Mama Mia, Here We Go Again at Lyric Arts in Anoka!

Holli Kingdon, Lisa Vogel, Emily Jabas, and Raquel Ponce Photo by Molly Jay.

I really wanted to like Mamma Mia! at Lyric Arts in Anoka. I love this theater and find it, along with Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo, to be key to growing new audiences. I’m so, so, so, so, so sorry that those of you who haven’t already purchased tickets will likely not get to see it. The show opens Friday night, and they let me attend the preview on Thursday because, well, the entire run sold out more than a week before it even opened. I think it was the only date in the first two weeks they could squeeze me in.

Unfortunately for you, I didn’t like the show, I loved it! And so I feel terrible that you have to read about what you’re destined to miss.

I’ll be completely honest: I’ve always loved the music of ABBA. I thought the Mamma Mia! movie was terrible, and I was surprised to find that, despite that, when I finally saw it on stage, I really enjoyed myself. This is probably the fourth time I’ve seen the musical live, but all the others were national tours. This is a pared-down version compared to those, with talented, but, for the most part, not Broadway caliber performers. So why is this the best version I’ve ever seen?

One reason, and I don’t mean to take anything away from the tremendous job director Kassy Skoretz has done with the staging, which is fantastic, is the choreography by Michael Terrell Brown. It’s the real star of the show. The choreography is filled with so much character that it feels like the driving creative force behind the production. Brown, months before the audience even walks in, seems to anticipate their reactions and gives them exactly what they want, along with what they didn’t know they wanted. The movement is confident, full of bold choices and wildly theatrical flourishes that, if they didn’t land, could sink the show. But there’s no fear of that here, everything works. I think the only Lyric Arts audience I’ve seen more enthusiastic in the decade plus I’ve been attending, was opening night of The SpongeBob Musical, those cats were Beatlemania-level excited. I’m genuinely mortified you won’t get to see this.

Another winning aspect of the production is the cast. There are varying levels of vocal ability, and in fact, many performers, particularly Lisa Vogel as Donna, seem to grow over the course of the evening. She starts out solid, quite good, and then at some point becomes great. Does that make the performance feel uneven? Not at all. It feels like Donna is finding her confidence, and maybe Vogel is too, but it works. That’s true across the cast: they’re not polished in the way you might expect, but they feel real. You instantly like them. They surprise you. They connect with you, sometimes literally (I had a flipper land on my head during the show, and I loved it).

It’s a cast where I could go on all night about how good everyone is. But again, and I am sorrier than it is humanly possible to be, if you didn’t already get tickets, it would just be rubbing salt in the wound. And, you know… sleep. I will say that the three men playing Donna’s exes, Eric Lee, France A. Roberts, and Keith Reilly are perfectly cast. Emily Jabas and Holli Kingdon, as Donna’s best friends, are even better. Each gets a number that had the audience screaming with joy: Jabas kills “Take a Chance on Me,” and Kingdon has the audience foaming at the mouth with “Does Your Mother Know.” Both numbers soar even higher thanks to Brown’s brilliant choreography. And I should clarify here, it isn’t Bob Fosse, it doesn’t stun, it delights. And one last comment on the cast Raquel Ponce as Sophie, is magical, the heart of the show.

I know I didn’t give you a plot synopsis, but it’s Mamma Mia!, you already bought your tickets, and if you didn’t, it doesn’t matter… you can’t go. I assume if they could have worked out an extension, they would have announced it by now, but hey, you can always cross your fingers. I really feel bad for you, because this show is pure joy, and we all need a nice helping of that right now.

Mama Mia runs through May 10th at Lyric Arts in Anoka. Though it’s essentially sold out, if you are dying to get a ticket I encourage you to go to https://www.lyricarts.org/mamma-mia as some tickets may free up. Click on the dates you can go and see if there are any left. A quick glance through a few dates revealed a few single seats at some performances.

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The Stages of MN YouTube channel is home to the 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.

Gutenberg! the Musical! A Historically Fictional Musical That’s so Funny it Should be Considered True!

Tom Reed and Dominic Schiro Photo by Dan Norman

Gutenberg! The Musical! And for good measure, I’m adding another “!”! Why does it deserve a third, and potentially fourth, “!” (I’m not sure, grammatically, if I needed end punctuation after the ! in “”) “.” ? Well, I’ll tell you why (which is when a harp would be strummed and I’d begin to sing), because this is the kind of show that led to the creation of The Stages of MN in the first place. Faithful readers will remember that the actual shows were Be More Chill and Hedwig and the Angry Inch. By some sort of mystical coincidence, the latter was, like Gutenberg! The Musical!, produced at Theater Latté Da, and the star of that show, Tyler Michaels King, is the director of this one. I assume your mind is now blown.

