Photo by Petronella J. Ytsma. Yes, we speak of things that matter With words that must be said: “Can analysis be worthwhile?” “Is the theater really dead?” These words from Paul Simon’s song “The Dangling Conversation” kept running through my mind as I attended Amy’s View at Park Square Theatre. Yes, the play is talky.
Arts
INTERVIEW: Theatre Pro Rata on Up: The Man in the Air
John Middleton, Shanan Custer, Carin Bratlie Wethern, and Mark Benzel at Park Square Theatre. Photo by Kit Bix. Theatre Pro-Rata’s latest offering, Up: The Man in the Air, opens Friday, May 26 at Park Square Theatre's Andy Boss Thrust Stage. This "fantastical biography" was inspired by the true story of Larry Walters, an amateur inventor
INTERVIEW: Sharpening La Rondine: Boston Opera Collaborative and the Swallow’s Diet
Reworking or remixing opera classics is one of the hot current trends in American opera circles. Skylark Opera Theatre's production of The Tragedy of Carmen certainly caught local opera fans' attention with a heavily streamlined, 90-minute version of the classic opera by Bizet, with packed houses and fans clamoring to see this up-close-and-personal treatment. Transforming
REVIEW: Jiving Sisters of Swing (History Theatre)
Cat Brindisi, Katie Hahn, and Jen Burleigh-Bentz in the History Theatre’s production of Sisters of Swing. The Andrew Sisters were the sweethearts of the World War II generation. When my mother was in nursing school during the war, the students in the girls’ dorm would congregate around the dorm piano and
REVIEW: Patchy La Bohème Shines Through (Minnesota Opera)
Scott Quinn (Rodolfo) and Nicole Cabell (Mimì) in Minnesota Opera's production of La Bohème. Photo by Dan Norman. Minnesota Opera's new production of La Bohème is uneven. There are parts that are exceedingly beautiful and engaging, and there are some that are noticeably not on the same level as the others. Call it
REVIEW: TU Dance – TU Be…or Not (Ordway)
Saturday night’s performance by TU Dance at the Ordway in St. Paul showcased the company’s classical styling mixed with an edgy modern urban aesthetic. One goal of TU’s choreographers and dancers is to create original dance works that raise audience awareness of significant cultural issues and take on important social
NEWS: Chameleon Theatre Circle Creeps Towards Twin Cities
Julia Ennen as Daisy and Anna Larranaga as Violet in The Chameleon Theatre Circle's 2017 production of Side Show, which opened to packed houses at the Ames Center for the Performing Arts shortly after a future booking controversy became public. Photo by Daniel K. McDermott for Sinséar Video + Photography. The Chameleon Theatre Circle
REVIEW: No Warts on Frog and Toad‘s Return (Children’s Theatre Company)
INTERVIEW: American Prize Winner Geneviève Leclair on Conducting
Conductor Geneviève Leclair at the podium. Photo by Rosalie O’Connor, with permission from Boston Ballet. On Friday, Hat City Music Theater announced the 2016-17 American Prize winners in orchestral conducting. This national award series recognizes distinguished performances by conductors working across the United States. Geneviève Leclair, a professor at Berklee College
INTERVIEW: Composer Ketty Nez on Writing Opera – Music, Words, and All
Last December, the Metropolitan Opera staged Kaija Saariaho's L'Amour de Loin, its first production of an opera written by a female composer since 1903. William Robin of the New York Times took the occasion to interview 10 female composers about their experience writing opera and working as composers; the headline read,