A Christmas in Ochopee From New Native Theatre When You are Ready for Something Completely Different

A Christmas in Ochopee, the remount from New Native Theatre first produced two years ago, is like nothing else I’ve seen this holiday season. It has none of the things we normally associate with Christmas shows, no snow, no carols, no turkey dinner. Instead, we get the Everglades, basketball games, and an alligator. But while the trappings may be different, the chaotic family dynamics are universal. I was rather taken with its shaggy Christmas charms, and it was refreshing to mix things up a bit.

The play follows Christmas Day with the Weetley family on a reservation in the Florida Everglades. Bo Weetley, the father, has already bet the money from a landscaping job he hasn’t even been awarded yet on a basketball game, the same money he planned to use to take the family to Disney World for Christmas. Meanwhile, Donnie Boy, the youngest son, is unexpectedly released from prison when the arresting officer forgets to show up in court, resulting in the case being thrown out. His brother Joseph is bringing his fiancée home for Christmas but forgot to tell his family they’re engaged… or that they’re vegans. And fiancée Audrey hasn’t gotten around to telling him that she’s pregnant. Add in a Barney Fife-esque cop and an antagonistic uncle, and you have the makings of a Christmas spiraling entirely out of control, with very little assistance required.

Montana Cypress’s script somehow keeps everything clearly delineated even as the story turns increasingly chaotic, which, as I began summarizing the plot, I realized is kind of amazing. The script is tight, though the direction occasionally feels a bit loose, perhaps due to a few less experienced cast members. The ensemble is uneven, but several performers shine. Benjamin Wilson as the father is especially strong. He seems born to play the role and doesn’t hit a false note the entire show. Mato Wayuhi as Donnie Boy delivers a manic goofball energy and dim-witted charm that perfectly explains his place in the family. In a smaller role as Joseph’s childhood best friend Summer, Shinaana Secody displays that enviable skill of simply knowing how to be on stage. We would have loved to see more of her.

I’m sure there are cultural nuances I missed, jokes specific to reservation life in the Everglades or references that went over my head. But I never felt like an outsider. I enjoyed the show because I recognized the characters as people I’ve known, and the situations are universal even when the details are not. The production has a chaotic charm, gets surprisingly physical at times, and offers quieter moments when its larger-than-life characters become grounded and deeply relatable.

A Christmas in Ochopee runs through December 21 at 825 Arts in Saint Paul.
Visit New Native Theatre’s website for more information and to purchase tickets:
https://www.newnativetheatre.org/tickets.

New Native Theatre is the largest Native-led nonprofit theater company in the country, now in its 16th year. Let’s make sure it has another 16. Please go see the show, and if you can’t make it, consider making a donation. It’s important that these voices are heard and these stories are told, and the best way to ensure that is by supporting New Native Theatre.

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The Chaos of the Bells The Funniest Show Yet at The Brave New Workshop!

Brave New Workshop’s annual Christmas show this year is called The Chaos of the Bells, and this might just be their best one yet. The show is wonderfully irreverent and hilariously funny, poking fun at everything from Hallmark Channel Christmas movies and Santa Claus to OnlyFans and classic Christmas songs. I won’t spoil the fun by revealing my favorite bits or giving away punchlines. What BNW delivers, what I always look forward to this time of year, is laughter, pure and simple. And honestly, in a year like 2025, when reflecting on the state of the world feels unusually heavy, distraction by way of comedy is exactly what I need.

Musical Director Jon Pumper seemed to play an even larger role this year. Either that, or there were simply more musical numbers than usual. In any case, he remains an invaluable part of the ensemble. For those unfamiliar with Brave New Workshop, it’s the longest-running comedy theater in the United States. Their holiday tradition features sketch comedy, punctuated with songs, and always concludes with their original twist on “The 12 Days of Christmas.”

Favorite sketches this year: two neighbors chatting in a garage in Fridley, a phone call to Santa Claus, “Kissing Cousins,” and a number from White Christmas. Okay, I have to stop there or I’ll end up listing every sketch of the night. There wasn’t a single miss—every piece landed. If only SNL were this consistent.

