The Butler Did It Satisfies the Mystery Lover With a Brand New Sleuth I’m Dying to See More of at Park Square Theatre

Allison Vincent and Steve Hendrickson Photo by Dan Norman

The Butler Did It, the new play by arguably the finest mystery playwright working today, Jeffrey Hatcher, is sure to please any fan of the genre. Done in the subgenre of the inverted mystery, where we witness the killer commit the crime and then watch the cat-and-mouse game unfold between criminal and law enforcement. The format is most famously associated with the TV detective Columbo, for which Hatcher wrote one of the final installments. While this play certainly has shades of Columbo, Hatcher also brings his unique talent for surprising the audience with unexpected twists.

The thing about mystery plays is that there isn’t much you can say without accidentally spoiling the fun. In fact, during the talkback I attended after the show, I realized that even discussing one of the lead characters, and the actor who portrays them, could be considered a spoiler. Even that might be enough for the especially deductive among you to piece things together. Therefore, a play I feel I could write a double-length review about is instead going to get one of my shortest.

The play is set at a school for gentlemen’s gentlemen in 1975 San Francisco. A murder takes place that appears to be a suicide, but we, the audience, know otherwise. Assigned to the case, her first in fact, is the newly appointed Inspector Denise. And that’s about all I dare say of the plot. What I can add is that, for a mystery where you already know the killer, the fun comes from how cleverly Hatcher subverts expectations, how sharp the dialogue is, and how well the cast executes it. The Butler Did It does all three in spades.

Speaking of the cast, there’s exactly one person I feel safe discussing without being hauled away by the spoiler police: Allison Vincent as Inspector Denise. Luckily, I could write about Vincent all day. Hatcher may have modeled aspects of the play after Columbo, but he has created a completely original hero in Inspector Denise. It’s a role that feels tailor made for Vincent, who is one of the most distinctive theater artists in the Twin Cities. Not just a performer, but also a writer and director, Vincent has never once failed to impress. Here, she goes nowhere near Columbo as a character, instead bringing a style and energy entirely her own. Her humor feels like a perfect match for Hatcher’s writing.

After seeing her as Inspector Denise, I’m ready for a full series of plays, a Netflix show, starring Vincent in the role, written by Hatcher of course. Hatcher did mention that of the four future mysteries he’s been commissioned by Park Square Theatre to write, Inspector Denise is a character he’d like to revisit in one of them. Personally, I hope he doesn’t limit it to just one, I’m ready to tag along with Inspector Denise on many more investigations.

I hesitate to discuss the rest of the cast, but they are absolutely perfect. The production is filled with names faithful readers and Twin Cities theatergoers will recognize: Anna Beth Baker, Neal Beckman, Pearce Bunting, Peter Christian Hansen, Steve Hendrickson, and Nora Long. With that lineup and Hatcher’s script, audiences can be confident they’re in for something exciting.

What else can I say without hampering your enjoyment? Director David Ira Goldstein expertly guides the audience through the plot’s twists and turns. Scenic designer Benjamin Olsen has created a wonderful set, which we’re told will be reconfigured and adapted for each of Hatcher’s future mystery/thrillers. Karin Olson’s lighting design features some highly effective cues, from a small gunshot to a large explosion, both convincingly realized. Frederick Kennedy’s sound design includes a delightfully ’70s TV-style motif that brought a smile to my face every time it popped up.

The Butler Did It is exactly what mystery lovers crave, a new play that feels like a classic of the genre. The production runs at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul through August 16. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://www.parksquaretheatre.org/the-butler-did-it.

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Twelfth Night Is Hot Shakespeare. Seriously, There is No Air Conditioning at Bumbling Fools Meadery

Twelfth Night you may remember, is the Shakespeare play with a shipwreck. Need more? Okay, it’s the one with twins. Still not sure? This one has a woman disguised as a man! 😀 Yep, it’s one of those, which, I realize, doesn’t exactly narrow it down for anyone not well-versed in Shakespeare.

I’m decently versed myself, I see eight to ten productions of his plays a year, alongside roughly 150 non-Shakespeare shows. Thankfully, Twelfth Night is one I’ve seen a couple of times, most recently about three years ago by Ten Thousand Things. So I had a fighting chance of following this production.

Let me explain why that matters.

I generally love a show staged in a unique space, so I was excited to head to Bumbling Fools Meadery for the first time. I was picturing something like Sociable Ciderwerks, where you can currently catch a production of Hamlet. This is…not that.

