Twin Cities Horror Festival XIII Day One Reviews: The Wrench, Let’s Summon a Demon at Debbie’s, The Alchemist’s Bargain, and Doctor Clown

TCHF XIII actually launched a day early this year on Wednesday night with the sold out, one night only, Leslie Vincent Presents: A Monster and Mayhem Cabaret. I think everyone in the audience that night is of the firm belief that this is the way to open every TCHF going forward. Here’s hoping that is in the works for next year. The Festival shows of which there are 11, began on Thursday, each will have 5 performances throughout the 11 days of the festival. To see the schedule and purchase tickets to any of the shows go to https://www.tchorrorfestival.com/tchf-xiii.html . But don’t wait to long, shows have already sold out performances.

The Wrench is a play written by Andrew Erskine Wheeler Who’s Whoosh!… remains in my memory as a highlight of my very first Minnesota Fringe Festival. Here again he dives into a real life event, but this time there is a dark side. A group of actors, most of whom were present at the 1849 Astor Place Riot, have been hired for a new production of Macbeth. The story of their experience with the riot and how it left one of them with a traumatic brain injury is recounted to the young understudy who will have to go on as Lady Macbeth after the leading lady met with an accident. Interesting how often the Scottish Play and it’s curse has been coming up lately, just Sunday it was a very fun antidote in Patrick Page’s All the Devils Are Here at the Guthrie and those of us on the theater beat know of the series of accidents that have plagued Theater Latte Da’s production of Scotland, PA. Wheeler is great as Roscius Denue, who was trampled by horses during the riot and now speaks gibberish most of the time, but has perfect recall of the Shakespearean roles he played before the accident. There is also nice work from Carolyn Pool and Shanan Custer as two actresses that have aged out of the Lady Macbeth role and into the three witches.

Let’s Summon a Demon at Debbie’s is this years breakout hit, and it was so even before anyone saw it. By the time of the first performance four of its five performance slots have sold out. So if you are interested get online and get your tickets tonight, they will be sold out in the next day I’ve little doubt. Is it worthy of all the advance hype, yeah I think it is. The show opens on the home of Debbie, who lives with her menagerie of dolls whom she thinks of as her children. When her doorbell rings for the first time in 10 years and 27 days she is on her guard, but it turns out to be her old friend Cara, that she hasn’t seen in 25 years. Not since the day they and their friend Lucy tried to summon a demon in Debbie’s house during their senior year of high school. Is it scary? not really but it certainly has horrific elements. It’s really a pitch black comedy with some messed up stuff in it. Reagan Kay James is perfect as the uptight and slightly off her rocker doll loving Debbie. Julia Weiss as Cara wows us first by downing and entire bottle of wine in one drink, then with a story about catching her husband cheating on her that becomes more and more outrageous as it goes on and on, none of which can be repeated here for fear on violating some obscenity laws. Ashley Rose Wellman is Lucy whose entrance provides what is probably the plays one genuine moment of fright.

The Alchemist’s Bargain is a charming puppet show performed using blacklights, which really brought me back to my childhood, when you could get a blacklight bulb and blacklight posters at Spencers Gifts in the mall. I even had blacklight crayons that I used to color with and than look at using the blacklight. The story follows a man who seeks out a Alchemist who he hopes will be able to bring his true love back to life. The Alchemist sends the man on a quest to retrieve three ingredients that he will need in order to bring the loved one back. There is a lesson learned by the end but even if there wasn’t the journey itself is worth attending the show for. It’s a visual treat that ends with the alchemist’s trick. This is a great show for families, kids while marvel at the creativity of the medium, In fact so will their parents. I didn’t just enjoy myself, I was very much delighted by Phantom Chorus Theatre’s production. It’s a great example of the variety of styles and shows on view at the TCHF.

