Ada Lovelace: Bride of Science is the Most Interesting Math Lesson You’ll Ever Get

Ada Lovelace: Bride of Science

Ada Lovelace: Bride of Science is the first full-length play written by Stages of MN favorite Nissa Nordland. I’ve enjoyed Nordland’s writing in her short-form plays featured at the Twin Cities Horror Festival and Minnesota Fringe Festival. I’ve loved those shows, but anyone familiar with those festivals knows that kind of work is unique. I was excited, but also a bit anxious, to see what she would do with a full-length play. After all, I promise Minnesota honest reviews, and being a favorite doesn’t grant immunity from criticism. I’m relieved to report that I came away impressed by the discipline of the piece, which is without a doubt a polished, effective, and creative telling of the story of real-life mathematician Ada Lovelace.

Lovelace, the daughter of the poet Lord Byron, was a woman ahead of her time. Considered the first computer programmer, she died in 1852 at the age of 36. Knowing Nordland’s affinity for the dark side, I suspect the title is a play on The Bride of Frankenstein, especially given that Ada’s father, Lord Byron, figures into the origin of Mary Shelley’s famous tale. Ada does seem to share with Victor Frankenstein a single-minded obsession in her pursuit of, at a stretch, an artificial form of life.

We follow Ada’s story from her parents’ separation when she was one month old through her death. Along the way, we witness her relationship with her overbearing mother, her marriage to William King-Noel, 1st Earl of Lovelace, and her own challenging relationship with her children. But the two most important relationships are with her dead father, who emerges from a painting to converse with and encourage her, and with Charles Babbage, fellow mathematician and inventor of the Analytical Engine, which would have been the world’s first computer if it had been completed. Ada could see the potential of the Analytical Engine beyond what even Babbage could, and far beyond what the rest of the world, unable to imagine its use, could grasp.

Gabi Jones, who is relatively new to me, does a great job handling the highly technical dialogue while also conveying Ada’s “poetical science” approach to her work. Derek Lee Miller, as both Lord Byron and William King-Noel, is excellent as always. I especially loved his take on the dead Lord Byron, including a song he sings to Ada that is particularly well done. Tara Lucchino, as Ada’s mother, does not shy away from the character’s cruelty, but also allows her softer side to come through. David Tufford capably handles some truly challenging technobabble, but his best moments come in conflict with Ada toward the end, as well as in scenes with her fellow mathematician and friend Mary Somerville, played by Victoria Pyan. Pyan excels in scenes addressing what she sees as Babbage taking advantage of Ada’s intellect without giving her proper credit.

Lastly, praise must be given to scenic designer Ursula K. Bowden for a surprisingly large scale set full of inventive touches, including a computer punch card flat that scrolls to display the year as the play progresses. Director Josh Cragun also deserves recognition; his use of movement creates an almost dreamlike quality in scenes that primarily serve to deliver exposition or endnotes, transforming what could be dry information dumps into elegantly engaging interludes.

Ada Lovelace: Bride of Science runs through April 19 at the Crane Theater in Northeast Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit https://nimbustheatre.com/productions/ada-lovelace

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Suffs Enough, Give Everyone Equal Rights Now!

Danyel Fulton as Ida B. Wells and SUFFS Company Photo by Joan Marcus, 2025

I first saw Shaina Taub’s musical Suffs on Broadway on November 3, 2024, two days before the last presidential election. It felt like the perfect show to close out our first trip to New York City, almost uncannily timely. A year and a half later, it hasn’t aged, it’s escalated.

As Republicans once again float efforts to create “legal” pathways to disqualify female voters, under the now-standard excuse of rampant voter fraud that stubbornly refuses to exist in any meaningful, evidence-based way, the story of the 19th Amendment lands with renewed force. It took nearly 140 years after the Constitution was adopted for women to secure the right to vote in 1920. Apparently, it doesn’t take quite as long to start chipping away at it.

Suffs is a passionate and frequently powerful musical, despite its deceptively light title. If you’re expecting something breezy, maybe a number called “Wassup, Suffs?”, you’re in the wrong theater. What you get instead is one of the most musically satisfying new shows in recent years. While it doesn’t chase the pop-cultural sheen of Hamilton, it doesn’t need to. The score leans more traditional, but it’s packed with sharp, witty songs and genuinely stirring anthems. And this all-female cast doesn’t just perform them, they deliver them with purpose.