First off, I felt lucky just to find the place. My GPS initially led me to what appeared to be a deserted industrial building. Seeing no cars or people, I retreated to the main road and tried another driveway. There, at last, were cars, and a sign for Bumbling Fools Meadery. Well, “sign” might be generous. It looked more like a bedsheet with the name painted on it.

I parked and descended some sketchy stairs, fully prepared to encounter either a box office attendant or my untimely demise. Thankfully, I was greeted by the friendly, familiar face of Jackson Hoemann ready to check me in, not a hulking brute in a burlap mask ready to check me out. From there, I explored the basement in search of mead, or in my case, a non-alcoholic option. I had a delightful beverage called a switchel (I went with cinnamon), which I enjoyed immensely.

Now, this all sounds kind of fun, and it is. It’s very mom-and-pop…if Mom and Pop were more “wake and bake” than “spit and polish.” That’s not a bad thing, it just helps to set expectations so no one walks in unprepared.

This labyrinthian basement has no air conditioning whatsoever. I attended on a Friday night when it was approximately 125 degrees in the freezer, thermometers were unable to measure the temperature in the shade.

The show begins at 7:00, but you’ll want to arrive by 6:30 for about 30 minutes of Appalachian mountain music performed by the cast. The music, both before and during the show, is one of the highlights of the experience.

After the preshow, we are invited into your Uncle Scruffy and Aunt Ruth’s laundry room, where the play is performed. Box fans line the walls, bravely attempting to battle the heat. In what may be one of the kindest gestures ever extended to an audience, each person is given a frozen bottle of water. You can rub it over yourself to cool down, and by the halfway point of the 90-minute show, it has melted into something you can drink, assuming you never tire of lukewarm water.

So, back to that “fighting chance” I mentioned earlier.

We are hot. We are uncomfortable. We are audibly crinkling frozen water bottles against our bodies. Box fans hum softly but constantly, in the background. And then the show begins, at a chaotic pace. Productions of Twelfth Night typically run 2.5 to 3 hours; this one clocks in at 90 minutes. In one sense, thank God. In another, you lose much of what helps acclimate an audience to Shakespeare.

It took me a solid 15 to 20 minutes to sort out who was and what there relationships were, and I pieced that together mostly from memory of past productions. Shakespeare can be wonderful, but it can also be challenging. Because of that, you need to do everything possible to help the audience connect.

There are many good elements in this production, but also some head-scratchers, or maybe that’s just part of the flea-market aesthetic of the setting. You know how you sometimes feel like you’ve picked up actual fleas after walking through a flea market? Maybe it’s just me, but I itch for a day after being dragged through antique stores and garage sales.

If you have an uncomfortable audience who are battling heat and noise distractions, it needs to be made very clear who is who and what’s going on, particularly if you have twins who are in disguise. I’m honestly not sure what the unifying concept here was. Hill people? Is that a concept? There are Dukes and Countesses, yet much of the costuming leans toward a sort of hobo motif. And in a particularly baffling makeup choice, several cast members appear to be suffering from some kind of skin condition, which is perhaps, the result of too much flea marketing.

The bottom line: the show is sold out. So I’m having a bit of fun with this review while also trying to steer those of you with tickets in the right direction. Read a synopsis beforehand. Bring a personal fan. Wear a Speedo or bikini, no judgment. And maybe pack some antifungal cream, just in case the skin condition is catching.

I’m glad I went. I’m equally glad my wife bailed. I could appreciate the strengths and rely on my familiarity with Shakespeare. She doesn’t share that interest and likely would have been lost, as would anyone unfamiliar with the play.

One of the most important aspects of performing Shakespeare is conveying meaning, even when the language itself isn’t fully understood. This cast is capable of doing that. They’re just battling extensive cuts, background noise, and an audience too distracted by discomfort to fully meet them halfway.

Brick by Brick Players seems to be sort of a poor man’s Ten Thousand Things. They are doing Shakespeare, they are touring it around to make in accessible to people who might not get to see it otherwise. I don’t think this is a bad production I think it’s an interesting one that is battleing some extreme circumstances and a nasty rash.

Twelfth Night runs through July 25th at Bumbling Fools Meadery. For more information and to join the waitlist for tickets go to https://www.brickbybrickplayers.org/whoweare-1

The Cottage is a Wonderfully Light Comedy in the Style of a Noel Coward Play at the Gremlin Theatre

Corey DiNardo, Sarah Malfara, Sasha Andreev Photo by Alyssa Kristine Photography

The Cottage by Sandy Rustin is the sort of comedy Noël Coward might have written, if he were writing today, and a woman. It isn’t vulgar, but it carries a distinctly modern sensibility, freer than the comedies of manners Coward penned in the 1920s and ’30s.

