SIX Makes a Spectacular Return to the Ordway! I’ll Rock Out With These Divas Everytime They Come to Town

The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts is simply a better venue for seeing Broadway touring shows than the Orpheum in Minneapolis. The acoustics are better, the seats are more comfortable, and there’s more legroom. But because of its larger seating capacity, most big Broadway tours land at the Orpheum, at least the first time through town.

SIX flipped that script.

Typically, a show opens on Broadway, launches a tour, and five times out of SIX, that tour plays the Orpheum. Not this time. For the first time in the Ordway’s history, SIX went from the Ordway to Broadway. So yes, it’s a show about history that also made a little history of its own.

Now the North American touring company is back for a third time at the Ordway for a two-week run, and honestly, it feels like this show has found its Twin Cities home. I couldn’t be happier. I love this show, and I’m grateful to see it in the more comfortable venue. I caught SIX during its initial Ordway run and was blown away. I’ve been back for all three of it’s touring runs as well. From the moment the curtain rises, the audience is cheering, clapping, and fully locked in. This isn’t your typical musical, it’s more like a full on pop concert featuring six historically kick-ass divas.

The title refers, of course, to the six wives of Henry VIII. Each queen tells her story in the form of a song in a singing competition, with the audience deciding who had the worst marriage. It’s history, reframed as a pop concert, funny, smart, and packed with energy. The show runs about 80 minutes with no intermission, but you won’t miss it, you’ll be too busy rocking out.

Each queen’s song is inspired by different pop icons like Beyoncé, Avril Lavigne, Adele, Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, Alicia Keys, to name SIX. The costumes follow suit. But while the influences are clear, the songs themselves are original, written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, and honestly, most could live comfortably on today’s pop charts. The lyrics are packed with clever wordplay, from the layered counting in the finale “Six” to lines like “Too Many Years Lost in HIStory.” This is a cast album that rewards repeat listens, there’s a lot packed in there.

The set is simple: steps, band platforms, and a light-up framework, but it’s used brilliantly. At one point, Henry’s choosing his next wife like he’s on a life-sized Tinder app, swipe left, and the queen literally exits left as her frame glows red. In another moment, the frames transform into stained glass windows, complete with a glowing cross. Simple ideas, executed smartly.

I’ve been listening to this score on and off for six years now, and every song has stuck with me. The cast is uniformly excellent, so much so that singling anyone out feels like missing the point of the show. Each performer creates a distinct, fully realized character, reminding us that these women were individuals, not just “the six wives of Henry VIII.” This touring cast features Emma Elizabeth Smith, Nella Cole, Kelly Denice Taylor, Hailey Alexis Lewis, Alizé Cruz, and Tasia Jungbauer, and they’re all fantastic.

Onstage with them are the Ladies in Waiting, the four-piece band that keeps everything driving forward: Valerie Maze (conductor/keys), Yonít Spiegelman (bass), Rose Laguana (guitar), and Camila Mennitte Pereyra (drums). And man, are they ever tight.

Beyond the fun, the show lands a clear point. It reframes these women through a modern lens, pushing back against the way history reduces them to a numbered list. They were real people, not just wives one through SIX. And when we treat them that way, we’re echoing the same patriarchal mindset that defined their lives in the first place. Unfortunately, that mindset doesn’t feel entirely like ancient history, even more so here in 2026, than it did when it opened.

Like Hamilton, SIX uses our modern perspective and contemporary music to illuminate the past, making it fresh and relevant again. See it now, before someone decides a show suggesting that women are people is too woke. And beyond musical theater fans, this is a fantastic show to bring your daughters to. I did. It’s empowering, entertaining, and might just spark some curiosity about the history behind it.

It’s Bring Your Daughter to the Theater Week

SIX runs through June 28th at the Ordway. For more information and to grab tickets, visit https://ordway.org/events/six/

If this sounds familiar, one, you have a great memory. And two, this review has been adapted from my previous takes on SIX.