Doctor Clown is this years entry from Dangerous Productions. Typically the one show you can count on to be bloody and scary. Well, that is until this year, the blood is still there, but the scares have been replaced by laughs. Many of the laughs coming from the use of blood. Was I a little disappointed? yes, not because what they did wasn’t successful, it is. And it isn’t because it’s just a bunch of gross out humor, there is actually a fair amount of political and social commentary involved. No, it’s just that the one thing I’ve always found about the TCHF, and I do love the TCHF, is that very few of the shows actually even attempt to be scary. So it’s a little bit of a let down when the one company that can be relied upon to try and get the blood pumping, in more ways than one, doesn’t, at least, not in more ways than one. Of course the company should be allowed to do something different, and this clowning show if very well done. So it is a good show and my hope is that by setting your expectations accordingly you will be able to appreciate it more fully. If you have issues with blood and gore, this is not a show for you, it isn’t used to scare you but it could trigger a gag reflex or two all the same.

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All the Devils Are Here is a Masterclass in Shakespeare’s Villains at the Guthrie Theater

The Guthrie Theater opens it’s McGuire Proscenium Stage as the first stop for Octopus Theatricals national tour of Patrick Page’s All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain. Created and performed by the award winning actor of stage and screen Patrick Page who walks us through Shakespeare’s plays taking a look at nine of his villains, and how the role of the villain changed over the course of his career. Page is a mesmerizing performer who commands the stage from the moment the lights go up. Open and engaging warmly with the audience as he discusses his experiences with these roles, he slips easily into masterful performances from the plays and shows himself to be an excellent Shakespearean actor. Setting up each performance with a discussion of how each role added to the complexities of the archetype and showed Shakespeare’s maturation. For any fan of Shakespeare this is an essential production on the journey of understanding the artist and his works.

For a one person show that contains very few props or set pieces I must say this is a very well designed production. Everything is elegantly presented and the lighting design by Stacey Derosier is especially effective. Sound Designer Darron L West also adds some excellent little touches like the manipulation of Page’s voice as the three witches in Macbeth. My favorite story Page tells of his own experiences with Shakespeare’s plays revolves around Macbeth, which touches on the curse of the Scottish play. As many of you know our local production of Scotland, PA has been dealing with some injuries which may or may not have to do with the curse. In his performance of shakespeare characters, my favorites were Iago from Othello and Shylock from the Merchant of Venice. I appreciated Page’s explanation of the prejudices and other societal views from Shakespeare’s day. Explaining how things were so we can look at the characters through the lense of the time, but also pointing out that thankfully we know better now.

All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain runs through November 17th at the Guthrie Theater in Downtown Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/2024-2025-season/all-the-devils-are-here/

Tired of missing reviews from The Stages of MN? Do you find yourself left out when all your friends are talking about that great new play that you didn’t even know about? Never fear, that need never happen again. Now you too can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. No more hoping the algorithm works in your favor and you actually see a post on facebook or Instagram. No relying on so-called friends to tip you to the best shows in town. To subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. You can also follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn. You can also read some of my reviews syndicated on the MN Playlist website https://minnesotaplaylist.com/ from time to time.

Scotland, PA Sizzles at Theater Latté Da

Tara Borman, Will Dusek, Katherine Fried, Deidre Cochran Photo by Dan Norman

I saw the 2001 film Scotland, PA on which Theater Latté Da’s production is adapted from on DVD as soon as it was released. I had a small child at the time and getting out to the movies wasn’t in the cards very often. But I’d read about the film in a magazine and being a Shakespeare fan, I knew it was a film I needed to see as soon as Netflix* could get it to me. Plus, I had a bit of a screen crush on Maura Tierney who starred in the film. Now besides the basic idea and the knowledge that I liked it at the time, I’ve retained little else of the movie, which allowed me to view this musical version with relatively fresh eyes. Not that it would have mattered because something this fun cannot be spoiled by any amount of fore knowledge. Besides, in case you didn’t know it’s Shakespeare’s Macbeth update to 1970’s Pennsylvania set in a fast food restaurant. The twist in the stage adaptation is that it’s become a rockin’ musical! Faithful readers know that I love the front row, well the front row is pretty loud at this one, but I loved it anyway. Who knew taking Shakespeare aging it to 1975, adding a heavy portion of rock music, a pinch of cocaine, a puff of pot, and putting it between two sesame seed buns would make such a delicious recipe?

