FETAL, a Brilliant Play That Traffics in Empathy From Frank Theatre

Carolyn Pool, Kate Beahen, Julia Valen, and Elena Yazzie Photo by Tony Nelson

FETAL the play by Trista Baldwin that had its world premiere last fall was such a hit that Frank Theatre is remounting it a mere three months after it closed. I wasn’t able to catch the initial run, m’colleague over at Cherry and Spoon had it on her list of the best plays in 2023, with that and after going gaga over Frank Theatre’s production of Ironbound in January, I was very excited to learn they were remounting FETAL and there was no chance I’d let it slip by a second time. The show runs through March 10th, but already has some sold out performances coming up, don’t let your chance to see this powerful and important work pass you by. Baldwin’s play is set in a clinic in Texas that provides legal abortions to women two days a week. We meet three woman that represent different points on the spectrum of age, situation, and believe systems. While each woman’s story is unique, these characters are not meant to represent all woman, but they are intended to give us a look into the complexities of the issues surrounding a woman’s right to choose and to have power over her body and health. FETAL is what I call an issue play, it’s goal isn’t to simply entertain you, it has a message it wants to relay to you. It’s also the best kind of issue play, it doesn’t simply preach at you, it isn’t trying to win you over with arguments and facts to its point of view. It’s doing what great art does, creates empathy, and it’s doing it in the most effective way there is by reducing it’s beliefs not to an argument, but to a person. If Baldwin simply had her characters tell you that a woman should have the right to say what happens with her body, she would fail in her goal. What she does, and it’s why the play succeeds, she shares her characters stories. It is through the personal that we gain understanding of others not through facts and figures, Data can open our eyes, but stories open our hearts. The other character in the play works at the clinic, she’s not a Nurse or a Doctor but there to do patient intake and go over the state required information that’s intended to scare people out of having an abortion. That’s her job function, but she’s really there to receive their stories, and carry them once they leave so they don’t have too.

The characters have names in the program but they are never used in the play, instead the three woman are given numbers to protect their identities. This may be to mirror the actual procedures on clinics in Texas or it could be to remove one layer between the characters and the audience. Without names they are even easier to see as yourself or others in your life. What has been used at times to stifle individuality in other real and artistic endeavors, here is used to turn the individual into anyone, it’s an effective reversal that like everything in this play works to connect us to the characters. The women are played by Elana Yazzie, Julia Valen, and Carolyn Pool, the clinic employee is played by Kate Beahen. Sometimes after a show on the car ride home we play a game called who was your favorite, sometimes it’s more of the, who gave the best performance variation. Tonight two responses came to mind. Firstly, no one was better than anyone else, they were all perfect for the role they were playing. The favorite? Well, that is about who you identify with the most and that will vary from audience member to audience member. Secondly, not only couldn’t you say anyone was better than the others, but when everyone is this good, and the story is so much about supporting each other, the thought of judging them against each other felt very wrong. They all made each other better, there was a sense that while the characters were supporting each other, so were the performers. It felt honest, it was simply woman supporting women in every way, beautiful.

A script that creates empathy in a way that will make audiences, who are on board with the playwrights beliefs, think about what they have seen. Many people seem to think that the two sides of this argument are people who don’t want women to have abortions and people who want women to have abortions, but that isn’t it at all. The two sides are those who want to control what other people do and those who think everyone has the right to decide for themselves. So those who want to control others and those who want the right to exercise the free will that God gave us. With a script this good and a cast so so so perfect and brilliant, it would be easy to wrap up this review and feel like I’d done my hobby. But I would be forgetting to acknowledge the incredible work of several other key players in this production. Wendy Knox who is becoming one of my favorite local Directors is batting a thousand. The way she utilizes the wonderful lighting design of Tony Stoeri to highlight each character when it is their turn to share their story. The way she has the characters interacting, with themselves arguing their emotions with their reason through the surrogate of Beahen’s character. The set design by Rick Polenek which turns the Frank Theatre’s Studio (basically their rehearsal space) into a very realistic waiting room of a clinic. The sound design by Dan Dukich is perfectly balanced, it doesn’t ever drown out the performers but also never fully lets us forget, that outside the building, are protesters spewing the hateful rhetoric that Jesus wants them to shout at women who are already having a very difficult time. Last, but not least is Kathy Kohl whose costumes fit these characters perfectly and I’m certain were of great use to the performers in finding their characters. Clothes give the audience an idea of who the characters are but they also help the actors to find who they are as well.

