedule anything I may end up missing during recovery.

There are a lot of unknowns right now and a lot of different ways this might play out. I may find that seeing shows is a good way to get myself back to the level where I can get back to work, but then find that after work I don’t have the energy for shows. So there could be some reviews as early as next weekend, and then after another week, no reviews again for a bit.

I want to thank the theaters and theater companies that I engage with for your patience and flexibility over the next few weeks. I promise to give you as much notice as I can if I cannot make a show. I also promise, if I do cancel, to try and reschedule before considering shows I didn’t have scheduled.

And for you, my blessed boppets, a reminder that there are a number of theater bloggers in the Twin Cities. If you need to know which shows to see and I’m not reviewing, you can always check in with my friends.

Cherry and Spoon http://www.cherryandspoon.com/, Lettered in Theatre https://letteredintheatre.wordpress.com/, Ernest Goes to the Theatre https://ernestgoestothetheatre.blogspot.com/, Play Off the Page https://playoffthepage.com/, Life in Revue https://lifeinrevue.blogspot.com/, Friends and Neighbors https://friendsandneighbors.blog/, and Tracy Sees stuff https://tracyseesstuff.com/.

Also a reminder of the Website that has just started up in the Twin Cities. 79 Seconds on Stage is a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

I sincerely hope to be back reviewing next weekend, but hang in there if I’m not. Rest assured that I’ll be making every effort to be back as soon as I’m safely able to.

Be back soon,

Rob

You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown at Artistry in Bloomington

The cast of You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown Photos by Scott Knight

Like the 1966 Batman TV series, the Peanuts gang works on different levels depending on your age. I remember spending hours as a child reading compilation books of the Peanuts comic strip from the library. I greatly enjoyed them without ever seriously grasping the dark side of that world. That came last year as I rewatched It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. The kids all go trick-or-treating, and after each house they say what they got. Charlie Brown’s revelation is that he got a rock. And that happens at every house. I don’t think in all the years I watched that special as a kid that it ever really struck me how messed up that is.

This is my second time seeing a production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. The first was at Stages Theatre Company, where the cast was entirely young people and the show was geared toward kids. Artistry’s new production illustrates how casting and direction can change our perception of the show. Artistry has cast the show with well-known local actors, all over 60 years of age. This sets us up to view it not through the lens of childhood, but through those of adults. It feels different tonally, even though it is the same material.

Now, the problem with the show is not the cast or the tone. Either are valid ways of producing the show. The problem is in the material itself. The show lacks any kind of story arc. In a way, it’s appropriate, as it models the original comic strip format of short little segments. But when you transfer a show to a new medium, you need to adapt it to that medium. Think of A Charlie Brown Christmas or It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. When they created those specials around the Peanuts characters, they came up with a story into which there were certainly little bits that felt like stand-alone moments, like the individual comic strips, but it told a story. Here, there is no through line. That is what is missing, and it may be the sort of thing you pick up on more on subsequent viewings.

Several of the songs are alright, most are forgettable, but there is one that actually is really quite nice, and it’s probably the best moment in the show. When the whole cast is looking up into the sky and sings “Happiness” at the end of the show. It was a nice stand alone moment that illustrated what the show could have been.

Look, I love Peanuts and all the characters created by Charles M. Schulz, and I really love this cast. The idea of doing the show with this cast is a good one, and the execution is probably about as good as it could be. The fact remains, this is a featherweight show, and it doesn’t matter how many heavyweights you bring into it, it is never going to be anything more than it is: a collection of comic strip moments.

The cast features Jay Albright as Charlie Brown, Michelle Barber as Sally, Bradley Greenwald as Snoopy, Tod Petersen as Linus, Jen Santoro Rotty as Lucy, and Joenathan Thomas as Schroeder. They are all doing everything they can.

Costume Coordinator Britt Hilton also deserves to be acknowledged for helping to bring these characters to life.

You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown runs through October 25th at Artistry in Bloomington. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://artistrymn.org/charliebrown

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale Will Delight Younger Audiences Without Boring the Parents at Mixed Blood

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale is an odd choice for Mixed Blood, but somehow they got the word out because the theater was full, with lots of children in attendance. Which is exactly who it is aimed at. But thankfully it’s the type of show that will keep the grown-ups engaged as well.

The show takes place on Peter’s birthday, and it has been one year since Mr. McGregor got Peter’s coat and shoes and hung them up like a scarecrow, and killed Peter’s father and baked him in a pie. That is a detail true to the original Beatrix Potter stories, but it is a startling detail to include. The other odd moment is when Peter appears to be suffering from post-traumatic shock. But perhaps, in our world today, those are the things that replace Bambi’s mother being shot.

