Tag: Comedy

Minnesota Fringe Day 5: I Have Griefances, The Gentlemen’s Pratfall Club (The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner), OPERA PUNKS, Shrieking Harpies Presents: Period Piece.

I’m just back from Day 5 of the Minnesota Fringe I’ve got my reviews below. I also want to let folks know there is a new Minnesota Fringe edition of the YouTube show up today, so check it out it’s full of Artists telling about their shows and Audience members giving recommendations of the best shows they’ve seen so far. click here to view it https://bit.ly/TSOMNFringe2025miniEpisode2

I Have Griefances is closer to the show Wells Farnham wanted to do in 2023 when he first came off the Fringe waitlist. But he couldn’t because it was all about making fun of his family, and they had all just gotten cancer. So instead he did a very funny show in which he talked through the Fast and the Furious film series and the children’s show Paw Patrol. That show was funnier, but what this one loses in humor it makes up for in heart. This isn’t a lesser show it’s just a different blend of humor and pathos and both are equally effective. My favorite bit is the explanation of the lamp shade story that has plagued him for years. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/i-have-griefances

The Gentlemen’s Pratfall Club By Comedy Suitcase is the latest show from Joshua English Scrimshaw and Levi Weinhagen their 2022 show Bob and Reggie Go To Bed was the third Fringe show I ever saw and the First to win the then completely unknown, though just as highly regarded as it is now, The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award. Where that show relied entirely on physical comedy, the new one which, in case you haven’t read the headline, has also won The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award, strikes an unexpected balance between physical and verbal humor. I’m not going to say I was disappointed by the addition of dialogue, it’s too well written and funny for that. But there was something special about seeing what amounted to a live silent comedy performed on stage. Faithful readers will have gleaned from past reviews that I have a love of silent cinema, but I also love the comedies of the 1930’s and 40’s which relied much more on verbal comedic acrobatics, and so I’m game to go along with the boys as they transition to the talkies, I just hope they don’t sign a contract with MGM and lose all creative control. Besides the reality is probably that these guys are aging, I’m not calling anyone old, but our bodies can only take so much abuse and cutting back on the poundings their bodies have to take is probably a good idea and will prolong their ability to do these shows in the long run. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/the-gentlemen-s-pratfall-club

OPERA PUNKS is the first of two Musical improv shows I saw on Day 5. It’s really hard to say much about an improv show as by its very nature it will be different every night. This is improv in which the performers take suggestions shouted out by the audience and then create songs around them acting out these comedic scenes as if they were operas. The cast is great and features among others Brave New Workshop member Isabella Dunsieth and Michael Rogers who, listening to his singing here, one wonders why we haven’t been seeing him starring in musicals around town? This was a great show, very funny and the cast is so strong that if the performance you see isn’t good, it’s probably that your audience threw out dumb suggestions. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/opera-punks

Shrieking Harpies Presents: Period Piece is another musical improv show but the difference is that the Shrieking Harpies shows are long form improv. So instead of creating short comedic scenes with singing, the create a musical with a beginning, middle, and an end. The “period piece in the title refers to the fact that this years show the stories will be sent in a particular time period. Apparently the time period for each performance is voted for online before the show. I missed that memo and so we ended up with the 1990’s, which frankly, I lived through, and didn’t find all that interesting while I was doing so. I would have loved to have seen them do something from long ago, or if it had to be in the 20th century the 1950’s or 1960’s. That said it was still very entertaining, very funny and confirmed for me that any time I can see the Shrieking Harpies, which are made up of  Lizzie Gardner, Taj Ruler, Hannah Wydeven and Justin Nellis on the Keys, I will. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/shrieking-harpies-presents-period-piece

That’s it for day five of the Minnesota Fringe Festival you can click on the Fringe website here to get details on all of the shows https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025. Don’t forget to tune into The Stages of MN YouTube channel for mini episodes all week long from The MN Fringe Festival https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN

Subscribe to the channel so you’ll always know when a new episode has dropped. Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to ensure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

Minnesota Fringe Day 3: Invasive Species or: In Space No-One Can Hear Your Steam, The Abortion Chronicles, Breach, Joan of Arc For Miss Teen Queen USA (The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner), Rec League, Jewelry Power Elite, That Which is Green.