A show like this is only as good as its writers and performers, and this year the brilliant core four, Lauren Anderson (who has starred in more consecutive BNW shows than any performer in the theater’s history), Denzel Belin, Isabella Dunsieth, and Doug Neithercott, are joined by the inspired addition of Rita Boersma. Boersma, whom you’ll often see working with Mike Fotis of Strike Theater, blends seamlessly with the veteran cast. Her characters and her fearless commitment to going for the laugh are all-in. Her Fridley neighbor character was a standout. In one sketch, she made out with her “husband,” who was wearing a welding mask; based on Dunsieth’s reactions, I’m guessing Boersma added a little improvisational enthusiasm to the moment. It was an evening highlight.

The whole cast is fantastic, and the script is fresh and funny. I did catch one idea recycled from a previous Christmas show, but it was a highlight then too, so I was delighted to see it back.

This is the perfect outing for a holiday get-together with friends or now that the kids are too old for The Grinch and sick of A Christmas Carol, make this your family holiday tradition instead!

The Chaos of the Bells runs through January 17th.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit:
https://hennepinarts.org/events/the-chaos-of-the-bells-2025

A Nice Family Christmas Unwraps a Lot, is This Very Funny Holiday Show at Lyric Arts

Kathleen Winters, Anthony Zadra, Lyreshia Ghostlon-Green, Lori Constable Photo by Molly Jay

A Nice Family Christmas? They should probably call it A Very Dysfunctional Family Christmas, but maybe that’s a little too on the nose. Still, “nice” feels a bit disingenuous. Funny? Yes! Delightful? Absolutely! Nice? Not on your life. Like all holiday stories about families, we get the ugly, the humorous dysfunction, but also, beneath it all, something genuinely good. After all, what is a Christmas story if not an opportunity for redemption, healing, forgiveness, and reconnecting with the people who drive us crazy?

Set in Minnesota, the play takes place on Christmas Eve in Mom’s condo, where her three grown children arrive to find Grandma there unexpectedly from Florida… and then their very unwanted Uncle Bob barges in as well. The three siblings, who barely seem to speak to each other, are all in relationships that are teetering on various precarious edges. Over the course of the evening, secrets will come out, Grandma will deliver approximately 237 inappropriate comments, and yes, everyone will grow a little. But mostly? The audience will laugh their butts off.

It’s hard to imagine anyone who won’t relate to something in this show. A family dynamic, a tradition, an awkward secret, a chaotic holiday memory, or a rogue Uncle Bob. You’ll spot a piece of your own life somewhere in the mix. At times it almost feels like a modern TV comedy—one of the good ones, not something from the late ’80s. Add a dash of The Golden Girls and you’re in the ballpark. Grandma, in particular, channels major Sophia energy, firing off one-liners like she’s got a writers’ room in her purse.

It’s funny, usually when I leave a show, I’ll think, “I wish this person had seen that.” But for the first time I walked out thinking, “I wish I’d seen this with my brother and sisters.” I think we would’ve had a blast, and dinner afterward would’ve been even more entertaining.

Performance wise, Grandma and Uncle Bob are such wildly outrageous characters that you can’t help but love them. Kathleen Winters and Anthony Zadra have fantastic timing and fully commit to the eccentricities of their characters. I most identified with Carl, the middle child, he’s a writer, not for anything as prestigious as The Stages of MN, but for the Star Tribune. I especially related to the moment when his Mom and Grandma come to see who arrived and are visibly disappointed that it’s him and not his brother Michael. Patrick Kozicky does wonderful work as one of the few semi normal humans in this family, and even when he isn’t the focus of a scene, his reactions land perfectly.

Giving him solid competition in the “closest to normal” category is Lyreshia Ghostlon-Green as his sister Stacy. It’s probably the most under written role in the script, but Ghostlon-Green adds more to the role than she’s given on the page. As Michael and his wife Jill, Sam Sweere and Waverly Ann McCollum deliver hilariously physical performances. When Michael needs to make amends with a member of his family, his discomfort at doing so doesn’t just seep into the rest of his body it floods like a busted dam. His wife is a tsunami of hormonal hysteria due to fertility hormones she is on, It’s a lot and it’s hilarious.

Lori Constable masterfully plays Mom, nailing every aspect of the character’s many roles. She’s the one caught in the middle, put upon, the peacemaker, and ultimately the glue that holds the entire family together.

Phil Olson’s script (he’s a Minnesota native) is genuinely funny. While it doesn’t tug too hard on the heartstrings, the characters do grow, and we arrive at a very nice ending. I’m now curious about his companion play, A Nice Family Gathering. I’d love to see Lyric Arts bring it to the stage next season with the same cast.

