Whoosh! Finally Washes Up, But Not Out at History Theatre

(Foreground) Andrew Erskine Wheeler. (background) Danny Diamond, Brian Miller Photo by Rick Spaulding

They say good things come in threes, or is that deaths? Maybe it’s both. My point, and I may actually have one, we’ll get to in a bit. But first let me give you a little history of my experience with Whoosh!, which seems appropriate considering it deals with history and even more obviously it is playing at the History Theatre.

It was the 2022 Minnesota Fringe Festival, my first Fringe festival if you want all the sordid details. I was a fresh faced blogger wandering the festival, inexperienced in its worldly ways, and in that hotbed of creativity it seemed anything was possible. On day 9, I first encountered Andrew Erskine Wheeler’s Whoosh! and I awarded it The Stages of MN Fringe of the Day Award, back when that award meant even less than it does today.

That first incarnation was a fast-paced whirlwind that left the audience stunned and Wheeler dripping with perspiration. It also had the irresponsibly long title Whoosh! The Civil War Mythology of Michael Hickey and His Perilous Precipitation Over St. Anthony Falls!

At the 2023 Fringe Festival, I found myself standing in line with Wheeler. Recognizing him, I worked up the nerve to tell him how much my wife and I had enjoyed Whoosh! The Civil War Mythology of Michael Hickey and His Perilous Precipitation Over St. Anthony Falls! the previous year. Once I caught my breath (one should always practice saying that title at home before attempting it in public, you need to figure out where to take breaths). Wheeler, clearly having experienced this before with others, helped steady me and suggested I put my head between my knees until I felt like I could stand without passing out. Once the oxygen returned, he told me they were remounting Whoosh! later that month at the Mill City Museum. Naturally, I secured tickets for my wife, our daughter, one of her friends, and myself, and then shared the news with you faithful readers.

That version was longer, fleshed out the story, and added live musical accompaniment. It lost the high-wire intensity of the original’s breakneck 50-minute pace, where a thousand and one props and costume changes had to happen with surgical precision. But what we gained was depth. It wasn’t better or worse, just different. A zero-sum trade that pointed the way forward. I remember saying to someone at the time, it may have been my friend and fellow Twin Cities Theater Blogger Erica Skarohlid, who is also the Marketing Director at History Theatre, that this would be a perfect show for the History Theatre.

Which brings us to my third experience, now with the more health conscious title simply Whoosh! (still with the exclamation point, so you know it’s exciting). If I had a coherent point about things coming in threes, this is where it would all make sense. Or not. The real point is this: I’ve loved this show in every incarnation, but this one is the best.

By adding another 45 minutes, any sense of sacrificing the original’s momentum is gone. Instead, Whoosh! has fully graduated into what it always wanted to be. What began as a one-man tour-de-force packed with props has become a brilliantly designed, full length production that dazzles on every level.

Wheeler still delivers a masterclass performance, more than enough to captivate the audience all on its own. Everything added here only enriches what he does, nothing competes with him, it all supports him.

Whoosh! isn’t a musical, but music is now integral to its identity. The show is accompanied by Northern Shores which consists of Danny Diamond and Brian Miller, who perform traditional Irish acoustic music, sing, and even accompany Wheeler when he breaks into song, all in character.

That character is Michael Hickey, an Irish immigrant who arrives in America in the mid-1800s to join his older brother. They work as loggers before enlisting to fight in the Civil War. Hickey tells his story by leaping through time, always circling the infamous moment, the one where he becomes the only person to ever go over St. Anthony Falls and live. But this version makes it clear: the show is about far more than that moment. We gain a rich understanding of Hickey’s relationships, the war, his commanding officer, his struggles with alcohol, and the cultural forces shaping his life. And after the curtain call, a final revelation deepens those connections even further. The result is a beautifully intricate, emotionally resonant tapestry.

As with every iteration, the show is directed by Stages of MN favorite Allison Vincent, who opens the piece onto a broader canvas while never letting the focus drift from Wheeler. Every production addition serves the story, whether heightening spectacle or sharpening a joke.

And yes, that trip over the falls. This is the most significant new element, transforming a spectacular historical event into a truly spectacular theatrical moment. I won’t spoil it. Just know that every technical element here represents the best possible version of itself.

Erik Paulson’s multi-level set design marks a dramatic evolution from the original black box space, fluidly transforming into forests, battlefields, and the falls themselves. Brant Miller’s video design both establishes location and supports Hickey’s pointed commentary on cultural bias. Tony Stoeri’s lighting, Richard Graham’s sound design, Kirby Moore’s properties, and Mandi Johnson’s costumes are flawless, each contributing to a unified vision and a singular theatrical experience.

