Two Reviews From Opening Night of the Minnesota Fringe Festival

#txtshow (on the internet)

I’ll let you in on a little secret, tonight was my first ever Fringe show. Coincidently it was also Brian Feldman’s first Minnesota Fringe performance. #txtshow (on the internet) is a fully interactive performance piece. Brian Feldman is the creator if the show and the performer but you and I, your partner or BFF, or even your grandmother are the writers. The show takes place on zoom, most of us have become very familiar with zoom over the last few months. Be warned you will have to leave your microphone and camera on for the entire performance. Hey, a reason to put a little effort into your appearance again for a change isn’t really a bad thing. The concept is simple and the tech works pretty smoothly. Once Feldman, in the character of Txt (pronounced Text), sits down at the desk, we the audience begin to feed him lines of dialogue. Feldman reads the lines of dialogue as they come up and does so for about 45 minutes straight.

Every show is different obviously, as the audience for each show provides the script. It’s a little tricky at first but the more everyone participates the better the shows will be. It’s a lot like improve but we as the writers have to be the ones who play nice, always say yes and always try to keep the story alive. It lends itself as a concept to absurdist comedy, non sequiturs, and very strange tangents. Be warned, it could go anywhere so this is not a show for children. Feldman’s strength is in his delivery, he knows how to cold read a line and instinctively how to say it to try and blend it with whatever came before or might come next. My suggestion for any aspiring writers out there is to sign up for one of the remaining performances. Write longer lines of dialogue, try to keep with whatever the general theme is and make the wording as open at the beginning and end as you can. When the sentences flow it’s really quite fun, what doesn’t work as well are one or two words at a time, they frequently don’t blend well. The biggest factor on whether it succeeds or not is you, so participate!

It’s a free show and worth every penny. Upcoming performances of #txtshow (on the internet) are Mon Aug 3 & Thu Aug 6 @ 9:00 PM and Sun Aug 9 @ 5:00 PM https://txtmn.eventbrite.com is the link to sign up. The email you are sent once you register will have a PDF explaining how it works so read through it before the show starts. There will also be links for ways in which you can donate to the performer. Please remember all it cost you was the $5 for a Fringe button and to show Mr. Feldman some love if you have a good time.

The Scranton Strangler: An Office Musical

This is a tricky one. This is a video recording from a previous years Fringe festival. The show itself is good, the quality of the presentation is not. I started to watch it on my TV, but I couldn’t make out the words very well, particularly when they were singing. I quickly switched to my laptop and that was definitely an improvement, but it’s still less than ideal. If it wasn’t free I would say skip it. If you are not a fan or if you have just recently started to watch The Office, I’d skip this as there are actually a lot of spoilers for what happens with the characters in later seasons. If you are a fan of The Office and have seen most of the episodes you’ll probably find enough in the poor presentation to make it worth watching. The actors and the writer know the show and the characters really well. They capture the humor and the essence of all the characters. In fact this is one way in which the fuzzy washed out video actually helps as a few of the actors you can almost mistake for the shows actual cast. Particularly effective are Melissa Noelle Murray as Pam and the actor not listed on the Fringe Website who is channeling Kevin perfectly. It will definitely wet your appetite to hopefully see the show live sometime in the future.

The Scranton Strangler: An Office Musical is a well written show and available to view anytime during the festival with your Minnesota Fringe button. If you don’t have a Minnesota Fringe button yet, go here https://www.minnesotafringe.org/. From this site you can click on the heading along the top where it says buy a button. Buttons are $5 and will give you access to the digital hub. That’ll give you access to a lot of free shows, some live shows, and some recorded shows. Some shows will require an additional payment.

Theater Crush Thursday: Mixed Blood Theatre

Forgive me readers for I have sinned, it has been a month since my last post. I spent 2 weeks since my last post at the hospital every night with my son keeping him company (not covid-19 related). That along with the fact there were no shows to attend and review, created the perfect storm of a lack of time and content. I had intended to use the downtime to work on the website and do some features. Somehow the first night home in my own bed and some evening time with my wife led to another two weeks of not sitting down and writing anything. Today that changes. While I have been idle, my fellow Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTBers) have been doing what they can. On our facebook page we have started a new weekly feature called Theater Crush Thursdays. You can access our page by searching in facebook for @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers I encourage you to pull it up now and follow the page. Along with Theater Crush Thursdays we are also posting events that are happening online so you can get your theater fix during this time of sheltering in place.

