On May 7th, 1963 the Guthrie Theater opened its first production directed by its founder Sir Tyrone Guthrie. The first play produced? William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Widely regarded as Shakespeare’s greatest play and the greatest play ever written in the English language, Hamlet has been a significant play in the theater’s history. Follow up productions marked the Guthrie’s 15th and 25th Anniversaries. When the theater moved from its original location in 2006, Hamlet was the final play produced. Now for the 60th anniversary they have returned Hamlet with a new production directed by Guthrie Artistic Director Joseph Haj. It’s an important and meaningful play to the Guthrie for these reasons, but why should we as audience members, particularly if we have seen it produced before or on film, spend three hours with a play written over 400 years ago? The late film critic Roger Ebert wrote in his review of Hamlet (1996) “One of the tasks of a lifetime is to become familiar with the great plays of Shakespeare”. I believe this to be a true statement, and anyone who has read or attended a Shakespeare play knows that an understanding of his work does not come from one exposure. It’s a testament to his genius that one continues to learn and see new things with every version one encounters. This was my third time seeing Hamlet produced on stage; I read the play in high school, again as an adult, I’ve seen at least 5 screen adaptations, and Count Kenneth Branagh’s film version is among my favorite films. So I’m familiar with the play, but I’ll never stop learning from it. One of the reasons we go to see plays we are familiar with is to see how different Directors and Actors interpret them. This latest staging by the Guthrie is my favorite of the live productions I’ve seen thus far. With a cast that communicates the dialogue in a way the audience can tune into and every production element working together, this is a fitting way to mark the Guthrie’s 60th year.

The great thing about reviewing the greatest play ever written that’s over 400 years old, I feel I can safely dispense with the plot synopsis and instead say a little about the interpretation. One of the aspects that frequently get played with when producing Shakespeare is the time period. To keep producing a play over and over for hundreds of years, you need to find news ways in which to present it. One thing that is frequently done is to make cuts to the play, without them the play can run close to four hours, this production runs about two hours and forty five minutes including an intermission, so there have been cuts, but they are very judicious ones. Some productions will downplay the looming possibility of war, keeping the focus squarely on the internal intrigue. This productions holds a nice balance giving a sense of the larger world, Director Joseph Haj has made excellent choices giving us a comfortable running time without having sacrificed the larger scope of Shakespeare’s play. I got slightly worried at one point when I thought he might have cut the “to be or not to be” speech. He hadn’t, he has simply swapped the order of it and Hamlet’s scene with Ophelia. I liked the choice, it give a slightly different texture for the “to be or not to be” monologue and that is what we are talking about when we discuss interpretation. By changing the order, it effects the actors approach to the next scene. Now Hamlet is influenced by this confrontation with Ophelia as another reason to question his worthiness. When structured the other way his breaking with Ophelia comes after his questioning of himself and thus the rejection comes when he is looking for comfort. It’s fascinating how little changes or emphasizing certain things over others can alter the emotional tone of scenes and change the focus of the plots.

Most actors at some point in their career hope to play Hamlet, Michael Braugher does not throw away his shot. He gives us a Hamlet that moves away from the Melancholy Dane interpretation, giving us an alert and active Prince. He’s serious, in avoiding some of the humorous lines readings we’ve seen others do, Braugher makes the ones he does choose to play for a laugh, seem all the funnier. He shares a powerful scene with Regina Marie Williams, who plays his mother Gertrude, which is a highlight for both performers. Ray Dooley is wonderful as Polonius, he leans into the humor quite effectively both in his sparrings with Hamlet and his pontifications to the King, the Queen, and whoever else he can talk at. John Catron plays Claudius and does a nice job of giving us a character that is more than just a villain, we get a sense of him as King, trying to be a husband and father to a point. It’s nice to see a more balanced casting of out of towners and local performers this time. Braugher and Dooley were brought in along with several others including the excellent Grayson DeJesus as Laertes, David Whalen who plays the Ghost/Gravedigger/Player King, and Anya Whelan-Smith as Ophelia. Along with Catron and Williams we have several other local favorites in the cast Daniel Petzold is Horatio and does as well as anyone can in a role that is basically an observer. We also get Dustin Bronson who was fantastic last December at the Jungle Theater in Georgiana & Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley showing off his comedic sensibilities again as Guildenstern, along with other roles. Max Wojtanowicz gets more mileage out of Osric than most do even with several of his lines cut, he makes his characters presence known in scenes without dialogue. Lastly, I want to mention another local favorite that has a background role in the Nobles, Soldiers and Attendants ensemble; Emily Rosenberg, nice to see our local emerging talents getting big stage exposure. I look forward to a bigger role for her in a future Guthrie production.