Another great day at The Minnesota Fringe Festival. I’ve yet to see a show that I wouldn’t enthusiastically recommend. Maybe it’s that I’m not very adventurous with my picks, but I guess the trade off of playing it safe, being I never see a bad show, is worth it. Read my quick reviews of the seven shows I saw on day three below, including today’s The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner.

Invasive Species or: In Space No-One Can Hear Your Steam features of a fantastic script by Tim Wick which reimagines alien as a nautical mystery set in a steampunk London of the late 1800s. But the humor isn’t limited to that era, it pulls from all time periods but mostly we see it through the lens of the 20th century. A running gag featuring a variation on the classic Abbott and Costello “Who’s On First” routine is a highlight as is the explanation of steampunk technology. The cast is amazing especially Dawn Krosnowski as Ripley and Kjer Whiting as Inspector Dunkleputty (no relation). The creature effects are at once both low-tech and spectacularly effective. Re-creating all of the fabulous moment you expect from the film, but in a way that gets a laugh. We get the chestburster scene, the Face hugger Alien as well as a stand off that mirrors the final battle between Ripley and the Alien Queen in Aliens. The fabulous Creature effects are by Seán McCardle and the Props are by Liz Cummings. There’s one brilliant bit of stage business that subverts our expectations beautifully. The character of Ash is seen drinking from milk cartons several times, leading me to expect a recreation of, what for me was one of the biggest gross out scenes in the film, when Ash is killed and we learn he was an android and he’s spitting up a milky substance. I always hated that scene and I felt sure they were building up to it with the milk cartons, and then they don’t go there. They get to build up the anticipation of the scene without actually making us watch it, or them having to deal with the cleanup, which was an effective way to play that sequence. for more information and to purchase tickets go to the shows page on the Minnesota Fringe website https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/invasive-species-or-in-space-no-one-can-hear-your-steam

The Abortion Chronicles is an anthology of woman’s stories revolving around abortion, all of them true, all of them deeply affecting. This is a remount of previous productions, which I did not see, but with mostly new stories. It was always an important show to produce, but it is becoming more and more vital everyday. These stories need to be told, heard, and understood. As a man I found it to be a privilege to be allowed to sit and listen to these stories. Allowing me a greater understanding of something I can never fully understand being in the body I am. The stories alternate with comments from two characters played by Christy Johnson who plays a nurse at an abortion clinic and Patti Gage who plays a patient escort at the clinic. They tell little anecdotes of their experiences between the main stories which are told by the the performers, some of whom are reenacting their own stories others as surrogates for other women. The women’s stories cover a range of circumstances that help to illuminate how complicated the issue really is. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the shows page on the Minnesota Fringe Website https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/the-abortion-chronicles#tickets

Breach features a powerful cast! I had it on my schedule because of Em Adam Rosenberg and Stephanie Kahle, who are The Stages of MN favorites. They play siblings, who own a crab fishing boat left them by their Father. Kahle is the Captain while Rosenberg plays the First Mate, and they are as always fantastic. But every single member of the cast is incredible. This is a harrowing story of a crab fishing ship and its crew. This trip hasn’t been very successful and so when they receive word of a storm, the Captain heads into a storm despite the risks rather than turn back without enough Crab to make the trip financially worthwhile. But there are secrets being concealed and as the storm looms ahead loyalties will be tested. The show actually gets a little spooky at times. It’s directed with precision by Alex Church who also cowrote the play with Mariabella Sorini. The lighting and sound design are highly effective and build genuine tension. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/breach

Joan of Arc For Miss Teen Queen USA is this year’s Melancholics Anonymous show, and for most that’s probably all I need to write. If you are a Minnesota Fringe regular you know who Melancholics Anonymous are. If this is your first time, you’ll want to try and reserve tickets for this show. It’s in one of the largest venues, which would be hard to sell out, but if anyone can it’s them. A Fringe show can be anything, that’s the joy of the Fringe. But when I think of Fringe as a Style, Melancholics Anonymous is what I think of. In this years show Timothy Kelly, who cowrote the show and whose bright blonde hair and 100 watt smile will always be the face of Melancholics Anonymous to me, plays the MC of the South Dakotan Miss Teen Queen USA Pageant. Things get disrupted when Joan of Arc suddenly appears as a new contestant 588 years after her execution. Like the Blues Brothers before her, she is on a mission from God! Outrageousness ensues, pants are nearly wet from laughter, and we all learn a little something about the importance of women supporting each other. It’s fantastically designed and orchestrated and probably the best thing yet from this company that always hits it out of the park. And, it is The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/joan-of-arc-for-miss-teen-queen-usa