FETAL runs through March 10th at the Frank Theatre Studio for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://franktheatre.org/events/fetal-trista-baldwin/

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Hells Canyon a Horror Play With a Brain, Has World Premiere by Theater Mu at Jungle Theater in MPLS

Ryan Colbert, Becca Claire Hart, Kaitlyn Cheng, Gregory Yang Photo by Rich Ryan

Hells Canyon, the new play by Keiko Green uses the horror genre to explore race, generational trauma, and the complexity of gender and a woman’s body. The first two it deals with fairly head on, the last is more subtextual and requires the audience to think about the play, the characters, their race, and the ways in which woman have been sublimated and exploited historically. If that sounds a bit serious, reflect on the long tradition of works in genres such as Science Fiction, Horror, Westerns or any number of others, to tackle important issues through the use of entertainment and distance from their real world equivalents. Hells Canyon never loses sight that it is a Horror play, its thrilling, scary, and entertaining, all that is required from the genre. But, like the best examples of any genre it’s richer because it isn’t just about the genre trappings, getting the blood pumping and the goosebumps to break out, at its core are ideas which engage the mind as well as the emotions. This is an impressively mounted production and one that any horror fan should be sure to check out. My planned plus one for the show was my wife, when I was preparing before the show I realized it was in the horror genre, not something she really enjoys, so we erred on the side of caution and she hung back. I don’t think that was necessary, I think she could have handled it so if the themes of this sound interesting but you are not a horror person, I’d say take a chance. This is recommended for ages 16+ and I’m linking here to content Warning page from Theater Mu.

The story involves 5 friends with complex relational ties as they prepare to spend a weekend at a cabin in the woods. The cabin is near the location of the Snake River Massacre, where in 1887 seven white men murdered 34 Chinese miners for their gold, they were never prosecuted, this is a true event from history. The characters are Ariel played by Kaitlyn Cheng who is pregnant, her brother Tommy played by Gregory Yang, who is part of a band with Doug played by Ryan Colbert, Ben played by Matt Lytle, and Claire, who is also Ben’s wife played by Becca Hart. Ariel is a surrogate for Ben and Claire due to a heart condition Claire has and also used to date Doug. These are old friends who have some tensions floating around about band business and the pregnancy, when things start to happen that put a scare into the group, the underlying tensions and true feeling begin to bubble to the surface. Cheng and Colbert give the best performances as they seem grounded and natural. Hart is also very good, unfortunately her character is rather unlikeable and most likely to benefit from a mirror in which she could see her own behavior reflected back. A challenging acting bit to play the person who is trying to say the right things and seem caring but is only really concerned with herself. Lytle and Yang are OK, but there is an over the top bor vibe from their performances that keep them from feeling real, particularly in the first act of the play.

Green’s script is excellent even if a little overstuffed with ideas, there are a lot of different themes vying for attention, they all work but there is a sense it might have played a little stronger with a more focused approach. There is an epilogue which adds some shocking information and motivations for a character, but in the final analysis it feels unnecessary and robs the play of a more memorable ending. The direction from Katie Bradley excels in most elements of the production. In the tradition of the great film Director Howard Hawks Green’s use of overlapping dialogue is intended to add an element of realism to a genre work. From a performance standpoint it’s a tricky thing to do and Bradley hasn’t successfully gotten her actors to the point where they seem natural but all the key lines of dialogue are clearly conveyed. These are minimal issues and primarily only occur in that first act. Technically, Bradley handles the production with the skill of a veteran Director. This is a larger scale production with a lot of elements to bring together and she demonstrates how quickly and confidently she’s grown into the role, I’m excited to see what she Directs next, though I hope she hasn’t given up performing for good. It’s a beautifully designed set by Erik Paulson giving us a look at the entire cabin with doors and beams giving us an clear understanding of where walls are meant to be. The Projections by Peter Morrow and Ryan Stopera are effectively used to show us what is happening outside the windows of the cabin, they are used judiciously and create some truly eerie effects. Likewise the lighting design by Karin Olson and sound design by Katherine Horowitz help to make this an effective and at times genuinely scary experience.

