Scotland, PA Sizzles at Theater Latté Da

I saw the 2001 film Scotland, PA on which Theater Latté Da’s production is adapted from on DVD as soon as it was released. I had a small child at the time and getting out to the movies wasn’t in the cards very often. But I’d read about the film in a magazine and being a Shakespeare fan, I knew it was a film I needed to see as soon as Netflix* could get it to me. Plus, I had a bit of a screen crush on Maura Tierney who starred in the film. Now besides the basic idea and the knowledge that I liked it at the time, I’ve retained little else of the movie, which allowed me to view this musical version with relatively fresh eyes. Not that it would have mattered because something this fun cannot be spoiled by any amount of fore knowledge. Besides, in case you didn’t know it’s Shakespeare’s Macbeth update to 1970’s Pennsylvania set in a fast food restaurant. The twist in the stage adaptation is that it’s become a rockin’ musical! Faithful readers know that I love the front row, well the front row is pretty loud at this one, but I loved it anyway. Who knew taking Shakespeare aging it to 1975, adding a heavy portion of rock music, a pinch of cocaine, a puff of pot, and putting it between two sesame seed buns would make such a delicious recipe?

If you’ve seen the news there has been a certain amount of tragedy surrounding this show, leading to rumors that the curse of the Scottish play has reared its head once again. Multiple cast members had to be replaced due to injuries resulting in an entire weekends shows being cancelled. Thankfully, as far as I know no one was mortally wounded, and we hope everyone recovers quickly and fully. Theater Latté Da has announced that they have extended the run of the show through the last weekend in October. As for curses, that’s strictly a backstage thing clearly because this show is fantastically entertaining. I know the cast has jostled around quite a bit but it’s hard to imagine anyone else in any of these roles. But before we get to the cast, a quick word of praise about the Production itself. I loved every aspect of the design and there are some things that shocked me with their brilliance that I’m not sure who to credit, and I don’t want to spoil the surprise for you who have yet to see it. So simply let me say that the works of all of the following artists contribute to immensely to the success of this show. Scenic Designer Mina Kinukawa, Costume Designer Zamora Simmons-Stiles, Lighting Designer Grant E. Merges, Sound Designer Kevin Springer, Hair; Wigs; and Makeup Designer Emma Gustafson, and Prop Designer Madelaine Foster. All of these technical and creative departments are perfectly in sync under Directors Lonny Price and Matt Cowart who make this production sing along with Musical Director Joshua Zecher-Ross. And putting that music to good use are Choreographers Lorin Latarro & Travis Waldschmidt.

Let’s start with the three Stoners who replace the three Witches in Macbeth, we have Tara Borman whom I’ve admired as an actor in previous shows, but I’m not sure I’d ever heard her sing front and center like she does here and she has a gorgeous voice, which only adds to the hilarity of her comedic performance by contrast. We also get Deidre Cochran and Eric Morris as the other two stoners and if you didn’t know they could sing, I’m not sure what rock you’ve been living under but welcome to the party! The leads are Will Dusek who recently played Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys as Mac, and his girlfriend Pat is played by Katherine Fried who absolutely bowled me over last spring as Percy in The Spitfire Grill. They both give their all again here and besides sounding great they bring the desperation and guilt to life quite believably. Stages of MN favorite Tom Reed, who inherited the role of Banko, Mac’s clueless best friend, plays it such that you cannot imagine anyone but Reed in the role, he gets the best song in Act 1 “Kick-Ass Party”. The best song in Act 2 is “Why I Love Football” it’s sung by Joshua Row who plays Malcolm. Row doesn’t have a lot of credits yet, but I think he is one to watch and expect big things from. As the Vegetarian police inspector Peg McDuff is Emily Gunyou Halaas who doesn’t really enter until Act 2 but makes her mark all the same. Other roles are filled by the always dependable Carl Swanson who plays three different smaller roles, all unique and they get some of the best one liners. With Kim Kivens and Timothy Thomas also doing great character work, it really feels like the perfect actor in every role.

Scotland, PA runs through October 27th at Theater Latté Da in North Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.latteda.org/scotland-pa

* Netflix began as a video rental service that sent movies on DVD through the mail. This was before the age of streaming also known as the golden age of physical media.

Tired of missing reviews from The Stages of MN? Do you find yourself left out when all your friends are talking about that great new play that you didn’t even know about? Never fear, that need never happen again. Now you too can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. No more hoping the algorithm works in your favor and you actually see a post on facebook or Instagram. No relying on so-called friends to tip you to the best shows in town. 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. You can also follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn. You can also read some of my reviews syndicated on the MN Playlist website https://minnesotaplaylist.com/ from time to time.

But that’s not all! Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. We also produce the podcast Twin Cities Theater Chat!! which you can access through this link or wherever you enjoy podcasts https://twincitiestheaterchat.buzzsprout.com/ . Now you too can be in the know about all the fabulous theater happening in and around the Twin Cities.