Rec League is one of the Festivals independently produced shows running at Strike Theater in North Minneapolis. It is one of the most successful improv shows I’ve seen at a Fringe Festival. I’m always a fan of Mike Fotis’ shows but this one surpassed all of the others. There wasn’t a single story thread that got dropped or taken in a dead end direction. And, they kept the fictional softball game actually going which was really impressive. But as they say in the show notes you don’t have to know anything about softball to enjoy the show. It’s about friends and their relationships and the different places we are all at when we get to our 40’s. And speaking of different, this is improv so every show will be different but it’s full of local favorites like Fotis, Allison Vincent, and Rita Boersma who are always funny, so it’s a pretty safe bet when you need some laughs in your schedule. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/rec-league

Jewelry Power Elite is surprisingly, Brave New Workshop company member and local legend, Lauren Anderson’s first solo show. I added it to my schedule because, well, Lauren Anderson. Ask any of my wives, current or past and they will tell you I do not notice jewelry, hair, or shoes, and as far as clothes go, I only notice if you aren’t wearing any, but I think that’s true of anyone, the noticing if someone is naked. Jewelry couldn’t break into the top 1,000 on my list of interests even if you eleminated my top 500 interests. I left this show with a new appreciation of jewelry, but mostly feeling like I’d been let into Anderson’s inner circle, if only for 45 minutes. Directed by Duck Washington, Jewelry Power Elite feels similar to his 2023 The Stages of MN Fringe of the day Award winning solo show My Only hope For a Hero. It takes something she is passionate about and through the lens of that passion shares stories that inform us of who she is and how she became the person we see before us. It’s funny, personal, and you get a free jelly bracelet! For those who love jewelry, this will be heaven, for the rest of us it’s the next best thing (that’s right, it’s a soft serve vanilla ice cream Crunch cone from Dairy Queen). Highly recommend this show, no love of jewelry required. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/jewelry-power-elite

That Which is Green is possibly the final Minnesota Fringe show from Michael Rogers who is moving away from the Twin Cities this fall. It’s a loss to the community, but one hopes that his connections and friends here in Minnesota will bring him back at least for more Fringe fun in the future. Fun isn’t the first word that comes to mind with his new show which he wrote, directed, and performs in along with Alex Van Loh. Though it does have laughs it’s concerned more with exploring the ideas of religion, Friendship, and the paths our lives take us down. A journey to an old and holy tree by two old friends brings up memories of the past. Set in what appears by their costumes to be another reality in which the tree is somehow related to that world’s version of Christianity. It’s another powerful performance from Rogers who is clearly connecting with this work. It may have been the 10:00 PM time slot on day three of the Fringe Festival in which I’ve seen a show in every possible time slot and spent additional energy putting myself forward to capture interviews with Artists and Audience members. But I found the show putting me almost in a trance like state. like I was in the forest with the characters communing with nature. Don’t miss this chance to see Michael Rogers, there may not be many chances left. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/that-which-is-green

That’s it for day three of the Minnesota Fringe Festival you can click on the Fringe website here to get details on all of the shows https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025. Don’t forget to tune into The Stages of MN YouTube channel for mini episodes all week long from The MN Fringe Festival https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN. We’ll hopefully have the second one up on Monday!

Subscribe to the channel so you’ll always know when a new episode has dropped. Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to ensure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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 foll

Minnesota Fringe Day 2: This, Death! A Musical, Clown Funeral, Hamluke (The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner)

Day two was another Fringetacular evening of entertainment! I’m 8 shows in now and haven’t seen a show yet that I wouldn’t recommend. Here are my quick reviews of Day two.

This is Tim Uren’s autobiographical solo show that touches on his tendency to believe almost anything, he believes in Bigfoot and that aliens built the Pyramids. Who knew we had so much in common? Tim is a member of The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society (MORLS) and it’s pretty much a guarantee that I’m going to see anything anyone associated with the MORLS is in. I seem to vibe with all of their sensibilities, and This only deepens that belief. Uren covers a lot of ground, maybe too much. I only say that because for the first time ever I witnessed a show get cut off because their time was up. I spoke with Uren later and I missed about 3 minutes. I can’t miss another show to see it again for the last three minutes but I may try and corner him at some point and see if I can get him to finish the performance. Maybe it’s because I’m interested in how people come together and their journey’s but I loved getting a lot of Uren’s background filled in for me, and I thought his writing and performance was filled with humor and reality. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/this

