The Mousetrap at the Lyric Arts in Anoka is the best Agatha Christie stage adaptation I’ve seen in years. I’m a huge Christie fan, so I try and see any adaptation or play of hers that comes along. That usually ends up meaning I see the annual Christie adaptation at Theatre In the Round Players. When I saw that one of my favorite theaters was mounting a production of what is the longest running play in history, I was excited to say the least. The Mousetrap has been playing in London’s West End for 70 years since it opened in 1952. One of the downsides of Christie plays is that I frequently find that I’ve recently watched a film, TV adaptation, or read the source novel and can remember who the killer is. I had seen the play once previously when my college mounted it. Luckily, that was in the neighborhood of 30 years ago so while I had an inkling of who dunnit, I tried very hard not to fully recall the solution. The plus to this production is that unless you’ve seen the play performed before, read the play or had some rotter spoil it for you, you’ll be going in blind. You see part of the original contract for the play states that no film adaptation can be produced until at least six months after the West End production has closed. One begins to suspect there will never be a film of The Mousetrap. Given that, I’m going to give very little detail of the plot as I do not want to inadvertently tip anyone to the solution.

The setting is an English Manor which a newlywed couple is converting into a guesthouse, this would be what we would consider a boarding house I suppose, as bedrooms and common rooms are provided along with all of the meals. They have four guests arriving for their first week in business. Those four will be joined by a mysterious guest who is seeking shelter after his car is stranded in the blizzard that will soon cut off the residents of Monkswell Manor from the outside world. They will be joined by a police Sergeant who makes an heroic attempt to reach them via skis as the police believe that one of the people now at Monkswell Manor is a murderer!!!! Each of the guests seems to have something to hide making it near impossible to guess who’s in danger and who is a danger.

I really enjoyed every member of the cast. Isabella Dunseith and Nick Furlong are Mollie and Giles Ralston, the proprietors who have their hands full running a new and unfamiliar business as well as dealing with difficult customers. For instance, Miriam Monasch who plays Mrs. Boyle, possibly the most contrary and judgemental old biddy in the England, plays it so perfectly that you get a little thrill everytime someone upsets her. My favorite is the over the top in just the right way, Andrew Newman as Christopher Wren, the architect, but not that architect Christopher Wren. He’s a bundle of affectations that endeared him to the audience and Mollie, but rubs the manly Giles the wrong way. Newman makes the most of the role and it’s through him that we get a lot of the comic relief. David Coral as Major Metcalf and Rachel Postle round out the expected guests. Raul Arambula redeems himself nicely as Mr. Paravinci, the mysterious foreigner seeking shelter from the storm. Another over the top performance but again in a delightful way that provides another source of comic relief. Finally we have Sebastian Grim as Detective Sergeant Trotter who arrives to save the day only to find a house full of people who refuse to be up front with him, putting their lives at risk by keeping secrets. Grim, plays the straight man well, getting a few laughs of his own, but he also pulls off the concerned police man trying his best to root out the killer before he or she can strike again.

Craig Johnson directs the show with confidence, it runs like a well oiled machine, you’d think this production had been running for 70 years. He’s captured the perfect manor house mystery vibe. The scenic design by Greg Vanselow somehow ingeniously manages to create something like 6 to 8 points of exit from the mainroom set. There were a couple of things that didn’t quite work here. First the pine trees outside the large window in the main room, look exactly like what they are, painted pieces of wood, I think a couple of artificial christmas trees would have been a much better route. The other thing was the noise created by characters walking across the set. I don’t know if we needed rugs or better wood, but it sounded like someone walking across a set, not a manor house room. Shannon Elliott’s lighting design and Samantha Fromm Haddow’s costume design along with Madeline Achen’s Props round out the productions look beautifully.

The Mousetrap is a well plotted mystery full of red herrings and plot twists. It’s a great whodunnit with a nice amount of character driven humor along for the ride. I saw three fairly serious plays prior to this each with some really challenging ideas and themes. As much as I enjoy that type of theater it sure was nice to sit back and enjoy a good old fashioned entertainment. You just cannot go wrong with Lyric Arts production of The Mousetrap. The show runs through March 20th, for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.lyricarts.org/

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There could not be a more perfect venue for Combustible Company’s Frankenstein themed Monster Heart than The Southern Theater in Minneapolis. It looks like the ruins of Dracula’s Castle, a crumbling stone arch framing an exposed brick wall. If there was ever a theater that you didn’t want to get locked in, alone, overnight, it’s the Southern Theater. It provides the perfect atmosphere for this play about the creation of a monster. I should say that if you are not into horror plays that’s OK, this isn’t really a scary play, there is some violence and there is a monster, but it will not make you jump or cower on the floor. Rather it is a like a stream of consciousness take on Mary Shelley’s life and her most famous story, Frankenstein. I wouldn’t say it was non-narrative, but it also isn’t concerned with telling a straightforward plot. It is more of a biographical sketch with commentary via incidents from Frankenstein. There is a dreamlike quality to the proceedings that could be frustrating to some audience members. I found though that while I’m not 100 % sure I followed everything, I was never lost or anxious for it to be more concrete. Everything is stylized, from the design, the dialogue reading, and the movement of the performers.

