Jellyfish Shines in U.S. Premiere From Unlabeled Theatre Company at the Gremlin Theater

Joey Deegan, Maeve Linkert, Mason Green, Shanan Custer Photo by Jordan Buckellew

I’ve written before about Unlabeled Theatre Company, which produces theater with casts that include people with disabilities. Their shows have, until now, been musicals that pair adults 18+ with cognitive or physical disabilities with professional actors as shadow partners, performing the roles in unison. I feel I can never fully express how important what Unlabeled Theatre Company does is. Theater should be for everyone. It should reflect the infinite variables of our reality, it should allow for the telling of everyone’s story, and there should be a place for everyone to tell their own stories. Unlabeled Theatre Company takes it a step further and says everyone should be present and afforded the opportunity to tell any story. Someone who is neurodivergent or in a wheelchair should be able to play SpongeBob SquarePants or Nigel Bottom.

Jellyfish by Ben Weatherill is not only their first play, but it is also the U.S. premiere of this play. Weatherill stipulates that anyone who wants to license the play for performance must cast an actor with Down syndrome in the role of Kelly, a 27-year-old woman with Down syndrome. It is a limiting requirement, but a refreshing one. In doing so, Weatherill is undoubtedly sacrificing income in order to ensure that Kelly’s story is told by the right person. Representation is important. We say that over and over because it is true, and yet we constantly see examples where casting sidesteps it. I’ve loved the musicals that Unlabeled has done, not simply because of their mission, but because they have been well done. That is true of Jellyfish as well. This is an excellent script, and the production succeeds without needing any kind of disclaimer or qualifier. You shouldn’t come to an Unlabeled show as a good deed. You should go to see a show, and you should expect it to be everything any other show from a small theater company is.

Jellyfish is about a 27-year-old woman named Kelly who lives with her mother, Agnes. Kelly falls in love with a 32-year-old man named Neil. Kelly and Neil are happy together. They genuinely seem to get on well together, and the love is mutual. When Agnes discovers their relationship, she is furious and assumes that it is an exploitative relationship. Kelly has Down syndrome; Neil does not.

The play explores difficult-to-answer questions, and it’s telling that Agnes, who has been an advocate and caregiver for Kelly her whole life, is dead set against the romance. But why? Doesn’t every parent want their child to find love and be happy? How does that change when your child has a condition that involves even mild cognitive and developmental delays? Why does Agnes try to set up a date for Kelly with another man, Dominic, who is on the autism spectrum? Why, in her mind, is that an appropriate pairing, but Neil isn’t? Do we, on some level, understand her concerns? As the audience, we are shown the beginning of Kelly and Neil’s romance. We see that she is the instigator, that he is cautious, but that he also really likes her. We are given glimpses that allow us to be more accepting of the couple. But without that, would we also jump to the conclusions that Agnes does?

These are not easy questions, and there are no definitive answers. My first child, Alex, was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, the same thing the character of Dominic is said to have in the play. Asperger’s is no longer a diagnosis that is used; it has since been merged into autism spectrum disorder (ASD). When your child has something, anything really, that makes them different, your gut reaction as a parent is to try and protect them, to worry about how they might be treated differently, and to worry that their options will be different from those without whatever it is that makes them different. Earlier this year, Alex got married. He is in Italy right now with his wife on their honeymoon. Now, a mild case of ASD is not the same as having Down syndrome. But my experience as a father, and having those impulses, particularly when Alex was younger, to try and protect him, does help me relate to Agnes on some level. But my experience as Alex’s dad now also helps me understand that differences and diagnoses don’t preclude people from wanting what every person has the right to want. Love, marriage, independence, even parenthood.

Maeve Linkert, who plays Kelly, is assisted by a shadow partner, Lisa Hanson. Unlike the traditional shadow partner process, Hanson does not act out the role with Linkert but is seated at the back of the stage and reads the lines along with her. Kelly is a big role, and I never had the sense that Linkert didn’t know the next line. I think Hanson was there for clarity of the line readings. The script is also projected on the wall to the side of the stage. In this case, to be honest, the shadow partner made it more difficult to hear the dialogue. I think we would have attuned our ears to Linkert’s line readings more easily if we weren’t trying to filter out Hanson as well. But it’s possible Hanson was there as reassurance for Linkert, too. As I said, Kelly is a big part, and if that was an accommodation Linkert needed, I’m glad she had it. By 15 minutes in, my ears had attuned, and if I ever missed a line of dialogue, I just glanced at the script projection.