This week I wanted to focus Some attention on Mixed Blood Theatre. I saw six performances the last week theatres were open and three of them were at Mixed Blood Theatre. There is something special about a theatre that introduces you to something that comes to hold a special place in your heart. The three performances were all for their World Premiere Production of Interstate. You can read my review of Interstate here. I had actually previously attended only one other production at Mixed Blood Theatre which was Charm in 2016, long before I began reviewing shows. Charm was another production that like Interstate deals with the Transgender experience. The Transgender community is just one of those with whom they work in their mission to as their website says:

“USING THEATER TO ILLUSTRATE AND ANIMATE, MIXED BLOOD CHANGES ATTITUDES, BEHAVIOR, AND POLICY BY PAYING POSITIVE ATTENTION TO DIFFERENCE.“
Mixed Blood Theatre website.

My first experience with Mixed Blood as a reviewer was when I was invited as part of the TCTB to come and meet with the co-creators of Interstate prior to the opening of the show. For me, new to reviewing, it was an unprecedented invitation behind the scenes to get a chance to hear about the creation of a show I would be reviewing. What struck me was the welcoming we received from Tim Komatsu the Audience Engagement Manager and the creators Melissa Li and Kit Yan. We were lucky enough to also meet the three young leads who happened to swing through after catching dinner together. Of course they were all very nice and welcoming, they wanted us to review their production. But even after my review was published and I came back for as many performances as I could before they closed early, Tim and the theatre staff were always on hand to assist with accessibility concerns for my son who utilizes a walker.

Accessibility is another aspect that Mixed Blood Theatre take very seriously, whether it is physical or financial, mixed blood tries to remove any impediments it can. They call this initiative “Radical Hospitality” and it takes many forms. They have four advisory councils who help them identify and remove barriers for those who want to engage with Mixed Blood. For Transgender People bathrooms can be a huge issue, Mixed Blood has all single stall restrooms. They are on the second floor and there is an elevator right outside the restrooms for those for whom stairs are not manageable. In terms of economic accessibility, they have a policy of no-cost admission to anyone beginning two hours before every performance on a first come first served basis. For those with the economic resources to attend the theatre there is guaranteed admission, which means buying your tickets ahead of time through the box office online or by phone.

Mixed Blood Theatre focuses on works that address issues of social justice, inclusion, and the unseen and underrepresented in our communities. They tackle works that have social and cultural significance with an eye towards bringing us all closer together. They live up to these lofty goals through the works they perform the outreach programs they participate in and the way with which they utilize their space and treat their audience members.

In this time of uncertainty when every theatre has closed down it is important to remember the people who create these spaces and works. They cannot survive indefinitely without resources, remember when these shows closed early or were cancelled, many tickets needed to be refunded. Most theatre’s operate on very tight budgets and rely on that income for rent, utilities, and payroll. Mixed Blood Theatre is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and as such they rely on grants, donations, and ticket sales to survive. If this sounds like your kind of theatre and a worthy theatre to support (It is!!), please consider making a donation. Another option for supporting the theatre is the membership program. Becoming a member for just $9 a month or $13 for a duo membership gets you access to everything they do all year long. You can become a member by clicking here https://mixedblood.com/box-office/member/. To donate to Mixed Blood Theatre click here https://mixedblood.com/support/. Finally, there is an online event coming up called Radical Hope: A Benefit to Sustain Mixed Blood Theatre on April 25th from 5:00 PM to 5:45 PM. you can learn more about it and RSVP to attend at https://mixedblood.com/support/radical-hope/?mc_cid=3d5784f887&mc_eid=c38eb303cd

The Music Man at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre

Seeing The Music Man at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre was a trip down memory lane in more ways than one. As a child I’m guessing between the ages of 8 and 10 it seemed like the film version of The Music Man starring Shirley Jones and Robert Preston was on cable 24/7. Whenever I came across it I tuned in, I had that film memorized. I haven’t seen it in years. The other thing I hadn’t done in years, 31 to be exact, was visit the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. I was last there in 1989 with either my High School Choir or the High School Show Choir, we saw Kiss Me Kate. I don’t know why I haven’t gone. Maybe it feels like Chanhassen is a long way to go, but I’ve lived in Hopkins for the last 8 years and it took approximately 17 minutes to get there. So if the thought that it is too far out is keeping you away, realize that the world shrunk and it’s closer than you think. And I must say, their production of The Music Man is worth the trip, even if you don’t live as close as Hopkins.