The show centers on Alice Paul and her efforts to drag the suffrage movement forward, often in direct conflict with the more measured approach of Carrie Chapman Catt. Paul and her fellow suffragists organize a march on Washington the day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration, pushing him to support a federal amendment. When that predictably fails, they escalate, protesting, picketing, and ultimately holding a silent vigil outside the White House. For this, they are arrested.

Once the U.S. enters World War I, Wilson effectively frames dissent as disloyalty, because nothing says “defending democracy” like silencing it. This was of course a violation of their first amendment rights. which is of course illegal,as the constitution gives citizens the right of free speech. Or it least it did, I’m not sure much in the constitution other than the right to bear arms is still in effect. I think they call them alternative rights now. The suffragists are imprisoned, subjected to forced feedings and abuse, while the administration lies to the public about their treatment. It’s the kind of history that would feel exaggerated if it weren’t so well documented.

And that’s where Suffs hits hardest. It doesn’t need to twist itself into relevance, the parallels are already doing the work. The show is inspiring, yes, but it’s also quietly infuriating. It reminds you not just of how hard these women fought, but how fragile those victories can be.

It also doesn’t shy away from the movement’s limitations. As the show makes clear, the passage of the 19th Amendment did not mean equal access to the ballot for Black women. Even in victory, there were compromises, and people left behind.

So yes, Suffs is uplifting. It’s also a pointed reminder that progress is neither permanent nor guaranteed. Rights are won, eroded, defended, and, if history is any indication, fought for all over again.

Suffs runs through April 12 at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Minneapolis. If you’re paying attention to the world around you, it’s not just worth seeing, it feels necessary. For more information and tickets, visit:
https://hennepinarts.org/events/suffs

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Water For Elephants All the Fun of a Trip to the Circus But With the Added Bonus of Great Music, and No Smells.

The cast of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS Photo by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

Water for Elephants is based on the novel by Sara Gruen, which I haven’t read, that was adapted into a film, which I haven’t seen. Really, all I knew going in was that Mrs. The Stages of MN and I saw the poster when we were in NYC in 2024 and wished we’d had time to see it.

The story is told by an old man to two circus employees after a performance, so it is a memory play. The older Jacob tells of his days in the circus as a young man who missed taking his veterinary exams when his parents were killed in a car accident. With their house taken over by the bank, he hops a train looking for… what, he doesn’t know. What he finds is a circus in need of a veterinarian who can’t afford a real one. He reluctantly agrees to stay on, and when the circus acquires Rosie, the elephant of the title, he helps train her along with the circus owner and ringmaster August’s wife, Marlena. Marlena and Jacob bond over training Rosie, whose addition to the circus reverses its fortunes, endearing Jacob to the rest of the workers and performers. Everything could be wonderful, but, August is not a good man…

The story is compelling enough, and I enjoyed the score and songs enough that I may give the cast recording a listen or two. Sorry, current audiobook, I’ll get back to you in a day or two. But what really makes this show stand out is the choreography by Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, assuming that’s what you call the spectacular and seemingly peril-filled circus aerial acts. There are some genuinely jaw-dropping moments that you’re amazed they pull off once, let alone eight times a week. As much as I enjoyed everything else about the show, it was those circus acts, and the clowning by Walter, played by Tyler West, that delighted me most. The clowning is so funny and wonderfully slapstick. I loved it, and West was probably my favorite performer in the entire show.

This must be an exceptionally hard show to cast, and to be honest, I think they cast for the ability to do the stunts first and singing voice second. Very few in the cast are outstanding vocally, but none are terrible. Based on what I was most delighted by, I’d say that was probably the right call. The best singers were Zakeyia Lacey, who was in as the understudy for Marlena, and Javier Garcia, who plays Camel, the elderly circus worker who first befriends Jacob. The real stars, though, as I’ve said, are the people floating gracefully through the sky and free-falling headfirst down ropes, stopping themselves inches from the floor. It’s breathtaking.

Visually, in every respect, the show is a winner, from the scenic design by Takeshi Kata, which works seamlessly with Bradley King’s lighting design and David Bengali’s restrained, mood-enhancing projections to create the look of a simpler time. The animals are created via puppets by Ray Wetmore, Jr Goodman, and Camille LaBarre, and while not on the level of Life of Pi or The Lion King, they’re still effective.