Haj has created a very interesting look and feel to this production, making some unusual choices that really payoff. The Set Design by Jan Chambers turns the castle Elsinore into what feels like a concrete prison, which is reflective of Hamlet’s comments to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. It has a modern but nonspecific feel. Costume Design by Trevor Bowen also lend themselves to a modern period setting; the soldiers wear black jackets and carry guns, but also swords. For the most part the characters are dressed in what appears to be a 1940’s sensibility for suites and dresses, but Hamlet looks right out of the current day. It’s an ambiguity that works to set it in a world we can relate to while also keeping a sense of another time. The other technical departments that really adds to the overall feel and texture of the production is the Lighting by Robert Wierzel. Along with the Projection Designer Francesca Talenti who creates a unique and creative way to represent the play within the play wherein we’ll catch the conscience of the king. Talenti also does some great effects during the scenes with the ghost. Finally, Jack Herrick who is the Composer of the soundscape for the show, who is onstage throughout the production adding his music and sounds to each scene, even providing Hamlet with a recorder.

Hamlet runs through May 21st at the Guthrie Theater in Downtown Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/2022-2023-season/Hamlet/

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

There are at least ten productions opening this week across the Twin Cities, followed next week by at least another nine, and at least six more the next. This is probably the busiest three weeks in MN theater so you have a lot of choices, I also had a lot of choices to make. I was really glad I chose The Savannah Sipping Society as one of the shows I would be reviewing during this time. I had a great time with the women of the makeshift Savannah Sipping Society. There are plenty of laughs and some real life lessons to be taken in from a cast that is perfect in every role. It’s a wonderful look what it’s like to make new friends and start the second act of your life. It’s a fun show for couples to see, but probably even more fun for a group of women to have a night out at the theater together.

The Savannah Sipping Society is a play written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, and Jamie Wooten. This show has a lot in common with some others I’ve reviewed over the last few years Steel Magnolias, The Bucket List of the Booze Club, and The Dixie Swim Club. The last isn’t a surprise as it’s also written by Jones, Hope, and Wooten. It’s a formula that brings together a group of women who bond and laugh together. They help each other through difficult times and celebrate their successes. This apparently only occurs in the south for some reason, but that’s OK because we get the added pleasure of some fun accents. What differentiates this play from those others, this time the southern women are not lifelong friends, they meet as the play opens. Marlafaye is recently divorced and moved to Savannah from Texas for a fresh start and to put some distance between herself and her ex-husband and his new much younger wife. Randa is a recently unemployed career woman, who has lived in Savannah her whole life but was too busy working to establish any other relationships. Dot is the woman who retired to Savannah a few months ago to promptly become a widow. Jinx has led a nomadic existence but came to Savannah to care for her ailing older sister. See, it has to be set in the south, how else could you plausibly have only four characters in a play, set in the present day on the planet earth with those names? The quartet become friends and under the tutelage of Jinx, the novice life coach, they try to experience new things and find their path forward.

