The Fight Has Begun. Support Yellow Tree Theatre

“But when you act, you take us away from the squalor of the real world” – From Evita Lyric by Tim Rice

Last Night I did something I rarely get to do, I went to a show for the second time, just to experience and share the joy of it. That show was A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Guthrie Theater, but it could as easily have been a show at Yellow Tree or any of the dozens of actively producing theatre companies in the Twin Cities area. On the ride home after we had dropped off my son and his fiancée and had finished discussing the play, my wife and I got talking about current events. The thought kept coming into my head, this is why we go to the theater, to raise our spirits and take us away from real world for just a few hours. That is one of the many reasons that the theater is so important. Not only does it help us escape, but it has the advantage over streaming at home in that it gets us out of our houses, out into the community, sharing an experience with more than just those on the couch next to us. We are so fortunate here in the Twin Cities to have such a vast and diverse theater community, but it is under attack. If we want to protect that community we have to step up now.

This morning I received an email from Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo, who has produced some wonderful theater out in the suburbs. Below are some quotes from the email:

Yellow Tree Theatre relies heavily on national and statewide grants to support our mission. Recently, we have been informed that statewide and federal arts funding have dramatically decreased or have been canceled making grant funding even more competitive and affecting our immediate cash flow. This is a drastic decrease like we have never experienced before.

These challenges threaten not only our ability to keep our doors open but also our ongoing core mission:

Providing access to the arts for everyone, including underserved communities in North Minneapolis and the surrounding suburbs.

Championing diverse voices—stories by and for artists of color, women, LGBTQ+ communities, and others historically marginalized in theater.

We believe that theater should reflect the richness of the world around us. That’s why we remain committed to producing bold and inclusive work.

But We Can’t Do It Without You.

If you believe in the power to build bridges, spark conversations, and create change, we ask you to stand with us today. Every dollar makes a difference. Every gift fuels our ability to continue. Donate today to help us sustain our mission, keep our doors open, and continue making Yellow Tree Theatre a home for all.

We are going to see this more and more often going forward. Theaters will close, but let’s not let it happen today, let’s not let it be Yellow Tree. I’ve written before about my belief that these theaters like Yellow Tree and Lyric Arts in Anoka create a valuable link in reaching the goal of creating new theater audiences. That goal is more important now than ever before. We can make the theater community stronger by building that audience. I’m going to ask you to click on the button below and make a donation to Yellow Tree Theatre if you can. I’m also going to ask all of you, faithful readers, to take someone new to a show in the next few weeks. Let’s build that audience up!

https://ci.ovationtix.com/35626/store/donations/39012

Need ideas of what to see?

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.

But that’s not all! You can also read some of my reviews syndicated on the MN Playlist website https://minnesotaplaylist.com/ from time to time. 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.

I Am Betty Returns to the History Theatre After Last Years Delicious Debut

(l-r) Ruthie Baker, Jennifer Grimm, Liv Kemp, Stephanie Cousins, Anna Hashizume, Kiko Laureano, Lynnea Doublette, Erin Capello (Photo by Rick Spaulding)

I Am Betty the hit musical from History Theatre’s 2023 season returns for a second helping this holiday season. Steeped in Minnesota details it celebrates the countless women behind the myth of Betty Crocker. The story tracks the roles of women throughout the 20th century and we see what Betty Crocker, the marketing icon, has represented to different women at different times over the past 100 years. With book and lyrics by Cristina Luzarraga and music and lyrics by Denise Prosek, directed by Maija Garcia with Musical Direction by Sonja Thompson, and featuring a cast of nine of the Twin Cities most gifted female performers, it’s a show that practices what it preaches. The female voice, onstage and backstage, is vital to telling this story. It reminds us how far we as a society have come. I Am Betty celebrates the far too often undervalued accomplishments and contributions of woman throughout the past century. A testament to the career woman as well as the homemaker, showing us the power of diversity and choice.

Luzarraga and Proseks story focuses on two woman who made a deep impact on the world of Betty Crocker. Act I follows the creation and building of the Betty Crocker brand by Marjorie Child Husted beginning in 1921. We see how Betty Crocker went from answering letters to starring on a radio and TV programs. How innovations were created by the women who worked in the General Mills test kitchens. How they created low cost recipes during the depression and creating Bisquick to help save time in the kitchen. Husted was a driven and intelligent woman who sacrificed a personal life for many years because she saw value in the work she and the women she worked with were doing. Act II follows Barbara Jo Davis whom we are introduced to as a young black woman who dreams of growing up to be Betty Crocker and does to the extent that any one woman is Betty Crocker. As we get into the 1960’s and the women’s liberation movement builds, we get a scene where Betty Friedan and Barbara Jo debate the choice to be a homemaker, both having valid points it illustrates the importance of choice, that what seems like a sentence to unpaid labor to some, is something for which others find great pride in.

