BREAKING NEWS: Bedlam Lowertown to Close Nov. 2 Arts Dance Lifestyle Music Theatre by Basil Considine - October 20, 2016October 20, 2016 The Bedlam Lowertown storefront. Photo by Rachel Stocker. On May 31, 2014, Bedlam Theatre formally opened its new home in St. Paul, the succinctly named Bedlam Lowertown. On November 2, 2016, Bedlam Lowertown will close. In an email sent to Bedlam newsletter subscribers, the organization cited construction delays, cost overruns, and overwhelming
REVIEW: Roundabout’s Cabaret Packs Roundhouse Kick (Hennepin Theatre Trust) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - October 19, 2016October 20, 2016 Andrea Goss as Sally Bowles and the Kit Kat Girls (Gayle Rankin, Kaleigh Cronin, Kristin Olness, Jessica Pariseau, Kelly Paredes, and Stacey Sipowicz). The Hennepin Theatre Trust opened its 2016-2017 Bank of America Broadway on Hennepin Season on Tuesday (say that three times fast) with a smash production of Cabaret developed
NEWS: Southern Theater Executive Director Steps Down Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - October 19, 2016October 20, 2016 The Southern Theater in 2010. Photo by Tony Webster; used in accordance with the CC BY-SA 3.0 license. The Southern Theater's Executive Director Damon Runnals is stepping down on October 29. This latest step in a round of reshuffling and transitions in the Twin Cities theatre scene marks the end of an 8-year tenure at the
REVIEW: Energetic Shaping Sound Makes a Mark (Ordway) Arts Dance Music by Lydia Lunning - October 18, 2016October 19, 2016 The Mosh Pit in Shaping Sound. You could feel the exuberance in the audience even before the house lights went down for Travis Wall’s Shaping Sound: Dance Reimagined at the Ordway Music Theater. This was understandable: artistic Director Travis Wall began as the runner-up in the second season of Fox’s So
NEWS: 24th Annual Sally Ordway Irvine Award Recipients Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - October 17, 2016October 19, 2016 The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts announced the recipients of the 24th annual Sally Ordway Irvine Awards this evening. These prestigious, state-wide awards recognize individuals and institutions whose work has strengthened and enriched the state through their commitment to the arts and arts education. The awards were awarded in five categories to
REVIEW: Zesty, Dirty Avenue Q (Chameleon Theatre Circle) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - October 11, 2016October 11, 2016 It's always fun to watch a completely unprepared theatre audience realize just what they bought tickets to. Such a scene unfolded on Saturday night at the Ames Center in Burnsville, when about half of the audience learned that Avenue Q is a) a Sesame Street parody, and b) definitely not a comedy for little
REVIEW: Fanciful Camelot Rides Again (Chanhassen Dinner Theatres) Arts Dance Music Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - October 8, 2016October 8, 2016 Photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp. First the original, then the dark and edgy, now the whimsical. The Camelot that opened last night at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres is several steps removed from the original version that opened on Broadway in 1960, winning 4 Tony Awards and running for a then-stellar 873 performances. It is not at
BREAKING NEWS: Executive Director of the Minnesota Fringe Festival Steps Down Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - October 5, 2016 Last Friday, the New York International Fringe Festival announced that it was closing for a year to re-evaluate its institutional priorities and directions. The Minnesota Fringe Festival's riposte today was less seismic, but still a significant change for one of the anchors of the Twin Cities performing arts scene. Executive
REVIEW: Still Resonant Ragtime (Latté Da) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Bev Wolfe - October 3, 2016October 3, 2016 A police action and protest turn violent in Latté Da's production of Ragtime. Photo by Dan Norman. Is musical theatre relevant or mere entertainment? The musical Ragtime deals with immigration, economic disparity, and the killing of unarmed blacks by police. Although Ragtime is a period drama set in the United States near the start of
REVIEW: Toruk: The First Flight (Cirque du Soleil / Target Center) Arts Dance Music Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - September 29, 2016September 29, 2016 Photo by Lawrence Erisson. TORUK - The First Flight opened last night at Target Center in Minneapolis. The latest show from Cirque du Soleil is a tour de force of visual design paired with elaborate acrobatics, dancing, and magical transformation after magical transformation. It's also a brilliant showcase of the world from James