One of the critical things to making this type of play work is the casting and Lyric Arts has nailed it. Elizabeth Florence Hale is a hoot and a holler as the Texan Marlafaye Mosely. She’s got a perfectly modulated accent, enough to know she’s Texan, not too much so as to grate on one’s nerves, not as simple as it sounds. She gets the best of the one liners and delivers them with the perfect earthy bluntness and wit. Jenny Ramirez is Randa Covington she captures the proper and conservative nature of the character in a way that keeps her sympathetic, we gringe with her when she’s horrified by the boundaryless Marlafaye who grabs her water bottle and takes a big swig. Gina Sauer as Jinx Jenkins is introduced in a way that leads you to think of her as a loud possibly vulgar makeup counter manager, but she quickly reveals herself to be the wise one of the group. That transition happens seamlessly and by the end you find yourself identifying with her the most. Sauer has a way of making her characters wisdom feel internal and authentic. Finally Deborah Schee is Dot Haigler her character is the oldest and that gives Schee a freedom to let her character sit back and go with the flow, the others get nervous about things or overreact to things, but she wisely plays the patience of her characters age, for her it’s all more than she ever thought it might be.

The show is directed by Natalie Foster who hasn’t quite got the staging worked out. Between scenes, the audience is left in darkness for far to long, which was really the only negative aspect of the show. I understand that between the scenes the characters need to do costumes changes but the script has taken that into account somewhat, usually between scenes one of the characters comes forward as the others exit and addresses the audience. Clearly this is done to give the other performers time to make their costume changes, but it feels as if this deliberate focus draw in the script isn’t being exploited enough. It’s a minor quibble, but it’s fairly noticeable and seemly easily addressed one would think. The costumes overshadow the interruption in the pacing though. I’m not a clothes guy, but I really liked the costumes brought together for the quartet by Samantha Fromm Haddow, particularly those worn by Jinx. Also wonderfully realized is the set which is the veranda and the back of Randa’s home, designed by Cory Skold. The lighting design by Brenna Hay is effective in shifting our focus as needed from the whole stage to the audience addresses, helping to sell the moments when one of the characters departs the action to express their thoughts to us.

The Savannah Sipping Society runs through May 7th at Lyric Arts in Anoka, for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.lyricarts.org/savannah-sipping-society

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

The Revolutionists is a very meta fantasy about what might have happened if four women, three real and one amalgamation inspired by several historical figures, had met during the “Reign of Terror” during the French Revolution. It’s an interesting idea and I usually enjoy a good bit of meta silliness but I found something off in this production. Park Square Theatre recently announced that they were cancelling the rest of their 2022/2023 season, including the highly anticipated World Premiere summer mystery Holmes/Poirot by Jeffrey Hatcher and Steve Hendrickson. Post-pandemic has been a challenging environment for theaters fiscally and we have seen many companies struggle and shutter. Hopefully, Park Square will be able to create a plan for moving forward and we will see them reopen in the fall of 2023. While The Revolutionists isn’t my favorite production I’ve seen at Park Square, they have produced some really fantastic shows. If you’ve ever enjoyed a show at Park Square Theatre I urge you to contribute if you can to their future. Click on this link to make a donation.

The Revolutionists is written by Lauren Gunderson who was America’s most produced living playwright for the 2022/2023 theater season. This was the third time she has topped the list, the others being 2017 and the 2019/2020 season. In the Twin Cities this marks the third production for the 2022/2023 season that I’ve seen. The previous were two of her three cycle “Christmas at Pemberley” plays co-written with Margot Melcon, which were the highpoints of the holiday theatergoing season. Gunderson specializes in period and historical plays. The Revolutionists brings together playwright Olympe de Gouges, Charlotte Corday who assassinated Jacobin Leader Jean-Paul Marat, Marie Antoinette the Queen of France, and a creation of Gunderson’s own Marianne Angelle who was inspired by many black women who played important roles in the Haitian Revolution. The three real historical figures were all executed by Guillotine in 1793 during what is known as “The Reign of Terror”. The play revolves around the conceit that the three other women have come to Olympe de Gouges asking for her help as a writer. Marianne Angelle is a spy who is an old friend of Olympe and wants her to write pamphlets for her to circulate about her cause. Charlotte Corday has come to ask her to write her final words, she’s planning her assassination of Marat, and knows she will be caught, tried, and executed for it. She wants to have something to say that will be remembered after she is gone. Marie Antoinette has come expecting Gouges to write for her. All three of these women are taking an active part in their world whereas Olympe wants to remain in her room and write. By the end they will all inspire her to move out of her comfort zone and write what she believes. While the subject matter is decidedly grim, the play itself is a comedy but like all good comedies, it contains moments real emotion and drama.