The play opens in 1923 at a country cottage, where two lovers, Sylvia and Beau, have just spent a night together. We quickly learn they are both married, and, in fact are brother- and sister-in-law. In a fit of impulsive honesty, Sylvia has sent telegrams to their respective spouses confessing the affair, assuming she and Beau will simply move on and marry each other. Naturally, this decision brings those spouses, and a few surprise guests, crashing onto the scene. To reveal more would spoil the fun, but suffice it to say this is an old-fashioned farce with a decidedly modern, feminist edge.

Sarah Malfara opens and closes the play alone on stage as Sylvia. At first, her performance feels overly mannered, but it soon becomes clear this is intentional, Sylvia is “playing house,” posing within a role of her own creation. As revelations unfold, Malfara gradually strips away that façade. By the end, she has transformed from a fluttering romantic into a clear-eyed woman firmly in control of her own narrative. It’s a terrific turn from an actor I was previously unfamiliar with, and Malfara keeps the audience constantly reassessing both her performance and Sylvia herself.

All Is Calm alum Sasha Andreev puts his dashing good looks to excellent use as Beau, a man who clearly has no trouble attracting women. Andreev is as adept at turning on the charm as he is at landing sharp comedic beats, particularly in his well played exits after a confrontation with a potentially deadly visitor. Mira Davis, as the delightfully unpredictable Dierdre, makes the most of every entrance (often from unexpected places) and mines plenty of laughs from her character’s… incapacitated state. Corey DiNardo (Clarke) and Shana Eisenberg (Marjorie), the wronged spouses, most strongly evoke the classic 1920s British comedy-of-manners style, while still sneaking in some wonderfully surprising flourishes. And Chance Carroll, as Richard, delivers one of the evening’s biggest surprises with a transformation that once again upends expectations.

The Cottage is a light but thoroughly delightful comedy, packed with unexpected twists, entrances, and revelations. Just when it has exhausted its surprises, it lands on a message that feels fully earned. Director Brian Balcom captures the spirit of a Noël Coward comedy with precision while allowing Rustin’s modern voice to shine through.

The Cottage runs through August 2 at the Gremlin Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and tickets, visit https://gremlintheatre.org/the-cottage/

The Great River Shakespeare Festival Takes Us Into the Past on the Road to the Future: This Years Shows A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

The Stages of MN, MN Theater Love, Cherry and Spoon, and Mrs. The Stages of MN at The Great River Shakespeare Festival

This is my fourth year attending the Great River Shakespeare Festival (GRSF), and more than ever, it felt like returning to a much-loved community, like reuniting with friends. That’s what makes this festival so special: it’s small enough, and the company engages with the public on such an intimate level, that you feel like more than just an audience member, you feel like part of the community. There are so many ways to engage with the company that the experience becomes more than just attending a performance.

Forty-five minutes before each show, the student understudies perform the Green Show. These scenes are designed to tune your ear to Shakespeare’s verse and wrap up with an entertaining introduction to the characters, plot, and world of the play you’re about to see. After every Friday and Saturday evening performance, there’s a free ice cream social where you can enjoy a treat and mingle with the cast, crew, and festival staff. On Sunday mornings at 11:00 a.m., there’s a Company Conversation, an time where anyone can engage with a panel of artists about a variety of topics. All of these events are free and have been part of the festival long before I began making the trek to Winona.

What’s new this year, and especially exciting, is the festival’s move to a permanent home at The ARC, which is Home of the Historic Masonic Theatre. Previously held on the campus of Winona State University, this move allows them, among other things, to sell concessions, snacks, drinks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic options, including an N/A beer option, for which I’m very grateful. The Guthrie could take a cue from GRSF in that regard. There’s also a gift shop with everything from T-shirts and books to William Shakespeare action figures and jigsaw puzzles.

Less visible, but equally exciting, is the space itself. Its labyrinthine layout turns simply moving from the lobby to the theater into a bit of a treasure hunt, and that’s exactly what it is. Around every corner, there’s a piece of theater history: lighting fixtures, commemorative plaques, and costumes that may well be over 100 years old. My favorite find is in the upstairs bar, where you can see an old wind noise machine that, paired with a thunder sheet, once created the soundscape of a storm.