What really impressed me about Linkert was her ability to bring out the humor of the play so effectively. There are a lot of dramatic moments, but the play is also very funny. It is in the extremes that Linkert is best. Her arguments with Agnes and a fight with Neil are powerful, and the light moments of humor are perfectly placed.

Shana Custer is a Stages of MN favorite, and it was great to see her tackle such a meaty role in Agnes. She invests Agnes with so many conflicting elements that it’s like she is a real person. Agnes is patient, Agnes is a fierce mama bear, Agnes is weary, Agnes is judgmental, Agnes is flawed, Agnes is real. Custer, always an effective comedian, is great with moments of humor. It’s the moments of confrontation and frustration that were the most enjoyable to watch, because we don’t often get to see Custer given the chance to play such a complex role as Agnes. I had no doubt she could do a role like this. We just don’t get to experience it that often, and she was so good at playing all these aspects of Agnes. Sounds like a great name for a band: Aspects of Agnes.

Joey Deegan, as Neil, has the very difficult role of playing someone not labeled with a diagnosis, though there are definitely hints of ASD (he reminded me a lot of my son Alex), who falls in love with Kelly. Deegan makes it clear to us that Neil is really in love, with no creep factor, which is exactly where Agnes jumps to. He has to convince us of their mutual attraction and of his character’s innate goodness, more so than in a traditional play, because we have to be on their side for the rest of the play to work. We have to believe these things in order not to lean toward Agnes’ alarm bells. Deegan is very good at playing off both women, creating a connection and a palpable sense of caring with Linkert while holding his own against Agnes, who is constantly attacking and threatening him. He comes off as the guy you want your daughter to meet, whether she has Down syndrome or not. Deeply good-hearted is a hard thing to project, but Deegan does it beautifully.

And finally, in a small but very fun role, Mason Green plays Dominic. His humorous line readings as he sits in Agnes’s living room waiting for his date with Kelly, who doesn’t know she’s coming, are great. They are the sort of honest, no-filter things that Alex has been known to come out with. Green feels just perfect in the role and is also very effective as a sounding board and friend for both Kelly and Agnes in later scenes.

The show is directed by Jessica Froehlich. It runs about two and a half hours long but doesn’t feel it. Jellyfish is an extremely good play, and given the requirements to perform it, this may be one of your only chances to see it. It raises a lot of thought-provoking questions and will make you reflect on and question your own responses. It’s also very entertaining and features strong performances by the whole cast. I highly recommend checking this one out, but it runs just one more weekend, so hurry.

Jellyfish runs through November 8 at the Gremlin Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://unlabeledtheatre.org/

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the new website 79 Seconds on Stage a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

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Twin Cities Horror Festival XV Final Six Reviews: Kalinga: Feast of the Fallen, Bicentennial Auger, The Sludge, Shed, Carmilla, and Music & Monsters: A Grand Guignol Double Feature

These are my final six reviews of the Twin Cities Horror Festival XV, and with these, I will have successfully seen and reviewed all 14 shows in this year’s festival. I don’t think I could have finished with a stronger lineup. All six shows I saw today fall into the bloody good category, which is the highest category you can achieve at the TCHF, at least in the system I just made up. Not only was every show a winner today, but the lineup also mirrored the diversity and variety of the TCHF.

If you haven’t seen everything yet, or haven’t seen anything, there are still six days left of the festival, and you now have reviews of all the shows to help you figure out which ones are must-sees. But listen, a lot of shows have been selling out this year, so don’t wait and see. Figure out what you want to see, go online, and get tickets. This really is the best way to celebrate Monster Month. Not only are the shows a blast, but the whole vibe of the festival, its atmosphere and community, is so unique. Find some time between now and Halloween, when the festival closes, to check it out. Here is a link to the festival website so you can get all the details and purchase tickets.

KALINGA: Feast of the Fallen is definitely a unique show in this year’s TCHF, and basically any year, really. Created and performed by Saath, a South Asian theater company, this is a show that involves extensive dance. The show reimagines an ancient South Indian tale of a great battle and the goddess Kali and her ghostly followers, who descend and feast upon the remains of the battle.