The breakout performance for me was Jane Froiland as Marie Antoinette, it’s definitely the showiest role and the one with the broadest humor. She provokes the humor wonderfully while playing a character completely used to being the only thing of importance in the world. But she also finds some moments of emotional truth that are surprising, especially when speaking as a mother towards the end. The weakest performance for me was Alison Edwards, this is where the show just fell a little flat. I’ve seen Edwards give very good performances before and this isn’t bad, it just plays like someone saying lines too much of the time. She has one particularly good scene though in which she has an argument with Angelle where I thought for the first time she was really in the moment. Much of her characters humor is what we call meta, or relies on her talking almost to herself about her writing ideas, I think perhaps this style of humor just doesn’t come as naturally to Edwards, but it also strikes me as a really difficult assignment for any actor. I think part of the issue might be that her character is so passive for much of the play, by comparison the others come off as more dynamic and alive. Tia Marie Tanzer plays Marianne Angelle, the character is a doer and a risk taker and Tanzer plays her with confidence but also shows vulnerability as she worries about her husband who she has not heard word from in several weeks. Jasmine Porter plays Charlotte Corday, the most tragic of the characters and has a really powerful scene which she handles really well, breaking down under the knowledge of her own impending execution.

The Revolutionists is a co-production between Park Square Theatre and Prime Productions and is directed by Shelli Place. Place effectively stages the action making dramatic use of a long staircase leading up to the guillotine and the video projection. The set design by MJ Leffler is, as is always the case with Park Square Theatre productions, one of the highlights of the show. With a few simple changes and the assistance of the lighting design by Karin Olson we can be transported from Olympe’s rooms to a prison cell, to the guillotine. The projection designs by Lily Isaacson are sparingly but effectively used. Particularly the blade of the guillotine. Otherwise it’s mostly used to help sell whatever the environment is wherein the action is taking place. The costumes by Sonya Berloviz and wig designs by Bee Tremmel give the look and feel of the play a cohesive sense of period.

The Revolutionists runs through April 16th at Park Square Theatre in Downtown St. Paul for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://parksquaretheatre.org/box-office/shows/2022-2023/the-revolutionists/

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

It doesn’t seem possible but it’s been almost five years since Hamilton last stopped in the Twin Cities on what one can only assume is a never ending North American tour. That run was six weeks, this time it’s five, but given that it has basically sold out it’s run, it could have been six again and I don’t think there would have been a empty seat in that final week. I suspect it will be back in 2027 for a four week engagement. Well, I’ll be ready. This is a show that gets better every time I see it. Disney+ released the filmed version featuring the original Broadway Cast during year one of the Pandemic when theaters were closed. That gave everyone a chance to experience this cultural phenomenon for themselves. I’m sure it boosted Disney+ subscriptions, but theater owners were probably concerned about what it might do to the unquenchable thirst theatergoers seemed to have for the show. I’d guess the verdict is in and it didn’t hurt it one bit. I think I know why, as great as that filmed version is, there’s something magical about being in the room where it happens. I treasure my blu-ray of Rent Filmed Live on Broadway, but I’m still going to go see every live production I can. People, myself included, feel the same way about Hamilton. This is that once in a generation show for kids that Rent was for me. Five years on from my first attendance, countless times listening to the cast album and a couple of times watching the film, I’m still excited at the prospect of seeing it again.

It’s hard to imagine that anyone reading a theater review would be unfamiliar with Hamilton. Written, book, music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda based on the book Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow. It tells the story of the founding father and the birth of the United States of America. The twist is that the musical draws much of its style from hip hop and the founding fathers are all played by BIPOC performers. Miranda has described Hamilton as being about “America then, as told by America now.” Frankly, I cannot think of a better way to put it. Hamilton made its debut in February of 2015 Off-Broadway before moving to Broadway in August of that year. At the 2016 Tony Awards it was nominated for a record-breaking 16 Tony’s and won 11 including Best Musical. It also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2016, something else it has in common with Rent. This is not your average night out to the theater, even after seven years, it still feels fresh and innovative.