GRSF Artistic Director Doug Scholz-Carlson & Wind Machine

My fellow Twin Cities theater bloggers and I were lucky enough to tour the space, and it’s full of character, because it’s really, really old. With that character come challenges. This is year one, and the GRSF team has done an incredible job preparing the space for the season. But there’s more they’d love to do in the coming years, and completing that vision will require raising three to five million dollars. So if you’ve got some extra cash, $25, $50, $1.2 million, this would be a great place to donate: https://www.grsf.org/donate-now.

The shows! I won’t go into full synopses or in-depth reviews, I know this is already a long article. But what I’ve found over four years and nine productions is this: like Ten Thousand Things in Minneapolis, this company seems incapable of producing a Shakespeare play that isn’t among the best you’ll ever see. Whether you know the plays or not, you will be entertained and enriched.

*Pericles, Prince of Tyre* Photo by Dan Norman

First up is Pericles, Prince of Tyre, a play I had neither read nor seen before attending opening weekend. Not one of Shakespeare’s most frequently performed works, partly because he only wrote the second half, which sent me down a fascinating rabbit hole about Shakespearean collaborations. Pericles is also a perfect example of why we’re still performing Shakespeare over 400 years after his death: as the world changes and artists revisit the work, we find new ways of interpreting and presenting these plays. Director Shaun Patrick Tubbs makes smart adaptations that bring clarity and emotional depth, both of which resonated strongly with the audience.

Someone described Pericles over the weekend as “Shakespeare’s greatest hits.” It’s got ships, storms, people separated by ships and storms. Really, the only thing missing is a set of twins. There’s love, pirates, attempted murder, a character unknowingly buried alive, human trafficking, incest, and even divine intervention. And near the end, Will Sturdivant as Pericles, had me in tears during a reunion scene. The ensemble of eight company members, who perform all roles in both this and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, are among the finest Shakespearean performers you’ll see. Sturdivant stands out here, as does Melissa Maxwell as Helicanus, Pericles’ advisor, who also takes on the narrator function (traditionally Gower). It’s a brilliant consolidation that improves clarity and pacing. Maxwell transitions seamlessly between character and narrator, commanding both spaces with authority and wit.

Benjamin Boucvalt and Tarah Flanagan (who played Hamlet in one of the best productions I’ve ever seen! which was at the GRSF in 2024) bring welcome humor to roles that could easily be played dark and serious. That balance is key to why this production works so well.

Karl Gfall’s scenic and props design makes full use of the stage, extending into the wings with representational elements, a ship’s bow and stern, sails upstage, that evoke setting without overwhelming it. When the action moves to land, branches root us in place. And in a particularly striking moment, lighting designer Lonnie Rafael Alcaraz transforms those branches into flashes of lightning during a storm at sea.

*A Midsummer Night’s Dream* Photo by Dan Norman

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is delightful, on par with the Guthrie wonderful production from last year. I may need to return to Winona just to see it again, thanks to a clever casting choice: Will Sturdivant and Tarah Flanagan alternate the roles of Bottom and Peter Quince. I saw Sturdivant as Bottom, and he was fantastic, but Flanagan’s take on Quince was so distinct and funny that I’m very curious to see what her Bottom looks like… oh behave!

Once again, the entire cast shines. Michael Fitzpatrick is an excellent Puck, with great instincts for pacing and a knack for stretching moments when needed. Among the young lovers, all strong, Annie Barbour stands out as a gifted physical comic. That physicality aligns beautifully with director Doug Scholz-Carlson’s concept of setting the play as if performed by a theatrical troupe in 1908, the year the ARC building was constructed. The comedy leans into the style of silent film-era performers, a connection reinforced by the sound and lighting design from Matthew Tibbs and Avery Reagan.

The most exquisite design element, however, is the set of painted drops, remnants from Masonic rituals. These lush backdrops shift and deepen under changing light, creating a sense of dimension that’s truly magical. Even more remarkable: the fly system is still functional, allowing these pieces to shine.

The Great River Shakespeare Festival isn’t just an opportunity to see exceptional Shakespeare, it’s a chance to step into the past. In this new space, it feels like experiencing theater as it might have been a century ago. It’s a treat.