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Perfect Arrangement is Perfectly Fabulous and Pride Complimentary From Walking Shadow Theatre Company

Elora Riley and Rachel Postle Photo courtesy of Walking Shadow Theatre Company

I saw a previous production of Perfect Arrangement at Theatre in the Round in 2022, so I already knew the plot. The setup: two married couples, one gay and one lesbian, who marry each other as cover in 1950 Washington, D.C. They live next door in an apartment building and have even created a secret passage through a shared closet. When someone “comes out of the closet,” it’s literally just a stage entrance. The kicker? The husband of one couple and the wife of the other work for the State Department, rooting out Communists, and anyone else deemed vulnerable to blackmail, including alcoholics and those with so-called “deviant” secrets, like homosexuals.

What I had forgotten over the years was the play’s style. It opens with the two couples hosting the State Department boss and his wife Kitty for dinner, staged like a perfect 1950s sitcom complete with dialogue that feels like product placement. The moment the guests leave, the sitcom drops away and the characters become real people. I absolutely love that juxtaposition between their polished public lives and their private reality. Director John Heimbuch and his cast know just the right tone to hit, and exactly the right time to turn the phony ’50s façade on and off. (That last line works better read aloud.) A lot of the humor comes from our collective pop culture memories of that era. Even the set is intentionally a recreation of the I Love Lucy set.

The core four: Theo Janke-Furman, Rachel Postle, Elora Riley, and Joe Swanson, are all terrific, and they look it thanks to Mandi Johnson’s fabulous costumes. But I especially want to shout out a couple of supporting players. Julie Ann Nevill, as Kitty, never seems to drop her dim-witted boss’s wife routine, playing it for laughs while still letting a hint of humanity peek through. And Lily Rains, making her Minnesota stage debut, is terrific as Barbara Grant, a sharp, complicated woman with many bedfellows and a target on her back. She’s got a presence and intelligence that fit this shrewd character perfectly. After this, I’ll be keeping an eye out for her future roles, I think we just got another star to add to the Twin Cities skyline.

This review is a little shorter than usual because the run is almost over, and I want you to read this and get your tickets before it closes on June 21st. Even if you saw the TRP production, you’ll want to catch this one. As good as that was, this goes to another level. Sharp, witty, and immaculately dressed, this production is basically must-see TV, just happening live on stage.

Perfect Arrangement runs through June 21st at The Crane Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit https://walkingshadow.org/perfect-arrangement/

Come From Away Will Stop the World at Guthrie Theater and Transport You to Where The World Has Come Together

The cast of Come From Away Photo by Dan Norman

This was my fourth time seeing Come From Away (fifth if you count the Apple TV version), and somehow it keeps hitting harder. There is something very, very special about this show. My first two experiences were the original tour at the Orpheum, where the cast was dropping like flies from COVID and reinforcements were being flown in from all over the country, touring casts, Broadway understudies, maybe even a few folks who had just recently left the show and still knew the tracks. Which, honestly, feels completely in the spirit of Come From Away. Then came the Ordway’s chance to host the tour. Now the Guthrie gives us the first local production, and it’s my favorite of the bunch. If you’ve never seen it, now is the time.

If you somehow don’t know it, the show tells the true story of nearly 7,000 airline passengers diverted to Gander, Newfoundland, on 9/11, and the small town that took them in. Yes, it deals with that day, but this isn’t a downer. It acknowledges the trauma, but also shows us the resilience and compassion that saw us through that dark time. You’ll feel the weight of it, but I assure you this is a musical that uplifts the audience. The painful moments come, but the emotions we feel are cathartic.

The Cast From Come From Away Photo by Dan Norman

Why does this production outshine the Broadway touring productions? I think there are a couple of things at play here. First is that, as powerful as the show has been since its first performance, the kindness and selflessness at its heart feel all the more profound given the current trajectory of the world. I grew up hearing my parents and people of their generation talk about where they were when JFK was assassinated. For my generation, that cultural touchstone is 9/11. At a time when the world often feels divided, seeing this moment, when people came together to support one another, lands with even greater impact. There are also scenes that touch on our darker tendencies, including the seeds of xenophobia that 9/11 planted. But it never loses sight of what people can be at their best.

