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/

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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

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/

The World is Burning So I Made Smores One of the Funniest Shows Yet at The Brave New Workshop

Photo Courtesy of Hennepin Arts and The Brave New Workshop

If you’ve never been to the Brave New Workshop (BNW) for one of their sketch comedy shows, The World is Burning So I Made Smores is the perfect show to take the plunge with. The humor is topical but perfectly MAGA friendly; no seriously, if you are a Trump supporter don’t have any qualms about attending this show, none of your wrongly held believes will be questioned or joked about even in the slightest, sincerely. In fact, what a perfect way for liberals to extend an olive branch to their former MAGA friends, invite them to this light comedy show that looks for the silver lining in today’s overcast days. I can’t think of a more enjoyable way to thank all those who voted for Trump than to take them to this show and watch their responses. You know that uncle of yours who’s always going on about the transgender mafia’s attempts to take over the WMBA? You know the one you faked having Covid so you wouldn’t have to see him at Thanksgiving and Christmas? Yeah, bring him and Aunt Karen to this show, they’ll just eat it up, trust me.

Like all of the BNW shows telling much about it can only lessen your enjoyment. I will say that there seemed to be more musical numbers than usual, all of which are very funny. The cast is great as always, missing from this show is longtime performer Doug Neithercott, but who we do get are fantastic. Without saying too much, here are some favorite bits. Dora the Explorer played by Isabella Dunsieth. Katy McEwen as a sportscaster interviewing Donald Trump, played by Jeffrey Nolan, about his draft day cabinet picks. Lauren Anderson as a mother explaining to her daughter that grown ups don’t know what to do either. Denzel Belin as Captain America and his run in with Captin’ Merica. And one of my favorite portions of the night was Act III which was all improv, which of course means it will be different every night based on audience suggestions.

The World is Burning So I Made Smores runs through May 17th at The Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepinarts.org/events/the-world-is-burning-so-i-made-smores-2025

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.

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Patience From The Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company at The Howard Conn Theater

Sam Vinitsky as Reginald Bunthorne, Mallory Rabehl as Patience, and Joe Allen as Archibald Grosvenor

Patience is I believe my fifth Production of The Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company (GSVLOC) and while it turns out to be my least favorite so far, it was still a very enjoyable evening. Perhaps it’s that it seems like they took a little less creative license with this one or maybe it’s because it’s one I was completely unfamiliar with. There is no “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” or resetting of the action to the Scottish highlands. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t a thoroughly enjoyable production, because it is. Two things remain constant across all of the GSVLOC productions, the exquisiteness of the music from the orchestra under Musical Director Randal A. Buikema and the vocal quality of the actors. In fact this show may have contained my favorite vocal performance so far in that of Mallory Rabehl in the title role of Patience. Director Gary Briggle has done an excellent job of staging the opera and again as is always the case with GSVLOC productions, everything from the sets by Wendy Waszut-Barrett, costumes by Barb Portinga, lighting design by Carl Schoenborn and Choreography by Tinia Moulder, is top notch.

The plot of Patience involves 20 lovesick maidens who are all in love with the local aesthetic poet Reginald Bunthorne. Reginald however loves none of them but rather Patience, a dairy maid. Reginald does however love the attention the 20 lovesick maidens bestow upon him daily. When the Dragoon Guard return to discover that their former sweethearts are all now infatuated with Reginald they are at a loss. Enter Archibald Grovsvenor, whom loved and was loved by Patience when they were just five years old. Unfortunately, Archibald in the intervening 15 years, has become by his own modest estimation the most beautiful man in the world. Realizing that love needs to be unselfish they conclude that there is nothing unselfish about loving a perfect being and therefore, cannot marry. As you might have guessed the 20 lovesick maids on seeing Archibald, transfer their affection to him, all except Lady Jane, the oldest of the maids, who retains her devotion to Reginald. I don’t want to say any more about the plot but if you guessed that Jack and Larry have to pretend to be aesthetic poets to convince Mr. Furley that the women he saw them with down at the Regal Beagle, were just inspirations for their poems, then you get where it’s going.