The festival runs through July 26 in Winona, MN. For more information and tickets, visit https://www.grsf.org/2026-season. For more coverage watch for more coverage from M’Colleagues at http://www.cherryandspoon.com/ and https://www.mntheaterlove.com/

Perfect Arrangement is Perfectly Fabulous and Pride Complimentary From Walking Shadow Theatre Company

Elora Riley and Rachel Postle Photo courtesy of Walking Shadow Theatre Company

I saw a previous production of Perfect Arrangement at Theatre in the Round in 2022, so I already knew the plot. The setup: two married couples, one gay and one lesbian, who marry each other as cover in 1950 Washington, D.C. They live next door in an apartment building and have even created a secret passage through a shared closet. When someone “comes out of the closet,” it’s literally just a stage entrance. The kicker? The husband of one couple and the wife of the other work for the State Department, rooting out Communists, and anyone else deemed vulnerable to blackmail, including alcoholics and those with so-called “deviant” secrets, like homosexuals.

What I had forgotten over the years was the play’s style. It opens with the two couples hosting the State Department boss and his wife Kitty for dinner, staged like a perfect 1950s sitcom complete with dialogue that feels like product placement. The moment the guests leave, the sitcom drops away and the characters become real people. I absolutely love that juxtaposition between their polished public lives and their private reality. Director John Heimbuch and his cast know just the right tone to hit, and exactly the right time to turn the phony ’50s façade on and off. (That last line works better read aloud.) A lot of the humor comes from our collective pop culture memories of that era. Even the set is intentionally a recreation of the I Love Lucy set.

The core four: Theo Janke-Furman, Rachel Postle, Elora Riley, and Joe Swanson, are all terrific, and they look it thanks to Mandi Johnson’s fabulous costumes. But I especially want to shout out a couple of supporting players. Julie Ann Nevill, as Kitty, never seems to drop her dim-witted boss’s wife routine, playing it for laughs while still letting a hint of humanity peek through. And Lily Rains, making her Minnesota stage debut, is terrific as Barbara Grant, a sharp, complicated woman with many bedfellows and a target on her back. She’s got a presence and intelligence that fit this shrewd character perfectly. After this, I’ll be keeping an eye out for her future roles, I think we just got another star to add to the Twin Cities skyline.

This review is a little shorter than usual because the run is almost over, and I want you to read this and get your tickets before it closes on June 21st. Even if you saw the TRP production, you’ll want to catch this one. As good as that was, this goes to another level. Sharp, witty, and immaculately dressed, this production is basically must-see TV, just happening live on stage.

Perfect Arrangement runs through June 21st at The Crane Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit https://walkingshadow.org/perfect-arrangement/

Midsummer Night’s Dream, Thumbs and Bottoms Up For This Production From The Modern Rep

*David Michaeli, Bryce Baxter, Richard Rigmaiden, Leo Rossmiller, and Jonathan Edwards* *Photo by Molly Jay Photography*

The Modern Rep Theatre Company’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is performed both as it would have been in Shakespeare’s day and unlike anything you would have seen in Shakespeare’s day. When the plays were first produced, all the roles on stage were played by men, as women were not allowed to act in the theater. In this way, this is a very faithful performance, as all the roles are played by men. One of the great things about Shakespeare is that 400 years on, groups can perform the plays and bend them to their will. This production is certainly bent, as the company’s website describes it, “messy, sexy, and very gay.”

I like a production that takes chances and finds interesting new ways to speak Shakespeare’s text. I also appreciate a traditional staging, and I’m grateful that my first exposure to the play on stage was The Guthrie’s wonderful production in 2024. I saw that production twice, which I think allowed me to enjoy this one more thoroughly. I had a solid understanding of the plot and the characters, so I never felt lost. A familiarity with the play also helped me to spot the departures, which can be subtle and clever, and usually rather blew (or blue, I mean).

The cast is great, and they run their Bottoms off, each playing at least three roles. They really seem to feel at home in the roles of the fairies of the forest, but are just as good as the amateur actors and the four young lovers. They are capable of doing the one thing you must do when performing Shakespeare: whether you are in Elizabethan costumes or dressed as barn animals, you have to speak the language so that the audience can understand it. I’m not talking about enunciation, I’m talking about meaning. The audience needs to understand the meaning behind what they say, even if they don’t know what every word means.

I very much enjoyed this show, but there are a few things you need to know before you go. For some reason, this theater company believes there must be an element of discomfort for the audience. In their first production, Salomé, they opened a large garage door to the outside for extended periods during a particularly cold stretch in late February. In this production, the seating is on metal bleachers with no backrests. If you have a bleacher seat (thank God we did), bring it with you. The show runs nearly two hours without an intermission, depending on your fitness level, that’s a long time to sit without back support.