If you’ve seen the news there has been a certain amount of tragedy surrounding this show, leading to rumors that the curse of the Scottish play has reared its head once again. Multiple cast members had to be replaced due to injuries resulting in an entire weekends shows being cancelled. Thankfully, as far as I know no one was mortally wounded, and we hope everyone recovers quickly and fully. Theater Latté Da has announced that they have extended the run of the show through the last weekend in October. As for curses, that’s strictly a backstage thing clearly because this show is fantastically entertaining. I know the cast has jostled around quite a bit but it’s hard to imagine anyone else in any of these roles. But before we get to the cast, a quick word of praise about the Production itself. I loved every aspect of the design and there are some things that shocked me with their brilliance that I’m not sure who to credit, and I don’t want to spoil the surprise for you who have yet to see it. So simply let me say that the works of all of the following artists contribute to immensely to the success of this show. Scenic Designer Mina Kinukawa, Costume Designer Zamora Simmons-Stiles, Lighting Designer Grant E. Merges, Sound Designer Kevin Springer, Hair; Wigs; and Makeup Designer Emma Gustafson, and Prop Designer Madelaine Foster. All of these technical and creative departments are perfectly in sync under Directors Lonny Price and Matt Cowart who make this production sing along with Musical Director Joshua Zecher-Ross. And putting that music to good use are Choreographers Lorin Latarro & Travis Waldschmidt.

Let’s start with the three Stoners who replace the three Witches in Macbeth, we have Tara Borman whom I’ve admired as an actor in previous shows, but I’m not sure I’d ever heard her sing front and center like she does here and she has a gorgeous voice, which only adds to the hilarity of her comedic performance by contrast. We also get Deidre Cochran and Eric Morris as the other two stoners and if you didn’t know they could sing, I’m not sure what rock you’ve been living under but welcome to the party! The leads are Will Dusek who recently played Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys as Mac, and his girlfriend Pat is played by Katherine Fried who absolutely bowled me over last spring as Percy in The Spitfire Grill. They both give their all again here and besides sounding great they bring the desperation and guilt to life quite believably. Stages of MN favorite Tom Reed, who inherited the role of Banko, Mac’s clueless best friend, plays it such that you cannot imagine anyone but Reed in the role, he gets the best song in Act 1 “Kick-Ass Party”. The best song in Act 2 is “Why I Love Football” it’s sung by Joshua Row who plays Malcolm. Row doesn’t have a lot of credits yet, but I think he is one to watch and expect big things from. As the Vegetarian police inspector Peg McDuff is Emily Gunyou Halaas who doesn’t really enter until Act 2 but makes her mark all the same. Other roles are filled by the always dependable Carl Swanson who plays three different smaller roles, all unique and they get some of the best one liners. With Kim Kivens and Timothy Thomas also doing great character work, it really feels like the perfect actor in every role.

Scotland, PA runs through October 27th at Theater Latté Da in North Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.latteda.org/scotland-pa

* Netflix began as a video rental service that sent movies on DVD through the mail. This was before the age of streaming also known as the golden age of physical media.