Death! A Musical is sort of amazing, it’s a large scale production featuring a full orchestra some very legit equipment, and it’s all written and Directed by a seventh grader named Gabriel Shen. Is it perfect? No. There are issues not with the songs but at times with hearing the lyrics. Some performers were either mic’d better or projected better, but some of the songs were pretty darn good and the lead Vivienne Steele who plays Alana is really quite good. I generally make it a point nowadays not review the performances of young Actors unless they are in a professional production, and then really only if they are very good, but Steele, is really quite good. What makes this show worth your time, and it is worth your time, is to see what this 7th grader has accomplished. It’s really impressive, everything from the songs themselves, the script which has lots of strong moments and a few genuine laughs, which is pretty good for a show about death. Even the program contained ads and I don’t think I’ve ever seen that at a Fringe show before. Shen must be a very creative, focused, and motivated teenager, and this is an accomplishment to be very proud of. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/death-a-musical

Clown Funeral. The title kind of says it all. We the audience are mourners at the funeral for Bongo J. Sprinkles. As we file in to the theater we are encouraged to sign the guest book and next to it on the floor is a box filled with red clown noses, with a note saying take a nose, leave a nose. We are handed a program with the order of the service including congregation replies at certain points. It all seems very straightforward and then the clowns in charge enter the space and it’s the funniest funeral since Mary Richards attended the funeral of Chuckles the clown on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The cast of clowns is played by Mark Benzel, Chris Rodriguez, Jen Scott, and Levi Weinhagen, with a special appearance by Reverand Matt Kessen as a banana version of his Monster Science Lecturer. Thank God for that as it wouldn’t feel like Fringe to me without a little Monster Science. This show is very silly, there’s lots of laughs and ingenious gags. If you enjoy laughing and/or funerals, this is the show for you! To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/clown-funeral-

Hamluke reminded me a lot of what is still probably the best Fringe show I’ve ever seen since Clevername’s Who’s Afraid of Winnie the Pooh? in the way it mashes up two completely different sources, that don’t seem to belong together and surprise us by how completely compatible they are. I know Hamlet probably better than any other play and I was the perfect age when Star Wars came out in 1977 and thus know most of the original trilogy by heart. Combining them, works really well. The script is ingenious in finding where and when to supplant Shakespeares prose with Star Wars jargon, Famous lines fit into the basic story of Hamlet perfectly. I loved the script, the costumes, the music, the sound effects, the performances. I realize I could write a full review on this show, but it’s 2:36 AM so I think I say it all when I say that Hamluke is the winner of todays The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award, and it wasn’t even a close race, in a day that was filled with great shows. This is the one to beat for best of the fringe festival for me. It hits all my sweet spots and It’s the kind of show that tempts me to give up a precious show slot to see it again. To purchase tickets go to the shows page at The Minnesota Fringe Site here https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025/hamluke

That’s it for day two of the Minnesota Fringe Festival you can click on the Fringe website here to get details on all of the shows https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2025. Don’t forget to tune into The Stages of MN YouTube channel for mini episodes all week long from The MN Fringe Festival https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN

Subscribe to the channel so you’ll always know when a new episode has dropped. Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to ensure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

Kimberly Akimbo a Musical With the Sense of Humor of an Adult Animated Series

 Carolee Carmello, Miguel Gil and Jim Hogan National Tour of KIMBERLY AKIMBO, photo by Joan Marcus

The tone of Kimberly Akimbo reminded me instantly of an adult animated series like Bob’s Burgers or F is for Family. Things that happen are so egregious as if this could either have gone the tragic route or the comedic. The show wisely chooses comedic, which allows it to also have some moments of meaning and sweetness. This is the story of Kimberly Levaco who is about to turn sixteen years old and has a disease that makes her age prematurely, at about four to five times the normal rate. People with her disease on average do not live past sixteen. As if that wasn’t hard enough, as the show opens she clearly has trouble making any friends with the kids her age and her father arrives drunk to pick her up from the skating rink three and a half hours later. It’s winter and she has had to wait outside for him. His excuse is that some guy in the bar bet he couldn’t fit an entire Mango in his mouth, which he can so he won a gameboy off the guy. In his eyes, this justifies his tardiness. It’s like Kimberlys entire family was imported from Matilda, though to be fair given slightly more scruples. But you can see how this could be a dour show. Which it isn’t, it’s funny, but not in a super dark way, in that Family Guy kinda way.