First of all, the dancing is amazing. To be honest, that is the one thing I did expect from this production, and I wasn’t disappointed. What I did not expect was the atmosphere they created, first by having a cast member wandering through the audience ahead of the show, creeping us out. And I mean that as a compliment! I love when shows engage with us in this way and create anticipation for what is to come.

I think I was expecting them to tell a story that could tangentially be labeled horror through dance. But this was a full-blown horror production, not in the sense that it was too scary or too bloody for anyone, but in the way they used many of the techniques we are accustomed to at the TCHF: props of severed limbs, some very cool and unexpected makeup effects, and strategic lighting cues.

This really was a delight to behold and very effective as horror dance theater. I hope this company returns to the TCHF in the future with new stories told in their unique style.

Bicentennial Auger takes over the studio space for the second half of the festival. Each festival, two shows share the space, one at the start of the festival and the second toward the end. The studio space allows shows to have more complex sets because they don’t have to be loaded in and out in ten minutes before every show.

This one features a great set designed and built by Derek Lee Miller. It’s an ice house, the kind used in Minnesota winters for ice fishing. It’s a great-looking set that also includes some surprises for the audience.

The story concerns two siblings who haven’t seen each other in seven years, meeting up to go ice fishing. There is tension between them, which we will come to understand. The show features great performances from the cast: Noe Tallen, Dave Gangler, and Jared Reise.

It also features effective use of music, no surprise there, as the show is written and directed by Sam Landman, who can occasionally be found DJing and whose musical knowledge is as eclectic as it is extensive. This is a man who wrote a They Might Be Giants musical but filled it with deep cuts rather than the band’s more popular songs.

There have been several very well-written shows at the festival this year, and this is right up there with the best of them. Landman has an ear for dialogue that sets his scripts apart from others. They are funny without relying on jokes and go in directions you do not expect.

The Sludge is a family-friendly show. It’s the one show this festival where I’ve seen multiple youngsters in the audience. That doesn’t mean it’s for kids; it means it’s for everyone. Shows at the TCHF run the gamut from gory and scary to quirky and funny, and this one leans very heavily into the humor.

The story follows two sets of mothers and daughters. One, Elliot and her daughter Viv, is going through a divorce, and the other, Drew and her daughter Harper, are the friends they go and stay with. Harper is a science nerd who discovers something she can’t identify in the woods and brings it home. This is the sludge of the title. As we discover, it is not the harmless piece of nature Harper supposes it to be.

The script is definitely funny, but is it as funny as the show itself? What I’m getting at is that a lot of the humor comes from the performances as much as it does from the script.

The one thing this show makes abundantly clear is that Rita Boersma, who plays Drew, is a Twin Cities treasure and quite likely the best line reader in Minnesota. I’m not entirely sure she can speak a line without eliciting at least a grin from the audience. Don’t get me wrong, the entire cast is very good and very funny, but Boersma makes sorting socks funny.

It was also nice to see Victoria Pyan in several roles, including Harper’s soccer coach. I’m really starting to wonder how this talented young woman flew under my radar until recently.

This is a very funny, all-ages-friendly show without being aimed at children. I enjoyed it as much, probably more, than any kid would. Written by Rachel Teagle and directed by Jenny Moeller, the dialogue has such a natural, off-the-cuff feel to it that you’d almost think it was improvised.

Shed is this year’s entry from TCHF veterans Dangerous Productions. Faithful readers or regular attendees at the TCHF might remember this company as the tarp team. They are known for being the theater company that actually tries to scare the audience. They are masters of pointing flashlights out into the audience to surprise us with jump scares involving how or what comes onstage while we are blinded by the light. They also generally put on the bloodiest shows, hence the tarp.

This one was actually a little restrained for Dangerous Productions, but what they did in terms of effects was extremely effective.

Jay Kistler, who is usually in Dangerous Productions’ TCHF shows, plays Jeff, a guest on a podcast. He’s there to tell the story of the Man in the Shed, but what starts out ordinarily enough becomes more and more bizarre as the host, Natalie, doesn’t just want Jeff to tell the story but wants them to act it out. Add in a third performer, who plays the man in the shed in his underwear and a pig’s mask, and all bets are off.

With this company, you expect the unexpected, and that certainly happens. This is bloody, to be sure. It has several genuinely frightening moments and also manages a few laughs.

There’s a reason Dangerous Productions always gets a slot at the TCHF: they never disappoint. They are the one company you can rely on to try and actually be scary. And let’s face it, when people think of horror shows, blood is one of the things that comes to mind. With Dangerous Productions, you know there will be blood.