This is a show about community, a community that comes together to take in these stranded souls. The community of Islanders and those “from away” that forms over the five days in which they are thrown together. You see it in the way actors flew in from all over the country during that first tour visit at the Orpheum. And maybe community is another reason this production is so great. I look around the stage and see all of these people I’ve been watching, writing about, and sometimes even interviewing over the last seven years. I see the community I’ve become a part of. It’s our community telling this story now, and that adds something extra. I see actors I’ve followed and sung the praises of, bringing this show to life. I’m moved, as always, by their talent. There is the added thrill of seeing some of them at the Guthrie for the first time.

Local favorites making their Guthrie debuts include Matthew Hall, who must be on leave from Guys and Dolls out at Chanhassen, where he brought the house down with his performance of “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat.” He’s terrific here as well. We also have Kate Beahen and Jennifer Grimm, both stellar in their Guthrie debuts.

Then there are familiar local favorites like Eric Morris, who is terrific as the Mayor; Katie Bradley, Jon Hegge, Jim Lichtscheidl, Ann Michels, and a seriously unrecognizable Angela Timberman. The cast is just amazing, including some out-of-towners, especially Soara-Joye Ross as Beverley, one of the airplane pilots.

I have to hand it to the Guthrie’s Resident Casting Director, Jennifer Liestman, not just for finding the perfect cast, but for giving so many of our local favorites their Guthrie debuts. We only have three non-locals in the cast, and they are perfect in their roles: Soara-Joye Ross, Evan Balasubramaniam, and Justin Keyes.

Director Kent Gash keeps the whole thing moving at breakneck speed. It runs without intermission, and from the moment it starts, it doesn’t stop to breathe, except for a brief technical hiccup right after “In the Bar/Heave Away,” but they reset and jumped right back in. Honestly? Since “Heave Away” is one of my favorite moments, it felt like a bonus round. No complaints here

Before I sign off, I have to acknowledge the musicians and Musical Director J. Oconer Navarro. If you are one of those low-down weasels who slinks out during the curtain call, I’ll warn you not to this time. Seeing the band join the cast onstage and get some appreciation as they jam is the cherry on top of this delicious musical. And while I’m on the subject, I’ll just say this: I think it’s a classless thing to leave without applauding the performers who just spent an evening doing their best to entertain you. Stay, clap, be a decent human. I have to go home and usually stay up writing until the review is done and posted, and I would never consider behaving like that. Just had to say it, its been building up for a while, and Come From Away inspires that kind of cathartic release.

Come From Away uses music to weave a tapestry that taps into our collective trauma and allows us to face it through the humanity of people forced together, who rose up and found the best in themselves. There is a running bit where the Newfoundlanders say you’d do the same. Would I? would you? I’m guessing yes. Would our country? absolutely not. I think we would have in 2001, but Trump would likely refuse to let any plans land in the US if this happened elsewhere. Come From Away runs through August 9th at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.guthrietheater.org/whats-on/come-from-away/

Midsummer Night’s Dream, Thumbs and Bottoms Up For This Production From The Modern Rep

*David Michaeli, Bryce Baxter, Richard Rigmaiden, Leo Rossmiller, and Jonathan Edwards* *Photo by Molly Jay Photography*

The Modern Rep Theatre Company’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is performed both as it would have been in Shakespeare’s day and unlike anything you would have seen in Shakespeare’s day. When the plays were first produced, all the roles on stage were played by men, as women were not allowed to act in the theater. In this way, this is a very faithful performance, as all the roles are played by men. One of the great things about Shakespeare is that 400 years on, groups can perform the plays and bend them to their will. This production is certainly bent, as the company’s website describes it, “messy, sexy, and very gay.”