The songs are fun, mostly skewing to the humorous end of the spectrum but with slivers of sweetness and emotions here and there. It’s also a brilliant way to provide a great starring role in a show sure to be popular with young people for an older actor. Carolee Carmello who is playing Kimberly in the tour does a great job of playing a young girl at heart trapped in a body that is aging on her. I’m glad they cast the role as they did, there are enough roles for the young up and coming talents. It’s nice to see one designed for someone who has experience and talent and might otherwise be overlooked for leads. The supporting characters are well concieved, it’s a very small cast, and everyone feels vital. My favorite of them is Miguel Gil who plays Seth, a boy who befriends and sort of boyfriends Kimberly. He has a voice that feels perfect for the young awkward teenage boy and one of my favorite songs in the show, “Good Kid” is an excellent fit for Gil’s talents. The other favorite is Kimberly’s Aunt Debra played by Emily Koch who ropes Kimberly and her friends into a scheme to wash the checks from envelopes she pulls from a Federal mailbox she has stolen.

It’s a testament to the creators David Lindsay-Abaire and Jeanine Tesori that the show works, which it does like gangbusters. It doesn’t seem like a show about a sixteen year old girl who has been treated so unfairly by life and is basically prepared to die at any moment, could be this enjoyable. But it is. Perhaps it’s that underlying sense of dread that makes us laugh all the harder when something so wrong like Debra roping in kids for her check washing crime so they can afford to buy new costumes for their show choir competition. Director Jessica Stone gets the tricky tone just right. It’s small for a Broadway musical, but that really works for it. We have exactly the characters we need to tell the story. The set is really rather complex in the way it transforms to multiple location fully and convincingly, best of all with speed and efficiency. If it sounds too dark for you, I think you’ll be surprised and how funny and entertaining it is.

Kimberly Akimbo runs through Sunday July 13th at Hennepin Arts Orpheum Theatre in Downtown Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepinarts.org/events/kimberly-akimbo-2025

Necessity requires that going forward in order to produce a weekly YouTube show and podcast that reviews will become shorter. There are only so many hours in a day, but I have no intention of abandoning the blog version. Faithful readers, you have year after year grown The Stages of MN audience. While I hope you will become viewers or listeners as well, there will always be things here that cannot be found there. This will be the place for longer reviews, though slightly shorter than before, as well as Reviews of more shows than can be covered on the YouTube and Podcast versions. Essentially there will be some overlap, but each format will have unique content.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to ensure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

I’ve officially launched The Stages of MN YouTube Channel which you can view by clicking on this link. https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN. Check out the intro videos and the weekly episodes. Subscribe to the channel so you’ll always know when a new episode has dropped. Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

Sanctuary City Was Worth a Return Visit at Theatre in the Round

Diego Symouksavanh and Ana Paulina Photo by Aaron Mark Photo Film

If Sanctuary City written by the Pulitzer Prize winning Martyna Majok sounds familiar it’s probably because it was staged by Frank Theater just a few months ago. It’s a thought provoking and challenging play that explores the timely topic of immigration. Uniquely structured, the first act contains dozens of brief moments, memories over a course of a couple of years that establish the close friendship between two teenagers G and B, who live in the US illegally. During these scenes which last anywhere from 10 seconds to a couple of minutes each, we learn that G becomes a citizen, and they hatch a plan to marry each other so that B can legally stay in the country as well. Act II is one scene which explores what happens to that plan when a third person, Henry, enters the picture as a romantic partner. Every reveal in the second act clarifies the situation while complicating the issue itself. It forces the audience to constantly reconsider what they thought moments earlier.

Majok’s script is well crafted, seeing it for a second time within about three months is a unique opportunity to consider the different approaches the two companies took. The set design by Christopher Goddard mirrors the differences between the two halves of the show and make tangible the idea of the first being a series of memories. Where Act One is Impressionistic with time fractures and a very simplistic approach to set Design. Act Two is more formalized and structured. If you feel lost or confused at the beginning, hang in there, you’ll come to understand what is happening, and know that the second half will be much more traditional. Majok’s script further distinguishes this fact by the simplistic, almost black and white aspect of the dialogue and emotions in Act One compared to the intricate and often amorphous reality of the final Act. Andrew Vance’s lighting helps to tell the story particularly in Act One in which the lights are visual cues to indicate the jump to a new memory. There are also some nice sound effects added by Sound Designer Eevee Pavey that again, especially in Act One, help to set the stage in our imagination. Like the sound of windows being opened and closed. Director Vanessa Brooke Agnes does a nice job of differentiating the abstract nature of the first act with a much more grounded reality of the second.