Theater Mu’s production of Hells Canyon runs through March 17th at the Jungle Theater. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatermu.org/hells-canyon

Silent Sky Soars to Dizzying Heights At Theatre in the Round In Minneapolis

Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson concluded its opening night performance at Theatre in the Round Players (TRP) to a thunderous standing ovation that you could tell caught the actors by surprise. I imagine, when you are working on a play day after day, you are a little too close to it to know if it’s working as well as you hope. Well I can’t imagine a better production of Silent Sky then I saw tonight, at least in the ways that matter. It’s a small intimate story about one woman’s passion that also encompasses the infinite in terms of the universe and the human spirit. Like her Christmas at Pemberley trilogy, Gunderson exhibits here a gift for the emotional resonance, knowing humor and female empowerment that characterizes the work of Jane Austen. She is undoubtedly the modern playwright successor to that genius of English literature. The only thing that could lessen her work would be a cast who doesn’t rise to its quality, blessedly TRP has assembled a cast that bring humor and heartache in equal measures from reciting the phonebook if called upon. Lucky for us they are instead given Gunderson’s wonderful words and with those they soar to the heavens and beyond.

The story, set in the late 1800’s and early 20th Century tells the true story of Henrietta Leavitt, a pioneer of Astronomy whose contributions have had an immeasurable effect on science and our understanding of the universe. Leavitt left home after graduating college to work at the Harvard College Observatory where she learns that as a woman she is not allowed to operate the telescope. She is put to work instead with the other “computers” Williamina and Annie measuring and cataloging the brightness of stars from photographic glass plates. She is passionate about her work and lives for it forgoing visits home and staying late, sometimes overnight, working on ideas of her own. Henrietta is played Eva Gemlo who recently played Elizabeth Darcy in The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley, and there is much of that character and that of Jo March in Henrietta. Gemlo is marvelous at playing the smartest woman in the room, she is fire and passion, wit and intelligence with a gift for putting her boss Peter Shaw in his place. When an attraction begins to develop between the two, it happens so naturally that one is caught off guard at first but suddenly become excited by the budding romance. Peter is played by Ben Qualley who is a master at be being put in his place, thrown off balance and generally run circles around by his female employees. Annie and Williamina are played by Rachel Postle and Wini Froelich who seem so incredibly in sync and casual with each other I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that they are old friends in real life. These rules are crucial to widening the scope of the play beyond Henrietta’s ambition and the posible love story. They show that Henrietta isn’t the sole woman capable of being more than was allowed of a woman at that time. Through them we see other shades of how woman greatly contributed to the world without getting credit. They also provide a lot of the gentle humor that flows through the piece, Postle and Froelich give wonderful performances creating fully realized characters that it is a joy to spend two hours with. The cast also includes Clare Rolinger as Henrietta’s sister Margaret, through her we also get to see a woman who has chosen to stay at home, marry and raise a family, because that’s not just what most women did back then, but it’s also an acceptable choice for women to make today if they wish. But, we also learn at the end that she composed a symphony, so don’t judge a book by its cover.

The production is directed by Gretchen Weinrich, who obviously generates great performances from the cast finding just the right tone for every scene. There is a some extraneous set piece movements that felt unnecessarily busy, but they didn’t really detract from the production as a whole. Sadie Ward’s Set Design is simple but kind of magical with the cosmos painted on the floor and walls. The lighting design by Peter W. Mitchell continues the motif with star fields appearing all around at various points. I also really enjoyed the costumes by Colleen O’Dell, which isn’t something I ordinarily notice, but the period dress was really excellently realized, particularly the slacks worn by Annie in the last scene.

Silent Sky Runs through March 17th at Theatre in the Round Players in Minneapolis, for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/home/season-placeholder/72nd-season/silent/

Alice in Wonderland, Chaotically Hilarious, Visually Spectacular at Children’s Theatre Company

Anja Arora as Alice Photo by Glen Stubbe Photography

Alice in Wonderland The classic story by Lewis Carroll is brought to life in this original Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) production. The adaptation is by Sharon Holland and it pulls not only from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland but also from Carroll’s sequel Through the Looking Glass. The production is making it’s return after more than a decade featuring a wildly creative scenic and costume design by the late G.W. Mercier. I wasn’t a fan of CTC bringing back How the Grinch Stole Christmas for the second year in a row, I’m fine with companies bringing back their hits from time to time, and I acknowledge that the Guthrie does A Christmas Carol every year. This feels much more appropriate, there has been a nice long break. For children’s theater I think the old Disney model makes a lot of sense, before and during the early days of home video the company would re-release their animated films in theaters every 5 to 7 years, basically the cycle when a new group of children were at the appropriate ages to see them in the theater. This production is definitely one that should be brought back for each generation of young theatergoers to enjoy.

