FEATURE: Unsafe on Any Stage: Alcoholism and Silence at Theatre in the Round Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - September 30, 2020September 30, 2020 A word cloud generated from the text of a social media posting by actor Piper Quinn, calling on Theatre in the Round to take action against repeated misbehaviors by a fellow actor. The morning of Monday, September 14, MPR reporter Marianne Combs announced her resignation, effective immediately. The reason given? Editors
PREVIEW: Minnesota Opera Returns…to the Baseball Stadium? Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - September 24, 2020September 24, 2020 CHS Field at sunset. Photo courtesy of Minnesota Opera. When you hear "Take Me Out to the Ballgame", opera is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. Yes, there are opera singers who've sung the national anthem. Over in football land, you might even call the hullabaloo around the
FEATURE: Erasing the Tracks: How Individuals and Arts Organizations Respond to Sexual Misconduct Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - August 29, 2020August 30, 2020 A series of electronic communications related to ex-Opera Theatre of Saint Louis employee Damon Bristo. Scandal hit Opera Theatre of Saint Louis on Tuesday, August 11. One of the company's senior officials, Damon Bristo, had been arrested and charged with child sex trafficking. This was news to the public, but not
FEATURE: A Monument Falls in St. Paul Arts Visual Arts by Basil Considine - June 11, 2020June 28, 2020 A statue of Christopher Columbus lies face-down on the ground after protestors pulled it from its pedestal near the Minnesota State House on June 10, 2020. Photo by Tony Webster (CC BY 2.0). A giant statue's head on the ground. Another larger-than-life statue, bound with rope, being pulled to the ground
INTERVIEW: Amber Bjork on the Winding Sheet Outfit and Cooking through a Pandemic Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - May 7, 2020May 7, 2020 Veni, vidi, workspace. A 3D arrangement of notes used by Amber Bjork when working on the 2019 theatrical show You Are Cordially Invited to the Life and Death of Edward Lear. Mention the name Amber in a Twin Cities theatre and the theatre people will know exactly who you mean. Outside
INTERVIEW: Crystal Manich on Opera, Interrupted Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - May 5, 2020May 5, 2020 Tenor Daniel Montenegro in Opera Santa Barbara's March 2020 production of Il Postino (The Postman), which featured projections, lighting, and set design by Tláloc López-Watermann and was directed Crystal Manich. Photo by Zach Medez. There's not normally time for moss to grow in Crystal Manich's schedule. Since taking the reins at
INTERVIEW: Leslie Vincent on Debut Albums, Making It Through Quarantine, and Puzzle Rooms Arts Music by Basil Considine - April 25, 2020April 25, 2020 Art for Minneapolis vocalist Leslie Vincent's debut album. Design by Brittany Ottum. International quarantines and self-isolation directives have brought many things to a halt across the globe. For Minnesotans, however, being forced to stay at home is a seasonal event. Even in these extraordinary times, the urge to create art and
REVIEW: Sterling Music Man Marches Back to Town (Channhassen Dinner Theatres) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - March 7, 2020March 7, 2020 Winthrop (Hugo Mallaney) receives a brand-new cornet in Chanhassen Dinner Theatre's The Music Man, now playing in Chanhassen, MN. Photo by Dan Norman. You might wonder what a musical written in 1957 has to say about the present day. Then come the famous lyrics – "Ya got trouble – right here in
REVIEW: Stellar, Riveting Romeo & Juliet (COLLIDE) Arts Dance Music by Basil Considine - February 16, 2020February 17, 2020 Renee Guittar (Juliet) and Rush Benson (Romeo) in a promotional image for COLLIDE Theatrical's ballet adaptation of Romeo & Juliet. Staging what is often described as the greatest love story ever told on Valentine's Day might sound hokey. COLLIDE Theatrical's ballet setting of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet is anything but:
REVIEW: Engaging Noura Belies Marketing (Guthrie Theater) Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - January 26, 2020January 27, 2020 Gamze Ceylan (Noura) and Akshay Krishna (Yazen, alternate performances) in the Guthrie Theater’s production of Heather Raffo's Noura. Photo by Dan Norman. Some stories run too long in the telling, making you wish for a good editor's or dramaturge's pen. Others end naturally, like Ibsen's A Doll's House, where the only way