The entire cast was new to me, but they were all as strong and in some cases stronger than the Frank production. Ana Paulina who plays G allows the unexpressed emotions of Act I show through the cracks. With her body language and looks we begin to answer our own questions about things that are not said. Diego Symouksavanh approaches the character of B with more energy than his Frank predecessor, where the character was portrayed as more passive and lost. Symouksavanh’s more engaged and active interpretation is an equally interesting and valid take on B. B spends his life in Limbo; as an illegal, his life options if he wants to stay in the US are limited, he can’t get aid for school and he needs to work jobs that don’t enforce certain regulations. Because of the introduction of Henry to the plot, he doesn’t know if he’s still going to be able to escape Limbo with G. If he can’t, should he continue to live this life or return to his birth country? Henry is played by LJ Soudaly and is his stage debut. Soudaly is a natural and hopefully he’ll pursue future roles. Henry is a difficult role, after spending the first Act witnessing the close friendship of B and G, it’s hard to blame Henry for coming between the two friends. He enters the play at a point where a third is unwanted by the audience and first impressions are that he’s just going to make everything fall apart. But he softens and as more is revealed, we find something to appreciate in the character for a time. It is here, that Majok’s script kicks into overdrive, requiring the performers to manipulate the audience’s allegiances from moment to moment.

Sanctuary City runs around an hour and forty five minutes with one intermission. It is a drama, but also contains humor and while it will leave you with a lot to think about and does not end with a super sunny resolution, it’s creativity and performances will leave you feeling excited and engaged rather than depressed. Sanctuary City runs through June 1st at Theatre in the Round in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/sanctuary-city/

Now more than ever in the wake of the most recent election and the hailstorm of stupidity and hate it has unleashed, theater companies need you and we need them. Buy tickets to shows, go out and support work that reflects diversity and inclusiveness. Donate to your favorite theater companies, don’t wait until they are on the brink of shutting down. We all need to stand up and fight for our theaters whose funding is under attack for promoting inclusion, equality and diversity. In short, theaters are being threatened for sharing stories that reflect our countries cultural and racial diversity.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to insure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. New things are in the work! Click here to go to The Stages of MN YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN. Right now there is just a short introductory video, but there will be much more coming this summer. For now, check out the intro video and subscribe to the channel so that when we fully launch you’ll be the first to know!

Three Sisters, Tremendously Entertaining First Night of a Very Unique Two Night Theatrical Event

Nissa Nordland and Sam Landman Photo by Alex Wohlhueter

Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov the famed Russian playwright, not to be confused with the character Pavel Chekov, most recently played by Anton Yelchin in the Star Trek franchise, is one of those plays I’ve been waiting eagerly to see. In today’s world of diminishing audiences the classics can feel like a tough sell. It’s dark days and people want to be entertained, they hear Chekhov and think Russian play almost a 125 years old, it’s got to be good for you and boring as hell. Well it turns out it’s entertaining as hell, laugh out loud funny, and honestly probably not all that good for you. At least not if you’re experiencing any sort of existential dread. My approach to life is more along the lines of the character in the play Fydor Kulygin, I just try and be happy, accept the bad things but focus on the good. So I nod knowingly at the philosophical masturbation engaged in by most of the characters and laugh wholeheartedly at the moments when their basic humanity shines through, whether it be their annoyance with each other as everyone is with the character of Natasha or the romantic yearnings of Masha and Alexander. One can’t help but wonder at realities tendency to imitate art, if there is in fact a reality, which Dr. Chebutykin has come to believe there isn’t

