PREVIEW: Minnesota Opera’s 2017-2018 Season Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - February 12, 2017March 11, 2017 One of the production designs for Minnesota Opera's November 2017 production of The Marriage of Figaro. Photo by Dana Sohm. Minnesota Opera formally announced its 2017-2018 season today. The slate of some of opera's greatest hits is sure to please even fans who were pulling hard for the company to continue its journey
REVIEW: Numb with Grace (Yellow Tree Theatre) Arts Theatre by Bev Wolfe - February 11, 2017February 11, 2017 Powerful is an apt description for Yellow Tree Theatre’s new production of Grace. Playwright Craig Wright’s thought-provoking play centers on belief systems and what happens when they prove to be insufficient. Under the direction of Terry Hempleman, this production generates compelling acting by each of the four players (Hempleman also plays
NEWS: Nina Simone: Four Women Opens, Gets Extended (Park Square Theatre) Arts Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - February 11, 2017February 11, 2017 Regina Marie Williams in Nina Simone: Four Women. Photo by Tom Wallace. Park Square Theatre's revival of last season's Nina Simone: Four Women just opened last night, but the company has already extended the show's run by one week. Last year, the world premiere of this musical by Christina Ham sold out houses, leading to
PREVIEW: Those Darn Sneetches – A Look at CTC’s Dr. Seuss Adaptation Arts Dance Music Theatre Visual Arts by Twin Cities Arts Reader - February 8, 2017 Standleen (Natalie Tran) meets a crustacean in CTC's production of Dr. Seuss's The Sneetches: A Musical. Photo by Dan Norman. Way back in 1953, Dr. Seuss wrote a collection called The Sneetches and Other Stories. Fifty-four years later, a poll by the National Education Association ranked it as #1 on their Teachers' Top 100
INTERVIEW: Skylark Opera Theatre’s Bob Neu on The Tragedy of Carmen Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - February 7, 2017February 7, 2017 Tess Altiveros as Carmen in Skylark Opera Theatre's The Tragedy of Carmen. Photo by Elisabeth. Skylark Opera Theatre had some rough times in 2016, but the organization has regrouped, rebranded, and relaunched itself. On Friday, its 2017 season formally kicks off with the opening of The Tragedy of Carmen at the Midpointe Event Center
REVIEW: Reborn Flower Drum Song (Mu/Park Square) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Bev Wolfe - February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 Photo by Rich Ryan. It was particularly poignant that Mu Performing Arts and Park Square Theatre chose this past weekend to open their co-production of the musical Flower Drum Song with its story of immigrants and their assimilation into American life. This updated version of the 1950s musical by Richard Rodgers
REVIEW: Throne Full of Laughs in Royal Family (Guthrie Theater) Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 Theatre manager Oscar Wolfe (Shawn Hamilton) looks on as the acting clan of Kitty LeMoyne Dean (Angela Timberman), Herbert Dean (Bill McCallum), Fanny Cavendish (Elizabeth Franz), and Julie Cavendish (Michelle O'Neill) discuss business in the Guthrie Theater production of Royal Family. Photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp. Royal Family, now playing at the Guthrie Theater, is
PREVIEW: High Stakes in The Highwaymen (History Theatre) Arts Theatre by Basil Considine - February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 The Booker T. Café (named after Booker T. Washington) in Rondo in 1960, one of many African-American businesses and community gathering spaces rolled over by I-94 construction. Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society. Tonight, Josh Wilder's new play The Highwaymen premieres at the History Theatre in St. Paul. This historical drama examines
REVIEW: Reality Bites in Promise Land (Transatlantic Love Affair) Arts Dance Theatre by Dan Reiva - February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 Emily Michaels King and Avi Aharoni in Transatlantic Love Affair's production of Promise Land. Promise Land, a play by Transatlantic Love Affair, is about the immigrant experience in early twentieth century America. It is undoubtedly a timely and highly relevant topic. This play reveals the trials and fears two young and
REVIEW: Riveting Miranda Right (Illusion Theater) Arts Theatre by Dan Reiva - February 4, 2017February 4, 2017 Reed (Steve Hendrickson) and Miranda (Carolyn Pool) discuss CIA business in the Illusion Theater's Miranda. Miranda, an original play by James Still, had its world premiere last weekend at the Illusion Theater. The premiere of an original play is an exciting event, providing insight into an issue the playwright has chosen