The show runs under an hour, and the set and costumes are delightful. The cast is a mix of familiar locals, including Stages of MN favorite Em Adam Rosenberg as Ptolemy the Tortoise, some not-as-familiar locals, and an out-of-towner, Juan Carlos Unzueta, who reprises the role of Peter Rabbit, which he originated in the premiere production. I knew he must be from away, as he was just too good not to have been noticed before locally.

The animals all gather for a surprise birthday party for Peter, and we, the audience, are invited along. Which freaks all the animals out, as they haven’t had good experiences with humans. But we work through that, and the animals devise a plan for getting back into the garden to get food because they don’t have enough. When they execute their plan, we see it via a video presentation of a shadow-puppet show, which is very effective.

There is a great message about working together, sharing what you have, and finding a way for everyone to thrive. The songs are good, and the band is in view of the audience and is made up of Peter’s siblings, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail.

This isn’t a must-see for folks without kids, but if you have kids, say ages 5 to 10, I think they will be really into it. The audience I saw it with seemed to be enjoying it.

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale is running through October 18 at Mixed Blood. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://mixedblood.com/product/into-the-burrow/

On the Razzle! is a Linguistic Delight and a Very Enjoyable Farce at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul

Brendan Nelson Finn, José Sabillón, and Emil Herrera Photo by Dan Norman

On the Razzle by the late Tom Stoppard opens Park Square Theatre’s 51st season to much laughter from the appreciative audience. This farcical comedy has quite the heritage. The story began as a Viennese play in 1842 titled Einen Jux Will er Sich Machen by Johann Nestroy. It was then adapted twice by Thornton Wilder, first in 1938 as The Merchant of Yonkers and then again in 1955 as The Matchmaker, which was then the basis for the musical Hello, Dolly!. Stoppard’s version eliminates the Dolly Levi character altogether. She isn’t missed, though certain aspects of the plot of Hello, Dolly! are still present. This feels completely fresh. Nestroy’s almost 175-year-old play was clearly a fertile source of inspiration.

The plot revolves around… well, it’s kind of complicated. There is a pair of young lovers whom the guardian of the young woman is trying to keep apart. He is sending her to his sister-in-law’s to get her away from the young man. Meanwhile, he has hired a new servant who he sends to arrange for a dinner for him and Ms. Knorr, whom he plans to marry, in the city. The guardian, Zangler, happens to be the owner of a fancy grocery store. Before leaving, he promotes his head clerk to partner and the apprentice to clerk. Of course, as soon as he leaves, they close shop and head to the city as well, looking to have some fun.

From there, a lot of things you may have seen on Three’s Company happen. The humor comes at you from various directions. There are mistaken identities, multiple tartan capes, and more malaprops than you can snake a tick at. The script is very adept at finding humor in the language, but it doesn’t shirk at some good old fashioned physical humor as well.

A play like this works or doesn’t work based on the cast. Stoppard’s script is nonstop with the verbal and physical humor, and it needs a certain skill set from the performers to pull off. This cast, for the most part, makes the show succeed. In the main roles, Christopher Hayhurst and Nate Turcotte are superb as Zangler’s employees who get mixed up with two women, one of whom is Zangler’s fiancée. They are played by George Keller and Greta Oglesby. The four of them are great fun to watch. In fact, those are the most interesting characters in the show, and thankfully, we spend the most time with them.

There are a couple of scene stealers in the cast. The first is Norah Long, who plays multiple characters. The one that sticks out the most is the woman who works in the shop, Gertrude, but a close second is the sister-in-law whom the young woman is being sent to stay with, and her story about her brush with love.

The second scene stealer, and he’s a highlight of the show, is Brendan Nelson Finn. Again, he plays multiple characters, but there are two that are outstanding. The first is as a waiter, and the second, and best, is as a coachman obsessed with women. It’s a hilariously over-the-top character that elicited big laughs from the audience.

The final star of the show is the set design by Benjamin Olsen. I think we make about eight changes in location during the course of the show, and the transformations are more than wheeling a table on stage or flying in a couple of flats. Large walls and even staircases are shifted around. It’s an impressive set, and the cast and crew do a good job of making the transitions quick.

Director Stephen DiMenna assists with this by having characters at times come off of the stage into the auditorium to continue scenes as the transitions are being made on stage. It’s a very effective choice to minimize the distraction of the set change.