Carmilla is an adaptation of the classic 1872 vampire novella by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu.

Every October in The Stages of MN household, we try to watch only horror movies. Now, Mrs. The Stages of MN, Micky to her friends, can’t really handle things that are too scary or too bloody. Therefore, we watch a lot of older horror movies, and this year, among other movies, we are watching the Hammer Films Karnstein Trilogy. The first film, The Vampire Lovers, is based on Le Fanu’s novella. This source material, you may be surprised to learn, predates Bram Stoker’s Dracula by a quarter of a century.

This adaptation is written and directed by Cara White. Carmilla is told from the perspective of Laura, who, under hypnosis, relays the story to a doctor who is concerned about her health. She is the focus of Carmilla’s desire.

The play is unabashedly erotic without being explicit. Carmilla is the prototype of the lesbian vampire. The relationship between Carmilla and Laura, played by Maretta Zilic, is less that of hunter and prey and more romantic in nature.

Zilic is quite good in the role of Laura, as is Mahmoud Hakima, who plays Gen Speilsdorf, who arrives at the end of the play seeking to destroy Carmilla, who killed his daughter.

TCHF Artistic Director Nissa Nordland, who is also responsible for the blood effects in the show, which are very well done, brings an air of otherworldliness to the role of Carmilla. Fitting for a character who exists outside the natural world.

The show features some great costumes and set pieces. It’s always nice to have a classic story in the mix, and I appreciated how White didn’t try to modernize or sensationalize the story but remained faithful to the themes and ideas of the original.

We talk about the variety of the TCHF as a strength, and this final batch of shows really showcases that aspect. Music & Monsters: A Grand Guignol Double Feature was the perfect show to end the day with because it is itself a showcase for that variety.

The first tale is very much one of those supernatural stories you’d get in an episode of a horror anthology TV show like The Twilight Zone or The Veil. It concerns a man who arrives at a boarding house to rent a room. He is drawn to the music coming from another tenant’s room. That tenant is violently opposed to engaging with the new renter or sharing anything about his music with the man. But is it to maintain control of the music, or is the music itself the one really in control?

After that tale ends, we get a series of quick, hand-related jokes and gags that are extremely funny and act as a palate cleanser after the more-or-less played-straight first tale.

Then we go into our second story, which is a take on the Frankenstein story. This mixes comedy with some gore and blood-effects work. There is excellent use of shadow work in the opening creation scene and the conclusion of the tale.

This show is definitely not for kids. There is an erect, though clothed, penis on display for a lengthy amount of time, and let’s just say things don’t end well for the penis, in a moment that is both hilarious and terrifying.

The four-member cast of Kaitlen Osburn, Nick Miller, Jesse March, and Kathryn Cesarz is very strong, equally effective in the initial dramatic scene, the silly, almost vaudevillesque bridging sequence, and the funny but also horror-heavy second tale.

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the new website 79 Seconds on Stage a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

Twelve Angry Men at Lyric Arts is Guilty of Being Terrific Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

I first encountered 12 Angry Men in the seventh grade. We watched the film version in English class. I’m not sure why, but as a kid who grew up on black-and-white movies, I took to it immediately. It’s one of those films I go back to every five or six years for another screening, one I’ve probably purchased in every format I’ve collected over the years: VHS, LaserDisc, DVD, and Blu-ray. This is the second stage adaptation I’ve seen, following the musical version from Theatre Latté Da a few years back. Watching Twelve Angry Men today reinforced my feelings that this is a story that doesn’t lend itself well to the musical form. As with the film, this is a fast-paced, no-frills, emotionally raw, and tense drama. Coming in at a lean 85 minutes with no intermission, the play speeds by, with the drama steadily ticking upward like the mercury in the thermometer measuring the increasing heat of the unairconditioned jury room. Lyric Arts’ production hits the mark with an exceptional cast who quickly and believably deliver twelve distinct personalities.