Whoosh! runs through February 22nd at History Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.historytheatre.com/2025-2026/whoosh

Watch the 2025 TCTB Awards on the latest episode of The Stages of MN YouTube Show!! https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp25YouTube

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Something Rotten Has Sold Out It’s Entire Run

The Cast of Unlabeled Theatre Company’s Production of Something Rotten

What did I think of Unlabeled Theatre Company’s production of Something Rotten!?
In a practical sense, it doesn’t matter, because as of opening night, the entire run is completely sold out. That’s a wonderful problem for any theater company to have. But Unlabeled Theatre Company isn’t just any theater company.

The company exists to create opportunities for adults with disabilities to participate in theater. Every role is performed by an actor who has a cognitive and/or physical disability or is neurodivergent, paired with a neurotypical Shadow Partner. Together, the two performers share the role, performing it in unison.

Right now, those of us who love theater are thinking a lot about the importance of art and its power to change the world. Sometimes those sentiments can feel grand, idealistic, or even a little naïve, especially when the world feels as bleak as it does right now. In moments like these, when we need art the most, our convictions can start to feel implausible.

Then you see a show like this.

It reminds you that change doesn’t always look big. Sometimes it’s small and precious, like changing one person’s understanding of what they are capable of. What they can do. What they can become. That’s what Unlabeled Theatre Company does: it creates possibility and hope.

On this night, the performance showed everyone in the room, but especially those on stage, what they could do. That may sound small, but for those who shared that moment, it was enormous. And the thing about small changes is that they ripple outward. It’s not just the people on stage whose worlds expand; it’s the person in the audience who recognizes themselves in someone performing. Who sees, through that person, that maybe they, too, can do something they were once made to believe they couldn’t.

At the beginning, I said it doesn’t matter what I thought of this show, but of course it does. You don’t need my review to convince you to see a show you can’t buy a ticket for. What I can do is this: I can tell you how beautiful this evening was. How it reminded me that there is still humanity among us. That there are people and organizations in a world that often feels flooded with cruelty who are choosing instead to lift others up.

Will this review sell another ticket? No, not this time. But maybe it sends you to their website. Maybe you subscribe to their newsletter so the next time they produce a show, you don’t miss it. Maybe it reminds you that there are forces in this world that aren’t trying to exclude or diminish, but to expand, to affirm, and to celebrate. To remind us that every person has value, and every person has something to share.

Everyone was great, and the standing ovation at the end wasn’t a “look what you did” moment. It was deeply felt and completely earned. We were genuinely entertained and moved by the music, the laughter, and the joy that radiated from the stage.

While you can’t see this production, I strongly encourage you to visit Unlabeled Theatre Company’s website and join their mailing list to stay connected to their work https://unlabeledtheatre.org/. I Hope you get to experience the magic of one of these performances, you will be amazed at the talent on stage.

If you’re able, consider making a donation to help them continue this vital mission.

Watch the 2025 TCTB Awards on the latest episode of The Stages of MN YouTube Show!! https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp25YouTube

Tubthumping Thursday is a Comedy Grab Bag Of Improv Hilarity at Bryant Lake Bowl Theater

On Monday, I caught one of my favorite improv shows, Off Book, at the Jungle Theater. If you’ve never seen it, their next show is March 2, and I highly recommend it. Off Book pairs actors who have memorized a script with improvisers who have absolutely no idea what the script is. Without fail, hilarity ensues. What does that have to do with Tubthumping Thursday? Well, one of the actors in Monday’s performance was Nissa Nordland, who happens to be one half of the Twin Cities improv duo Bury the Leads. Bury the Leads made up one-third of the bill at this month’s Tubthumping Thursday at Bryant Lake Bowl Theater.

This was my first time attending Tubthumping Thursday, a monthly comedy cabaret hosted by Cameron Cylkowski, who also performs with the group Secret Neighbors. The third act on the bill was Police Cop Detective PI. With the demise of Huge Theater a year ago, it’s been great to see other venues step up and make space for the wide variety of improvisers in the Twin Cities.

I won’t lie, I came to Tubthumping Thursday to see The Stages of MN favorites Nissa Nordland and Sam Landman. Their ongoing series (which they hope to eventually expand into an online show) centers on a pair of character actors named Clyde & Faye. Each performance offers another glimpse into the lives of these “not-the-leads” and their quest to finally land the part. As anyone familiar with Nordland and Landman’s work would expect, it’s excellent. They take audience suggestions and incorporate them into a scenario, in this case, being cast as the best friends of the main characters and required to film a sex scene together. Nordland and Landman keep things relatively clean, though a quick Google search of the audience suggestions tells a much filthier story.