Water for Elephants runs through March 8th at Hennepin Arts Orpheum Theatre through March 8th. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://hennepinarts.org/events/water-for-elephants

Connor Sullivan, Helen Krushinski, and Zachary Keller Photo by Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

The Stages of MN YouTube channel is home to the weekly Stages of MN Show. You can watch it by clicking here. Be sure to check out the latest episodes and subscribe so you’ll always know when a new one drops. Not sure you agree with one of my takes? I’m also part of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers (TCTB), where you can find review roundups from my colleagues and me. Follow us on Facebook at @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

The Mountaintop is Funny, Moving, and a Call to Action at Artistry in Bloomington

Mikell Sapp and Tyler Susan Jennings Photo by Dan Norman

In something that has become almost as common as in the post-pandemic era, The Mountaintop at Artistry was rescheduled from its original Friday opening to Sunday. I’m grateful I was able to reschedule and attend that first performance, because this is a production worth making time for. It runs through March 1st, and I encourage audiences to see it while they can.

Written by Katori Hall, The Mountaintop imagines what might have transpired in the motel room of Martin Luther King Jr. on the night before his assassination in Memphis. Dr. King, exhausted after a long day of meetings and speeches, calls down for coffee. The maid who delivers it, Camae, doesn’t simply drop off the tray and leave. She lingers. She shares her cigarettes. A conversation begins.

King flirts a little; Camae swiftly and humorously rebuffs him. She doesn’t judge him, but neither does she indulge him. Instead, she redirects the exchange with wit and confidence. What Hall does so skillfully in the script is to humanize King. His legacy and the magnitude of his work are never diminished, but we are allowed to see the man behind the icon, the fatigue, the doubts, the human impulses. By grounding him in recognizable humanity, Hall makes his accomplishments feel even more extraordinary. We connect not just to the legend, but to the person.

That connection is deepened by the wonderfully nuanced performances of Mikell Sapp as King and Tyler Susan Jennings as Camae. Much of the play’s humor, which serves as a necessary counterbalance to the ever-present awareness of what history holds, comes from Jennings’ spirited, knowing delivery and Sapp’s impeccably timed, subtly modulated reactions. Their chemistry keeps the dialogue lively and authentic, preventing the production from becoming overly reverent or heavy-handed. Guiding it all is the assured direction of Warren C. Bowles, whose steady hand maintains both intimacy and tension throughout the evening.

The Mountaintop is more than a speculative account of King’s final night, it is a call to action. It reminds us that while we are “just” men and women, so was he, and look at what he accomplished. The production closes with a montage of images from the years since his death. It acknowledges progress, but it also underscores how much work remains. The Mountaintop is not just a play about the final night in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. but it is a call to action. A reminder that while we are just men and women so was he, and look at all he accomplished. The show ends with the montage of what has come since his death it’s a reminder of progress but also of how much work there is yet to do. It ends with two particularly impactful images that are meant to stir us out of our complacency, and to view the message not from a historical perspective but from the present, from today. They are especially effective and well chosen, and best experienced firsthand.

The Mountaintop runs through March 1st at Artistry in Bloomington. From more information and to purchase tickets go to https://artistrymn.org/themountaintop

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The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui Plays Like a Comicstrip Allegory for Authoritarianism Told Through the Lens of the Godfather

Gary Briggle and David Beukema Photo by Tony Nelson

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui is a 2½-hour play written in 1941 by Bertolt Brecht about the rise of Nazism, told through the lens of Chicago gangsters. Brecht. The rise of Nazism. Two and a half hours. Sounds like heavy stuff, right? Perfect material for a Sunday afternoon nap at the theater. But while the show deals with dark, all-too-topical themes, it’s entertaining as hell.

I’ll admit it, I’ve caught myself almost nodding off at more shows than I’d care to confess lately. Luckily, I’m the type who jolts himself awake the second his head tips forward, so I rarely miss anything. It’s never a reflection of the show, I’m just exhausted most of the time. Despite that tendency, I still refuse to give up my favorite seat: the front row. And I’m proud to say there wasn’t a single moment of head nodding during this performance. Partly because the room was a crisp (and probably only to me, comfortable) 65 degrees, but mostly because the show is completely engaging.