For those who don’t know, the music man of the title is Professor Harold Hill, Gary Conservatory of Music, Gold-Medal class of Aught-Five. Or at least that’s what he wants the citizens of River City Iowa to believe. In reality, he’s a flim-flam artist who works his way across the country town by town, selling the idea of a boys band. The idea is the key word there, because he sells them the instruments and the uniforms, and then skips town with the money without teaching the boys to play a note. In fact, he doesn’t know one note from another. What he can do is keep everyone off balance long enough that they don’t realize there is never going to be a band. His first step is to create a need for a boys band. When he learns that the town has just gotten its first pool table, uses that to rile up the citizens by pointing out the slippery slope to corruption that pool tables represent to the youth of River City. For as he points out in the song “Ya Got Trouble” Trouble with a capital T and that rhymes with P and that stands for pool. Well, it’s hard to argue with logic like that. His second step is to introduce at a town gathering the idea of keeping the young boys out of the pool hall by exposing them to a more morally enriching activity like , oh I don’t know, a boys band?
Step three, keep the Music Teacher off balance so that she doesn’t expose him as a fake before he collects and gets out of town. Of course the Music Teacher isn’t like the others he’s come across in his travels, this is “Marian The Librarian” and he will find himself as off balance as she is by the end.

Michael Gruber as Harold Hill has the silver tongue and charisma to do the character right. He plausibly, within the fantasy world of this classic musical, gets the 4 members of the school board, who can’t stand each other, to become an inseparable barber shop quartet. They are played by Aleks Knezevich, Evan Tyler Wilson, John-Michael Zuerleinm and Shad Olsen and they make beautiful harmonies together. Ann Michaels Plays Marion, she has a fabulous voice and an easy chemistry with Gruber and with Peggy O’connell, who plays Mrs. Paroo, her mother. The cast is quite good in every role. A couple of the cast, Michelle Barber as Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn and the aforementioned Peggy O’Connell as Mrs. Paroo seem to have stepped out of the film version of my youth. They look and sound exactly like I remember the performers in the film version did in those roles. That might seem like a slight, I don’t mean it to be, I really liked that. I’m glad every role wasn’t as spot on to my memory as those two were, but in a way that was really comforting to have those touchstones, besides it’s hard to imagine a better take on those two roles.

The Music Man is one of a few musicals where the book, music and lyrics were created by one person Meredith Willson. It is brimming with memorable songs “Iowa Stubborn”, “Goodnight My Someone”, “Wells Fargo Wagon”, “Till There Was You” and all time rouser “Seventy-Six Trombones” as well as many others. Michael Brindisi directs the show with a natural fluidity. Many shows, when they feel they need to have performers go out into the audience, do so in a way that feels forced. CDT’s production of The Music Man employed this technique throughout the show but in a way that never felt anything but organic and engaging. The Choreography by Tamara Kangas Erickson was top notch. The teen boys and girls of the of the town are balletic in their moves. Gruber and Tony Vierling playing Hill’s old partner Marcellus, whom he is surprised to find settled down and going straight in River City, share a tap dance that is impressive. As are their respective dancing during the song “Shipoopi”. I was very pleased with the entire production from the Scenic Design by Nayna Ramey and costumes by Rich Hamson. The Musicians under the direction of Andy Kust filled the auditorium perfectly without overpowering the vocals.

In short this is The Music Man, it’s not radical or revolutionary. It’s a classic of musical theatre and just plain fun. It may be old, but it is still a crowd pleaser and I had a great time with it. There is a reason it’s now tied with Fiddler On The Roof as the most frequently produced and most popular of the shows at Chanhassen. In fact as a testament to its continued ability to entertain and draw audiences, it will be staging a revival this October on Broadway starring none other than Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster. What’s also nice about this show, it’s fun for the whole family. I was only 8 when I fell under its spell. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://chanhassendt.com/. it’s a little more expensive than your average local show but that’s because it includes a dinner, and the quality of the show absolutely justifies the price.

WORLD PREMIERE!!! The Next Great American Musical as it Turns Out, is Actually a Queer Asian Musical. “Interstate” Floors it at Mixed Blood Theatre.