I like a production that takes chances and finds interesting new ways to speak Shakespeare’s text. I also appreciate a traditional staging, and I’m grateful that my first exposure to the play on stage was The Guthrie’s wonderful production in 2024. I saw that production twice, which I think allowed me to enjoy this one more thoroughly. I had a solid understanding of the plot and the characters, so I never felt lost. A familiarity with the play also helped me to spot the departures, which can be subtle and clever, and usually rather blew (or blue, I mean).

The cast is great, and they run their Bottoms off, each playing at least three roles. They really seem to feel at home in the roles of the fairies of the forest, but are just as good as the amateur actors and the four young lovers. They are capable of doing the one thing you must do when performing Shakespeare: whether you are in Elizabethan costumes or dressed as barn animals, you have to speak the language so that the audience can understand it. I’m not talking about enunciation, I’m talking about meaning. The audience needs to understand the meaning behind what they say, even if they don’t know what every word means.

I very much enjoyed this show, but there are a few things you need to know before you go. For some reason, this theater company believes there must be an element of discomfort for the audience. In their first production, Salomé, they opened a large garage door to the outside for extended periods during a particularly cold stretch in late February. In this production, the seating is on metal bleachers with no backrests. If you have a bleacher seat (thank God we did), bring it with you. The show runs nearly two hours without an intermission, depending on your fitness level, that’s a long time to sit without back support.

There are a few other things you should know, which are actually kind of fun. When you arrive at the location, you are going to question whether you are in the right place or not. The entrance to the performance space is halfway down an alley. The cast mingles with the audience before the show, offering free tattoos, popcorn, and shots. And lastly, It is very risque, so if that isn’t your jam, skip it, but if you are OK if things get a little hard “R”, you’ll be good.

If you like your Willy a little on the queer or wild side, I think you’ll have a blast with this production. If you are new to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, read the Wikipedia plot synopsis before you go, it will help keep you from getting lost. There is nothing worse than sitting through two hours of something you can’t follow.

Midsummer Night’s Dream runs through June 20 at 901 N 3rd St in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to https://www.dreammpls.com/about.

A Chorus Line Dazzles at Park Square Theatre

The Cast of *A Chorus Line* Photo by Dan Norman

Faithful readers will be aware of the group of performers my wife calls her “All Is Calm Boys”, anyone who has appeared in her favorite show, All Is Calm at Theater Latté Da. Well, I’ve decided I have my own version: the “Lizzie Quartet,” the four actors who performed last fall in Lizzie: The Rock Musical, Grace Hillmyer, Lux Mortenson, Abilene Olson, and Marley Ritchie. It’s been an excellent week on that front: I saw Lux Mortenson in Terce on Sunday at Theatre Elision, and now Marley Ritchie in A Chorus Line at Park Square Theatre. Both performances reinforced my feeling that I should make an effort to see everything they’re in.

If you missed Terce, you missed out, Sunday was its final performance, which is why I didn’t write a review. Don’t make the same mistake with A Chorus Line. Get tickets early in the run: they’ve been using multiple understudies at every performance and have already had to cancel one show. I’m not sure of the exact reason, but I suspect dance-related injuries play a role. Once you see the show, you’ll understand why.

Originally conceived, directed, and choreographed by Michael Bennett on Broadway in 1975, A Chorus Line is a physically demanding piece. Park Square has brought in Eddie Gutiérrez, representing the Michael Bennett Estate, to restage the original choreography, and it is intense and absolutely jaw-dropping. At one point, 19 dancers move in perfect synchronization, and it’s truly something to behold.

If you’re hesitant because you’re “not a dance person,” don’t let that stop you. This isn’t about Dance with a capital “D”, it’s about the dancers. And much of the choreography falls squarely into the crowd-pleasing category, the kind that even your farmer uncle would watch and say “Wow! That there is some perty fancy footwork, that was real neat fer sure!”.

The show is set at an audition for the dance chorus of a new Broadway production. The Director and Choreographer, Zach, played by Stages of MN favorite Tyler Michaels King, must cut the field from 24 dancers down to eight. After an initial round, the group is reduced to 17, and Zach asks them to line up and tell him about themselves. Through these monologues and songs, we learn who they are, where they come from, what they’ve endured, and why they dance. Each story is distinct, and each adds another layer to the whole.