What can be interesting when you see a show multiple times over the years is how you sometimes tune into different things with each performance. I was struck by the way I was more engaged with the emotional and relationship aspects of Hamilton this time than the historical. Maybe it’s having the historical side well under my belt now, allowed me to open up to the nuances of the personal side of Hamilton. Or perhaps it was the performers, a different cast brings a different performance to each role. While the story, the songs, the costumes, the set, etc. etc. remain the same, all of those subtle differences that actors bring to a show can have a profound impact on how we experience the show. I will say that this experience seeing Hamilton was significantly better than my first, which was good. First of all, I’m more familiar with the material. A fact sheet provided by the Hennepin Theatre Trust informs me that Hamilton consists of over 20,000 words averaging about 144 words per minute. With lyrics and dialogue being whipped out at such a rate it’s easy to miss things, familiarity means not having to rely on catching every single word. That said, my first experience in 2018 contained several performances which were practically unintelligible. I knew the lyrics so I filled in the blanks, but some in my party were not familiar and left feeling lost. I don’t think that would be the case this time around. Everyone is understandable, there are still the odd words you’ll miss, but it’s related more to your ability to process information at the speed it’s being delivered than annunciation.

This is an excellent cast short of having Lin-Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., Phillipa Soo, Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Jonathan Groff. I don’t think you could do better. Edred Utomi is very strong as Hamilton, particularly effective towards the end when he is grieving the loss of his son. Alysha Deslorieux is wonderful as Eliza, my wife commented that her singing voice calmed her, which is perfectly fitting for the character that is, that for Hamilton, a calming force to his frantic energy. Josh Tower is Aaron Burr, while he’ll always be the villain of the piece, Tower does a nice job of adding humanity to the character. We understand his motivation which I think is Miranda’s intention, and why we get a song like “Dear Theodosia” to show Burr’s fatherly instincts and humanize him. Others that were standouts include David Park as Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson who really delivers great reactions, bringing out some nice moments of humor. Speaking of nailing the humor, no one does it better than Bryson Bruce as King George. The role is all comic relief to be sure, but Bruce’s performance seemed to mine more laughs than I recall experiencing before.

This is the Premiere show on Broadway and on the touring circuit. The sets, costumes, lighting, orchestra, Stage Managers, Truck Drivers are all going to be the best and they are. It’s a gorgeous looking set by David Korins featuring a turntable which is used to great effect throughout the performance including some stunning choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler. The set itself seems massive and is beautifully lit by the Lighting Designer, Howell Binkley. The cast looks like a million bucks in the costumes designed by Paul Tazewell. Particularly striking are the costumes worn by Thomas Jefferson and King George, but a close second are the various costumes worn by the ensemble players which have a regal but sexy quality to them.

Hamilton runs through May 6th at the Orpheum theatre in downtown Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepintheatretrust.org/ I’ll warn you most of what remains are verified resale tickets. The prices are rather high on most of those but I would urge you not to look elsewhere for tickets, as you will likely pay even more and may or may not actually get valid tickets. Luckily there is another way to get tickets through the Hamilton lottery. There are 40 tickets for every performance reserved for the lottery, see below for information on how to register for your chance at those tickets.

The lottery will first open at 10 a.m. Fridays, and will close at 12 p.m. Thursday, for tickets
to performances the next week. Subsequent digital lotteries will begin on each Friday and close the following
Thursday for the upcoming week’s performances.
HOW TO ENTER:

• Use the official app for HAMILTON, now available for all iOS and Android devices in the Apple App
  Store and the Google Play Store (http://hamiltonmusical.com/app).
• The lottery will open at 10 a.m. every Friday and will close for entry at 12 p.m. the next Thursday prior to
  the following week’s performances.
• Winner and non-winner notifications will be sent between 1 and 4 p.m. every Thursday for the
  upcoming week’s performances via email and mobile push notification. Winners will have two hours to
  claim and pay for their ticket(s).
• No purchase or payment necessary to enter or participate.
• Each winning entrant may purchase up to two (2) tickets.
• Only one entry per person. Repeat entries and disposable email addresses will be discarded.
• Lottery tickets may be picked up at will call beginning 2 hours prior to the performance with a valid
  photo ID.
• Lottery tickets void if resold.
• All times listed are in the local time zone