The play is an allegory for the rise of Adolf Hitler, reimagined through the story of Arturo Ui, a Chicago gangster who takes control of the cauliflower market and runs protection rackets on local grocers. The tone is distinct, a product of Brecht’s epic theatre philosophy. Brecht wanted audiences to remember they were watching a play, not reality, so actors occasionally break the fourth wall and address the audience directly. The makeup is stylized, almost a subtler Kabuki style, and the performances are broad without being cartoonish. Everything about it, from the make up to the costuming, evokes the visual world of the old Dick Tracy comicstrips. It’s not laugh-out-loud funny, but it’s not strictly dramatic either, “entertaining” really is the best word for it.

The cast is terrific. David Beukema shines in multiple roles, starting as the announcer who humorously introduces the major players and later in a great scene as a washed up Shakespearian actor brought in to give Arturo tips on how to come off more polished to the everyman. Jim Ramlet is sympathetic as a politician seduced into corruption in a moment of weakness. E.J. Subkoviak stands out as Ernesto Roma, Ui’s right-hand man, exuding both dry humor and menace. But the undeniable star of the show is Gary Briggle as Arturo Ui. His performance feels like a cross between two Al Pacino roles from 1990, The Godfather Part III’s Michael Corleone and Dick Tracy’s Big Boy Caprice. Yet it’s entirely his own creation, filled with menace, manipulation, weariness, and a darkly comic edge. Briggle commands the stage with equal parts charm and danger.

Frank Theatre’s The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui runs through November 23 at the Ivy Building for the Arts in South Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit franktheatre.org.

The Barber of Seville is a Comedic Delight at the Minnesota Opera

MN Opera’s production of The Barber of Seville Photo credit: Cory Weaver

The Barber of Seville closes out the Minnesota Opera’s 2024-25 season and it turns out to be my favorite of their productions. As the lights dimmed in the theater and the audience cheered as the conductor took his place and began the Overture my mind conjured up visions of a talking grey rabbit and a hunter with a speech impediment. The music by Gioachino Rossini is one of probably two or three operas that someone who has never seen an opera will immediately recognize. There was a moment during the Overture when I swear I heard Bugs Bunny singing “Can’t you see that I’m much sweeter, I’m your little senoriter. For a moment, I worried that the night might be plagued by intrusive thoughts of wascally wabbits. But to my delight the action on stage pushed all such images from my mind and I was extremely engaged with the production. My opera experience has been growing since I began The Stages of MN, from having seen one in my pre-blog days to I would guesstimate about twenty now. It’s never going to be my favorite performance art, but my appreciation is steadily growing. This production in particular I found to be very accessible and charmingly funny.

The plot feels like something out of a Gilbert and Sullivan opera. Count Almaviva is in love with Rosina, who loves him as well though she knows him by the disguise he has assumed as that of a poor student named Lindoro. At two points in the story, as Lindoro, he will assume a third disguise, first as a drunken soldier and later as a substitute teacher named Don Alonso. He must do this to try and get into the house of Dr Bartolo who is Rosina’s guardian and intends to marry him herself. The Count is assisted in his schemes to gain access to Rosina by his friend Figaro, the Barber of the title. Dr Bartolo is aware of the Count’s intentions and is making his own schemes to thwart him with Rosina’s music teacher Don Basilio. It sounds rather confusing but it isn’t partly due to one of the downsides of Opera’s, which is the belief on the part of the writers of operas, if something is worth singing, it’s worth singing five times, in a row. I’m used to that at this point and accept it, but what this production did surprise me with is how funny, fresh, and modern it felt. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Stage Director Chuck Hudson was acknowledging the cultural impact of The Rabbit of Seville with a wink to the audience in a couple of places where the humor was delightfully cartoonish.

The cast was very good all around standouts included Takaoki Onishi as Figaro, Kathgerine Beck as Rosina, Lunga Eric Hallam as Count Almaviva and Stefan Egerstrom as the surprisingly deep voiced Don Basilio. Matthew Anchel gave a very good performance as Dr. Bartolo, but there were several instances when he was singing that I couldn’t hear a single sound from him. The really delightful thing about all the performances was not the vocals (which of course were tremendous) but the acting. The reality is that first and foremost at the Opera, the voice reins supreme, a great singer can stand on stage and sing and carry off the role brilliantly without even doing much in the way of acting. But in this case, all of the performances where as strong as the vocals, it’s a comic opera so there isn’t necessarily a lot of rich character building expected. But as any actor with tell you comedy is hard, and they all pull of the comedic performances superbly.