There are a few other things you should know, which are actually kind of fun. When you arrive at the location, you are going to question whether you are in the right place or not. The entrance to the performance space is halfway down an alley. The cast mingles with the audience before the show, offering free tattoos, popcorn, and shots. And lastly, It is very risque, so if that isn’t your jam, skip it, but if you are OK if things get a little hard “R”, you’ll be good.

If you like your Willy a little on the queer or wild side, I think you’ll have a blast with this production. If you are new to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, read the Wikipedia plot synopsis before you go, it will help keep you from getting lost. There is nothing worse than sitting through two hours of something you can’t follow.

Midsummer Night’s Dream runs through June 20 at 901 N 3rd St in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.dreammpls.com/about.

My Antonia Reveals Itself in World Premiere as a Beautiful New Musical at Theater Latté Da

Will Dusek and Sara Masterson Photo by Dan Norman

The World Premiere of the new musical My Ántonia at Theater Latté Da is one of the best new musicals I’ve seen in some time. Intimate, inviting, full of memorable songs, and featuring a knockout cast, this feels like a show that should have long legs. It opens with the audience feeling like part of the show, with cast members standing among us as they set the scene of the Nebraska prairie of the late 1800s. We hear the birds and the crickets, the sounds of nature coming alive as the cast sings the prologue.

The novel, which is told in the first person and is semi-autobiographical, translates surprisingly well to the stage. In order to maintain that first-person perspective, we have the main character, Jim, run into Willa in a bar in New York City. They reminisce about the old days, and in particular Ántonia. We then flash back to Jim, recently orphaned, on a train from the East to live with his grandparents in Nebraska. On the train is the Shimerda family, immigrants from Bohemia who will be his neighbors. Young Jim befriends their daughter Ántonia, who is a couple of years older than him. They spend their days together, and he teaches her to speak English. They have a beautiful song that deals with their introduction and the beginning of Jim teaching her the language, called “Name, What Name.” It is the first inkling that the music in this musical might be something special.

We see the characters at different stages of their lives, with Jim and Ántonia being played at different ages by three different pairs of actors. What worked extremely well was the framing device of the forty-something Jim and Willa, who pop in and out of the narrative throughout the show. It allows us the emotional connection that comes as the characters move forward from memory into the present. Who among us cannot relate to thinking back on the past, to that person who slipped away out of our lives, the one we see now that could have been the one we were destined for? We feel certain of it now, but there was usually a reason things went another way. Still, when it comes to memory, nothing is quite as emotionally potent as unrequited or unexpressed love.

This is one of those shows where the cast is so good that if you try to limit how many performers you’ll mention, you won’t even get to Sally Wingert and Bradley Greenwald, who in supporting roles do what they are so skilled at doing, punching those small moments, those little asides, just perfectly. With two of The Stages of MN favorites, Tom Reed and the limitlessly talented Em Adam Rosenberg, as the older Jim and Willa, in a genuinely funny scene beginning the tale, you realize that you’re going to have to breeze through the performers or you’ll be up all night. For the record, Reed and Rosenberg are outstanding; both bring the emotions home in the final moments of the show that, yep, had ol’ Rob in tears again. Damn you, Rosenberg. Every time, really? Honestly, is that necessary?

Right out of the gate we have Lillian Hochman and Maddox Tabalba, who play the youngest Ántonia and Jimmy. Hochman is probably older than the 14 she appears to be, but I’m fairly certain that Tabalba is in the ballpark of young Jimmy’s age, which I’d guess to be 12 to 14. These two are stunningly good. As the young adult Ántonia and Jim, we have Sara Masterson and Will Dusek, who again are just terrific. Add to that Anna Hashizume, and it’s a who’s who of my “must-see” list.

The music and lyrics are by The Kilbanes, whom I’d never heard of, but who clearly should be writing musicals. I was especially impressed by their willingness to venture outside of the period for inspiration. The prairie songs sound different from the town songs, and one song, “Saturday Night Me,” had a subtle ’50s rock ’n’ roll feel to it. It’s about the young people letting loose at the dance hall, and the style is like a shorthand to the audience to convey teenagers coming into their own. I hope this show goes on, I think it has the potential to go beyond regional theater. I, for one, would love to have a cast recording of it. There were several songs that I instantly wanted to be able to hear again.

My Ántonia runs through July 12th at Theater Latté Da in North Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.latteda.org/my-antonia It’s not often that you get a new musical that works this well, don’t miss your chance to see it!