The major theme of Patience is the satorizing of the late 1800’s aesthetic movement, and it is where much of the humor comes from. The portrayals of both Reginald and Archibald rely heavily on playing up the affectations of the aesthetic poet. Sam Vinitsky as Reginald is very funny playing up the role, not only as an actor but as the character who confides at one point that he hates aesthetic poetry as well. Joe Allen as Archibald, plays it with such elevated narcissism yet with just the perfect dash of charm that you don’t hate the character but affectionately roll your eyes at him. Allen does a complete about face towards the end and the change is striking and very fun. Another favorite in the cast was Lara Trujillo as Lady Jane, something about the way she played the character so devoted and so crushed when spurned was very amusing. As mentioned earlier Mallory Rabehl is extraordinary as Patience, her beautiful voice matches her characters purity and as my wife pointed out she’s cute as a button and uses it to instantly endear the audience to her character.

Patience runs through April 6th at The Howard Conn Theater. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://gsvloc.org/on-stage/

Improv at the Jungle: Off Book is Improv Gold!

In the wake of the tragedy that was the closure of the newly relocated HUGE Improv Theater, the Jungle Theater has stepped up and provided a new home for some of HUGE’s resident shows. One such show is Off Book which I experienced last night for the first time, the next performance will be March 3rd. Off Book is unlike the other Improv I’ve reviewed, though to be honest most of the improv I have reviewed has its own unique angle like this does. Off Book divides its performers into two group. Group one is “Off book” which in theater terms means an Actor has learned his lines, so these artists have memorized a scene from a play. Group two is so far off book that they have never even seen the book. Not only do they have no lines memorized, but they don’t even know what play their fellow actors have memorized. The players take the stage together, one scripted, one unscripted and try to perform a scene from a play. Hilarity does indeed ensue. I think this may be the best Improv I’ve ever seen. Actually, Off Book hands down this is the best Improv show I’ve ever seen.

I’m going to list the lineup from the program and those who know some of the local Actors and Improv Performers will see why this was so fantastic.

ACT I
The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov
Actor: Christina Baldwin
Improviser: Alsa Bruno

The Great Nebula in Orion by Lanford Wilson
Actor: Emily Grodzik
Improviser: Molly Ritchie

Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons by Sam Steiner
Actor: Cheryl Willis
Improviser: Tom Reed

ACT II
The Motherfucker with the Hat by Stephen Adly Guirgis
Actor: James Rodriguez
Improviser: Chris Rodriguez

The Flick by Annie Baker
Actor: Destiny Davison
Improviser: Taj Ruler

Stage Kiss by Sarah Ruhl
Actor: Michael Rogers
Improviser: Jill Bernard

Each scene had the audience howling with laughter and it’s hard to single any out, but if I had to choose a scene that was most likely to make you wet your pants it would be the pairing of Destiny Davidson, who somehow mostly kept it together and didn’t start outright laughing, and the hurricane of hilarity that is Taj Ruler. There’s no point in going into details of what we saw beyond the format because the glorious thing about improv is also the terrible thing about improv, it’s a one time thing! Which is why I’ve decided, now that I’ve found this show, I’m never missing another one. Thank you to The Jungle Theater for giving this show a new home, hopefully a long term home!

Destiny Davison and Taj Ruler Photo by Evelyn Vocu

For more information about Off Book and other Improv at the Jungle shows and to purchase tickets for the March 3rd show and other Jungle events go to https://www.jungletheater.org/improv-at-the-jungle

But that’s not all! Think I may have steered you wrong on a show? Well, I am also a member of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can read roundups of shows by m’colleagues and I when you follow us on facebook @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

McAdo a Hilarious New Adaptation of The Mikado From Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company