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Measure For Measure is Must See Shakespeare From the Birth Play Project at A-Mill Artists Loft

Measure for Measure is one of Shakespeare’s lesser known plays. I’ve never seen it performed before and have no recollection of skipping it if it has been performed locally in recent years. The play is usually given a pass as one of Shakespeare’s problem plays. Is it a comedy or is it a tragedy, what happens exactly at the end and as the cast performing this production acknowledges, there are some twists and convolutions that nobody understands why they are included. Based on this one exposure to Measure for Measure I think this may be Shakespeare inventing the black comedy. The great thing about Shakespeare is that all the plays are around 400 years old, they’re in the public domain baby! You can do whatever you want with them, that’s how we get a Hamlet adaptation entitled Strange Brew and Henry IV as My Own Private Idaho. You can cut, rearrange, add to, completely modernize, and even set it on a Forbidden Planet. The Birth Play Project’s adaptation by Madeline Wall & William Edson embraces that freedom and comes up with a captivating production that feels like a Ten Thousand Things Shakespeare production. That is some very nice company to be in and The Birth Play Project earns their place at the table.

The play opens with Vienna’s Duke Vincentio placing Angelo in charge when she has to leave the city. She doesn’t actually leave though but disguises herself as a nun in order to observe Angelo and the citizens without their knowledge. Angelo, mad with power, decrees that anyone having sex out of wedlock will be put to death. The first offender is Claudio and his lover Juliet, who he is in the process of marrying and is pregnant. Claudio’s sister Isabella comes to plead with Angelo for Claudio’s life. This scene is where the show really clicked for me. Isabella Dunsieth who plays Isabella and Madeline Wall who plays Angelo debate back and forth like a slightly more serious Benedict and Beatrice. Angelo falls for Isabella, who is in the process of taking her vows to become a nun. All comparisons to that “will they or won’t they” couple end abruptly when Angelo agrees to let Claudio live if Isabella will sleep with her (Did I mention there is a lot of gender swapping in this production?). Isabella relays the information to Claudio who expresses his feelings that dying is worse than losing your virginity. Isabella is assisted by a nun, really the Duke in disguise, and it is arranged that Angelo will have sex with someone else thinking it is Isabella. After having her way with Isabella’s stand in, Angelo changes her mind and orders Claudios head to be cut off immediately. Again the Duke in disguise intervenes and another prisoners head is cut off instead. Can you kind of see why this is a Problem play? The twists and turns and convolutions are right out of his comedies, except instead of pretending to be a servant and wooing a princess, they are swapping people to be beheaded. It’s absurd and also very very dark. I didn’t even mention the live birth, that you almost sort of witness.

I absolutely loved what Wall and Edson who also co-directed the play did with this adaptation. Likewise the cast is excellent and embraces the weirdness of the play and all its twists and odd turns. They do two things that are crucial in a good Shakespeare performance. The first is you need actors who can speak the language so that it makes sense to the audience, everyone does so here. Secondly they need to not only make it understood but breathe fresh air into it, which they also accomplish admirably. The big surprise for me was Isabella Dunsieth, who I feel I know primarily for her work in the Brave New Workshop shows such as No Country For Two Old which she is currently also appearing in. Here she speaks shakespeare’s language as if it were her first, which being english I guess it probably was… but you know what I mean, she’s a natural. Edson and Wall both do triple duty not only adapting and directing but also acting in the show. Wall is Angelo and the sparks that fly as Isabella and Angelo debate are electric. Edson plays Claudio and makes a good argument himself when pleading for his life. There are too many cast members to go through them all, but trust me there is no weak link in this chain of performers.

This is a great opportunity to see a little produced play from Shakespeare. One can see why it’s not often staged, because it takes a very special theater company like The Birth Play Project to make it come alive like this. I suspect I will never see a better production of Measure for Measure and as such I highly recommend you see it while you can. Measure for Measure has three more performances at various location for tickets go to https://linktr.ee/birthplayproject.

William Shakespeare’s King Lear Lets the Crazy Flow at Theatre in the Round

Being a Shakespeare fan, I myself find it odd that I’d never read or seen the King Lear produced. I knew the plot had to deal with a King who gets upset with his daughters, but that was about it. I had no idea that it was the template for The Jerry Springer Show. There are very few characters who are not either mad or really really mean. If you are not either of those things, chances are you’ll get your eyes gouged out or something along those lines. The only chance you have if you’re sane is to disguise yourself as someone of a lower class. Thankfully with everyone else being mad, a little makeup and a change of clothes is enough to convince people you know well that you’re someone else entirely. When you go, and you should go, be sure to pick up one of the yellow sheets at the entrance of the theater it’s a little guide to the play, that will help you follow things a little easier. With probably about an hours worth of cuts made to the play, I think the guide is useful and much appreciated.