Enough praise cannot be given to this adaptation and the overall design and look of the production. The illusions and creative zaniness of the storytelling make this play like a live action episode of Animaniacs. Most of us over the age of 12 will know how certain tricks are done, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable. Those under 12 may just have their minds blown. It’s an tale of nonsense full of madness and reverse logic, the type of show one wonders who will enjoy it more, the kids or their parents? Too close to call. The cast is filled with brilliance, CTC company member Dean Holt is fantastic as among others The Mad Hatter and Humpty Dumpty. His tag team performance at the Tea Party with the always strong Nathan Keepers as the March Hare is a highlight of the show and the perfect snapshot of the tone of brilliantly constructed chaos that the show runs on. At the performance I attended the role of Alice was played by Anja Arora who alternates the role with Audrey Mojica. Arora is wonderful in the role and if she can hold her own in the sea an anarchy that is this production, you can bet she has a bright future ahead of her. Shout out to local favorites China Brickey, who really gets to let loose at the Queen of Hearts, whose favorite phrase is :Off With Her Head!!”. Also Taj Ruler whose knack for comedic line readings makes her the ideal actor to play the Cheshire Cat.

Alice in Wonderland is the type of show that can make lifelong theatergoers of young audiences and as such I highly encourage everyone with children between the ages of 6 and 14 to take them. I also highly recommend that those without kids go as well as it’s the kind of show that can make lifelong theatergoers out of adults as well. The show runs through March 31st at The Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://childrenstheatre.org/whats-on/alice-in-wonderland/

Bosom Buddies a Paired Down Drag Show That Goes the Sweet Rather Than Sour Route

I don’t have a lot of experience with Drag shows, but the ones I have seen have trended to the risque and/or Diva end of the spectrum. For this performance Timothy Kelly, co-founder and Managing Director of Fringe favorites Melancholics Anonymous and local operatic soprano, Gillian Gauntt make their Drag debuts to promising results. I’m really shockingly uninformed on drag culture so apologies if I misunderstand or mistate anything, please feel free to correct me in the comments as I do endeavor to get these things right and learn. This show contains a bit of a narrative, albeit underwritten about two performers a Drag King and a Drag Queen who are accidently booked to perform at the same time. After a little sass they decide to take turns performing sets. Antagonistic at the outset, by the end they are becoming friends, though their duet “Bosom Buddies” show they still have a little sting in them. Rather than battle it out between songs throughout the evening they pretty much take turns doing a few songs with a little genial interaction at the changeovers. It’s just the two of them and Nick Love doing a fabulous job tickling the ivories, I’m not even sure there was anyone in the tech booth. This is not that supper polished 5 Drag Queens with 17 1/2 costume changes each, disco balls, and glitter & tinsel in dizzying amounts. Kelly has a costume change during intermission, and Gauntt loosens their tie, the lights just sort of stay on at an appropriate level. My feeling, this is a first stab to see if it’s worth developing, and I for one think it is.

Gauntt is dressed as a man with beard stubble applied with makeup. They dress as male but sings songs in the range of a female, what’s a soprano to do? Kelly dresses as female and sings like a female in a somewhat smokey voice that reminded me of Lauren Bacall. If the point is to attempt to plausibly perform as the gender that fits the costume and character name, Kelly triumphs. The wig, the voice, the vocal quality, and indeed the character. I suspect that singing is Gauntt’s specialty and that acting is not their first love. The performance is fine it’s just missing that little something that a born actor like Kelly can’t help but bring to any role. I didn’t allow myself to get to hung up on the rules of gender transformation if there are any, instead I sat back and enjoyed the two performers voices which are both exceptionally good. Their song choices frequently fit into the slight narrative of the show about half or two thirds of them I knew, which I appreciate. I hope they continue to develop these characters and flesh out the show, I’d definitely be in for the next incarnation. It’s a little, not rough, but not polished, but it’s also really kinda sweet where it ends up and there are a couple of really fun songs and some beautiful ones. I’m glad I stopped over to the Phoenix Theater to check it out. Tickets are on a sliding scale from $10 to $40 the show runs this weekend only for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://tix.gobo.show/events/event/kOTpBfuSZmpxTz4yVqcc