The cast is a recipe for musical gold and the songs by Prosek and Luzarraga give them all the right ingredients to whip up a musical soufflet. The songs mirror the times in which they are performed, so we get everything from the jazz age to 80’s power ballads. My favorite song was “Lo Bueno Con Lo Malo” which is performed in Spanish by the understudy Lisa Vogel as a Cuban mother singing to her college aged daughter played by Erin Capello. I loved the song, I loved that it was performed in Spanish and I loved the message of those two characters who are revisited throughout Act II. I also loved seeing Vogel nail the song, it was my favorite song last year as well where I saw it performed by Kiko Laureano. Capello also plays Marjorie Child Husted throughout Act I, it’s a great performance that lends a human face and noble aspirations to what one could argue is a marketing tool. Capello lets us see the dedication and desire to help that motivated Husted and lends legitimacy to the symbol that is, Betty Crocker. Lynnea Doublette plays Barbara Jo and really grabbed my attention with her 60’s style girl group song “I Want to Be Her” which is my kind of music. She really takes center stage in Act II and also excels at providing a solid portrait of a role model of an intelligent successful career woman who finds her life’s work in home economics helping to develop Hamburger Helper. The entire cast is great but I have to say my favorite was crowd pleaser Jennifer Grimm, who’s vocal talents are always stunning but who really surprised me with some very comical parts frequently as men. From a Bing Crosby impersonation to a Marketing Exec modeled on Chris Farley I suspect, she meets every challenge drawing both laughs and wowing us with her voice.

I Am Betty runs through December 29th at the History theatre in Downtown St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.historytheatre.com/2024-2025/i-am-betty

This Holiday season why not start a new tradition of taking in a live theater production with family and friends? It’s a great way to create lasting memories and will give you something to look forward to every year as you experience the magic of live theater. Whether your budget is large or small, there is a show for you. Looking for gift ideas? Don’t we all have enough “stuff”? Give the gift of live theater, go to your favorite theaters website, see what shows they have coming up in the new year and give the gift of an experience over material.

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.

Drawing Lessons Explores the Power of Finding yourself Through Art at Children’s Theatre Company

Jim Lichtscheidl and Olivia Lampert Photo by Kaitlin Randolph

Drawing Lessons which runs for a couple more weeks at Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis caught me a bit off guard. I was hoping to enjoy it, but I wasn’t expecting to be moved by it the way I was. My favorite audiobook of all time is On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King. Stay with me here, it’s going to make sense. My favorite part of the book is when he sells the paperback rights to first novel Carrie, I cry everytime and I’ve listened to it four times at least. It’s not because now he will be rich and famous, it’s because of the difference it will make in his life to succeed at his art. The fact that now he will be able to more than scrape along an existence for he and his family. That he wont have to hope a short story sells and brings in that extra little bit of cash before one of the kids get sick and needs a bottle of the pink stuff. Drawing Lessons has a moment that felt similar emotionally, and it had the same effect on me as listening to Stephen King recount that moment that freed him from a world of simply existing into one in which he could let go of those concerns and devote his life to creating, the thing he was born to do.

Drawing lessons tells us the story of Kate, a twelve year old Korean American girl who has moved from St. Paul to Minneapolis, is starting a new school and is terribly shy, to the point of not even being able to speak in class. The one thing she has is her drawing. After school she walks to her father’s music studio where he gives music lessons, and through those she slowly makes friends with two classmates over the course of the play. But the person she meets that has the greatest impact on her is Paul who owns a local art supply store and draws a Sunday cartoon for the Star Tribune. Paul’s partner Matt encourages Paul to give Kate drawing lessons, which he is reluctant to do, though she wears him down over time. These lessons not only teach Kate how to grow as an artist but actually teaches the audience something about the artform of cartooning. It’s handled extremely well with video projections on the flats of the stage sometimes even showing us what the actors are drawing live. Kate’s school work is suffering particularly in Social Studies where the teacher threatens to fail her unless she can stop drawing, talk in class, and the worst, give a 5 to 7 minute speech about a cultural topic. Her father forbids her to go to Paul’s store and to stop drawing and focus on school and making friends. Kate’s Gomo (Great Auntie), comes to visit for her Dad’s birthday, and decides to stay as Kate and her father are no longer speaking. During her time there she at first seems like she will be strict and pull Kate further away from her passion but to Kate and our surprise, she encourages her and even teaches her about Manhwa, the South Korean comic form similar to Japan’s Manga’s. When she learns of a drawing contest for which first price is to have your comic book published on the internet and $250 she decides to go for it.