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

Sometimes There are one off productions for which a review makes no sense. Why write, or from your point of view read, a review about a show you cannot see because it’s already closed? The performances of The MORLS or The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society for long, fall into that category for the most part. They usually perform their live performances of old and original Radio scripts once a month at Bryant Lake Bowl. Performed in the manner of broadcasts from the golden age of radio, creating the sound effects and music live. They have a busy month and a half coming up with a couple of unique things scheduled in addition to their monthly gig at Bryant lake bowl. Which this month will be an Agatha Christie themed show. First up they are performing a “Best of the Best of Radio Drama” show at Crooners Supper Club in NE Minneapolis. And then in May there will be a an original stage play written and Directed by company member Tim Uren and featuring the troupes resident heroine Shanan Custer in the cast at The Crane Theater in NE Minneapolis. I’ve copied the pertinent details for each show at the bottom of this post.

I have a soft spot for what The MORLS do. I was won over to the “Theater of the Mind” as a teenager listening to old episodes of the series Suspense! (best when spoken with a rising emphasis) and the more recently created Bradbury 13 on cassette tapes with my Dad. I also credit these radio stories with turning me into a lifelong fan of audiobooks, my audible library contains nearly 1,000 titles. For me there is something magical about a great audio presentation of a story, and the performances by the MORLS are as good as any old broadcast I’ve come across. I also think these shows are great for families, it gives young people an idea of what life was like before TV and the internet and Grandma and Grandpa will love it too as it may bring back happy memories of simpler times. They’re great conversation starting shows as well between the generations on the ride home in the car.

If you haven’t attended one of these performances before there is no better introduction than their next show which features two of the very best radio scripts ever. I’ve seen the MORLS perform both of these before and believe me, if you see only one MORLS production this month make it “Best of the Best of Radio Drama” show at Crooners Supper Club.

“Sorry, Wrong Number” from Suspense: Lucille Fletcher’s famous radio play tells the story of a woman confined to her bed who overhears two men plotting a murder. First broadcast May 25th, 1943.

“Three Skeleton Key” from Escape: Three lighthouse keepers battle a horde of rats in this classic story from French writer George Toudouze. First broadcast November 15th, 1949.

Performing at Crooners Supper Club
6161 Highway 65 NE, Minneapolis, MN
Thursday, April 13

Showtime: 7:00 PM
Doors are at 6:00 PM
Tickets: $25-$35

go here for Tickets https://bit.ly/MORLSCrooners

After that you’re sure to be a fan and will want to check out their regular home at Bryant Lake Bowl for “Agatha Christie Night”. What’s great about Bryant Lake Bowl Theater is you can arrive early and order dinner to enjoy while watching the performances. One note of warning, the nachos are not an appetizer, they are a full blown meal and they are delicious!

The Agatha Christie double-feature! will consist of two audio plays by the grand dame of mystery. performed in the style of an old-time radio broadcast, including vintage commercials and live sound effects.

“Philomel Cottage” from Suspense (1942): When newlywed Alix finds a mysterious entry in her husband’s diary, their idyllic marriage begins to fall apart. A vintage tale of suspense based on one of Agatha Christie’s most adapted stories.

“The Chocolate Box” from A Toast to Murder (premiere): Hercule Poirot recounts his one and only failure as a detective. A new adaptation of a fan favorite Poirot story.

PLUS: A sneak peek at next month’s MORLS season finale and a 1945 radio message from Agatha Christie!

Performing at the Bryant-Lake Bowl Theater
810 West Lake St, Minneapolis, MN
Sunday, April 16

Showtime: 7:00 PM
Doors are at 6:30 PM
Tickets: $18

For tickets go to https://bit.ly/MORLSAgathaChristie

And finally that original play by Tim Uren, The Tourist Trap. I’ll be at opening night May 5th in order to write a review as this one is different and runs for three weeks. But don’t wait for my review join me opening night, the Crane Theater is general admission so get your tickets for a The Stages of MN meetup!