A Nice Family Christmas runs through 12/21 at Lyric Arts in Anoka.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit: https://www.lyricarts.org/nice-family-christmas

A Christmas Carol…More or Less, is Definitely More at Yellow Tree Theatre

A Christmas Carol… More or Less at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo turns out to be decidedly on the “more” side. When a small theater company’s entire cast and crew get snowed in after a ski outing, the theater’s owners, estranged husband and wife Charlie and Sarah, decide to perform the show themselves rather than refund the audience. Much like Dante Hicks, Charlie “isn’t even supposed to be there today.” The same closed mountain pass that traps the cast and crew is also preventing him from catching his flight to L.A., where he’s planning to move to write for Wheel of Fortune. After some arm-twisting, he agrees to Sarah’s plea to uphold the sacred tradition that “the show must go on.”

This isn’t my first two-person Christmas Carol—there’s another fantastic one called A Very Good Christmas Carol, written and performed by up-and-coming Twin Cities performers Jeffrey Nolan and Hawken Paul, which leans fully into the manic chaos of two people desperately trying to stage the entire story themselves. If you can’t get into this Yellow Tree production, absolutely check that one out: https://linktr.ee/AVeryGoodChristmas. It’s a laugh riot.

This version at Yellow Tree is certainly funny, but it also leans into the warmth and genuine emotion that a really strong Christmas Carol can evoke. The script gently chips away at the jadedness of two performers who’ve done the show countless times, revealing something unexpectedly heartfelt beneath the comedy.

Paul LaNave and Kate Beahen are wonderfully paired. Beahen is delightful as the determined theater-maker who simply refuses to quit. She’s game for anything, and while LaNave starts by only playing Scrooge (and a few other characters as he warms up), Beahen takes on nearly everyone else, unafraid to throw out a wild accent, a ridiculous walk, or a silly song. She’s disarmingly charming, broad when it needs to be, and surprisingly nuanced, layering disappointed wife, practical producer, and joyful performer into one compelling presence.

LaNave is equally strong, beautifully portraying a man worn down by the life of a starving artist, someone who has let the lure of financial security pull him away from what truly matters. As the performance unfolds, you can see the spark returning to his eyes; the show becomes, in a way, his own tale of redemption.

Will the night end with disappointing realism or a happy ending? You’ll have to come to Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo to find out. If you can, that is, at the time of this writing, the show is 96% sold out. Wait too long and you may find there are no tickets left… a nice problem for the theater, if not for audiences.

A Christmas Carol… More or Less runs through December 28 at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo.
For more information and tickets, visit https://yellowtreetheatre.com/christmascarol.

Mistletoe & Mayhem: The Hallmark Parody of the Season! Brings Merriment and Mirth to the Phoenix Theater

Dawn Krosnowski and Sam Poppen connect over cocoa Photo by Steve Aggergaard

Still bummed about the first real snow of the season? Still smarting from the Loons’ loss in the division semifinals? Don’t dwell on icy roads, think about the fact that this means we may get a White Christmas! And hey, the new MLS season kicks off February 21st! But if you need help seeing past the disappointments, Mistletoe & Mayhem: The Hallmark Parody of the Season! is just the ticket to kickstart your holiday spirit.

Using the Hallmark Channel Christmas movie template as fodder for comedy isn’t new, but that’s perfectly fitting, because neither are the movies themselves. What matters is the execution. From past experience, I’ve learned that the script determines how successfully this concept lands. It can’t simply skewer one trope after another; it still needs its own story. Just Us Theater’s production, written by Jami Newstrom, not only delivers a story packed with laughs, it even positions itself beautifully for a sequel.

The story follows Victoria Steele, a cold-as-steel big city corporate executive sent to evaluate the town of Snowberry Falls as a potential site for an Evergreen Resort. There, she joins the town’s over-the-top holiday festivities and of course, slowly warms to the cheerfully aggressive Christmas spirit of a place that celebrates the holiday eleven months out of the year. The town is filled with colorful characters: Hank and Betty Evergreen, Grandma Twinkles Evergreen, Mayor Kringle, Carol, Joy, and Nick Evergreen, the handyman and Mr. December in the Holiday Hunk Calendar. As Victoria begins thawing in the glow of Nick’s holiday hunk energy, her smug city boyfriend Chad inconveniently arrives. By the final bow, Newstrom ties up all the main plot threads nicely…but leaves just the right mysteries dangling: What did Carol do to land on Betty’s naughty list? Why only eleven months of Christmas? And what’s the real story with Marzipan, the goat?