The play opens with King Lear proclaiming that he’s going to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, Goneril, Regan, and his favorite Cordelia. He asks them each to tell how much they love him, Goneril and Regan flatter him sickeningly and he bestows a third of his kingdom on each of them and their husbands. Cordelia, tells him she loves him but doesn’t go overboard and this angers the King. So he banishes her and gives her third to the other two daughters. It isn’t long before the King who is clearly losing his cognitive abilities is being treated horribly by his remaining daughters and is eventually left to fend for himself in a raging storm. The Earl of Gloucester who in the B plot has two sons, Edgar who is honorable and Edmund who is a villian. Edmund has his evil fingers in everybody’s pies, convincing their father that Edgar is plotting to kill him and making romantic advances on both Goneril and Regan. Gloucester gives aid to the King and for this, the sisters have his eyes gouged out, on stage. In an ironic turn of events it seems that everyone who is practicing a deception in terms of who they are, are the only true and honest people in the play. The villains are all out in the open, even if some of their tricks are done behind peoples backs.

Lear is played by Meri Golden and she does an excellent job in the role. Her manic pacing and constant movement is a nice physical expression of the Kings restless and unmoored mind. Tim Perfect is well cast as the Earl of Gloucester he brings an air of nobility to the role of what is probably the most honorable character in the play. Luke Langfeldt as his evil son Edmund is perfectly sneary, the kind of villain you want to boo whenever he appears. Langfeldt seems to be having a great time with the role. Taylor Evans does a nice job as Edgar and especially when he is in disguise as “Poor Tom” a mad beggar that the King befriends. I also really enjoyed the work of Danny Kristian Vopava as the King’s Fool, while a lot of his lines aren’t funny, the spin he puts on his line readings are. Patti Gage, Deanne McDonald, and Olivia Denninger as Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia do a nice job as well particularly Gage and McDonald who get more stage time and are meatier female characters than we usually get in Shakespeare. It seems to me that the three sisters could be the inspiration for Cinderella and her two evil step sisters.

The production is directed by George M. Roesler and It moves along at a nice pace, but there are definitely some staging issues. Several scenes took place in the upper areas of the audience, almost directly behind me, It was impossible to see what was happening from my seats. The set design is by Greg Vanselow is simple which allows it to be versatile, there is no need for any scene changes, characters can just exit and enter and we are in a new location. The heavy lifting is done with great panache by Lighting Designer Mark Kieffer and Sound Designer Robert Hoffman. Their creation of the raging storm is a highlight for the lighting and sound.

King Lear runs through October 6th at Theatre in the Round Players in Minneapolis for more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/king-lear/

Minnesota Fringe Festival Day 11: “Looking for Justice”, “Two Bowls of Cereal and Some Bacon”, “The Princess Strikes Back”, “Dream of Me”, “Juliet & Juliet: Improvised Shakespeare” The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award Winner, and “The Greenhouse”.

Here we are at the final day’s reviews of the 31st Minnesota Fringe Festival. Thanks for reading along and I hope it led you to some of the better shows of the festival. I saw more shows this year than last, but I’ll save all of that for a final Fringe post later in the week. For now here are the final six reviews, enjoy!