The show is about two best friends, Doug and Bud, who, thanks to a financial windfall, have rented the Ritz Theater for one night only to present the musical they’ve written together: Gutenberg! The Musical!. The musical (the show within the show) is about Johannes Gutenberg and the invention of the printing press. It is completely fictional and incredibly silly. But the piece is also a send-up of the musical theater form itself, and Doug and Bud get about as much stage time as the characters they portray. When I say “performance,” it’s really a staged reading, in which Doug and Bud play all the roles, aided by an ever-rotating collection of baseball caps to help the audience keep track of which of the dozens of characters they’re embodying at any given moment.

Tom Reed plays Doug. Regular Theater Latté Da patrons may recognize him from another Latté Da production, Stones in His Pockets, where he proved his skill at playing dozens of characters alongside a single fellow performer. A longtime Stages of MN favorite since appearing in one of my all-time favorite musicals, Interstate, he once again demonstrates the comedic timing and musical chops that make him a “must-see” performer for me.

Dominic Schiro first came to my attention a couple of years ago in Ten Thousand Things’ production of The Spitfire Grill, where I immediately found myself asking fellow bloggers, “Who is this guy?” He was far too good for me not to have noticed him before. I knew he could sing, now I know he’s also a gifted comedic actor. Reed and Schiro play off each other beautifully. They make it look effortless (it is not). The supportive banter between Doug and Bud feels genuinely heartfelt, even amid the extremely goofy dialogue, plot, songs, and overall conceit.

Tyler Michaels King is the perfect guiding force for this show. While the book itself is clever, so much of the humor comes from the performances. Michaels King is an accomplished improv performer, as is Reed, and I can only imagine the laughter in rehearsal as they explored blocking, added bits of stage business, shaped reactions, and fine-tuned all the details we don’t consciously see but absolutely feel. A tip o’ the hat as well (don’t ask me where the Irish accent came from [perhaps thinking about Stones in His Pockets] {which is set in Ireland}) to music director Jason Hansen, who even gets in on the action with a few well delivered lines of his own.

This is the kind of show that will have you chasing the theatrical dragon. It’s so fun, warm-spirited, and delightful that you’ll want to see more theater, always searching for that next show that gives you the same high. Do it. Keep going. For in theater, as I’m about to start always saying, here there be dragons!

Gutenberg! The Musical! runs through May 3 at Theater Latte Da. For more information, and to get your fix, visit
https://www.latteda.org/gutenberg-musical

Marie and Rosetta Makes its Long Awaited Appearance at Yellow Tree Theatre and Proves it Was Worth the Wait!

Adair Gilliam and Chaz Shermil Hodges Photo by Alex Clark

Marie and Rosetta, after being postponed last season, finally takes the spotlight at Yellow Tree Theatre, and it was well worth the wait. I have no personal connection to gospel music, but I gained a real appreciation for it, and genuine enjoyment, during the 100 minutes I spent with Adair Gilliam and Chaz Shermil Hodges, who play Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight, respectively.

These are perfect roles for both actors, especially Gilliam. I imagine the pool of Twin Cities performers who can handle the intricate guitar work required for this role, while also acting and singing at a high level, is not a large one. But no matter how large that pool might be, I doubt anyone could do it better than Adair Gilliam. Her guitar playing is stunning, her singing remarkable, and her acting equally strong, but she also possesses that intangible quality I can only describe as chemistry with the audience. There’s something in the way she leans into the music, particularly with the guitar in hand, her feel for it, the twinkle in her eye, the smile that spreads across her face as she doesn’t just sing, but communicates the lyrics. It gave me goosebumps, and it will undoubtedly be one of my top theater highlights of 2026, even this early in the year.

Chaz Shermil Hodges is a terrific partner for Gilliam. As Marie, the young protégé Rosetta has taken under her wing, she projects openness and youthful energy, and their vocal performances together are both uplifting and electric.

The story unfolds over their first evening working together, as they rehearse and get to know one another. Interestingly, it takes place in a funeral home. As Black performers traveling the South in the 1940s, their lodging options are limited, so they rely on friends and community connections wherever they go. The women talk about their mothers, the men in their lives, religion, and music, sharing their stories as we come to know them. I found these conversations fascinating, like listening to two people you instantly like open up about themselves. Co-directors Ansa Akyea and Richard Thompson beautifully capture that feeling of connection, the simple act of sitting, talking, and truly listening. It’s something many productions aim for, but few fully achieve.