Twelve Angry Men is set in a Chicago city courthouse on a particularly hot day, in the 1950s, I assume, based on the set design and costuming. The play opens with a voice-over of a judge giving the jury their instructions, reminding them that if there is reasonable doubt in their minds that the defendant committed the crime he is being tried for, they must vote not guilty. With no air conditioning, nerves are already raw as the twelve jurors file into the room to deliberate on a murder trial in which a nineteen-year-old Black man is accused of murdering his father. Based on the conversations as they take their places around a long rectangular table, it seems like they are all of the opinion that it is an open-and-shut case and that the boy is guilty. They take a vote immediately and discover that there is one vote for not guilty. The next 80 minutes or so have the characters debating the case, with Juror 8, the holdout, slowly convincing others that there is reasonable doubt.

The case is intriguing, and the debate about the details of the crime and the questioning of the evidence are great, entertaining stuff. And to be sure, the play works as a tense, thriller-esque drama, but it is really about something larger: it is a microcosm of our society. Sometimes we think we have evolved and become more enlightened than previous generations, or at least we used to. The last decade has revealed that we are closer to the world these twelve jurors inhabit than we once thought. For those interested in looking beyond the entertaining story, there are themes of institutional racism, racism, ageism, and the ways in which our own personal pasts inform how we project onto others.

The cast is solid, with several standouts. As the two ends of the guilty/not guilty spectrum, David Denninger as Juror 3, who is convinced the boy is guilty because of his anger at his own son, and Davin Grindstaff as Juror 8, who feels that before you pass judgment on a man’s life, you should at least discuss it for a little bit, are great sparring partners. Dominic Delong-Rodgers is exceptional as the logical Juror 4, never losing his buttoned-up, emotionless cool while broadcasting intelligence and a sense of fair play. He holds out until close to the very end, but not out of prejudice or personal baggage. Instead, he is weighing all the facts, and one can almost see the scales of justice in his mind and know that if the evidence shifts enough and the scales tip toward reasonable doubt, he will vote accordingly. Abdoul Kondo, as Juror 11, an immigrant, is our reminder of the ideals on which our country is supposed to be founded. This role could easily become a caricature, but Kondo refuses to be just a mouthpiece for ideas. He internalizes the dialogue and makes it organic and character-driven.

Cory Skold’s set design is spot-on, giving us a sense of the ordinary so that we feel like we are in this place at this time without ever distracting us from the people inhabiting the space. Director Julie K. Phillips does an excellent job of ratcheting up the tension as the play goes on. There is a creative choice to black out the set at moments when emotions boil over. At first, I thought it was a lighting cue error, but after it happened a couple more times, I realized what was going on. Despite my initial reaction to the choice, I actually think it’s a brilliant decision. It gives us a moment to breathe and emphasizes those moments so that the points being made, whether it’s a declaration of “I’ll kill you!” or something else, are not lost in the momentum of the play.

My verdict on Lyric Arts’ Twelve Angry Men? GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS! Guilty of delivering a riveting production of a classic that holds a mirror up to our strengths and weaknesses as humans and as a society. Guilty of ratcheting up the tension until the final moments. And guilty of being first-rate entertainment. No reasonable doubt about it!

Twelve Angry Men runs through November first at Lyric Arts in Anoka. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.lyricarts.org/twelve-angry-men

I want to alert you faithful readers to a new Website that has just started up in the Twin Cities. It’s called 79 Seconds on Stage and it is a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

Twin Cities Horror Festival XV Reviews II: Lumbrada, and The Slender Vale Archives.

Hello faithful readers, I’m back with reviews of two more shows running at this years Twin Cities Horror Festival. The festival runs through Oct 31st and it’s the perfect way to celebrate Monster Month. Here is a link to the festival website so you can get all the details: https://www.tchorrorfestival.com/

Every show can’t be a winner. I see everything so that I can hopefully guide those who can only make it to a few shows to the best ones, or the ones that are going to hit your sweet spot. Lumbrada is kind of a miss. It’s confusing. One character is someone whose voice we only hear, and we’re unsure why that is. It doesn’t become clear at any point. The performances vary in terms of the actors’ comfort on stage, with dialogue getting lost in some less-than-confident performances.

There are about four or five moments, lines, or an effect that work great! But the rest seems underwritten and/or doesn’t make sense. The story is about four friends camping out and telling stories. One example of a head-scratching line comes when one character is telling their scary story, and another comments on a detail that seems very much in tune with the story they’re relating: “Why would you share that with us?” I wanted to shout out, “Because she’s telling you a story!”

I love that the TCHF gives newer artists opportunities. Sometimes you get something truly great. This time, it just doesn’t really work, aside from those four or five moments. But if you’re looking to catch only a few shows, this is probably one to skip.

