BREAKING NEWS: The End of the Ivey Awards Arts Dance Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - February 28, 2018February 28, 2018 Tyler Michaels and the cast of Latté Da’s Cabaret, the opening act of the 2014 Ivey Awards showcase. Photo by Dan Herenkoff. The Ivey Awards are no more. The news broke today with an email from Ivey Board President Fran Davis. "It has become increasingly difficult," Davis wrote. "To raise the money
INTERVIEW: Sami Pfeffer on Children’s Play and the Hideous Monster Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - February 28, 2018March 1, 2018 Playwright Sami Pfeffer in December 2017 while working on an Art Shanty Project. Tomorrow, Gadfly Theatre Productions will premiere Children's Play, a new theatrical work by Sami Pfeffer. This play for adult audiences explores melancholy and symptoms of mental health. Pfeffer spoke with the Arts Reader's Basil Considine about bringing this work to
NEWS: The Southern Theater’s New Leadership Arts Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - February 26, 2018 Today, The Southern Theater announced the selection of Janette Davis as its new acting Executive Director. The nonprofit theatre in Minneapolis's Cedar-Riverside neighborhood has been led by Interim Executive Director Jamie Schumacher for the past year; Schumacher succeeded Damon Runnals, who resigned in October 2016 to pursue other endeavors and ultimately
REVIEW: A Crack in the Sky and the Quiver of Truth (History Theatre) Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - February 26, 2018March 14, 2018 Ahmed (M. Hajji Ahmed) meets Maya Angelou (Ashawnti Sakina Ford) in the History Theatre's A Crack in the Sky. Photo by Scott Pakudaitis. Not all paths lead where you expect. That's one of the takeaways from Ahmed Ismail Yusuf's striking new play A Crack in the Sky, which is now playing at the History
REVIEW: New Twist on The Pirates of Penzance (Park Square Theatre) Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre by Bev Wolfe - February 26, 2018February 26, 2018 Christina Baldwin (center) as the Major General in Park Square Theatre's The Pirates of Penzance. Photo by Petronella J. Ytsma. Park Square Theatre's current production of The Pirates of Penzance is a refreshing spin on the classic comic opera. This comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and lyrics by W.S. Gilbert premiered in New York City in
REVIEW: Dire Laughs and Send-Up in Two Mile Hollow (Mu Performing Arts/Mixed Blood) Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - February 25, 2018February 25, 2018 A case of deadly ennui strikes a wealthy family in Two Mile Hollow. Pictured: Sun Mee Chomet, Eric Sharp, and Kathryn Fumie. Photo by Rich Ryan. One of Karl Marx's most famous soundbytes states that history repeats itself twice: first as tragedy, then as farce. Marx wrote this turn of phrase
REVIEW: Steve Winwood – Back in the High Life Again (State Theatre/Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Music by Brian Bix - February 24, 2018February 25, 2018 Steve Winwood at the piano. Fifty-five years ago, Steve Winwood joined Spencer Davis and Steve’s brother Muff to form the Spencer Davis Group. Word soon spread, and established musicians from London like Eric Clapton traveled up to see this Birmingham teenager who had a voice like Ray Charles. The Spencer Davis group
NEWS: Silent Nights Return in Minnesota Opera’s 2018-2019 Season Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - February 20, 2018February 26, 2018 A scene from Minnesota Opera's 2011 production of Silent Night. Photo by Michal Daniel. Minnesota Opera announced its 2018-2019 season last night. The company, one of the ten largest opera companies in the United States, will produce five mainstage operas at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in St. Paul, MN:
REVIEW: Jordan Rocks: Stanley Jordan at the Dakota Jazz Club Arts Music by Brian Bix - February 20, 2018February 20, 2018 A photo collage of jazz musician Stanley Jordan and his recent album covers. No one sounds like Stanley Jordan. He famously plays with both hands on the guitar fretboard, as though he were playing piano keys. As he explains it, this “touch tapping” or “touch technique” allows him to bring the
NEWS: Theatre Unbound Drops Wives’ Tale for Bard’s Tale Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - February 18, 2018February 21, 2018 Illustration by Amy Donahue. Theatre Unbound's premiere of Christina Ham's A Wives' Tale is going to have to wait. With opening night just five weeks away, the script wasn't finished – and so Theatre Unbound announced today that A Wives' Tale will be replaced by a predominantly female production of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure. This