The show would be worth seeing even without the musical numbers woven throughout, but man, those performances make this one a must-see. Go and swing with Marie and Rosetta which runs through April 19 at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo. For more information and tickets, go to https://yellowtreetheatre.com/marie-and-rosetta.

Sweet Clone of Mine is Something to Buzz About at the Hive

I feel, in a way, like I’m experiencing déjà vu. I keep running into Neil Diamond. First it was A Beautiful Noise, the touring production of the Broadway show about the man in the sparkly blouses. Then Song Sung Blue, the film about a tribute band that I watched in the run-up to the Oscars. And now Sweet Clone of Mine (ba ba ba!), a sci-fi cautionary tale about the dangers of AI, all within the span of six months.

Not that I’m complaining. I love Neil Diamond. I grew up in a household where Mr. Sparkles was on heavy rotation on the turntable in the living room. From a young age, I was immersed in his music, and I liked it. I still do. So for me, these shows are a chance to revisit one of the soundtracks of my childhood. Diamond wrote so many great songs, not just for himself but for other performers as well.

Sweet Clone of Mine opens with Neil Diamond performing his final set of the evening at The Bitter End, a venue he frequently played early in his career. We’re treated to four or five songs, all stunningly performed in the Hive’s intimate space. Then Neil heads to his dressing room, where he’s held at gunpoint by a woman named Leslie, who has something important to tell him. Throughout their time together, we get snippets of a few more songs, and Leslie performs “Forever in Blue Jeans.” The show closes with Neil returning to the stage for two final numbers.

What’s just OK about the show? The plot in the middle. It’s interesting, but the musical performances are so strong that you can’t help wishing they’d stop talking and get back to the music. That said, the final threads of the storyline, which lead into the closing performance, make it worthwhile. The narrative and the song dovetail nicely, lending an emotional resonance that was rather unexpected. The show is apparently based on an episode of the podcast Space Croutons, which like this show is created and written by Jeff, Della, Jerry, and John Goodson, which I intend to check out.

So what’s superb? The music, the performances, and the quality of the audio at The Hive Collaborative. Jeff Goodson plays Neil, and from certain angles, he could pass for Diamond today. He doesn’t sound exactly like him, but he sounds great, and that’s just the beginning. The rest of the performers are equally impressive. Janessa Iverson (bass, piano, vocals) nails everything she touches. Kyle Simons Baker shines on lead guitar, with Goodson accompanying on guitar as well. And Abbi Fern, as Leslie, comes into moving focus in the home stretch.

The only thing that truly sucks about this show is that it’s too short. At about 80 minutes with no intermission, there’s easily room for three or four more songs as an encore and still plenty of breathing room in the runtime.

What’s the most tragic thing about this production? Its run is way, way, way too short. I’m booked elsewhere for the remaining performances, which only run through March 22, 2026, or I’d absolutely be back for more of this live music. This group should be booked at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres for their Fireside Concert series. I would gladly pay top dollar for an evening of these musicians performing as many Neil Diamond songs as they can cram in.

If you have any affinity for Neil Diamond’s music, you’ll want to catch this, but act quickly. Sweet Clone of Mine runs through March 22 at The Hive Collaborative in St. Paul. For more information and tickets, visit their website https://www.thehivecollaborativemn.com/events/sweet-clone-of-mine-a-neil-diamond-experiment

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.

STRANGE HEART: The Dream Songs of John Berryman is… Different. So a Perfect Fit for Open Eye Theatre

Bradley Greenwald & Anna Hashizume Photo by Bruce Silcox

Strange Heart: The Dream Songs of John Berryman is different. Not bad different, but very much its own thing. It centers on Pulitzer Prize winning poet John Berryman, who died by suicide in 1972, the year I was born, which may explain why I wasn’t very familiar with him going in.

Billed as a jazz-infused operetta, the show primarily focuses on one of Berryman’s hospitalizations for alcohol abuse. There, we meet a puppet named Henry, representing his subconscious and giving him someone to interact with beyond his nurse and his wife. Through reminiscences, we get backstory about his mother, his father, and his wife, Kate.

Much of the show unfolds in a fluid, stream-of-consciousness style. The subject matter is dark, but the tone is decidedly humorous. Bradley Greenwald plays Berryman with an almost impish sense of humor, as if everything is a joke and most people, aside from him and Henry, aren’t in on it. There’s a song about whiskey that he performs with Sam Albright, who puppeteers and voices Henry, and it’s genuinely delightful, or at least as delightful as an alcoholic singing about whiskey with a puppet can be. If that sentence makes you wonder what the hell this show is, that’s exactly the point. It’s different, with a capital DIFF.