Within this creepy road-side attraction, tourists are invited to peruse the relics of the notorious death cult founded by Marcus Bingham. In the late 19th century, they terrorized the population of the Black Hills of South Dakota. Bingham’s followers claimed that he had strange powers and they worshiped him like a god. Today’s visitors are about to discover that this house holds a deadly deception. It’s dangerous to be a lost soul so far from home. This is a revised and expanded version of thrilling 2014 Minnesota Fringe Festival production!

Featuring Alicia Lane, Shanan Custer, Sean Dillon, Jay Kistler, Ariel Pinkerton, Merit Burgett, and Catherine Hansen. Written and directed by Tim Uren.

PERFORMING AT THE CRANE THEATER
2303 Kennedy St. NE
Friday – Sunday, May 5 – 7
Thursday – Sunday, May 11 – 14
Thursday – Saturday, May 18 – 20
SHOWTIME: 7:30 PM
DOORS OPEN: 7:00 PM
TICKETS: $20

For tickets click here https://bit.ly/MORLSTheTouristTrap

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, search @thestagesofmn and click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

Watch for an exciting announcement of the next TCTB event soon and save the date, May 4th!

It was just a little over three years ago, March 14th 2020 to be exact, I was sitting in the Mixed Blood Theatre, probably in the same seat I was in tonight. I saw Interstate the Musical for the third and final time before it closed early due to the Pandemic. Faithful followers will know that I see a lot of theater, and my schedule doesn’t really allow for me to see things more than once. I did something I’ve never done before, and havent done since, I cancelled reviewing another show in order to see Interstate for a third time knowing it was going to be the final performance. You see, Interstate the Musical spoke to me, it’s in my top five favorite musicals of all time. A big part of that are the songs which were written by Melissa Li. Li is also the writer of the music and lyrics for Again which I attended on opening night of Theater Mu’s world premiere. Next Thursday April 6th is my Birthday, I think what I want for my birthday this year is to see Again, again.

The book and additional lyrics are by Katie Ka Vang who has a long association with Theater Mu. A cancer survivor herself, Vang has clearly drawn on her personal experience battling the disease. Again is the the story of two artists who are both cancer survivors. Mai See is a writer whose book, The Cancer Year, is a memoir of her battle with cancer. Quest is a filmmaker who at 20 has been living with chronic cancer for years. Mai See’s book has been a inspiration to Quest who wants to make a documentary about her. Mai See, reluctantly agrees, partly because Quest offers to pay her $700. As the documentary is being made Mai discovers her cancer is back. Throughout the show we will learn about the long term and short term side effects of cancer treatment. We also learn about the two women and their families, Quest has a mother, whom we never see but has had a lasting effect on her. Mai’s sister doesn’t return her calls, we will see her throughout the play. Frankly, a musical about cancer with such broken family relationships has no business being as funny and heartwarming as this is. Vang’s gift is in creating characters, despite having to deal with difficult things, also finds the humor in life. Constipation for example can be a painful side effect of chemotherapy, Vangs characters deal with it in a very real way so that we who haven’t dealt with it get an understanding of what it’s like. And then, there’s a song that Mai sings while sitting on the toilet that has the entire audience laughing out loud. It’s these explorations of the intersection between pain and humor that make the characters and situations relatable. The other aspect is the fact that none of the characters are perfect, they all have flaws, they all struggle at times which makes them feel real and helps to create empathy for them. It wasn’t long into the show before I had those pesky teardrops crawling down my cheeks.