The cast is a delight. Dawn Krosnowski is technically polished as the hard edged businesswoman but wonderfully vulnerable as Snowberry Falls works its magic. Instead of acting annoyed by the town’s chaos, she plays amused disbelief, giving us a human being to root for rather than a stock caricature. Tim Uren and Sarah Broude are hilarious as Hank and Betty Evergreen (for a peek of them in character, check out the Stages of MN Holiday Preview episode: https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp21YouTube). One of my favorite moments comes courtesy of Uren’s Hank after sampling a fudge that’s been…unexpectedly microdosed. Sam Poppen’s Nick plays the straight man to the madness brilliantly, even while doing wonderfully silly bits like solemnly adding a log to the fire from his handyman toolbox.

Newstrom, who also directs and designed the production, nails the tone. It sits perfectly between impossibly ridiculous and genuinely sincere. The production design is impressively elaborate for the Phoenix Theater’s small space. The holiday excess feels intentional, curated, and festive, not like someone simply threw tinsel at every surface and hoped for the best.

Let’s make Mistletoe & Mayhem: The Hallmark Parody of the Season! a hit so big that Just Us Theater has to cash in next year with: Mistletoeier & Mayhemier 2: Return to Snowberry Falls! To make that sequel happen, buy your tickets at https://mistletoe-mayhem.com/. The show runs through December 14th at the Phoenix Theater in Uptown.

The Stages of MN Holiday Preview On Episode 21!

Episode 21 of the YouTube show is up. It’s our Holiday Preview episode featuring four shows from sponsoring theater companies. You can view the episode here https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp21YouTube or listen to the podcast version here https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp21Podcast

But if you don’t have time right now here’s a quick glance at the four holiday shows.

A young city executive is compelled to spend the holidays in Snowberry Falls, a town with an unreasonable obsession with winter cheer and one diva goat. She soon discovers that she might find more than just holiday happiness. Mistletoe & Mayhem from Just Us Theater runs from November 28th to December 14th at the Phoenix Theater in Uptown. Click her to purchase tickets https://mistletoe-mayhem.com/

A gust of icy wind changes everything! Follow St. Paul’s own Clarence “Cap” Wigington and his wife Viola as their Winter Carnival ice palace design plunges them into the magical realm of King Boreas. They’ll encounter iconic Minnesota figures, from bygone poets to racing legends, all woven into the vibrant tapestry of the Carnival’s myth and history. Discover the strange, wonderful heart of a tradition built on resilience, imagination, and the enduring spirit of our snowy state. Rollicking! a Winter carnival Musical runs through December 21st at History Theatre in St Paul. Click here for tickets https://www.historytheatre.com/2025-2026/rollicking-winter-carnival-musical

When a Christmas Eve snowstorm strands the entire cast of A Christmas Carol, married couple and stage managers Sarah and Charlie are left with no choice but to perform the whole show themselves! What starts as a disaster quickly turns into a hilarious holiday adventure as the two scramble through costume changes, forgotten lines, and dozens of roles—from Ebenezer Scrooge and Bob Cratchit to the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. A Christmas Carol…More or Less runs from November 28th to December 28th at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo. For Tickets click here https://yellowtreetheatre.com/christmascarol

It’s Christmas in the Everglades again as NNT begins a new winter tradition by remounting its wildly successful comedy, A Christmas in Ochopee by Montana Cypress. With fry bread, family feuds, and a memorable gator that may or may not hold the spirit of a beloved rez dog, the Weetley family navigates love, and loud uncles under one roof. Full of sharp Native humor, culture, and heart, Cypress brings us a holiday play that speaks to the beauty and chaos of rez life. It’s a Florida Christmas—expect miracles, mess, and maybe a chainsaw or two. A Christmas in Ochopee runs December 3rd to the 21st at 825 Arts in St Paul. Click here for tickets https://www.newnativetheatre.org/a-christmas-in-ochopee

We put together some fun segments for these shows to give you a taste of what they are so I hope you’ll watch the episode. When you do I think you’ll be compelled to seek out each of these shows this holiday season. I hope you will support these theater companies who have generously supported The Stages of MN by sponsoring this episode.