On the Razzle runs through October 25 at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.parksquaretheatre.org/on-the-razzle

Lizzie The Rock Musical Returns to Take Another Whack at Open Eye Theatre MUST SEE PRODUCTION

Grace Hillmyer and Lux Mortenson Photo by Bruce Silcox

Last year Open Eye Theatre struck gold with Lizzie: The Rock Musical; it sold out the entire extended run. Its popularity was so strong that the decision was made very early on to bring it back this year, locking in the same amazing cast. I loved the show so much last year that I went back for a second time, a luxury I can rarely afford to do with my schedule. This October is very busy, and I’m going to have to miss a week or two of shows in the middle of it, but there was no way I was going to skip this show even though I saw it twice last year. It’s that good.

Last year I declared that this one is an all-time favorite, and that holds true more than ever. It’s like a Wes Anderson movie: it gets better every time I see it. Lizzie: The Rock Musical is the high we theater junkies chase. When every element, from music and lighting to performance and design, collides at the intersection of awe and adrenaline. Like last year, I left the theater absolutely buzzing. Tonight, as I left the theater, I had the same thought I did the previous two times: I want to go again!

You may not know what to expect from a musical about the infamous Lizzie Borden, who was acquitted in 1892 of the axe murders of her father and stepmother. Open Eye Theatre’s program describes it as a “Victorian punk homage” to the notorious figure, and that fits perfectly. It’s important to understand that this is a fictionalized retelling of the true-crime story, inspired in part by the childhood rhyme:

Lizzie Borden took an axe
Gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
Gave her father forty-one.

The musical assumes Lizzie’s guilt, as does pretty much everyone throughout history. It suggests her father’s “affection” may have crossed unsettling boundaries. It also explores a romantic relationship between Lizzie and her friend Alice Russell, what Lord Alfred Douglas once called “the love that dare not speak its name.” Amid all the blood and thunder, it’s the softer songs between Lizzie and Alice that linger. Numbers like “Will You Stay” and the haunting “Will You Lie?,” which is a response to the former, offer moments of tenderness, grace, and humanity that add layers to the characters.

Grace Hillmyer, Lux Mortenson, Abilene Olson, and Marley Ritchie Photo by Bruce Silcox

Lux Mortenson plays Lizzie in a ferocious, take-no-prisoners performance. They slay every moment and every song. Their chemistry with Stages of MN favorite Grace Hillmyer as Alice is electric: their scenes are tender, tentative, and deeply moving. Mortenson’s powerhouse energy drives the show like a drumbeat, while Hillmyer’s quiet strength and lyrical vulnerability provide the emotional melody. Abilene Olson as Lizzie’s sister Emma and Marley Ritchie as the family’s servant Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan complete the quartet with precision and presence. This cast is so perfectly aligned that future productions will inevitably pale in comparison. I’m so grateful that Open Eye was able to secure the entire cast from last year. I cannot imagine it with anyone else in the roles.

Helping elevate Lizzie to such heights is Joel Sass, who serves as both director and set designer. Open Eye Theatre consistently delivers exceptional design work, and Sass’s design is another example of its excellence. Michael Murnane’s lighting design adds a striking atmosphere, while Amanda Weis’s music direction ensures a tight, thunderous sound from the band. This is a small theater, but it’s a big sound coming through, and it’s also exceptionally clean sounding. Samantha Haddow’s costumes beautifully balance period detail with punk-rock attitude. The result is a production that’s a full sensory feast, sights, sounds, and emotion working in perfect harmony.

When Lizzie makes her final rockin’ entrance and the rock anthem swells, there is a shot of electricity that goes through the entire theater. In that moment, we are all one, sharing the kind of communal experience you rarely get, and that is unique to smaller intimate venues like Open Eye. I had the telltale Stages of MN tear sliding down my cheek. This is joy, and it wasn’t just me. You could tell by watching them that the cast was having a blast, too, and loving the audience’s reaction.

What is it about this show? From the moment they enter the stage wearing those creepy-as-hell doll masks, I’m all in! Maybe it’s the music, which definitely has a late-’70s, early-’80s vibe. There is a Jim Steinman feel to some of Steven Cheslik-DeMeyer and Alan Stevens Hewitt’s songs. It doesn’t simply rock, it fuckin’ rocks like a Bat Out of Hell!

You know how the Guthrie puts on A Christmas Carol every year, it’s a Twin Cities tradition right? Can we get Open Eye to do that with Lizzie every October? Because chances are I’m not going to have this same high until I see it again. Though, of course, I’ll keep trying. I’ll keep chasing the dragon, and I’ll be sure to let you know where you can get your fix.

Lizzie: The Rock Musical runs through November 1 at Open Eye Theatre in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.openeyetheatre.org/lizzie-the-rock-musical. But don’t wait. I’d be very surprised if many, if not all, of the performances sell out again this year. There probably isn’t a better musical to see in the Twin Cities this entire month, probably the rest of the year that this!