With 17 characters, it’s impossible to cover every performance in detail, but suffice it to say that everyone, including the five understudies performing at the show I attended, feels ideally cast. That includes Tyler Michaels King, who not only anchors the show but also joins the ensemble in song and dance at the beginning and end. We all know he is a fantastic singer and dancer. But the role also draws on his experiences as the Artistic Director of Trademark Theater and his work as a Director. I’ve seen him wearing those hats over the years and those experiences of running a room and giving notes, but also encouraging and being compassionate inform this performance.

Two performances stood out in particular. Steven Rada, as Paul, delivers a deeply moving turn. Paul is initially reluctant to open up, but when he finally does, while the others are on break, his story lands with emotional force. His eventual injury has a profound impact on the room, a stark reminder that a single moment can end a dancer’s career. It prompts Zach to ask the group what they would do if they could no longer dance, exposing a vulnerability that feels especially resonant in a time when the arts themselves are under attack. When theater’s like our beloved Jungle Theater, have to cancel productions. I’m sure for this group of performers, having just recently gone through the Covid era when theaters were shuttered, that the thought of what they would do if they couldn’t do this, feels very close to home.

That moment leads directly into the show’s emotional peak: “What I Did for Love,” performed by Marley Ritchie, one of my “Lizzie Quartet,” in the role of Diana. Her rendition is stunning. It isn’t the dancing, as she plays it almost completely still, it is her vocals and acting that are completely captivating. Interestingly, when I looked back at the only other time I’ve seen a production of A Chorus Line, in 2023 at Lyric Arts, it was also Marley Ritchie that I singled out for her performance of this song.

The show runs 2 hours and 8 minutes with no intermission, and evening performances begin at 7:00 p.m. rather than the customary 7:30, so plan accordingly. If you’ve never seen A Chorus Line, this is an excellent opportunity. If you have, I’d wager you haven’t seen it staged quite like this. Either way, don’t let it pass you by.

A Chorus Line runs through June 14 at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and tickets go to https://www.parksquaretheatre.org/

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Once Upon a Mattress is a Beautiful Thing When Performed By Unlabeled Theatre Co.

Rachel Moquist and Mason Green (foreground) Natalie McComas and Adam Arnold (shadow Partners) Photo by Jordan Buckellew / JoyByJo.com

Faithful readers will know that I reviewed Once Upon a Mattress just under three weeks ago at Lakeshore Players, and I wasn’t overly enthusiastic about it. So why would I sit through it again so soon?

Because it’s being mounted by one of my favorite theater companies, Unlabeled Theatre Co.

This company exists to create opportunities for adults with disabilities to participate in theater. Every role is performed by an actor with a cognitive and/or physical disability or who is neurodivergent, paired with a neurotypical Shadow Partner. Together, the two performers share the role, performing it in unison. It sounds like it shouldn’t work, but it absolutely does, and it’s beautiful.

My chief concern with the Lakeshore Players production was the source material, which I found unfocused and nearly three hours long with an intermission. The first thing this production does right is cut the show down to a sharp, focused 70 minutes with no intermission. Gone is all the extraneous business, none of it missed. Unlabeled’s production hits all the key plot points, makes the story much easier to follow, and still includes all the best songs. About the only thing I missed was some comic business between the Queen and her son that helps clarify her motivations.

The plot adapts the familiar fairy tale of The Princess and the Pea, told in a fractured fairy tale style. In this kingdom, no one can marry until the Prince does. His mother, the Queen, devises such diabolical tests that every princess fails, largely because she has an unhealthily close relationship with her son and doesn’t actually want him to marry. Among those desperate to find the Prince a bride are Sir Harry and the pregnant Lady Larkin. Sir Harry ventures over the mountains and through the woods, not to Grandmother’s house, but to the swampy kingdom of the Marshlands and returns with Princess Winnifred, setting the Queen’s test in motion.