Cabaret From Theatre 55 is Risque and Relevant at Mixed Blood in Minneapolis

This was my first time taking in one of Theatre 55’s productions. The unique theatre company that was formed as a way to give those over 55 a chance to continue to play the roles they were no longer being offered by most other companies. Past productions include Hair and most recently last years sold out run of Rent. I don’t know if it’s the companies mission to only produce shows with one word titles but this winters production continues that theme with Cabaret. Cabaret features a book by Joe Masteroff with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, and is based in part of the Berlin Stories by Christopher Isherwood which I recall listening too on audiobook when I was about the age of the characters in this musical. It’s interesting to revisit that world at about the age of the performers, perhaps a hair younger. Anyone familiar with the material will know this isn’t a show to take the kiddies to, even if Grandma and Grandpa are it in it. I think the recommended age is about 16, in terms of bladder strength it’s recommended for those with strong to heavy duty organs. The first act runs easily 90 minutes and with a late start and a word about the company before hand your looking at 100 minutes before the interval. The second act runs around 30 minutes which seems unbalanced but it’s hard to argue with the placement of the intermission, it’s the turning point in the play and lands powerfully.

The story follows Cliff played by Jeff Goodson, a novelist who has come to Berlin to write and give english lessons for extra cash. On the train he meets Ernst played by Jeff Bieganek, who is smuggling something across the border. Ernst helps him find a room in Frau Schneider’s boarding house and introduces him to the Kit Kat Klub where Cliff runs into an old lover named Bobby and meets Sally Bowles who performs there. Sally played by Prudence Johnson loses her job at the club and more or less forces herself on Cliff becoming his roommate despite his protestations. Frau Schneider is bought off by the increase in rent and perhaps because she has a soft spot for what she assumes are young lovers. She is carrying on a flirtation with Mr. Schultz another one of her tenants who woos her with fresh fruit from his shop. This is Berlin in the late 1930’s and it is revealed early on in conversation that Schultz is Jewish, and from there you can get a sense of where the story is inevitably heading, but for the most part until the final scene Act I is a Cabaret of old chums.

The clubs Emcee is played by Rik Kutcher who, like most performers before him in the role, steals the show every time he’s on stage. Let us not forget that Joel Grey won the Tony for the original Broadway production and Best Supporting Actor Oscar for the role in the 1972 film directed by Bob Fosse. Alan Cumming also won a Tony for the role in the 1998 revival. It’s a juicy highly eroticized role that is a hell of a lot of fun and Kutcher slays. He sings and performs wickedly good throughout the production but raised it vocally to another level with his rendition of “I Don’t Care Much”. It feels like there should be something extra shocking about the roles of the Kit Kat Klub performers both male and female who, it is more than implied, are also sex workers. But it isn’t and I think that’s the point of Theatre 55 to show us that age doesn’t matter. These are actors playing roles and the older you get the more the idea that good times and indeed sex itself are the exclusive purview of the young becomes more and more silly. Johnson as Sally is most at home with the singing aspects of the role, which is how she primarily spends her time in front of audiences. You can tell that acting isn’t where her primary training is, she does well in the role but the imbalance toward the vocal is noticeable, chiefly because she has such a fantastic voice. Goodson is also very good as Cliff, the role doesn’t require much in the way of singing from him but when he does get a few bars, it’s clear he would do just fine had the role called for more. The other favorite among the cast was Brenda Starr, not the 1940’s comic strip heroine, a current actor who plays the role of Frau Schneider. She isn’t the best performer on the stage, but there is a truth and authenticity to her that stands out, don’t be surprised if you come away with a warm feeling about her performance that you can’t explain but stays with you.