We do also have a review of the Guthrie Theater’s annual production of A Christmas Carol in this episode. that runs through December 28th and you can get tickets here https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/a-christmas-carol/

My Fair Lady runs through December 28, 2025 at Theater Latté Da in Northeast Minneapolis.
Tickets and info: https://www.latteda.org/my-fair-lady

A Christmas Carol Still Has it, at Least For Me, at the Guthrie Theater

The cast of A Christmas Carol Photo by Dan Norman

It’s hard to get through the holiday season without experiencing at least one version of A Christmas Carol, and the Guthrie Theater’s annual production seems particularly inescapable for me. I usually end up seeing three or four versions each year, and because it’s such a busy time both theatrically and personally, I always tell myself I’ll skip the Guthrie’s for once. But then someone in my inner circle really wants to go, and they pull me back in. Thankfully, it’s always a journey worth repeating, and one I’m glad I never miss.

This marks the 51st production of the Guthrie’s A Christmas Carol and the fifth year of the current adaptation by Lavina Jadhwani, first performed in 2021. This year’s staging is directed by Addie Gorlin-Han, based on the original direction by Joseph Haj, the Guthrie’s Artistic Director.

After so many years and so many versions, I’m still amazed by this story’s capacity to captivate me. There’s something enduring about Dickens’s tale of reflection and redemption. Its familiarity allows it to be endlessly adaptable. The core plot and themes appear throughout modern storytelling. Everyone has a favorite version: for my son Alex, who was my plus-one this year, it’s Patrick Stewart’s made-for-TV version; for me, it’s the 1951 British film starring Alastair Sim. Alex wasn’t completely won over by this stage version, perhaps he holds his favorite too tightly to let another in. That’s fair and I think something we’ve all experienced from time to time. I’m happy to say that once again the Guthrie’s version did completely win me over. And I had the telltale tears on my cheeks at the end as proof.

Last year my review focused on changes I wasn’t sure were new, this year I had the same thoughts. Was that second hug Bob Cratchit gives Scrooge there last time? Was the astonishingly quick transport of Scrooge from the trapdoor to his bed new? Regardless, it all works beautifully. There aren’t many cast changes this season, but it was great to see Daniel Petzold join as Young Scrooge and Aimee K. Bryant in a newly credited role as Kitty’s sister Dahlia. Kitty herself finally gets a name after years of being listed simply as “Fred’s wife.” Both are welcome additions. I also loved seeing Noah Hynick, apparently on loan from Lyric Arts, joining the ensemble. Hopefully it’s just a matter of time before he takes on larger roles at the Guthrie.

The elements that have wowed me in past productions continue to shine. Nathan Huberty’s Ghost of Christmas Future, in a haunting costume by Toni-Leslie James, remains nightmarish enough to give the wee ones a genuine scare. The moment when the ghost emerges from the darkness, engulfed in fog and towering over a cowering Scrooge, is pure theatrical adrenaline—especially from my front-row seat. Alex said that moment almost triggered his fight-or-flight response. The set design by Matt Saunders and lighting by Yi Zhao strike a perfect balance between detailed realism and expressionistic atmosphere. Sound designer Mikaal Sulaiman and music director Jason Hansen weave together Jane Shaw’s evocative score, traditional carols, and well-timed sound effects to create a rich, immersive experience.

The one scene that still puzzles me is the brief moment when Scrooge and the Ghost of Christmas Present observe the ship at sea. I know it’s in the book, and many adaptations include it, but it’s so short and requires such elaborate staging, complete with, to be fair, excellent projections and a separate set piece, that I can’t help wondering if the payoff justifies the effort. I promise to stop harping on this by next year; I know it’s a dead horse.

As I’ve said before: if you’ve never seen A Christmas Carol at the Guthrie, it’s actually required by the state constitution once you’ve lived here more than five years. And if you’ve seen it before, even this same adaptation, it absolutely rewards repeat viewings. Unless, of course, you’re fiercely loyal to Patrick Stewart’s version; then all bets are off. I’m not sure how this story keeps reaching me year after year, but I think Dickens’s source material is simply too brilliant to ever grow old. Its message remains timeless: our fellow man is the business of all of us.

A Christmas Carol runs through December 28 at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit guthrietheater.org.