The Slender Vale Archives is another improv show, sharing some of the creatives involved in Tales of Terror…From the Tomb!!! This one is narrated by the always reliable Sean Dillon, who sets up the show with his opening narration. Dillon explains that the town of Slender Vale is full of unexplained stories and uses a deck to select three words from which the improvisers must spin one long-form story.

As is the case with these improv shows, it’s really about the improvisers themselves and whether the show succeeds or fails. The TCHF jury has its pulse on the Twin Cities improv scene, so you know you’ll be in safe hands with any of those shows. This group features several performers who will be familiar to Twin Cities improv fans, like Destiny Davison, Ross Flores, and Chris Rodriguez.

I’ll be back at the Horror fest next weekend to see the remaining Eight shows, so check back then, but if your schedule only allows you to go this week, let me fill you in on a little secret. Being surprised is part of the fun. It’s like getting home to check out your trick-or-treat haul. My Mummy always said Horror Fest is like a pillowcase of candy, you never know what you’re goin ta get.

The Rocky Horror Show is an Absolute Joy of Overloaded Spectacle From Mixfit Theatre at Lush Lounge & Theater

Mixfit Theatre’s production of The Rocky Horror Show is unlike any other production I’ve seen, which is in keeping with the oddity that is the legacy of The Rocky Horror Show. A love letter to genre sci-fi and horror films, it is best known to the general public through the film adaptation, which, after a poor initial theatrical release, found new life during midnight screenings. Due to the popularity of those midnight screenings, in which the audience interacts with the film, shouting lines and throwing rice, it has become the longest-running theatrical release in film history. Now, this production doesn’t want you throwing rice, but the cast may ask you to participate, which is a nice nod to the film’s traditions. But fear not, introverts! You will be asked at the entry if you wish to be interacted with. If you select no, you will be given a red glow necklace to wear.

This is the second show I’ve seen at Lush this season, and they have both been a blast. The theater at Lush is primarily used for their drag shows and isn’t really designed for full-on staged musicals. So there is literally nothing in terms of set, but there are costumes, video projections, props, and an assortment of aerialist equipment. The show is billed as a burlesque circus cabaret, but that seems to imply it doesn’t tell the story of the show, which it absolutely does. But there is a lot going on at any one time. As characters are singing the songs, there is usually someone either on stage or out in the center of the audience performing aerial acts that are jaw-dropping. Throughout the show, you will literally not know where to be looking from moment to moment. It is complete sensory overload, but in the best possible way. To say I was wowed by some of the circus performers’ aerial choreography would be an understatement.

The show starts with the song “Science Fiction/Double Feature,” the lyrics of which string together titles and facts from various sci-fi and horror films. Director Siddeeqah Shabazz has utilized projections that exactly mirror the content of the lyrics of the song. We get a really well-edited montage of shots from many films, including The Day the Earth Stood Still, Night of the Demon, and the old Flash Gordon serial starring Buster Crabbe, all with a very queer-feeling color overlay. I knew from the first moment that montage appeared that I was going to love the show.

For those familiar with the show, you may already be aware that the first act is the strongest. All the best songs are in the first act, and the story is relatively easy to follow, even in this unique staging. The second half can be a little muddled in terms of plot, but again, there is so much going on in the space that, while you might be a little fuzzy on what is happening, you will be completely entertained. Even when the songs are not that strong, the band, led by Musical Director Bradley Beahen, wins you over with their clean, tight sound.

The cast has a lot of performers who are new to me, including El-Sara Duopu as Dr. Frank-N-Furter, whose vocals and stage presence are equally powerful. Lee Garr, as the Narrator, is full of strut and coolness as he dips in and out of the story to give us a guiding voice. The cast also has some Stages of MN favorites, including Monty Hays in the dual role of Eddie and Dr. Scott, who really makes the song “Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?” his own. Nora Sonneborn, as Riff Raff, is a powerhouse. Her vocals are always top-notch, but this role is a million miles from what I’m used to seeing her in, and I thought she was fantastic here. And another really strong performance comes from Caitlin Sparks, who brings a new edge to the character of Janet. That was really fun. She plays it big, which works perfectly for this production, where mousey would have been lost in the cacophony of the show.

This is one to attend with friends, have some drinks, and just relax and enjoy the spectacle. But hurry, the show is selling out its short run quickly. The Rocky Horror Show runs through October 24 at Lush Lounge and Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.mixfittheatre.org/tickets.