Richard Hitchler the founder of Theatre 55 produces and directs the show. Hitchler blocks the show using all areas available to him, even some of the audience become part of the act as their tables and chairs double as customer seating in the Kit Kat Klub. The space is limited but Hitchler definitely makes the most of it, it’s a well directed show with the exception of the curtain call, which contains a good message that is lost a little bit in what feels like an under rehearsed presentation, but I think that will improve greatly over the run of the show. With the band center stage throughout the show we get a chance to watch Musical Director Shirley Mier and her band at work. It’s wonderful how they are costumes as well, so they are essentially part of the cast as the Kit Kat Klub band. Costume Designer Alicia Vegell must have had a blast putting the look of this show together, it’s risque and cheeky and just plan old naughty fun. But aside from the fun there is a message that seems very relevant today, as Cliff says if you are not against it you are for it. I’m not sure that I saw any added layer that emerged from the story or themes of the musical by the casting of actors over 55 but I did learn that age is just a number, an actor is an actor and that in theater, we should be looking at the performance not counting wrinkles and gray hairs.

Cabaret runs through February 10th at Mixed Blood in Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://theatre55.org/cabaret-winter-2024/

Stones In His Pockets at Theater Latté Da Featuring Tom Reed Sigmund

Reed Sigmund and Tom Reed Photo by Dan Norman

Stones in His Pockets is Performed by only two actors Tom Reed and Reed Sigmund but they people the stage with more than a dozen different characters. Providing a rich Irish soundtrack that adds emotion and depth are Jason Hansen and Theresa Elliott. Hansen in the role of Music Director and Composer is on the Piano, Keyboard, Guitar, and the Bodhran with Elliott on an beautifully expressive violin. It tells the story of a Hollywood film crew that has come to an Irish village to make a movie; however, it isn’t the story of the interlopers but of the villagers who are hired on as extras. It’s a contrast between the dream makers and those who have lost theirs or are struggling to keep them alive. The two primary characters are Charlie Conlon played by Tom Reed who lost his Video Store business when a big chain came to his town. So he packed up and has been traveling around Ireland with his tent, he’s loving the 40 pounds a day pay and free meals, but his dream is to get someone on the set to read the screenplay he’s written. He’s befriended by Jake Quinn played by Reed Sigmund who has recently returned home to the village from America because he says got homesick, or perhaps America didn’t live up to his dreams. Now he’s back and on the dole living with his Ma and doesn’t know what to do or seem to have faith in himself.

There is a lot of humor played out through a rich tapestry of characters all played with amazing specitivity by Reed and Sigmund. Within seconds an actor will turn around, pop on a cap or throw a scarf around their head, and be another character. At some points there is a conversation happening between more than two characters, astonishingly the performers have made such clear distinctions between the characters that the audience is never lost. Charlie and Jake are the most fully formed characters and are played not only with great wit but with a real compassion and relatability. They are the emotional center and comedic heart of the play, their journey from extras to dreamers is as beautiful as it is hilarious. Two characters any actor would feel privileged to play and then to add another half dozen of so and it’s either maddenly hard work or joyfully fulfilling. Hopefully a nice helping of both. There are so many wonderful side characters male and female that they play and they do it with wonderful Irish accents and Hollywood self importance, depending on the role. The accents are thick at the beginning and for a minute you might be a little worried, but it takes approximately two and a half minutes to tune into them and then I had no trouble following the dialogue. It cannot be overstated how wonderful the performances are by Reed and Sigmund two truly gifted comedic actors at the top of the game in roles they were made to play.

The play written by Marie Jones is masterful in the way it brings characters in and out of scenes in a way that the two performers can play all the roles. Would it be as good if there were 12 actors? The story would hold up, but there is an element of joy that would be lost. There is something about watching actors working like this that just adds to the experience. Marcela Lorca Directs the play keeping everything moving and flowing beautifully. Blocking the actors so that we always know when they have changed characters might seem simple, but it’s essential that every change has a visual cue to the audience and Lorca does the work to make those clear and yet unobtrusive. A nice choice was to have the actors do bows as their different characters at the end, they each had some prop or costume piece that we came to identify them with but the body language also changed and even without any dialogue you knew for whom you were applauding. With so many character changes the set design like the costumes need to be simple and versatile and Benjamin Olsen as scenic Designer and Kathy Maxwell as the Projections Designer have found a way to accomplish this and still give us a sense of the place. The use of projection is used to provide the background not as a special effect. The choice to have Jason Hansen compose and perform the wonderful Irish soundtrack and to even have them interact slightly was a brilliant choice, between the accents, the setting, and the music you leave having felt like you just spent two hours in Ireland.

Stones in His Pockets runs through February 25th at Theater Latté Da in Northeast Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.latteda.org/stones-in-his-pockets