What makes this series so compelling is the ongoing character development. At the end of this episode, because “episode” really feels like the right word, there seemed to be a spark between longtime friends Clyde and Faye. Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer before it, we may come for the jokes, but we stay for the character arcs and emotional bullseyes.

Secret Neighbors performed as a quartet led by Cylkowski, fellow company members include Courtney Miller, Cat Wright, Elizabeth Dunn, and Sean Yahn. After asking the audience a few opening questions, they spun those details into a series of funny situations and delightful tangents. Police Cop Detective PI, featuring Adam Fielitz and John Haynes, played cop partners on a stakeout. Both groups were excellent, and I’d happily check out any improv show featuring either of them on the bill.

Keep an eye out for all the unique and adventurous theater happening at Bryant Lake Bowl Theater by visiting https://www.bryantlakebowl.com/theater and subscribing to their newsletter. I always recommend arriving when the doors open,one hour before showtime, to snag a good seat and order dinner and a drink (or two). The food is great, and the beverage selection includes solid non-alcoholic options as well.

You can follow Bury the Leads on facebook to find out when and where they perform next, I do!

Watch the 2025 TCTB Awards on the latest episode of The Stages of MN YouTube Show!! https://bit.ly/TSOMNEp25YouTube

Plano Is a Fast Paced Darkly Humorous Journey Into Another Plane of Reality at Mixed Blood

Plano, the play by Will Arbery, falls under the heading of experimental theater, a phrase that can trigger flashbacks to previous traumas in much the same way the term performance art often does. This production marks the first full-length show from the new company Third Space Theater, which had a breakout hit with Breach at last year’s Minnesota Fringe Festival. Thankfully, the group of up-and-coming theater makers behind Third Space Theater weaponizes experimental theater as a way to engage and entertain the audience rather than alienate them.

Plano is a strange play that moves at breakneck speed, condensing time, sometimes within the space of a single sentence. Co-directors Alex Church and Em Adam Rosenberg guide the cast with a perfectly calibrated tone: not quite grounded in reality, but not completely detached from it either. That balance allows the increasingly unmoored narrative to unfold in a way that feels deliberate rather than chaotic.

The story focuses on three sisters, played by The Stages of MN newly minted “Must See” performer Stephanie Kahle, and what I suspect are future members of that club, Hannah Leatherbarrow and Mariabella Sorini. The sisters seem cursed in distinctly unsettling ways: one is married to a man who is clearly gay while her house is infested with slugs; another’s husband is abusive, and he multiplies; the third suffers from mysterious ailments. Their memories become their nightmares, and they move through them, interacting with and attempting to normalize the bizarre circumstances surrounding their lives.

The cast is impressive in how they mine humor from the dialogue purely through delivery. They never play a joke; instead, the laughter emerges naturally from their complete acceptance of the absurd. Beyond the three sisters, the cast includes Jennifer D’Lynn, Ben Qualley, Samuel Osborne-Huerta, and Michel Hundevad as a faceless ghost. Everyone is fully aligned tonally, contributing to the dreamlike, or perhaps nightmarishly unreal, quality of the piece.

Plano is a thinker. It’s the kind of show that will take days to fully process. And yet, it’s also immediately entertaining, I was able to write about how much I enjoyed it barely an hour after leaving the theater. At a brisk 85 minutes with no intermission, it flies by.

I highly recommend this production, and if you can, try to attend one of the performances that includes a preshow concert by co-director and choreographer Em Adam Rosenberg. It’s well worth arriving an extra half hour early. Those dates are January 9, 10, 12, 17, and 18.

Plano runs through January 18 at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis.
For more information and tickets, visit:
https://tix.gobo.show/events/event/r5FkUiiCpqF7daXpAl2N

Watch for the 2025 TCTB Awards to be announced on the next episode of The Stages of MN YouTube Show!!

The Stages of MN: Looking Back at the Year That Was 2025!

2025 has been a very eventful year for The Stages of MN. I want to thank you, faithful readers and now viewers, for being here. Knowing you’re out there reading and watching is what keeps me doing this. I especially want to thank those of you who come up to me at shows, introduce yourselves, and share your thoughts on what I’m putting out there. I love getting those photos together too, let’s try to ramp that up even more in 2026.

Of course, the biggest thing that happened in the world in 2025 was the launch of The Stages of MN YouTube Show and Podcast. On June 18, the first episode premiered, featuring an interview with Austene Van, Artistic Director of Yellow Tree Theatre. Since launching, I’ve released 24 full episodes as well as four mini-episodes covering the Minnesota Fringe Festival.

