REVIEW: The 2023 AOI Operas at the Kennedy Center (Washington National Opera) Arts Music Opera by Basil Considine - January 23, 2023January 24, 2023 The gods of Oshun: Olodumare (Christian Simmons, left), Shango (Daniel Smith, upstage center), Oshun (Katerina Burton, downstage center), and Esu (Athony P. Ballard), which premiered on Saturday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Photo by Scott Suchman. On Saturday, a trio of new operas premiered at the Kennedy Center in
REVIEW: Thrilling, Retro Hairspray Earns Its Shots (Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Music Theatre by Boo Segersin - January 12, 2023January 16, 2023 Aloft, L-R Sage as Gilbert, Kyle Kavully as Thad, Charlie Bryant III as Seaweed J. Stubbs, and the Company of Hairspray, now playing at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. Photo by Jeremy Daniel. The Tony award-winning musical Hairspray has returned to Minneapolis, and it is just as fun and relevant as
PREVIEW: Well-Behaved Women Coming To… (Theatre Elision) Arts Music by Basil Considine - January 10, 2023January 16, 2023 A poster riffing on Laurel Thatcher Ulrich's infamous quotation, showing "transgressive" women from different periods. In 1976, the historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich wrote in an article, "Well-behaved women seldom make history." Ulrich's commentary was double: on the one hand, the women condemned by the early Puritans of New England were excoriated in
INTERVIEW: Matt Crowle on Embodying Thénardier in Les Misérables Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - December 2, 2022December 2, 2022 Matt Crowle (center-left) as Thénardier and Christina Rose Hall (center) as Madame Thénardier in the national tour of Les Misérables, which opens Tuesday at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. Photo by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade. Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables is often ranked as one of the greatest
NEWS: The Hennepin Theatre Trust’s Disney Musicals in Schools Arts Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - November 22, 2022November 24, 2022 The interior of the Pantages Theatre in Minneapolis – one of three historic theatres managed by the Hennepin Theatre Trust, and the venue for the final showcase of the Disney Musicals in Schools program. The Minneapolis-based Hennepin Theatre Trust announced today that four Twin Cities schools that have been selected to participate
NEWS: Late, Lamented Dave Aeikens Awarded Wells Memorial Key Arts by Twin Cities Arts Reader - November 1, 2022 The Society of Professional Journalists has honored the late Dave Aeikens with the Wells Memorial Key, its highest honor for members. Aeikens, a cornerstone of local journalism, served the profession in many capacities, including as the Society of Professional Journalists's national president from 2008-2009. He also served as Region 6 director, president of the Minnesota Pro Chapter,
PREVIEW: The Montserrat Boy Choir’s Minnesotan Adventure Arts Music by Amy Donahue - October 31, 2022October 31, 2022 The Montserrat Boy Choir. One of the most-anticipated performances coming to the Twin Cities is coming all the way from Catalonia. The Montserrat Boy Choir, an elite choir from one of Spain's oldest music schools, will perform at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis on November 11. “We are thrilled to be
NEWS: The Hennepin Theatre Trust’s It’s the People 2022 Arts Theatre by Myron Frisch - October 22, 2022October 31, 2022 The Pantages Theatre, one of three historic theatres managed by the Hennepin Theatre Trust in Minneapolis, MN. Have you enjoyed a Broadway touring musical in Minneapolis? A comedy show at the State Theatre? Jazz at the Pantages? Each of those took place in historic theatre buildings that have been preserved, restored,
NEWS: Hennepin Theatre Trust Officially Takes Over Arts Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - October 18, 2022October 26, 2022 A view from above of the Orpheum Theatre and the Hennepin Theatre Trust space at 900 Hennepin Ave in Minneapolis, MN. The Hennepin Theatre Trust, a nonprofit operating the Orpheum, State and Pantages theatres, has redeemed bonds to officially take ownership of these theatres. The local nonprofit was established in 2000
NEWS: MAP Fund Executive Director to Step Down Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - October 15, 2022October 15, 2022 Moira Brennan, the head of one of the nation's most influential organizations fostering new theatre creations, will step down at the end of the year. This resignation will mark the end of two decades at the MAP Fund, rising from Program Associate to a transformative tenure as Executive Director. The New