Kai Alexander Judd and Rose Van Dyne in *INTERSTATE* Photo by Rich Ryan

Interstate is why I do this. This entire blog’s genesis was around the idea of having a way to let people know when there was great theater happening in our state. This is it boys, girls, and they/them’s – this is the one. Interstate, which is having its world premiere at the Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis is undoubtedly the best original musical to come along in years. A perfect cast brings the music, words, and hearts of its creators Melissa Li and Kit Yan to life. This is their story specifically, but it speaks to all of us. We talk about representation in the arts whether it be theatre, a TV show, movies, whatever. Interstate is about representation on every level from characters to casting. It’s also just great theatre, filled with songs that find a way into your heart immediately. A story set in 2008 that’s timely and important right at this moment in history. A tale that has to be told and these are the people to tell it.

Interstate is the story of Dash an Asian transgender spoken word poet and Adrian a lesbian singer songwriter. Together they form the Asian queer duo, Queer Malady. Queer Malady is on a cross country tour sharing their music and words with fans and building followers through their YouTube videos. Being Asian, queer, and having a desire towards activism, they have different priorities that will cause friction as they continue across the country. Their story is intercut with that of Henry, a South Asian Transgender 16 year old, living in Kentucky who has discovered Queer Malady on YouTube and found a hero specifically in Dash. Henry is not out to anyone but begins a blog to chronicle his journey and to connect with others who are on similar journeys. We blog to know we are not alone. Through Henry, we are shown the importance of seeing yourself reflected in the world around you, he is lost and confused and unsure how to be his true self until he discovers Dash online. When he finds Dash and Queer Malady’s music he sees a way forward.

The entire cast is excellent and should move immediately from here to Broadway after the show closes. The three leads deserve special mention. Kai Alexander Judd plays Dash to Rose Van Dyne’s Adrian, together they make Queer Malady seem like a duo that has been performing together for years. They both have excellent voices that ideally complement each other. They have a great chemistry on stage, believable as best friends whether they are joking around or screaming at each other, there is never a false note. They are superb, and as great as they are, it is Sushma Saha who plays Henry that is going to knock your socks off. They have a voice so beautiful that I found tears on my cheeks before their first song ended. Saha is not just a great voice though, there is a scene that takes place at Henry’s church. I don’t recall them even having a line of dialogue in the scene, but using just their eyes, broke my heart with their performance. All three actors impress with their commitment and willingness to go to very vulnerable places. The show doesn’t flinch away from dealing with aspects of transgender life that are not as well known, such as binders, top surgery, T-injections, and neither do the performers.

Sushma Saha in *INTERSTATE* Photo by Rich Ryan

The Book for the show co-written by Melissa Li and Kit Yan, music and lyrics by Li and poetry, and additional lyrics by Yan owes something to Rent. There are some stylistic similarities but it is an original and unique story. Those similarities are its strengths and only goes to prove what an influential show that was. Interstate also shares that sense of power and importance that Rent has. Li and Yan are committed to representation, their characters are on tour to reach out to and speak for the Asian Queer community, and the show itself holds to those values. Steadfastly, casting artists that represent the characters as written, the importance of which is echoed in one of Henry’s lines in the show, he says he’s starting the online blog because it’s the only place he sees someone like himself. The truly amazing aspect is how perfectly it flows within the narrative of the show. These are the themes and they are served well in the telling a very human and moving story. Often times a show that you might say has an agenda leads with it’s message and becomes self important. Interstate is a story about characters that we come to empathize with tremendously and through their tale, their message is conveyed. Li and Yan’s lyrics are some of the richest I have heard, songs that are so well crafted are rare even in big hit broadway musicals. A version of the show in progress played at the New York Musical Festival is where it won the award for Outstanding Lyrics.

Directed by Jesca Prudencio and assisted by Shannon TL Kerans the productions speeds along like Queer Malady roaring down the interstate highway. Scenic and Projection Designer Justin Humphres does a great job with what amounts to not a lot in the way of a set. Good use of projection and some really clever elements such as the car headlights in the floor are all that is needed. The rest is handled with Genoveva Castaneda’s well chosen props. It’s simple without feeling simple. We don’t need elaborate sets that evoke the details of the real world, the story and music have already transported us there.