Mary Kettlewell, Brandt Roberts, and Graham Remple Photo by Stephen Hage

McAdo is the fourth Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company (GSVLO) production I have reviewed and it is my favorite. I’ve written before about the accessibility of Gilbert and Sullivan, how it seems like the bridge between traditional opera and musical theater. All of that is true here, if you like musicals, you’ll enjoy this. Yes, there will be some lyrics you will not catch, this is particularly true when a large portion of the cast all sings at once. But it’s in English and for the most part if you tune your ears in you catch more than enough. What you don’t catch you simply enjoy the beauty of the voices singing and the wonderful full orchestra performing Arthur Sullivan’s music. There are two completely different casts for the main roles for the show that alternate nights. I saw the Sullivan cast, I’m sure the Gilbert cast is great as well, but for myself, if I had time in my schedule to see it again, and I wish I did, I’d see the Sullivan cast again. There are Performers in roles that I cannot imagine anyone replacing them.

The Gilbert Cast and the Sullivan Cast Performance Schedule:

The Gilbert Cast	The Sullivan Cast
Friday, November 1^st, 7:30 pm	Saturday, November 2^nd, 7:30 pm
Sunday, November 3^rd, 2:00 pm	Saturday, November 9^th, 2:00 pm
Friday, November 8^th, 7:30 pm	Sunday, November 10^th, 2:00 pm
Saturday, November 9^th, 7:30 pm	Friday, November 15^th, 7:30 pm
Saturday, November 16^th, 2:00 pm	Saturday, November 16^th, 7:30 pm
Sunday, November 17^th, 2:00 pm	Friday, November 22^nd, 7:30 pm
Saturday, November 23^rd, 7:30 pm	Sunday, November 24^th, 2:00 pm

McAdo is Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado transplanted from Japan to Scotland thus removing a lot of troublesome and dated material. The adaption actually began with Gilbert and Sullivan Austin, as in Texas. Director Joe Andrews added some of his own tweaks including a hilarious prologue that was pure genius. This isn’t pure G&S, it’s possibly better, certainly for our times. The program contains a synopsis which I highly recommend you read before the play, it allows you to relax and enjoy the proceedings without worrying if you are catching everything. I’m not going to go into the plot here, it’s absurd, imagine Monty Python wrote an opera, well it’s not quite that silly, but it’s pretty damn silly. What is really great about it, is the two people you assume are the villains of the piece really aren’t. They play against the stereotypes of the Government official and the young lovers rival.

If you have never seen a Gilbert and Sullivan show, this is the one to see, it is so much fun and that is due to the wonderful direction of Joe Andrews, musical direction of Randal A. Buikema, and an energetic and playful cast. I can’t mention them all so I’m going to just give a nod to a couple of favorites. First off is Brandt Roberts as Coco, who is the guardian and fiance of Wynn Somme, the young love interest, we assume he’s going to be a villain, considering he’s also the town’s high Executioner. But no, he’s harmless and fairly good intentioned. Roberts is magnificent, his body language in itself creates a fully formed comedic character. He has the tone, the exact level of absurdity down, but he also has a great singing voice, that adds a sweetness to the character. Joe Allen plays Pubagh a town official…actually the only town official, he holds every office except that of the High Executioner. Here again is a character that we assume will be a villain, but by the end you really like him. I’m not sure we are really supposed to have that reaction, I think we are supposed to be indifferent at best, but I think this works better. Allen plays up the comic elements of the character his ambition and snobbery, but when the going gets rough and heads might roll, he’s in there with the rest of the characters trying to find the happy ending. Other performers that caught my eye and that were doing something special to draw the audience in or give us that extra laugh or surprised us with another dimension to their characters were Mallory Rabehl, Therese Kulas, Deb Haas, and Scott A.Gorman.

McAdo is a show I cannot recommend more highly, it’s such an enjoyable night at the theater, when I wasn’t laughing I was sitting there with a grin all over my face. The prologue really sets the tone on this one and I think will perfectly key those new to G&S into the vibe of the show. McAdo runs through November 24th at The Conn Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://gsvloc.org/