REVIEW: Leap of Faith Trips on Launch (Minneapolis Musical Theatre/HTT) Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - April 30, 2016May 19, 2016 Emily Jansen and Matt Tatone in Leap of Faith. Leap of Faith sounds like a better con than it is. A send-up of 1980s televangelism fraud, the musical features a score by Alan Menken, lyrics by Glenn Slater, and a script by Janus Cercone and Slater. Menken is indisputably one of the most
WEEKEND PICKS: Take in a Play Reading, Take in the Sun Arts Lifestyle Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 30, 2016April 30, 2016 ≈[Almost Equal To] The weatherperson says that Saturday will be 60 degrees, which feels pretty close to heaven after recent chills. Still, if the early morning is a bit too chilly for you, stop over at the American Swedish Institute to catch a free reading of Jonas Hassen Khemiri's play ≈[Almost Equal To], which premiered
NEWS: Sensory-Friendly Performance of The Lion King Coming to Minneapolis Arts Dance Lifestyle Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 28, 2016April 28, 2016 Jelani Remy as Simba with the touring company of The Lion King. For parents of children with sensory, social, and learning disabilities (and adults who fall under those categories), going to the theatre as a family can be a nerve-wracking ordeal – or something that is entirely out of reach. Too loud noises,
PREVIEW: Pacer Annual Benefit Gala/Idina Menzel Arts Lifestyle Music Theatre by Bev Wolfe - April 28, 2016April 28, 2016 Idina Menzel in concert. Photo by Robin Wong. It's no longer warm outside and the weather feels awfully frightful, but it is officially spring – and spring gala season. Coming up this weekend is the annual benefit for PACER, the Minnesota Parent Training and Information Center. This year's PACER Annual Benefit features the
NEWS: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Bulks Up, Extends Run Arts Dance Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 27, 2016April 27, 2016 Ricky Falbo and Autumn Ness share a drink in the CTC production of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. The musical Diary of a Wimpy Kid is proving to be not at all wimpy at the box office. The Children's Theatre Company announced today a one-week extension to the run of its hot new musical, an
PICTURES: Woods at the Turf Club Arts Music by Jeff Rutherford - April 27, 2016May 2, 2016 Brooklyn based woods played at the Turf Club in St. Paul on April 26th. Ultimate Painting opened the night.
EDITOR’S NOTE: 8 Months In Arts Dance Lifestyle Movies Music Opera Opinion Theatre Visual Arts by Hanne Appelbaum - April 26, 2016April 26, 2016 It's been eight months since we founded the Twin Cities Arts Reader. That's a nice round number – we have eight people on our team, too. Some of us are more visible than others. Some of us are more active than others! Together, we've built some of the largest and most expansive performing
REVIEW: Six Characters in Search of an Author (Park Square) Arts Theatre by Bev Wolfe - April 25, 2016April 27, 2016 Luigi Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author is the sort of play that textbook writers love to come across. When it premiered in Rome in 1921, audiences shocked by its content and unorthodox approach to storytelling voiced themselves very loudly. "Madhouse!" was one of the more polite things yelled across
REVIEW: Not Your Grandma’s TAIKOPROJECT (Ordway) Arts Dance Music by Basil Considine - April 24, 2016April 24, 2016 Grandma has a marathon in Duluth, but unless you're Japanese she probably didn't have taiko growing up. If she did, she'd probably still be wowed by TAIKOPROJECT. This Los Angeles-based ensemble descended on the Ordway for several days to play for a few thousand eager schoolchildren and a full audience of adults.
REVIEW: Bryn Terfel/Natalia Katyukova (Schubert Club) Arts Music by Basil Considine - April 21, 2016April 24, 2016 Recordings artificially freeze our conceptions of an artist's instrument and performance to a single moment in time. This is especially true of singers, where the vocal instrument itself evolves significantly over time. A master singer at 25 will, almost without exception, have a very different vocal quality a decade later. This transition