I encourage everyone to see and take advantage of the opportunity to see this show. We’re so fortunate that something this great is having its world premiere here. In a perfect world, this show with this cast would move from here to Broadway, but the world isn’t perfect, so don’t miss the opportunity. This is one of those rare productions that you want to capture on film so you can view it over and over, but that is not what live theatre is. You have to seize the day, don’t miss it! Lastly, don’t wait until the last showing; there’s a good chance you’ll want to see it again or tell someone else to. I’ve already booked to see it again this Wednesday. For more information about Interstate and to purchase your tickets go to https://mixedblood.com/. Content warning. There is strong racial slurs and trans and homophobic language. There is also a scene of fairly graphic sexuality, no nudity but you should be aware of it. It is probably appropriate for anyone over 16 for those under that age, you know your own child best. I’d offer as guidance that it is on par with Rent in terms of these depictions, hopefully that helps guide you.

A Flight of Short Musicals at the Elision Playhouse in Crystal. Drinks included.

My first visit to the Elision Playhouse was a mixed bag, I didn’t enjoy the show, but I was impressed with the Performers. So I was excited to see what they did next. The current production is a series of 6 short musicals complemented by a flight of beverages. It’s a fun idea and the cast executes it well. You sign up when you buy tickets whether you want wine, cocktails, or Non-Alcoholic drinks. Based on what you chose, you get a different wristband or no wristband. As you enter the theater you get your first beverage. I chose the Non-Alcoholic version, and I enjoyed all three of my drinks, the first was a warm caramel apple cider and it really helped to take the chill off the MN winter evening. The second was a mocktail with Palm Juice, Ginger Beer and Lemon I believe, it was served by the cast after the first two musicals. The Third was my favorite, a virgin Mai Tai served between the second two and final two musicals. Logistically this sounds crazy, but the serving of the drinks works pretty efficiently. The Musicals are not fully staged productions. If you’ve ever been to Musical Mondays, the first Monday of every month at Lush in NE Minneapolis, you’ll be able to picture what it like. The performers basically stand behind music stand and perform their parts. Usually one cast member is off to the side reading the stage directions. That might sound disappointing but if you accept it and move on, you’re in for a very enjoyable evening. The entire program ran about 1 hr and 45 minutes, including the drink serving. Because each piece is so short to describe much of the plot would be to give everything away. So I’ll be brief and light on the synopsis.

The Manifesto a musical about the writing of the Communist Manifesto by Germaine Shames and Nadav Amir-Himmel. This was my least favorite, which is to say it was still very enjoyable. A good one to start out the evening, it’s maybe the driest and a bit political, but I really enjoyed the ironic touches and the reactions of the other characters when one would be singing, just because they are standing behind music stands doesn’t mean they didn’t interact. This one seemed a little operatic musically and tonally.

Five Minutes – written by local playwrights/composers, Ben Larson and Eric “Pogi” Sumangil. this one edges out 2 others as my favorite. I don’t want to give anything away about this one, but I will say it got a little dusty in the theater. It deals with someone who is going to be meeting her birth mother in 5 minutes. This was probably the shortest of the musicals and it above all the others, I could see being turned into an entire full length musical. There is basically one song in this one and that song could be at the beginning, the middle or the end of a larger story. I really responded to this one.

Der Strunkenwhitenlieder written by Scott Guy. it’s like a elongated Schoolhouse Rock segment titled “Apostrophe”. This was one of those in the running for best in show. It’s also the one I wish I had a video of, as it’s very useful for keeping apostrophe usage straight. And when I say elongated I mean it, this is a 8 act musical, which was very amusing.

Missing Karma is by Timothy Huang. This is one that starts out as one thing and seems to turn into another altogether. But really, both the beginning and the ending are about saying goodbye. It starts with a couple in a park burying their dog, named Karma. This contained the best acting performances in the show. I was really surprised how real it got at times, kudos to Anna Hickey and Justin Michael Cooke. Unfortunately, Cooke was clearly struggling with a head cold or sore throat and his vocals were not very strong or on key, but an A for acting and for embodying the show must go on credo.

Jenny by Flight of the Conchords. Christine Wade and Harrison Wade who are the Vocal Director and Music Director/Pianist of the show perform this piece. Which is basically a girl running into a guy that she has met before, he doesn’t remember it at all and keeps trying to save face and fake his way through it. Apparently the Wades are recently married in real life and performed this at their wedding reception. It went over so well that they decided to include it here and we are lucky they did, it is really delightfully awkward and absurd.

“My Boyfriend is an Alien, and I’m OK with that”. Written by Christine Toy Johnson and Bobby Cronin. This was the final musical of the evening and deals with exactly what the title implies. This has a sort of early 60’s feel to it, complete with three of the women in the cast singing backup. It’s the weirdest and silliest of the three, and a fun note to end the evening on.