I know I’m throwing around a lot of names you don’t know, but this is a Russian play told in four acts. To try and get into a plot synopsis of any depth would equate to the review equivalent of War and Peace. Magnificent, but something neither of us have the time or patience for I’m sure. So I’d rather use whatever goodwill you bring to this review and share the experience with you rather than the plot. First off let me assure you that you can see Three Sisters on it’s own and leave the theater completely satisfied, in fact more than satisfied as my plus one for the evening, my son Alexander said, “That might be the best thing I’ve seen”. Thing of course being live theater performance. While I can’t make that claim, it is, as Dr. Chebutykin might say, really fucking good. What is unique about this production from Theatre Pro Rata is that while one audience is in the main stage at the Crane Theater enjoying Three Sisters another audience is in the lobby of the theater seeing a play by Aaron Posner titled No Sisters. The plays are designed so that actors from one play can exit a scene in one space in time to make their entrance in the other. The intermissions are even timed so that as the lights dimmed on Act II and we began to clap we could hear the the audience in the lobby doing the same. I’ll be seeing No Sisters on Saturday evening and while I was already looking forward to it, now, having seen Three Sisters, Saturday night feels like Christmas morning, it can’t get her soon enough. This is the sort of theatrical situation that doesn’t happen very often and so it’s important to jump on it while you can. I believe some performances are already close to or have sold out and since it requires two nights to get the full effect, you’ll want to make plans now.

This is the part of the review where I single out a couple of my favorite performances and also if necessary comment on some less effective ones. The problem with this, formula if you will, is it doesn’t make allowances for cases like this, where everyone in the play is so good you don’t know who to single out. That’s fine if it’s a cast of four or five but this show has fourteen actors. Even if I eliminate the the four that have fairly smallish roles that still leaves ten, far too many to cover in depth. And so let me say this, Nissa Nordland, Sam Landman, and Duck Washignton are already on my must see list, and they earn their spot on that list again without a doubt. Trust me they’re brilliant, moving on, Sean Dillon, whom I always erroneously just associate with Improv, is sincere and creates an extremely funny and likable character. Kayla Hambek and Brettina Davis who play the other two sisters along with Nordland are excellent. Davis as the youngest sister conveys the most optimistic outlook at the opening, making her coming to an understanding of reality all the more heartbreaking. Hambek’s finest moment is her silent indignation at her sister-in-law’s lack of compassion. David Coral, gives a very good performance as the Dr. especially well done was his drunk scene. Jeremy Motz, gives a wonderfully weird performance as Vasily Solyony who is a very odd soldier. Marci Lucht plays a character no one really seems to like, but she does it in such a hysterically funny way, that while we dislike her character we love every moment she’s on stage. Matt Wall plays Fyodor Kulygin, the ever optimist, he conveys the characters tedium in a way that allows us to laugh at him with the other characters without actually being tedious to us, and in fact gaining our sympathy. The cast is rounded out nicely by Jonathan Edwards, Phi Hamens Nelson, Meri Golden, and Margaux Daniel, their roles are fairly small here but I assume I’ll have more to say about them after Saturday’s performance of No Sisters.

So what puts this play in the running for “That might be the best thing I’ve seen” status? Well certainly it begins with Chekhov’s play. Wikipedia lists the play as a drama, but the Directors note in the program says that Chekhov insisted Three Sisters was a comedy. It’s so funny it’s hard to see how anyone could think otherwise. But that’s what makes Carin Bratlie Wethern’s direction so sublime. This could be directed and performed in a very serious manner, Wethern’s decision to honor Chekhov’s intentions makes for a richer theatrical experience. There are still lost dreams and the unhappiness of day to day life that many of the characters espouse, but they do it in a way that also reflects our own sense of sarcasm and defiance. Wethern understands that getting a laugh doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice ideas or emotional depth. It’s through humor that most of us learn to deal with the unpleasantness of life. She has also wisely put together a cast who know comedy and that the best comedy comes from character and the ways in which people respond to each other. I know this is already getting long and you are scanning ahead to see if you want to stop reading yet or not, but I have to mention a couple of the technical crew just briefly. MJ Leffler’s set design is really well imagined, I loved the windows that exist in space allowing us to see out into the garden through nonexistent walls. Also the Lighting and Sound Designers, Emmet Kowler and Jacob M. Davis if only so I can acknowledge the very effective work that occurs during intermission, look to the ceiling when you go and you’ll see what I mean.

Three Sisters and No Sisters runs through May 24th at the Crane Theater in North Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreprorata.org/2025-season

Now more than ever in the wake of the most recent election and the hailstorm of stupidity and hate it has unleashed, theater companies need you and we need them. Buy tickets to shows, go out and support work that reflects diversity and inclusiveness. Donate to your favorite theater companies, don’t wait until they are on the brink of shutting down. We all need to stand up and fight for our theaters whose funding is under attack for promoting inclusion, equality and diversity. In short, theaters are being threatened for sharing stories that reflect our countries cultural and racial diversity.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to insure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. New things are in the work! Click here to go to The Stages of MN YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN. Right now there is just a short introductory video, but there will be much more coming this summer. For now, check out the intro video and subscribe to the channel so that when we fully launch you’ll be the first to know!