Monster Heart was directed by Kym Longhi and developed by Longhi with the ensemble. It uses snippets of Shelley’s life with an eye towards drawing a parallel between her life as an outsider and that of the Frankenstein creature. Shelley we learn had a very tragic life. Her mother died a month after she was born. At 17 she traveled to France and throughout Europe with the married poet Percy Shelley. Upon their return to England the unmarried and pregnant Mary was shunned by society and her father. Her inability to marry until the suicide of Percy’s first wife and suffering the death of three children completes the picture of a woman who understood loss and ostracism. The play draws the connections between these real life incidents and Frankenstein’s creation. This alone is a fascinating approach to the material, and while it would support a traditional narrative what makes this work so unusual is the way in which it presents these ideas.

The performers lead by Julianna Drajko as Mary Shelley (among other roles) and Erik Hoover as Percy Shelley (among other roles) move with a grace that suggests significant training in dance and movement. Their abilities to move in a way that suggests a plane of existence outside of reality adds to the dreamlike quality of the work. It is also deeply engrossing. In one segment three actresses combine with a costume to represent a female companion for the creature that Frankenstein is creating. There is also 10 minutes of pre-show that sets the mood and contains one of the highlights of the evening. which is, Joni Griffith entwined in one of two fabric lattices hung from the ceiling playing the violin. That eloquent moment has stayed with me for days and I suspect will for a long time to come.

The Production design which relies heavily on fog machines, lighting, sound and video projection is a triumph. The video design by Jim Peitzman is some of the most effective I’ve seen. It is an illustration of how projection can be used collaboratively with location, and in this case Karin Olson’s lighting design, to create something truly immersive. Jacob Davis’ sound design and Joni Griffith’s original music pair up to create a haunting soundscape. Longhi’s direction combines all of these elements in what is one of the most cohesive productions I’ve seen since Open Eye’s The Red Shoes. Do not go into the show seeking a traditional narrative, free your mind of that rigid need for a story. Instead let the production wash over you, allow your mind to enjoy the individual moments. They may not seem at first to always connect, but by the end your mind will reflect back on the entire show and I promise you will have a sense of the whole.

A seating tip for this production, the theater is general admission and I highly recommend getting there early and sitting in the front row, dead center. That is where I sat and the last moment of the play is beautifully and perfectly framed from that spot. Monster Heart runs through March 5th. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://southerntheater.org/shows/monster-heart

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Pretty Woman: The Musical is based on the popular film from 1990 that launched Julia Roberts to superstardom and reminded people once again that Richard Gere was still alive, something that happens about every five to eight years. Does Pretty Woman: The Musical need to exist? Not really. Is it an enjoyable evening at the theater? Yes it is. There seems to be something irresistible to theater producers about adapting hit movies into stage musicals. A month ago we were treated to An Officer and a Gentleman: The Musical and next month we’ll be treated to a second stop from Waitress: The Musical. Usually, if they get a tour they have something going for them. If the first you’ve heard that they even made a musical of a movie is when it comes to town, what it’s got may not be a lot. Honestly, Pretty Woman stays so close to the film that there is not a lot of freshness to be found. But, it has a few stellar cast members and enough nostalgia going for it that you will be entertained. Not every show has to break the mold, some shows are comfort food and Pretty Woman fits that bill.

If you don’t know the story of Pretty Woman I’m going to allow you that little extra bit of enjoyment by not robbing you of that rare bit of discovery. Nor will I bore the other 98% of us with a rehash of the plot we all know from heart. Instead let’s talk about what works. Adam Pascal works and was a joyful surprise when I opened the program. I’d had a full weekend and hadn’t done my usual preshow homework so I came in blind to the cast. Rent is one of my all time favorite musicals and any time I get to see Pascal who originated the role of Roger, is a treat. His performance as Will Shakespeare in Something Rotten was a case of a role being a perfect fit, here the songs are well suited for his rock ballad voice. The songs are written by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance. Pascal is a good fit for Adams style and it’s during his songs as Edward, where the music works best. “You and I” which is best song in the show is a highlight for Pascal as well as some seriously impressive Operatic singing from Christian Douglas and Amma Osei. The other favorite in the cast is Kyle Taylor Parker in a duel role as Happy Man and Mr. Thompson, the hotel manager. Happy Man is a the narrator of the piece who’s comments make it clear he’s aware this is a show and there is an audience. As such he gets most of the laughs that are not from the film. As the role of Mr. Thompson he gets to perform the other great song and in this case dance number in the show “On a Night Like tonight”. Where he and his hotel staff teach Vivian how to dance without a pole or a house beat.