When I launched the show, I was unemployed and able to devote a lot of time to its creation. Even so, with the addition of the YouTube show, adjustments had to be made to accommodate the increased workload. After my application for more hours in the day was rejected, I determined that two things needed to happen: first, I needed to cut back on the number of shows I saw, and second, I needed to tighten things up. That became even more true once I acquired full-time employment. Easier said than done.

In 2024, I posted 147 blog entries, compared to 168 in 2025, though some of those were tied to episodes. The average word count per post in 2024 was 1,001 words, while 2025 saw a decrease to an average of 903, progress! Blog views grew from 72,200 in 2024 to 74,500 in 2025. Episodes of the YouTube show received 4,364 views in 2025, and the channel currently has 140 subscribers. The blog has 375 subscribers, up 160 from 2024.

Subscribers are wonderful, and we love them, but the vast majority of views come from social media. The site continues to grow steadily, which means more people are seeing the reviews, and hopefully more people are getting out to see live theater. Readers can help the site grow by following The Stages of MN on Facebook and Instagram. Like, share, and, why not subscribe? When you see a review you like, like it. When you see one you love, share it. Encourage friends to follow as well. The more visibility we have, the further the reach, and the more likely it is that someone who isn’t a regular theatergoer will stumble across a post and be inspired to check out a show.

Creating new audiences for live theater needs to be the objective of anyone in theater or anyone who loves theater. The second objective is to create or promote great theater, which hopefully leads to goal three: turning occasional theatergoers into regular theatergoers. I’m trying to do my part. I saw over 190 shows in 2025 and wrote reviews of 189 separate productions.

Now comes the moment where I share my Top Fives for 2025 in three categories: Touring Productions, Locally Produced Plays, and Locally Produced Musicals. These lists are not ranked; they are listed alphabetically.

The Stages of MN Top 5 Touring Productions:

& Juliet
Kimberly Akimbo
Life of Pi
Phantom of the Opera
The Wiz

The Stages of MN Top 5 Locally Produced Plays:

A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Guthrie)
Pride & Prejudice (Theatre in the Round)
Primary Trust (Guthrie)
Somewhere (Guthrie)
Three Sisters / No Sisters (Theatre Pro Rata)

The Stages of MN Top 5 Locally Produced Musicals:

Endometriosis: The Musical (Theatre in the Round)
Lizzie: The Rock Musical (Open Eye Theatre)
Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (Elision Playhouse)
Once on This Island (Artistry)
Whoa, Nellie! The Outlaw King of the Wild Middle West (History Theatre)

Every year I add a few performers to my personal “Must-See” list, actors, dancers, and singers who stood out over the course of the year. Sometimes they’re artists I’ve never seen before; other times they’ve moved from “I really like what they’re doing” to “I need to see everything they do.” A few of the names that already adorn that list: Tyler Michaels King, Max Wojtanowicz, Joy Dolo, Shanan Custer, Daniel Petzold, Em Adam Rosenberg, Jeffrey Nolan, Allison Vincent, Brendan Nelson Finn, Grace Hillmyer, and Noah Hynick, to name just a few.

Here are the additions to The Stages of MN Must-See List for 2025:

Tara Borman (Endometriosis: The Musical at Theatre in the Round; Rollicking! A Winter Carnival Musical at History Theatre)
Dustin Bronson (A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Guthrie; Love and Baseball at Artistry; Misery at Yellow Tree Theatre)
Antonisia Collins (Robin Hood at Zephyr Theatre; Once on This Island at Artistry)
Anna Hashizume (Grease at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres; My Fair Lady at Theater Latté Da)
Stephanie Kahle (The Crucible at Night Fire Theatre; Breach at MN Fringe; Pride & Prejudice at Theatre in the Round)
Nubia Monks (Paradise Blue at Penumbra Theatre; The Nacirema Society at the Guthrie; Primary Trust at the Guthrie)
Hawken Paul (Legacy of Light at Theatre in the Round; Bart and Arnie from Melancholics Anonymous; Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 at Elision Playhouse; multiple MN Fringe shows)

It was another great year for theater, and I’m very much looking forward to 2026. I hope you are as well. I write about theater and love it, but I’m not an extrovert. That said, I genuinely enjoy meeting readers and artists, so if you see me at a show, please stop over and say hi. Ask for a picture, and I’ll put you in the “At a Show With…” montage in future YouTube episodes.

The Stages of MN is always open to partnering with theaters to participate in or help facilitate pre- and post-show discussions or events. If that’s of interest, reach out. We’re also always looking for sponsors for the YouTube show. If you’re interested in sponsoring an episode, email me at robdunkelberger@thestagesofmn.com. You don’t have to be theater related, if you’re a reader or viewer with a business to promote, reach out and we’ll figure something out.