The entire cast of this production are good singers and even though it’s basically staged as a reading they all know how to perform the parts just enough to add humor and emotion when required. What was fun about this evening was that if you didn’t care for one of the pieces it’s no big deal it will be over shortly and you’ll have another musical to connect with. The strength of the evening is that you never feel that way about any of the shows, they are all enjoyable, fun well written and catchy. I wish this was playing for at least one more weekend. The show closes Saturday Jan. 25th. I think most fans of musical comedies would get a real kick out of these shows, and I can only hope that Theatre Elision repeats this show again, or mounts another flight. For more information and to snatch up the last few seats for Saturday’s performance go to https://www.elisionproductions.com/short-musicals

Jesus Christ! Superstar is Not the Second Coming at the Orpheum

I don’t love the show Jesus Christ Superstar but I like it, I love several of the songs. The last time I saw a production of JCS was in a church in South Minneapolis and I’m sorry to say this production for all it’s money and production values falls short of that production. The show runs 90 minutes with no intermission. That’s a relatively short run time, so why was I thinking just kill him already at the one hour mark? I’m not sure what it was, I see that this revival has won some major awards, so there must have been something there once. Maybe the spark has died, perhaps they actors are feeling like they should have reached the end of the tour by now. You know the story is loosely based on the Gospels and follows Jesus through the last weeks of his life focusing on his relationship with Judas Iscariot. Most of which, there is no basis for but it’s a rock opera and it makes for an interesting take on an old story. I went to Sunday school as a child and I’ve seen films about this time period and know the broad strokes quite well and can follow what is being represented throughout the show. My companion for the show was raised in a religious home but had no Sunday school and has never seen a film about Jesus. The thing is, with this production, maybe with all productions of this show, if you don’t know the basics, this show doesn’t give them to you. The Production assumes you know the story of Christ beyond the bare fact that he was the son of God and was crucified on a cross. It assumes you know the Apostles, who Judas was, what he did, and who Mary Magdalene was. All of these things are assumed. I didn’t even realize that until we were discussing the show afterwards. My companion thought this was probably the worst show she’s ever seen. I wouldn’t go that far, but I knew what was going on. Maybe the show doesn’t have to work for people who don’t know the story of Jesus’ last days. Shouldn’t a show work without beforehand knowledge? How is this show going to work for the generation coming up now? Sure a lot of them still go to Sunday school, but I bet if you asked the churches around town they would let you know that while the population in the country has increased the number of people, attendance in church has decreased. You don’t have to be a statistician to draw the conclusion.

I didn’t feel this cast was committed to this production or capable of it. There are several good singers Jenna Rubah as Mary and Eric A. Lewis as Simon are the best. But Rubah doesn’t seem to know the role she is playing. She sings well enough, but she is smiling throughout two of the best songs “Everything’s Alright” and “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” and these are not songs her character should be smiling through. The result is a nice performance of the songs but no acting, no character. But somehow that’s better than Aaron LaVigne as Jesus and James Delisco Beeks as Judas, who seem to remember to act, but suspect they need a rest.

The production Design by Scenic designer Tom Scott and lighting design by Lee Curran are the best part of the show, a little basic but an oversized cross on the floor that is used to throughout the show is dynamic looking. The Choreography by Drew Mconie did nothing for me. Honestly when Jesus’ followers are dancing around I suddenly pictured the kids in the orphanage in Annie singing “It’s a hard knock life”. I don’t know who deserves the criticism for the portrayal of Jesus as a hipster, I suspect that falls on the director Timothy Sheader. If that is their attempt to update this show for the 50th Anniversary, it needed more than that and the other smallish bones it throws out to try and make it seem modern and hip. After seeing this production I think the only way this show can be relevant again is to completely reimagine it. Instead of trying to make it contemporary, I think they should go the other direction and make it more of a traditional musical than it has ever been. It was designed originally to be a rock opera performed as a concert, not as a musical. Someone needs to turn it into a real musical, using the same songs. The original songs were not broken, but embody the show with real emotion and actually tell this story so that someone who doesn’t know it already can learn it. Perhaps add dialogue if needed, there is a lot going on in these songs, but you have to know who the characters are and what their relationships are in order for the inherent emotions in them to play correctly.

