REVIEW: Velvet Swing Rips the Curtains Down (Umbrella Collective) Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - April 7, 2019April 9, 2019 A promotional image for the Umbrella Collective's production of Velvet Swing, which opened Friday at Bryant-Lake Bowl in Minneapolis, MN. On Tuesday, The Guardian ran a piece entitled From Jack the Ripper to Ted Bundy, Why Are Dead Women’s Bodies Still Being Used as Entertainment? One of its arguments is that theatre,
REVIEW: Dynamic Poetry Rules in Of Art and Artists (Theatre Elision) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Basil Considine - April 6, 2019April 6, 2019 Christine Wade (2nd from right) plays the ukelele as Krin McMillen, Thomas Friebe, Maggie Burr, Zach Garcia, and Anna Hashizume look on in Theatre Elision's production Of Art and Artists. Photo by Jessica Holleque. Theatre Elision's Of Art and Artists program, which opened last night in Eden Prairie, is the sort of
PREVIEW: The Events Behind the Umbrella Collective’s Velvet Swing Arts Theatre by Amy Donahue - April 5, 2019April 6, 2019 A promotional image for the Umbrella Collective's production of Velvet Swing, which premieres tonight at Bryant-Lake Bowl in Minneapolis, MN. Google "Velvet Swing" and the first thing that comes up is a not-safe-for-work product mixing sex and cannabis. An odd pairing? Not if you know the history of the term, a now-and-again
REVIEW: In-Your Face Hedwig Grabs and Doesn’t Let Go (Theater Latté Da) Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - April 5, 2019April 5, 2019 Tyler Michaels stars in Theater Latté Da's production of the musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch, now playing at the Ritz Theater in Northeast Minneapolis. Photo by Dan Norman. Reception theory emphasizes the importance of individual and collective reactions in determining something's meaning. An author may write with one intention, only
REVIEW: Python Rides Again in Spamalot (Ordway) Arts Dance Music Theatre Visual Arts by Brian Bix - April 4, 2019April 4, 2019 Kasidy Devlin (center) as Sir Robin in the national tour of Spamalot. Photo by Lance Evans. Nerds and geeks of a certain age grew up with the British comedy group Monty Python’s Flying Circus. The Python television shows were broadcast late at night on PBS, and by the next morning, we
FEATURE: Inside the Hennepin Theatre Trust’s 2019-2020 Theatre Season Arts Dance Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 4, 2019April 4, 2019 The National Tour of Hello, Dolly! opens on April 16 at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. Photo by Julieta Cervantes. Off in Denver, the national tour of Hello, Dolly! is playing in the Mile High City. In two weeks, that tour will wind itself to Minneapolis (via Des Moines) for an
REVIEW: Powerful, Beautiful Cyrano de Bergerac (Guthrie Theater) Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - March 28, 2019July 10, 2019 Jay O. Sanders as Cyrano de Bergerac, surrounded by the cast of the Guthrie Theater's production of the same name. Photo by T Charles Erickson. There are moments in the Guthrie Theater's new production of Cyrano de Bergerac where the audience hangs on every word spoken by Jay O. Sanders. Moments where
WEEKEND PICKS: Space Eggs, Play Readings, Hobbits, and Sunken Pharoahs Arts Dance Dining Lifestyle Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Hanne Appelbaum - March 28, 2019March 28, 2019 A man steps into the giant space egg sauna at the American Swedish Institute. Photo by Basil Considine. Looking for things to do this weekend? Here are our top picks: Thursday Gun control's on the mind and theatre is the battleground. Code Red Playwrights presents a series of short (1-5 minute) play readings
INTERVIEW: Maggie Burr and Jim Ahrens on Theatre Elision’s Of Art and Artists Arts Dance Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Basil Considine - March 26, 2019March 26, 2019 A word cloud built from the names of composers in Theatre Elision's upcoming Of Art and Artists program. Next Thursday, Theatre Elision opens a short-run performance entitled Of Art and Artists. The ambitious, label-defying program will mix readings of poetry, showings of visual art, choral singing, and dance in three performances
REVIEW: Così fan tutte Hits New York (Skylark Opera Theatre) Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - March 23, 2019March 26, 2019 KrisAnne Weiss, Laurent Kuehnl, Luke Williams, Tess Altiveros, and Justin Spenner in Skylark Opera Theatre's production of Mozart's Così fan tutte. Photo by Matt Bellin. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte's opera Così fan tutte has been getting a lot of programming love in Minnesota of late. Last week, Fargo