There are also sweet moments, such as the first date between Berryman and Kate, played by the always fabulous Anna Hashizume, and another where they reminisce about those early days. The duet they share looking back, along with the whiskey song, are the musical highlights.

This world premiere, written and composed by Greg Brosofske, runs about 90 minutes with no intermission, which feels like the perfect length. There are only five or six songs total, fewer than I expected. It’s definitely not a play, but it also feels a bit light on songs to be a full musical. “Operetta” is probably the closest label, though even that doesn’t quite capture it. Again, it’s its own thing. And if you find it’s not your kind of thing, well, I refer you back to the 90 minutes, no intermission.

Directed and designed by Joel Sass, the production has that Open Eye Theatre aesthetic I love. Sass has a knack for offbeat material and feels like a perfect match here. Music direction is by Wesley Frye, and his quartet provides exactly the right sound for the venue. As an added bonus, they entertain the audience with 15–20 minutes of preshow music. Remember when Theater Latté Da used to do that for shows like Once and Hedwig?

Strange Heart: The Dream Songs of John Berryman runs through March 22 at Open Eye Theatre in Minneapolis. For more information and tickets go to https://www.openeyetheatre.org/strange-heart

Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope Uplifts the Audience While Refracting a Spotlight Through the Prism of Black America

The Cast of Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope (March 2026 Penumbra Theatre) Photo Credit Caroline Yang

Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope is a historic piece of musical theater, the first Broadway show with music and lyrics by a Black woman and also the first Broadway show directed by a Black woman. That was back in 1972, the year I was born. The similarities end there.

Micki Grant’s musical revue doesn’t have a traditional narrative. There are no discernible continuing characters moving throughout the show, and no dialogue to speak of. And yet it feels as though each new number is a short story, complete with characters, a theme, and its own unique tone. Each of these short stories looks at the lives of Black Americans through a different social, political, or cultural lens.

Unlike other works that strive to examine the Black experience, this one feels like it’s looking at it from the inside rather than presenting it for an outside perspective. That allows the show to be, above all else, a celebration. This isn’t a laundry list of injustices or righteous grievances. It’s the world through a perspective shared by many in the audience and, for others like myself, perhaps a clearer sense of how that world looks.

What the show gets incredibly right is that no one is the sum of the bad things that happen to them. If that were true, all of us living under Trump would be defined either by our ignorance or by our outrage. I am more than my outrage, because outrage alone is no way to live a life. As with this show, many of the songs deal with social issues, and there are moments when the show allows that outrage to breathe. But it always reminds us that people living with outrage day in and day out still find ways to let joy in.

I want to convey as strongly as I can that this is not a work about anger and injustice. It’s a beautiful, engaging, uplifting, and ultimately joyous experience. It acknowledges reality and shows how people deal with that reality, by not letting it win, by fighting when they can, and by finding laughter, love, and yes, joy wherever they can. By refusing to be defined by what others have done to them.

The songs move through styles including gospel, jazz, funk, soul, and rock, though my personal favorite was the calypso flavor that kept popping up. One of the best songs early in the show, “Goin’ to Town This Morning,” immediately made me think of my favorite Donna Summer song, “Unconditional Love.” That number features one of my favorites, Austene Van, on lead vocals, reminding me yet again how amazing she is.

But here’s the thing: the entire cast is amazing. I could easily sit here and list every performer and tell you my favorite moment for each of them. But then I wouldn’t get to bed, and you’d probably stop reading a quarter of the way through. Suffice it to say they are all terrific, including Twin Cities Theater Blogger Favorite Emerging Artist of 2025 Antonisia Collins. This is her first role since winning the award, and it reassures us that we got that one absolutely right.

And Mrs. The Stages of MN would kill me if I didn’t also mention Aimee K. Bryant, who gave her goosebumps every time she sang. Did I know Bryant could sing? She can’t possibly be that good and I never noticed, so I must have known and simply forgotten.

Before wrapping up, I do want to acknowledge a few of the backstage artists. First, Patdro Harris, who directs the show so that each song has a distinct and clearly told story. Harris is also getting my nomination for Best Choreographer, one of the elements that makes this production truly unforgettable. Sanford Moore’s music direction, and the sound he gets from his band, is so thrilling that there wasn’t a moment in the entire runtime when I wasn’t bobbing along or clapping to the beat. The energy of some of these numbers is absolutely infectious.

I also want to mention projection designer Miko Simmons, whose work is exceptional. The projections add texture and weight where needed without overwhelming the show’s overwhelmingly positive “Good Vibrations“.

Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope runs through April 5 at Penumbra Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit:
https://penumbratheatre.org/event/dont-bother-me-i-cant-cope/#4

Cake is Bittersweet With Layers of Rich Emotions Sprinkled With a Dash of Grounding Realism. Yep I Cried at Theatre in the Round

Natavia Lewis, Via Logan, and Jenny Ramirez Photo by Aaron Mark Photo Film

The Cake isn’t your play-it-safe, fairy-tale-ending play about bringing social consciousness to “The South”. You know what I mean when I put “The South” in quotation marks. I’ve made enough comments in these reviews and on the YouTube show that you probably know which side of the bed I fall out of. If you’re reading this, I assume you either land on the same side or at least respect the differences in our sleeping arrangements.

This isn’t really a play about changing someone’s views. It’s about personal growth, and about learning to push back against the things that feel wrong, even when doing so is uncomfortable.

Della, a Southern baker with strong Christian values, is asked to bake a wedding cake for her late best friend’s daughter, Jen. The complication? Jen is marrying another woman, Macy. Della who has trouble supporting this, is supported by her husband Tim. Jen, meanwhile, tries to appease everyone in her life, including Macy, who does not quietly suffer fools. It’s safe to say the situation turns all of their worlds upside down.

What follows is a tender, funny, and complicated reckoning with faith, friendship, love, and tradition. You may think you know how it ends, but it isn’t as neat and tidy as we expect. The play repeatedly subverts expectations, taking turns I didn’t anticipate.

As Della begins to question her stance, she’s also forced to confront other aspects of her life, including her marriage. There’s a pivotal scene in which she confronts Tim, beginning with their sexual relationship and expanding into questions of power dynamics. Depending on your age and relationship experience, their marriage may feel either deeply wrong or deeply real. I don’t personally agree with their dynamic, but there’s a difference between someone imposing a patriarchal structure and a couple who have simply been raised to believe that’s how things should be. Playwright Bekah Brunstetter deserves credit for wading into these murkier waters and embracing nuance. It allows us to see Della and Tim as a real couple, not just a couple from “The South.” By the end, both show a willingness to try, even if neither transforms into a tree-hugging leftist exploring gluten-free veganism and queer theory.

Jenny Ramirez as Della and D’aniel Stock as Tim deliver what we used to euphemistically call “brave” performances. This is where I warn you that this show contains strong language, sexual situations, and partial nudity. Since I doubt I have many 13-year-old readers, I don’t feel like I’m driving exploitative ticket sales by saying so. Ramirez and Stock deserve real credit for their vulnerability, which is what those scenes are about. These scenes are not about titillation, pardon the pun, but about two people opening up to each other in ways they haven’t in years. That’s difficult and deeply human. Is it necessary? I think it’s not only effective but appropriate in this play. It grounds the play and gives the audience a way in. Like Endometriosis The Musical last summer, it creates space for conversations we should be having more openly.

The entire cast is strong, but Ramirez especially impressed me. She plays the character who we assume in most audiences minds has it wrong. She never completely changes, but she does grow, and her performance allows us to view the character sympathetically and to understand her, even if we don’t agree with her. Stock likewise keeps Tim recognizable and grounded, never slipping into caricature.

Natavia Lewis brings confidence and clarity to Macy. She isn’t militant; she’s persuasive, thoughtful, and firm in who she is. Via Logan gives a moving performance as Jen, caught painfully in the middle. She beautifully captures the difficulty of embracing an identity that challenges everything she was raised to believe, not just about her sexuality, but about how those in her orbit think about people from “The South.” It’s an emotionally raw performance that hit home. And yes, I cried. Big surprise.

I’ve avoided mentioning Kjer Whiting as George until now because he provides something entirely different: delightful bursts of comedic fantasy that act as perfect palate cleansers between heavier scenes. It’s impeccable casting. It’s hard to imagine anyone else frosting those lines with quite the same flair.

Director Jennie Ward and Intimacy Director H. Ashley deserve enormous credit for bringing this production to vivid life. Ashley handles the intimacy between Della and Tim with a clear understanding of how longtime partners differ from young lovers. In contrast, the physicality between Jen and Macy emphasizes passion and immediacy over familiarity. Ward makes a particularly effective choice in overlapping Jen and Macy’s love scene with Della lying awake in bed, trying not to think about them. It deepens the emotional resonance of a later moment and ties the themes together beautifully.

The Cake is thoughtful, funny, and deeply human. It doesn’t hand you easy answers, and that’s precisely its strength.

The Cake runs through March 15th at Theatre in the Round. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/thecake/

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