The Hired Man Is Not what You Expect It to Be, It’s Better! At The Crane Theater From Theatre Pro Rata

Bee Davis, Jessica Winingham, and Phi Hamens Nelson Photo by Alex Wohlhueter

The Hired Man is a show that could be easily spoiled, so I’m going to try and tiptoe around things a bit. Know that this modern-day tale told on a cattle ranch in Wyoming owes as much to Greek tragedy as it does to the Western. And it’s both of those things in their most soap-opera way. That might sound like a dig, but it isn’t; I really enjoyed this one. You may think you know where the story will head at the beginning, but believe me, you don’t. This is like one of Shakespeare’s comedies where everyone loves someone who loves somebody else, or thinks they do.

The story opens with Tim and Ellen, two young folks. He’s 23 and the hired hand on Ellen’s grandfather Hank’s ranch; she is 18 and graduating soon from high school. Tim is falling in love with Ellen, and since he’s already like a member of the family, hopes that he and Ellen will end up working the ranch together once Hank is gone. Ellen is just having fun. They are caught in a compromising position by Hank, who punches Tim, fires him, and tells him to get off his land.

Tim is left adrift, with nowhere to go and no job, and still pining for Ellen. Georgette, Hank’s girlfriend, is worried that if he can throw Tim out so fast, maybe he’ll turn on her too, and so she ups the pressure to get married. They have been together five years, and while she has a home in town, her life is out here on the ranch.

Hank hires a new hired man, or in this case, a woman, named Matty. She comes equipped with a guilty conscience in the form of Linda, whom we realize early on is only in her head, meaning she can see her but no one else can. Georgette is jealous of this hired woman; she doesn’t want another woman around the ranch when she’s trying to get Hank to commit. That’s just the setup, and I’m not going to reveal anything more plot-wise.

No one is an outright villain in this play, with the possible exception of Linda, who has nothing positive to say inside Matty’s head. all of the characters have their motivations and the actions they take a understandable.

The performances are strong. Bee Davis, apparently capable of anything, gives an alternatively playful and smoldering performance. She is the sex drive of the play, and yes, this play definitely has a sex drive. Hot off her performance as a rabbit in Watership Down and writing the beautiful songs for that show, here she brings a seductive energy that convincingly attracts both male and female characters, all while convincingly embodying an18 year old.

Phi Hamens Nelson brings a James Dean quality to the role of Tim. He’s vulnerable in his one-on-one moments with Davis, and he even shows the hurt he’s feeling at being thrown out when he’s trying to make his play at payback. We’ve seen Nelson in a smaller role with Theatre Pro Rata; it’s been nice to see him in meatier roles again here and in last summer’s Fringe show. Definitely one to watch, I definitely think he’s on the right path, and I hope to keep seeing him in more roles.

Jessica Winingham, whom I think I’ve only ever seen in the last Pro Rata production, is fantastic here again. I hope this means she’s living locally and we’ll see her in more things. She brings a toughness to Matty that fits the character of a female hired hand on a cattle ranch, but also shows a sweet side and a vulnerable side. And don’t forget the slightly crazy, talking-to-the-woman-in-your-head side. Every aspect of the character is played just right, from desperate embraces to dawning horror.

Andy Chambers and Jenny Ramirez, as Hank and Georgette, capture that “been together for a while” vibe perfectly, and it’s their scenes together that really sort of ground the play in a less melodramatic way. They feel real.

And what can I say about Wini Froelich? She nails it as the character you do not want to go home with when the bar closes. It is an excellent turn from a great character actor. Just watching her blow her cigarette smoke in Matty’s face is classic.

The set design by MJ Leffler looks great. I loved the bits of grass peeking out from every corner, the hay bales, the benches, it all set the sense of place nicely. The one downside, and I think this was the director’s choice, is that every time the scene changes, everyone in the cast moves pieces around the stage. They do it efficiently, but I’d prefer if they just left certain areas set up to be this location and that location a little more. It would benefit from half the number of set reconfigurations. Otherwise, I thought the direction was very strong.

I don’t often single out the intimacy and fight choreographers, but I think Annie Enneking, who handles both jobs in this show, did great work. There are several physical fights, and they were very well done. And the intimate scenes were also done in a way that the passion came through, but it didn’t feel exploitative.

I went in knowing nothing. I immediately assumed we would be watching a young forbidden-lovers tale once it started, and what I ended up with was very different. The denouement is truly unexpected and hits the audience perfectly.

The Hired Man runs through October 11th at the Crane Theater in NE Minneapolis. From more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreprorata.org/production-history/the-hired-man