The Nacirema Society is a Comedy Powered by a Powerhouse Cast at the Guthrie Theater

Dedra D. Woods, Joy Dolo, Nubia Monks, Greta Oglesby, & Regina Marie Williams Photo by Dan Norman

The Nacirema Society is a play about differences, differences between generations and class, between the educated and undereducated, and between those who serve and those who are served. But above all of those it is a comedy that is meant to entertain us, which it does in no uncertain terms. Featuring a wonderfully detailed set design by Takeshi Kata and gorgeous costumes designed by Trevor Bowen, which you can get some sense of in the photo above. But as wonderful as the show is visually and technically, it’s the performances of this marvelous cast that I relished the most. The cast is stacked with powerhouses that get to play light comedy, showing us how great actors bring strong characterizations to every role. This is a play that would work wonderfully with very broad characterizations, but it becomes so much better when you have actors of this calibre who bring fully dimensional characters to bear upon the material.

The Nacirema Society is a social tradition of the affluent and wealthy black families in Montgomery Alabama. It’s 1964 and they are celebrating their 100th anniversary, and the matriarch’s of the Dunbar and Green families are organizing the event which will feature their Grandchildren Gracie and Bobby, whom they hope will marry. Gracie and Bobby don’t love each other but think of each other almost as siblings. Bobby is in love with someone else, but his Grandmother Catherine threatens to cut him off, if he doesn’t do as she wishes. Gracie’s grandmother Grace, expects her to go to the college that women in their family have always gone to, but she wants to go to New York to become a writer. I think from that description you probably think you know what kind of play this is and where things will go. Well, you’re probably wrong. Did I mention the Blackmail scheme, the girl who thinks she’s been thrown over for her rich rival, the long hushed up family secret, and the reporter from the New York Times who is staying in the Dunbar’s house to do a story on the Nacirema Society. The matriarchs try to keep up appearances and keep the skeletons in the closet, while the young people try and follow their hearts. It begins very straightforwardly and then the situation becomes more and more loaded, each scene adds another complication, another ball to try and keep in the air.

Greta Oglesby plays Grace Dunbar as refined and completely unflappable, she never loses her composure, especially when she pretends she has. It’s a skillful and beautifully controlled performance, she appears to be completely devoted to tradition and propriety, but she is also a realist and when she’s most despised by a character who has every right to despise her, she shows that she values more than just her good family name, she wants things a certain way but accepts that the world is changing and she will bend with it. Regina Marie Williams plays Catherine Green, it was such a change from the usually powerful and commanding characters she usually plays. It’s so fun to see her play the one one who gets flustered and faints. Aimee K. Bryant plays Alpha Campbell Jackson, the daughter of the Dunbar’s former maid and mother of Lillie, who is the girl Bobby loves. Bryant is terrific in the role and gets a particularly memorable moment when she gets to tell Grace what she thinks of her and her whole family. The entire cast is great but those three are the the engine behind the whole show and they couldn’t be stronger. What’s so wonderful about this show are is that all the roles are filled with great performers, many favorites including Joy Dolo, Nubia Monks, and Darrick Mosley just to name a few.

The Nacirema Society runs through May 25th at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/2024-2025-season/the-nacirema-society/

Now more than ever in the wake of the most recent election and the hailstorm of stupidity and hate it has unleashed, theater companies need you and we need them. Buy tickets to shows, go out and support work that reflects diversity and inclusiveness. Donate to your favorite theater companies, don’t wait until they are on the brink of shutting down. We all need to stand up and fight for our theaters whose funding is under attack for promoting inclusion, equality and diversity. In short, theaters are being threatened for sharing stories that reflect our countries cultural and racial diversity.

Don’t depend on a Facebook or Instagram algorithm to insure you hear about a great show. You can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. It’s the best way to ensure you don’t miss out on any of the theater action. 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.

Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I’m also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read review roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers. New things are in the work! Click here to go to The Stages of MN YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@TheStagesofMN. Right now there is just a short introductory video, but there will be much more coming this summer. For now, check out the intro video and subscribe to the channel so that when we fully launch you’ll be the first to know!