I loved the way this story took the time to also teach us about the techniques and concepts of cartoon drawing. I loved the Scenic Design by Junghyun Georgia Lee and the Projection design Elizabeth Barrett. I loved all of the illustrations by Blue Delliquanti that bring Drawing Lessons to life. I loved the cast with particular kudos to the performances of Olivia Lampert as Kate, Jim Lichtscheidl as Paul, De’Anthony Jackson as Kate’s friend Omar, and Katie Bradley as Kate’s Gomo. I loved that the show opened with the song Wonderwall, which as a Minnesota United fan is very dear to my heart. Most of all I loved the script by Michi Barall which feels authentic, grounded, and uplifting without being corny. I love the fact that Paul and Matt are casually presented as a couple and that the teacher is allowed to be a bitch. I loved the direction by Jack Tamburri, which gives us such creative staging that at times mirrors the lessons that Paul is giving Kate. We see scenes from four different perspectives, we see transitions where we have the actors in poses like different panels in a comic strip that seems to say meanwhile in various location…it all works perfectly

Drawing Lessons runs through 11/10/24 at Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://childrenstheatre.org/whats-on/drawing-lessons/

Honey, I’m Home a Hilarious Solo Show at Open Eye Theatre

Honey, I’m Home is Madeleine Rowe’s one house show which combines comic clowning, inspired physical theater and very clever writing. It’s part of Open Eye Theatre’s 2024 Guest Artist Series, and a remount of a successful run at The Southern Theater in 2022. I recently saw Rowe in Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some) at Yellow Tree Theatre and found her clowning most enjoyable. I expected some laughs, what I got were more laughs than you can shake a plunger at. I could explain that but like a lot of comedy shows the fun is in the unexpected, the laughs come from your spontaneous response to what his being presented. Open Eye Theatre is such a small but wonderful theater space, I’ve seen some of my favorite performances in this little theater with it’s tiny brick enclosed stage that usually feels like it’s about eight feet by eight feet. Tonight though, it felt especially spacious, possibly because it looked to have been freshly mown. Rowe plays a house for sale and it’s open house day so she’s a little bit excited. She’s very welcoming and even gives us, the audience, a pre-open house tour. That should give you the gist of the show. The entire performance is a direct address to the audience and you are expected to join in. The notoriously anti-audience participation Blogger Cherry and Spoon was able to avoid joining the show but I believe had a wonderful time with it as well. So don’t let that put you off.

Rowe is a first rate clown and performer, brave and impishly mischievous, she has the audience in stitches for 70 minutes straight, which is another wonderful aspect of the show, it’s about 70 minutes long and so no need for those annoying intermissions. Rowe could hold the audience all on her own without set and props and costumes and dummies, but the addition of those things pushed this into the realm of something really special. Roofs off to I’m Staying Home with Madeleine Rowe and Michael Torsch for their Set Design. Sound Design by Dan Dukich and Lighting by Ariel Pinkerton add the perfect touches. Whoever designed the projections and puppet work deserves a big round of applause, there’s a duet sung with the aid of those elements that is a moment where I realized this was exactly what I needed tonight. It was a hard day today and I almost stayed home to process, I’m so glad I didn’t as Madeleine Rowe and her brilliant show lifted me up when I most needed it. Honey, I’m Home runs through February 24th at Open Eye Theatre in South Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.openeyetheatre.org/honey-im-home

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. 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/

I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read roundups of shows by my 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/ . We post biweekly longer form episodes that will focus on interviews and discussions around theater topics. There is also shorter episodes in which we Bloggers tell you what we think you should get out and see as well as what we have on our schedules that we are most looking forward too.

‘Art’ is the Title and the Result in Exhibition at the Guthrie Theater. Three Actors, One Word, Brilliant!

Robert O. Berdahl, Max Wojtanowicz, and Patrick Sabongui Photo by Dan Norman

In a brilliant crack at counter programing the Guthrie Theater opened its production of Yasmina Reza’s ‘Art’ the Friday before Christmas opposite the ongoing run of their annual heart warmer A Christmas Carol. Not everyone celebrates Christmas and even those who do sometimes take a year off as the Ceasefire Carolers outside the theater reminded us tonight. So if you are not in the holiday spirit or want to relive some of the holiday trauma, come January but in a safe non-personal way, the darkly comical ‘Art’ is going to be the ticket for you. For a story about three friends who are incredibly hostile to each other, you wouldn’t think you’d leave the theater feeling so alive and invigorated. But that’s what great art does. When you see three roles so perfectly played, a script so layered, rich in humor and insight into the human condition, you can’t help but feel uplifted. Or maybe your just grateful that your friends don’t talk to you this way.