Looking for Justice (in all the wrong places) is an exploration of the grey areas in the justice system. Examining this idea through creator Amy Oppenheimer’s personal relationship and involvement in the rape trial of a friend in 1970. Her solo show while not dynamic in delivery is well constructed and reasoned. Her legal mind clearly influencing her desire to examine events from multiple perspectives. There is humor but it is well measured and helps to keep the serious content from becoming emotionally overwhelming. Which allows us to process Oppenheimer’s arguments and, while not quite conclusions, her questions.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/looking-for-justice-in-all-the-wrong-places-

Two Bowls of Cereal and Some Bacon, Mahmoud Hakima’s show about growing up with an abusive stepfather is powerfully and bravely told. Scenes of familial trauma are intercut with the story of a mystery girl who befriended him in the 3rd grade. The unresolved aspects of that character reminds us that we never know what is happening in anyone else’s life at anytime. The title is used to draw a comparison between himself and the mystery girl, but her eventual disappearance begs the question, are their home lives more similar than either could know? The story of abuse is often the story of silence, this show explores some of what the silence may be hiding.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/two-bowls-of-cereal-and-some-bacon

The Princess Strikes Back: One Woman’s Search for the Space Cowboy of her Dreams is traveling artist Victoria Montalbano solo show that walks us through her relationship history and search for her own Han Solo. Seeing herself as Princes Leia she covers the ups and downs of her love live from her first stirrings of sexual desire, seeing The Empire Strikes Back‘s kiss between Han and Leia to online dating. Everything is filtered humorously through the lens of Star Wars like her second serious relationship in which she was R2D2 to his C3PO. The humor isn’t the deflective kind we sometimes see in solo shows where the performer is confronting their lack of romantic success but used to put things in perspective and to entertain in an honest and yes, brave way.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/the-princess-strikes-back-one-woman-s-search-for-the-space-cowboy-of-her-dreams

Dream of Me is a sci-fi story about the extremes we will go to in order to hold onto those we love. Catherine Hansen plays Mia a woman whose husband Nick, played by Eric B Jacobson, has died while out running an errand. Natalie Rae Wass, who is also really good in Yo-Ho-Hum: A Pirate’s Midlife Crisis, here plays Mia’s friend Tanna who is working on a new invention that will allow the wearer to control their dreams. Mia is unable to process her grief and asks Tanna to let her test her invention so that she can dream about Nick and say her goodbyes. But once isn’t enough and as things progress we begin to wonder if these are dreams or if the AI behind the tech is up to something else. The three actors give wonderful performances in a story that turns from romantic fantasy into a cautionary horror story. Well written, designed, directed, and even choreographed.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/dream-of-me

Juliet & Juliet: Improvised Shakespeare is The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award winner for Day 11. The two Shakespearean Improvisors Meghan Wolff & Sami Haeli spend 50 minutes using a few suggestions from the audience to create a play in the style of William Shakespeare. Obviously as with other improv shows this will be different each time you see it. What I don’t imagine changes that much is the hilarity with which Wolff and Haeli execute their specific form of comedy. They have the vocabulary down as they must in order to so eloquently execute the heightened style of speech. They clearly have some sort of psychic link between them as there is never once, one of those moments that most all improv shows have, where you can tell one performer is not getting across where they want a scene to go to their scene partner. An impressive high wire act of comedy that I’d love to experience again.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/juliet-juliet-improvised-shakespeare

The Greenhouse is kind of a weird show, which made it a great ending to my 2024 Fringe. What is the Fringe festival but a way to embrace and explore weirdness in all it’s artistic variables. The story concerns a cult set in a not too distant future. A young woman arrives just as an elder of the cult has decided it is time for them to pass away. The Cult is based around the protection and nurturing of plants they strive to maintain a balance within their community. As such a new person cannot join until some else has died. This sounds like it will go to a dark place, but it doesn’t. The cult is not portrayed as bad, but there is a complication with the passing of the elder and the newcomer, she is pregnant and one cannot be replaced by two. The cast does a nice job of performing so that the cult members are recognized as well intentioned and the new comer is the one acting suspiciously. Standouts in the cast include Georgia Doolittle as “Mother” and Vivian Kampschroer as Poppy the cult’s talented and committed botanist.

https://minnesotafringe.org/shows/2024/the-greenhouse

That’s the reviews from Day 11 of the Minnesota Fringe Festival. Be sure to check back later in the week for my 2024 Minnesota Fringe wrap up! Also be sure to follow M’ Colleagues, Jill Schafer at http://www.cherryandspoon.com/ for show reviews and for other Fringe writings checkout our friend and fellow Twin Cities Theater Blogger Kendra Plant’s blog Artfully Engaging at https://www.kendraplant.com/blog-artfully-engaging.

Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare at the Pub From The Gray Mallard Theater Co.

Running through July 28th at Sociable Cider Werks is The Gray Mallard Theater Co.’s Shakespeare at the pub production of Romeo and Juliet. It’s free to all, best to bring your own chairs but if you get there early enough they have some provided. There is a food truck onsite and a wide range of beverages both with and without alcohol. I came to the show for two reasons, Shakespeare and Em Rosenberg, who is playing Romeo, in the production. Faithful readers will remember that Rosenberg has been on my ones to watch list for sometime now. Listeners to Twin Cities Theater Chat may remember hearing me interview them for one of our episodes around the Guthrie’s History plays in which they played multiple roles in each of the three plays. Once again Rosenberg doesn’t disappoint, headlining a very well paced production directed by Gray Mallard Artistic Director Amanda Fuller. It’s a little like a less controlled version of a Ten Thousand Things performance very bare bones in terms of costumes, props, and set, just what is needed to tell the story. It’s rough around the edges but also extremely fluid, giving it a dangerous and lively energy that works really well in this nontraditional performance space. The focus is on the performances and the language

The truest sign of a good Shakespearean actor is how well a modern audience can understand the language. A great performer will be able to communicate the text to the audience, whether we know the words or not, they will make the meaning clear. There is a lot of use of hand gestures and physical work being done to communicate the meaning of the lines and frequently bring added humor, some of it delightfully risque. There are a lot of wonderful performances starting of course with Em Rosenberg’s Romeo. I think this was my fifth Shakespeare play with Rosenberg in the cast but certainly the largest single role. They are as natural a communicator of Shakespeare’s work as I’ve ever seen, whether wooing Juliet, joking around with his friends, or shouting at the stars their performance is always captivating and precise. Caiti Fallon and Kamani Graham start the show off on the perfect note. Letting the audience know from their movements, costume, and tone of their line readings that while certainly this is a tragedy, we are still going to have some fun with this production. Alessandra Bongiardina as Juliet is a nice fit with Rosenberg’s Romeo, they have a chemistry that helps a modern audience accept some of their choices as natural responses given their connection and maturity. Davis Brinker as Benvolio comes across as one of the guys but the one with the cooler head on his shoulders, while Zach Lerner’s Tybalt and Cooper Lajeunesse’s Mercutio are entertainingly hot headed. I really enjoyed Tony Larkin and Cathleen Fuller as the lovers co conspirators Friar Laurence and the Nurse, being the two adult characters that seemed to have more than a little common sense when trying to temper Romeo and Juliet’s impulses.

A very enjoyable production of Romeo and Juliet, a fun way to spend a summer evening out of doors and you can’t beat the ticket prices. For more information about the show which runs through July 28th or to make a donation to The Gray Mallard Theater Co. go to https://bit.ly/TheGrayMallardTheaterCo

Tired of missing reviews from The Stages of MN? Do you find yourself left out when all your friends are talking about that great new play that you didn’t even know about? Never fear that never has to happen again. Now you too can subscribe and have every post from The Stages of MN sent directly to your email box. No more hoping the algorithm works in your favor and you actually see a post on facebook or Instagram. No relying on so-called friends to tip you to the best shows in town. To subscribe on your computer: from the home page on the right, enter your email address and click subscribe. On your mobile device scroll to the bottom of the page and do the same. You can also follow me on Facebook, @thestagesofmn click follow and on Instagram thestagesofmn. You can also read some of my reviews syndicated on the MN Playlist website https://minnesotaplaylist.com/ from time to time.