What doesn’t really work are most of the other songs, they are not bad, they are just unmemorable for the most part. The one performance that really didn’t work that well for me was Olivia Valli as Vivian. I haven’t revisited Pretty Woman in many years but from my memory, there was a subtlety and vulnerability to Julia Roberts performance that endeared her to the audience. Valli’s performance is about as subtle as Fran Drescher on The Nanny. It’s just too brash, it’s hard to see what Edward sees in her that melts his heart. In fairness, it’s hard to convey a subtle sense of vulnerability to the back row of the Orpheum Theatre, and perhaps the direction was to play up the street tough side of the character. For me that didn’t work, it doesn’t ruin the show, it’s just not the best choice for the character. If you are going to make a super faithful adaptation, don’t have the only thing you change from the film be the portrayal of the main character, particularly when it is that character and Julia Roberts portrayal that is almost single handedly responsible for the films classic status.

If you are a fan of the film and love musicals, you are going to have a fun night with Pretty Woman: The Musical. If you like the film but generally don’t care for musicals, this isn’t the one that’s going to win you over. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepintheatretrust.org/events/pretty-woman-the-musical-broadway-tickets-minneapolis-2022/ The show runs through Sunday February 27th.

Marjorie Prime is exactly the type of show that works well at Theatre in the Round. It is a small intimate drama that can be accomplished with a single set. The play written by Jordan Harrison explores the theme of memory and the role it plays in our lives and relationships. I doubt that there is a person in the audience for this show that will not find aspects that resonate on a personal level. Dealing not only with what we remember but what we choose to forget as well. I found the production moving and thought provoking. Theatre in the Rounds most successful production in recent memory plays to the theatre’s strengths with a great script and cast that really pulls you in.

Set in the future of the mid 21st century, it’s not a science fiction story, but uses that future setting in order to make plausible use of its central invention. Prime’s are artificial intelligence robots that look like real people from our lives. The more we talk to them and tell them about the people they are representing the more they can become those people. But this isn’t about technology being used to take over the world. These Prime’s are used to help humans. The play opens with Marjorie, an 85 year old woman who is talking a Prime who resembles her late husband Walter. The purpose of the Prime is to help Marjorie retain her memories and cognitive health. Walter Prime can retell her stories from her life. The more Marjorie and her daughter Tess and son-in-law Jon tell the Prime, the more memories he has to share and the more like the real Walter he can be. What becomes interesting is how it illustrates the fallacies of memory. We all remember things differently for one thing. One realization that comes out is withholding memories from the Prime is really just a way of avoiding dealing with them. Where the play goes from these initial scenes was not what I was expecting and for me that’s when the production really got interesting. There are a lot of other elements that come into the play from our relationships with our parents and spouse to mental illness and our willingness to deal with or avoid painful issues.

The four actors are well cast. Corey Boe as Walter Prime keeps his delivery warm but with an impersonal touch that helps convey that he is a robot. Kristen Mathisen as Marjorie could perhaps have given us a bit more of beginning stages of dementia. As it is, she seems a little too comfortable with her failing memory. But, she brought just the right touch to her later scenes where she is playing a slightly different character. The real standouts are Katie Wodele and David Denninger as Tess and Jon. Denninger’s character is one I found a lot to identify with. He had an everyman quality that made the character easy to identify with playing the diplomat well. You could sense his efforts to try and fix things to make them better to help others work towards facing the issues they wanted to avoid or forget. Wodele nailed the daughter that wants to avoid issues, while also being unable to to let go of them. She wants to help her mother avoid some painful memories to make things easier for her, yet she also cannot forgive her mother for the mistakes she’s made. It’s a complicated role and could easily be unsympathetic but her flaws are what makes her real to us.

The production is directed by Kari Steinbach who finds effective ways to tell this story. We have well used lighting cues by Lighting Designer Peter Gustafson to transition in time. The stage manager who helps reset the stage between scenes is dressed like a home care nurse making these transitions playout as if the lights have just faded on a scene but life is carrying on. Devyn Becker’s set design was perhaps one of the more elaborate that I’ve experienced in this space. creating a space that felt real. There isn’t an attempt to make it futuristic, but the color palate is muted and has a uniformity that gives subconscious impression of a more advanced society.

Marjorie Prime Runs through March 6th at Theatre in the Round in Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/

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