Reza’s play has been translated from the original french to english by Christopher Hampton, you may be familiar with Reza’s play God of Carnage which was adapted into the film Carnage starring Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, and John C. Reilly. ‘Art’ has a similarly critical view of people and their more childish and selfish sides. The play follows three Parisian friends and the fallout that results when one of them, Serge, buys a all white painting for 200,000 francs. It begins when Serge shows the painting to Marc, who calls it a piece of shit. He then ropes their mutual friend Yvan into the painting critique. Yvan, always the peacemaker tries to essential play the midfield, telling Yvan he likes the painting, while telling Marc that agrees that’s too much money for a painting that is basically white. This middle ground noncommittal response angers both Marc and Serge who see Yvan as a coward. And this is where we get to the heart of what is really going on in the play. It’s not about their own opinions as much as it is about how each others opinions reflect on them. Marc sees Serge’s stance on the painting as a reflection on himself because how can he be best friends with someone who would buy a white painting for 200,000 francs? When Yvan tries to make peace between the two friends, they both unite against him, because his wishy washiness in their minds reflects upon them for being his friend. It’s easier for them to attack and hurt him than each other, as he doesn’t put up much of a fight. They are really all three reflections of the different and conflicting aspects of all of our psyches. We all have it within us to behave one way with one friend and another with the other, just going along to get along, we also can get defensive when something we are proud of is proclaimed to be ridiculous, or can come of as judgemental or pretentious from time to time. Reza’s script is so articulate and sharp witted, we laugh and agree with what the characters are saying while also laughing at the fact that they are saying these things to each other, things we would never say to a friend. The fact that a disagreement over a painting one of them bought almost ends three longtime friendships is a comment on how egotistical and immature people can be, how little distance there is sometimes between the playground and adulthood.

The three person cast is perfection, each one of the actors is exactly right for their role. Max Wojtanowicz as Yvan edged out the other two by the smallest of margins on the car ride home. Wojtanowicz not only delivers every line in what feels like the only possible way they could be done, but his reactions to the other actors are as good as his own line readings. He so good at listening and reacting to the other actors that I frequently found myself watching him rather than the actor that was speaking. He also has a monologue about his wedding invitations to explain why he arrives late for an evening out with Marc and Serge that is the best 5 minutes in the entire play. Robert O. Berdahl plays Serge, he has the look and speech patterns of the Modern Art lover, I can’t really explain that, but you’ll see what I mean. Berdahl is adept at feigning aloofness one moment and then launching a counter attack with laser precision. He does a great job as well of making us believe that he doesn’t care what Marc thinks of the painting while also showing us that what he thinks really does hurt him. Patrick Sabongui plays Marc I’ve never seen him on stage before but am familiar with some of his TV and film work. This is one of the few times the Guthrie brings someone in from out of town that you wont hear me whining that they should always use local actors. Sabongui is just so good in the role I wouldn’t want to change anything about the production. He, maybe more than the other two, really succeeds in getting the audience to completely agree with him in one scene and then be very critical of his attitudes the next and then swing us back to his side. We are right there with him when he laughs at Serge for buying the painting, and then before long even though we agreed with him, we find ourselves wondering why he can’t just let it go. One of the biggest thrills of the evening is seeing the three actors play off each other, great acting can be entrancing as evidenced by those on display in ‘Art’.

Kimberly Senior directs the play and keeps it moving along at a brisk pace keeping the show at under 90 minutes, it flies by but feels like the perfect length. There are some nice beats where the characters step out of the scene and share their thoughts directly with the audience. Senior and Lighting Designer Xavier Pierce use the lighting to direct our focus in these moments and create a nice visual addition to what are usually humorous comments. The Scenic Designer Brian Sidney Bembridge has gone for a very sparse design. The action takes place in each of the three mens apartments the only change being that when we are in Marc or Yvan’s apartments a painting comes down from the ceiling. Otherwise the entire set is either white or in the case of the two chairs transparent. The design echoing the white painting underlining the absurdity of what has threatened the friendships of the three men.

‘Art‘ runs through January 28th at the Guthrie Theater in downtown Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/2023-2024-season/art/