Melissa Li proves once again that she is one of the best songwriters working in contemporary musical theater. Geared heavily in the pop/rock tradition for most of the songs we also get tastes of other genres. The song “Santorini” feels like an homage to a classic musical like South Pacific. Whereas “The Messenger” had touches of a Disney animated musical, both in the best ways possible. Li has a real strength in writing songs that reveal the characters to us, we fall in love with the character of Quest in the song “Quest” learning so much about her through it’s lyrics and the style of the song. “Lifeboat”sung by Shia, Mai See’s sister, is a brilliant reveal of Shia’s feelings about Mai and the reason for their estrangement. She also writes wickedly clever lyrics that are massively entertaining in such songs as “Constipation” and “Are You Fucking Kidding Me?”. Once again as was the case with Interstate the Musical what we desperately want after the show ends is a cast recording album to listen to on the way home. There is not a throw away song in the entire show, and that’s a surprisingly rare thing. Most classic musicals have a at least a song or two that we all skip past while listening to them in the car.

For a musical it has a surprisingly small cast, there are only four actors. Melody Her is making her professional stage debut as Quest. This was my favorite performance, she sells Quest from her first moments on stage and before the end of her first scene the tears had started, which is weird because she’s such a positive and funny and infectious character. It’s those attributes that make you take an immediate liking to her and when you hear some of the struggles she’s faced your heart breaks for this girl who refuses to pity herself. It’s a remarkably engaging character and Melody Her is an enormously appealing performer whom I cannot wait to see what she does next. Aaron Komo returns to the stage after a seven year hiatus playing multiple roles, such as Broc the owner of the Bookstore where Mai works, and the Doctor who tells her the cancer has returned. he’s good in every part but the favorites are his roles in fantasy or dream sequences in songs like the aforementioned “Santorini” and “The Messenger”. Pagnia Xiong is Shia, Mai’s sister and, nothing against the two leads, but she is by far the best vocalist in the show, with oddly enough Komo taking second place. Xiong has focused primarily on music over the last two decades but her performance dramatically would make you assume she’d been acting nonstop. Dexieng “Dae” Yang is Mai See and the only performer I’d seen before tonight. Yang is present during nearly every minute of Again, even the scene she’s not in, ends up turning up in a flashback. Her character is the most nuanced and Yang expertly shows us the different sides on Mai. There is a reveal late in the play that sheds a new light on the character, one that could make her a little less sympathetic. Yang has built such a solid character that the reveal simply deepens our understanding of the character and identify with her more.

The production is directed by Nana Dakin who isn’t afraid to take the show in a whimsical direction at times. Deftly switching between reality and fantasy without ever feeling jarring, even switching back and forth during the song “Are You Fucking Kidding Me?”. There are a surprising number of scene changes in the show and Dakin consistently finds ways to hold our attention and focus as the scene changes occur quickly and efficiently onstage. The set is designed by Alice Endo and primarily consists of two wall sections on either side of center stage, which if seen from above would be in the shape of a pie divided equally in thirds. The wall rotates allowing for three separate locations and with some minor redressing they able to add two more locales. It’s a creative and effective design which allows for quick location changes by cast and stage managers, as the walls rotate the set pieces such as a couch or the counter at the bookstore are moved backstage. The lighting is well designed by Erik Paulson who has an active role in creating some of the humor via the clever use of spotlights. Sandy Agustin’s choreography is never too elaborate, frequently acting as extensions of the characters natural movements within a scene. Her work really shines in the movements of Melody Her as Quest, who’s movements are almost always at a more amped up carefree level representative of her characters personality. Her’s performance melds perfectly with Agustin’s moves, she looks completely comfortable and the dances feel spontaneous.

Again runs through April 16th at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatermu.org/again

Don’t want to miss a single review from The Stages of MN? You can subscribe and have every post sent directly to your email. To Subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. Also you can follow me on Facebook, search @thestagesofmn and click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn.

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), you can read roundups of shows by my colleagues and I on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. Follow that group, It’s a great way to see reviews for shows I don’t get to or to get another blogger’s take on one I did. We have some exciting things in the works for 2023 for the TCTB and our readers. Follow us to be the first to know about those happenings like our recent Prom Date with the TCTB that we held on March 4th. If you didn’t make it to that event there’s still time to see the The Prom at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) thru June 10th . You can view the TCTB Talk Back that we held on March 4th with the CDT Artistic Director and three of the stars of The Prom here https://bit.ly/promtalkback

Watch for an exciting announcement of the next TCTB event soon and save the date, May 4th!