A Message About the Weeks Ahead

Hello, faithful readers, how are you? Good, glad to hear it. I’ve been having some issues myself since last February, actually. That’s part of the reason for the abrupt stop in terms of the YouTube episodes. Without going into too much detail, I’ll be having surgery on Monday, 10/5/26. They know why they are doing it, but what all it will involve is unknown until they get inside me.

So there will not be any new reviews for a bit. The next show I have scheduled is Annie next Friday. To say I’ll be able to attend and review feels optimistic, but I’m leaving it open for now because I choose to be optimistic. But it’s going to be a little bit of a wait-and-see, one-day-at-a-time deal. I had made my schedule for October before I knew when the surgery would be, so if I’m planning to attend a show, it’s been scheduled, and I’m going to do my best to stick to my schedule. But recovery has to come first. I’ve tried to leave the last week or so of October a little lighter schedule-wise so that I can try and reschedule anything I may end up missing during recovery.

There are a lot of unknowns right now and a lot of different ways this might play out. I may find that seeing shows is a good way to get myself back to the level where I can get back to work, but then find that after work I don’t have the energy for shows. So there could be some reviews as early as next weekend, and then after another week, no reviews again for a bit.

I want to thank the theaters and theater companies that I engage with for your patience and flexibility over the next few weeks. I promise to give you as much notice as I can if I cannot make a show. I also promise, if I do cancel, to try and reschedule before considering shows I didn’t have scheduled.

And for you, my blessed boppets, a reminder that there are a number of theater bloggers in the Twin Cities. If you need to know which shows to see and I’m not reviewing, you can always check in with my friends.

Cherry and Spoon http://www.cherryandspoon.com/, Lettered in Theatre https://letteredintheatre.wordpress.com/, Ernest Goes to the Theatre https://ernestgoestothetheatre.blogspot.com/, Play Off the Page https://playoffthepage.com/, Life in Revue https://lifeinrevue.blogspot.com/, Friends and Neighbors https://friendsandneighbors.blog/, and Tracy Sees stuff https://tracyseesstuff.com/.

Also a reminder of the Website that has just started up in the Twin Cities. 79 Seconds on Stage is a free and full guide to local theatre in the Twin Cities.

I sincerely hope to be back reviewing next weekend, but hang in there if I’m not. Rest assured that I’ll be making every effort to be back as soon as I’m safely able to.

Be back soon,

Rob

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale Will Delight Younger Audiences Without Boring the Parents at Mixed Blood

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale is an odd choice for Mixed Blood, but somehow they got the word out because the theater was full, with lots of children in attendance. Which is exactly who it is aimed at. But thankfully it’s the type of show that will keep the grown-ups engaged as well.

The show takes place on Peter’s birthday, and it has been one year since Mr. McGregor got Peter’s coat and shoes and hung them up like a scarecrow, and killed Peter’s father and baked him in a pie. That is a detail true to the original Beatrix Potter stories, but it is a startling detail to include. The other odd moment is when Peter appears to be suffering from post-traumatic shock. But perhaps, in our world today, those are the things that replace Bambi’s mother being shot.

The show runs under an hour, and the set and costumes are delightful. The cast is a mix of familiar locals, including Stages of MN favorite Em Adam Rosenberg as Ptolemy the Tortoise, some not-as-familiar locals, and an out-of-towner, Juan Carlos Unzueta, who reprises the role of Peter Rabbit, which he originated in the premiere production. I knew he must be from away, as he was just too good not to have been noticed before locally.

The animals all gather for a surprise birthday party for Peter, and we, the audience, are invited along. Which freaks all the animals out, as they haven’t had good experiences with humans. But we work through that, and the animals devise a plan for getting back into the garden to get food because they don’t have enough. When they execute their plan, we see it via a video presentation of a shadow-puppet show, which is very effective.

There is a great message about working together, sharing what you have, and finding a way for everyone to thrive. The songs are good, and the band is in view of the audience and is made up of Peter’s siblings, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail.

This isn’t a must-see for folks without kids, but if you have kids, say ages 5 to 10, I think they will be really into it. The audience I saw it with seemed to be enjoying it.

Into the Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale is running through October 18 at Mixed Blood. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://mixedblood.com/product/into-the-burrow/