As is always the case with the Minnesota Opera Orchestra they sounded elegant under Principal Conductor Christopher Franklin. Usually the Overture is something I wish they would cut, but tonight I was thoroughly enjoying it. One of the things that keeps me coming back to at least a couple productions of the Minnesota Opera a year are the design elements and this was no different. The Scenic Design by Allen Moyer relied heavily on painted backdrops but they were accented so well by set pieces that I rather enjoyed the overall aesthetic. There were no corners cut in the costume department, the designs by Mathew J. Lefebvre were richly textured and striking to behold. I do also want to credit Lighting Designer Eric Watkins along with Moyer for a scene that acts as a little ballet during Act II of people with umbrellas navigating their way through a thunderstorm, it’s very effectively done and while disposable to the plot, I’m sure glad it was there.

The MN Opera’s production of The Barber of Seville runs through May 18th at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in downtown St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://mnopera.org/season/2024-2025/the-barber-of-seville/

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The Root Beer Lady Returns to History Theatre

The Root Beer Lady returns to the History Theatre in St. Paul after it proved to be a hit with audiences in its initial 2023 run. That production which I also reviewed ended with a standing ovation, that continued for nearly a minute after it’s star and writer Kim Schultz left the stage. I’m not sure they needed to bring it back this soon but one thing’s for certain, Minnesotans love their Root Beer Lady and Kim Schultz once again brought her vividly to life for us on stage. Dorothy Molter, was a fascinating woman who made her own way in a mans world. She was a true trailblazer and the kind of person that becomes something of a folk hero around whom a mythology springs up. If you don’t know much or anything about Ms. Molter, do yourself a favor and don’t google her. Instead, get yourself some tickets and learn about her from Kim Schultz and her wonderful play. This was my second time and I think I may have enjoyed it even more this time. Schultz embodies Dorothy so completely that one comes away feeling you’ve just spent 90 minutes with the real Root Beer lady of the north.

Schultz heard about Molter during a stay in Tofte, MN. Fascinated by what she’d heard, she found a book written about her in the Tofte library. After reading that and doing some more research she began writing this one person show. I really don’t want to say much about her story as I knew little going in, and not knowing all the details was a wonderful gift. Molter moved permanently to Knife Lake in the Boundary Waters area of Northern MN after spending three summers working at the Isle of Pines Resort for her friend Bill. She never left, becoming the last resident of what became the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Her story is about the love she had for the area and her determination to live her life the way she wanted to, where she wanted to, in a time when that wasn’t really done. The story is full of humor and emotion, astonishing facts, and moments that will leave you in awe of what Molter was capable of. It’s an inspirational true life tale of real Minnesota original, and I found my eyes got a little watery by the end. She is an example of the ways in which people touch each others lives. When the going gets rough, the woman the Saturday Evening Post dubbed, the “Loneliest woman in America” always found that she had many, many, many friends.

It’s clear that Kim Schultz connected with Molter as her portrayal is so affectionate. She embraces the wonder of a young Molter experiencing the majesty of the wilderness, and gradually over the course of 80 minutes imperceptibly changes into the mature woman who spent 56 years living in the place she fell in love with. From a wonderstruck young woman to a full blown wilderness character, effortlessly and believably. While it’s definitely Schultz’s show, she gets some wonderful assistance with the production. Chelsea M. Warren’s set is a wonderful combination of Molter’s cabin and the outdoors with large tree trunks towering into the rafters and a canoe beached on the shoreline. Leslie Ritenour’s video design creates a background that changes the season, shows us the beautiful blue skies of a sunny day and the millions of stars in the night sky. Finally, Katharine Horowitz sound design creates an aurel soundscape that engulfs the audience. The constant sound of the lake, the animals sounds and the wind that accompanies a blizzard are just a few of the touches that stand out and help create the illusion of being up north with Dorothy.

The Root Beer Lady runs through February 23rd at the History Theatre for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.historytheatre.com/2024-2025/root-beer-lady

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