Jesus Christ Superstar Plays through Sunday January 26th at the Orpheum theatre in Downtown Minneapolis, for more information or to purchase tickets go to https://hennepintheatretrust.org/events/jesus-christ-superstar-broadway-tickets-minneapolis-mn-2020/.

Theater Latté Da presents Bernarda Alba

Theater Latté Da’s production of Bernarda Alba is an Aesthetic triumph. Scenic Design, Costuming, Sound Design and lighting are is such accordance that the sense of oppression becomes a character itself. I would be highly surprised if these elements were not in the conversation for the best of 2020 next January. Aided by a top notch cast, Bernarda Alba almost transcends the tragedy and gloom of its story. Theater fans are going to find a lot to admire in the production, there are very few things that don’t work perfectly. This is a great company doing great work in service of a truly downbeat story. I don’t mean to discourage you from attending, not all shows or even musicals have to be upbeat. I think it is important to understand going in that you are going to get very little light at the end of the tunnel. For some people that is not how they want to spend their time out, but I think for most knowing that going in you can appreciate the work on it’s own terms.

The Words and Music are by Michael John LaChiusa based on the play The House of Bernarda Alba by Frederico Garcia Lorca. The story revolves around Bernarda Alba played by Regina Marie Williams, the newly widowed Mother of 5 daughters. Bernarda rules her daughters and her house with an iron fist. The daughters are like prisoners in the estate, they all long to be free and to marry. The main plot incident is the engagement of the oldest daughter Angustias played by Kate Beahen, the one child by Bernarda’s first marriage, to Pepe, a local suiter. The engagement causes conflict between the daughters, particularly when it becomes obvious that Pepe is in love with another daughter Adela, played by Stephanie Bertumen. He is only marrying Angustias because she has a dowery from her late father, as the father of the other girls was not wealthy. This is the primary conflict and it doesn’t change throughout the play. There is little in the way of new information fed to the audience, more like a confirmation of what we’d already assumed. The story seems underwritten in general, we get mood instead of conflict. I’m not sure this needed to be adapted into a musical. There are some good songs, and of course all of the music is performed and sung beautifully. There is one odd element of the songs, a technique at the end of certain lines to screech out the last word. I’m not familiar with this technique and hope I never become to. Thankfully, it is sparingly used as it just seems odd and unnecessary. This seems like a show that treads water for a significant portion of Act 2. and the songs only add to the feeling of padding. It helps that the show runs only about 90 minutes, but there is no intermission, and I think that might be one of the few missteps. A break might have lessened the feel that we seem to be living with the same information without really any new developments for too long.

As I said, the the material is lacking but the production itself is flawless. The entire cast is good, a few standouts for me were; Meghan Kreidler as Martirio, supposedly the ugly sister, perhaps some make up to at least try and get that across visually would have helped. Kreidler is such an intelligent and striking performer, that it’s hard to remember she’s supposed to be ugly and thus unlikely to ever marry. She has the largest emotional swings of the daughters and sells every new emotion or thought completely. Regina Marie Williams commands the stage as completely as her character does the household when she speaks, characters and audience alike take notice. Aimee K. Bryant as Poncia the housekeeper, with the wisdom of an outsider on the inside, shines as a character who in so many different things, making those transitions seamlessly, from protector, to voice of reason, to underling. Finally, Kim Kivens as Maria Josepha, Bernarda’s aged mother who is kept locked away most of the time. Her appearances make clear the motivations of Bernarda, which are all about appearances. She is a tragic character, who has obviously began to fall into dementia. Kivens brings an air of innocence to her her ramblings that we see her as really another daughter being locked away by an overbearing mother.

The Scenic design by Kate Sutton-Johnson is another of Theater Latté Da’s brilliant sets. Large wooden beams dominate the ceiling making the set feel like a fortress, keeping the world out and the family in. The Lighting Design by Mary Shabatura does as much as the set, performers and music in creating the atmosphere of grief, oppression and tragedy. It is masterful in directing our eyes and manipulating our mood as we watch. Alice Fredrickson’s costumes are another homerun, of particular note was a white dress Bernarda wears in a number. It begins as a normal dress and unfolds into to parachute size that spins around her as she rotates within. The sea of white fabric all of a sudden after so much black and darkness is one of the most breathtaking moments in the show. The music Direction by Jason Hansen and the Sound Design by Kevin Springer round out the exemplary technical team, that creates a production that is soaked in atmosphere.

Bernarda Alba runs through February 16th at the Ritz Theater in North East Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to http://www.latteda.org/