The cast is terrific and received a boisterous, well-deserved standing ovation. We often focus on our own enjoyment of a show, which is important, of course. But in a production like this, what stands out first is how much the cast is enjoying themselves, and that joy is infectious. It made the evening even more rewarding, if that’s possible. I can only imagine the pride the Shadow Partners feel watching their partners rise to the occasion and fully realize their potential as performers and storytellers. There may not be a more fulfilling acting experience in the Twin Cities.

Attending an Unlabeled Theatre Co. production feels like receiving a gift, a rare and meaningful one. It reminds us of the true power of theater: not just to entertain or instruct, but to create, to connect, and to share joy. You can’t watch this cast without recognizing the value of inclusivity and the sense of purpose these actors bring, not just in performing, but in performing well. They are fulfilling that deeply human need to tell stories and to foster empathy.

In a world where it can be hard to understand how people can remain unmoved by cruelty or contradiction, experiences like this matter. If anything can shift perspective, even just a little, it might be something like this: an honest, joyful, inclusive act of storytelling.

The last Unlabeled Theatre production sold out its entire run, and tonight’s performance had only a handful of empty seats. Get your tickets now, this is the kind of show that can restore your faith in humanity.

Once Upon a Mattress runs through May 24th at the Gremlin Theatre in St. Paul. For more information and tickets, visit https://unlabeledtheatre.org/

Once Upon a Mattress at Lakeshore Players

Once Upon a Mattress at Lakeshore Players in White Bear Lake is a case of the parts being more successful than the whole. It’s ultimately an enjoyable experience, though the musical itself and, to be honest, this production as well, is by no means a must-see. The show has a couple of memorable songs, but there’s a reason it isn’t performed very often. It’s a bit unfocused, though still serviceable. I suspect there’s been some script tweaking, as it felt surprisingly meta for a 1959 musical. I didn’t catch all of the pop culture references, there were definitely allusions to boy bands (a world I know nothing about), and likely other musical nods that went over my head. Younger or more in-the-know audiences may get more out of those moments.

The plot adapts The Princess and the Pea, padded out with enough additions to stretch to nearly three hours, including an intermission. To its credit, it doesn’t feel that long. If there’s a primary issue with this production, it’s likely budget and time, the perennial challenges of theater-making. This is an epic-length musical with a serviceable but bare-bones set design by Justin Hooper. The main set piece, a large staircase connected to a platform upstage that later transforms into the famous stack of mattresses, is an impressive build. However, it seems to have consumed much of the available resources, leaving little room to flesh out the rest of the set. They gamely try and get a lot of mileage out of a large red see through curtain, but it shows. One could argue for a simple, elegant aesthetic, but that doesn’t quite match the tone of this show.

It often feels like what works does so at the expense of something else. The costumes by Sarah Christenson, for example, include some genuinely inspired choices. The Minstrel, played perfectly by Devin Dolquist, is clearly styled after Elton John, and the costume is fantastic. Sir Harry’s look feels like it stepped out of a fairy tale and then got run through a hipster filter, and King Sextimus sports a ’70s Elvis-style white jumpsuit with a cape, another fun touch. But much of the rest of the cast is dressed in either jeans and T-shirts or corsets and bustiers. You get the sense that, with more time and budget, the entire design could have matched the creativity of those standout elements. Instead, the inconsistency contributes to an overall feeling of disjointedness, as though the production never quite comes together as a unified whole.

Thankfully, the cast is consistently strong. The secondary romantic pair, Sir Harry and Lady Larkin, are especially well played by Thomas Friebe and Lizzie Stuebs. They get a standout song in each Act, and both are highlights of the show. Sophia LaFave as Princess Winnifred fully leans into her big numbers, delivering them with just the right amount of attitude. And Maya Vagle as Queen Aggravain, delightfully overbearing and far too attached to her son, is fabulously over-the-top in all the best ways.

Once Upon a Mattress runs through May 17th at Lakeshore Players. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.lakeshoreplayers.org/mattress-season-73