INTERVIEW: Randy Reyes on Flower Drum Song, Mu, and More Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - December 23, 2016December 23, 2016 A scene from Mu Performing Arts' 2008 production of Flower Drum Song. Photo by Michal Daniel. It's been three years plus change since Randy Reyes took over the artistic directorship of Mu Performing Arts from founder Rick Shiomi. In the interim, Reyes has been busy, leading the nationally acclaimed Asian American theatre company
NEWS: The Changing of the Iveys – Scott Mayer Steps Down Arts Dance Lifestyle Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - December 21, 2016 Nathan Barlow rides in on a white horse in this publicity photo for the 2016 Ivey Awards. Scott Mayer has announced that he will be stepping down as the lead organizer and producer of the Ivey Awards. Mayer founded the Ivey Awards for local theatre in 2004 and has been the lead organizer
REVIEW: The Rose Ensemble’s A Rose in Winter Arts Music by Twin Cities Arts Reader - December 18, 2016December 24, 2016 "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" quoth Juliet in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. But would an ensemble of any other name sing as sweet? The Rose Ensemble's current program, A Rose in Winter, looks at first glance like it might be a play on The Lion in Winter over
REVIEW: All is Calm (Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - December 16, 2016December 19, 2016 Photo by George Byron Griffiths. Peter Rothstein's All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 is an odd theatrical bird. This dramatic reading of soldiers' letters and diary entries from World War 1 is woven together by exquisite singing of English, Welsh, French, and German-language folk songs, often in many parts. It's
REVIEW: Retro Walk in White Christmas (Ordway) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Bev Wolfe - December 15, 2016December 15, 2016 Photo by Rich Ryan Photography. It is only fitting that our first major snowfall occurred the same night that the Ordway’s White Christmas opened. This locally produced show is a revival of the Ordway’s 2008 production. Director James A. Rocco and Musical Director Jeff Rizzo combine their talents with Irving Berlin’s
REVIEW: Sweet, Moving Coming Out in Fun Home (Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - December 14, 2016December 14, 2016 The National Tour Company of Fun Home. Photo by Joan Marcus. Last year, Waitress: The Musical made a splash on Broadway with its excellent score and script and the unusual-for-Broadway combination of an all-female creative and production team. Another show that picked up buzz for an all-female writing team was the excellent Fun Home, which
FEATURE: On Hamilton Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - December 13, 2016December 13, 2016 Daveed Diggs as Thomas Jefferson and the ensemble of Hamilton. Last Friday, the Hennepin Theatre Trust delighted Twin Cities theatregoers with a succinct message to its email subscribers: The national tour of the Broadway musical HAMILTON will play the Orpheum Theatre as part of the 2018-2019 Broadway on Hennepin Season. The best way
INTERVIEW: Dieter Bierbrauer on White Christmas Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - December 10, 2016December 10, 2016 Brian Sostek as Phil Davis and Dieter Bierbrauer as Bob Wallace in the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts' production of White Christmas. "Will it be a white Christmas?" It's still a little early to answer this perennial question in the Twin Cities, but if you head on over to St. Paul's
INTERVIEW: Christopher Ash on Set Design, Lions Arts Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - December 9, 2016December 9, 2016 A humble throne (upstage center) is dwarfed by the massive staircase in the Guthrie Theater's production of The Lion in Winter. Photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp. Sit down to watch a production of The Lion in Winter at the Guthrie and one of the first things you'll notice is the monumental set design. This evocative
NEWS: Ordway Announces 2017-2018 Musicals Arts Dance Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - December 8, 2016December 8, 2016 The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts announced today its 2017-2018 Musical Theater Series. This series will be sponsored by Bremer Bank and features four classic shows: Jesus Christ Superstar – July 18-23, 2017 Kinky Boots – August 8-13, 2017 In the Heights – September 12-17, 2017 Annie – December 7-31, 2017 Jesus