This year I also launched The Stages of MN +1 Club. I usually get two tickets to shows, but when a plus-one cancels or everyone’s busy, I text the +1 Club. Want in? Send me your name and phone number. When I have an extra ticket, I’ll text the group, and the first person to reply directly gets to come see a show with me for free. No group-text chaos allowed.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support, faithful readers and viewers. And now, in the immortal words of Carol Jackson:

“Go see a show!”

The Final Episode # 24 of The Stages of MN… Before The Holiday Hiatus. Five Reviews of Seasonal Shows

So I had my annual gathering of my friends from the North Pole this week, we had a great time, but they can be a bit much. Getting them all to sit still long enough to get the photo above was A Christmas Miracle! They wanted to know what I thought of all the holiday themed shows still playing around town. So I gave them the quick run down on five of them and thought I should share them with you faithful readers and viewers. So that is what this weeks episode is, 5 quick reviews! Enjoy and I’ll see you on the other side of New Years, when we’ll return with all new episodes of The Stages of MN. You can watch the episode here bit.ly/TSOMNEpisode24YouTube or listen to it here https://bit.ly/TSOMNEpisode24Podcast

Rollicking! A Winter Carnival Musical at History Theatre thru 12/21 https://www.historytheatre.com/2025-2026/rollicking-winter-carnival-musical A Christmas in ochopee from New Native Theatre runs from 12/3 thru 12/21 https://www.newnativetheatre.org/a-ch… A Christmas Carol…More or Less runs from 11/28 thru 12/28 at Yellow Tree Theatre https://yellowtreetheatre.com/christm… A Nice Family Christmas at Lyric Arts Through 12/21 https://www.lyricarts.org/nice-family-christmas A Double Feature of Free Pirate Musicals celebrating Fortune’s Fool Theatre at the Hive Collaborative through 12/21 https://fortunesfooltheatre.org/what-were-doing

Also we have one Final “At a Show With….” Segment before we close out the year. We’ll be back in early 2026 with more Stages of MN.

A Christmas Carol…More or Less, is Definitely More at Yellow Tree Theatre

A Christmas Carol… More or Less at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo turns out to be decidedly on the “more” side. When a small theater company’s entire cast and crew get snowed in after a ski outing, the theater’s owners, estranged husband and wife Charlie and Sarah, decide to perform the show themselves rather than refund the audience. Much like Dante Hicks, Charlie “isn’t even supposed to be there today.” The same closed mountain pass that traps the cast and crew is also preventing him from catching his flight to L.A., where he’s planning to move to write for Wheel of Fortune. After some arm-twisting, he agrees to Sarah’s plea to uphold the sacred tradition that “the show must go on.”

This isn’t my first two-person Christmas Carol—there’s another fantastic one called A Very Good Christmas Carol, written and performed by up-and-coming Twin Cities performers Jeffrey Nolan and Hawken Paul, which leans fully into the manic chaos of two people desperately trying to stage the entire story themselves. If you can’t get into this Yellow Tree production, absolutely check that one out: https://linktr.ee/AVeryGoodChristmas. It’s a laugh riot.

This version at Yellow Tree is certainly funny, but it also leans into the warmth and genuine emotion that a really strong Christmas Carol can evoke. The script gently chips away at the jadedness of two performers who’ve done the show countless times, revealing something unexpectedly heartfelt beneath the comedy.

Paul LaNave and Kate Beahen are wonderfully paired. Beahen is delightful as the determined theater-maker who simply refuses to quit. She’s game for anything, and while LaNave starts by only playing Scrooge (and a few other characters as he warms up), Beahen takes on nearly everyone else, unafraid to throw out a wild accent, a ridiculous walk, or a silly song. She’s disarmingly charming, broad when it needs to be, and surprisingly nuanced, layering disappointed wife, practical producer, and joyful performer into one compelling presence.

LaNave is equally strong, beautifully portraying a man worn down by the life of a starving artist, someone who has let the lure of financial security pull him away from what truly matters. As the performance unfolds, you can see the spark returning to his eyes; the show becomes, in a way, his own tale of redemption.

Will the night end with disappointing realism or a happy ending? You’ll have to come to Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo to find out. If you can, that is, at the time of this writing, the show is 96% sold out. Wait too long and you may find there are no tickets left… a nice problem for the theater, if not for audiences.

A Christmas Carol… More or Less runs through December 28 at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo.
For more information and tickets, visit https://yellowtreetheatre.com/christmascarol.