REVIEW: The Book of Mormon‘s Newer Testament (Orpheum Theatre) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Lydia Lunning - May 12, 2016May 13, 2016 Photo by Joan Marcus. Before Hamilton shot onto the scene early last year, The Book of Mormon was the hottest ticket on Broadway. This smash musical hit won a hefty nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical...but does it live up to it's hype? Yes, yes it does. And you might actually have a decent chance
INTERVIEW: Kelly Kaduce of The Shining Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - May 12, 2016March 11, 2017 Wendy (Kelly Kaduce) and Danny (Alejandro Vega) Torrance meditate on the strange turns that their life has taken in The Shining. Photo by Ken Howard. Soprano Kelly Kaduce is Minnesota-born and raised, but since graduating from St. Olaf's she has traveled and sung all across the United States. The month of May finds
The Look of The Shining Arts Music Opera Theatre Visual Arts by Twin Cities Arts Reader - May 11, 2016May 11, 2016 Minnesota Opera's The Shining returns on Thursday to the stage of the Music Theater at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. Here's a detailed look at the opera's visual spark. What goes into this? Some of the key players in crafting the opera's look were stage director Eric Simonson, choreographer Heidi
REVIEW: The Shining = Brilliant Psychodrama (Minnesota Opera) Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - May 10, 2016March 11, 2017 A disturbed Jack Torrance (Brian Mulligan) menaces his wife Wendy (Kelly Kaduce) and son Danny (Alejandro Vega) in The Shining. Photo by Ken Howard. Minnesota Opera's 2015-2016 season comes to a crashing bang with The Shining, an adaptation of the bestselling horror novel by Stephen King. The main thing wrong with this production appears
REVIEW: A Night on Olympus (Illusion Theater) Arts Dance Music Theatre by Bev Wolfe - May 9, 2016May 10, 2016 Harry (Tyler Michaels), Chad (Adam Qualls), and Maggie (McKinnley Aitchison) in A Night on Olympus. Photo by Lauren B Photography. Prom night, teenage love, zombies, and errant Greek gods combine in A Night in Olympus. This Illusion Theater production is a collaboration between composer and lyricist Chan Poling, and playwrights Jeffrey Hatcher and
REVIEW: Swingin’ in the Ring (Steppingstone Theatre) Arts Dance Theatre by Bev Wolfe - May 6, 2016May 6, 2016 Brian Sostek and Megan McClellan in Swingin' in the Ring. Photo by Paul Virtucio. Swing dancing, puppetry, and old-time boxing movies combine to create Swingin’ in the Ring, which opened last weekend at Steppingstone Theatre. This hybrid production is the fruit of Sossy Production (the husband and wife team of Megan McClellan and Brian Sostek
INTERVIEW: Arthur Woodley and The Shining Arts Music Opera Theatre by Basil Considine - May 2, 2016May 2, 2016 Photo by Theresa Murray. Minnesota Opera's The Shining, opening this Saturday, is one of the hottest tickets in town. If you were planning on seeing the opera and haven't bought tickets yet, you might want to start courting a season ticket holder – the full run sold out weeks ago. Every opera is
REVIEW: Leap of Faith Trips on Launch (Minneapolis Musical Theatre/HTT) Arts Music Theatre by Basil Considine - April 30, 2016May 19, 2016 Emily Jansen and Matt Tatone in Leap of Faith. Leap of Faith sounds like a better con than it is. A send-up of 1980s televangelism fraud, the musical features a score by Alan Menken, lyrics by Glenn Slater, and a script by Janus Cercone and Slater. Menken is indisputably one of the most
WEEKEND PICKS: Take in a Play Reading, Take in the Sun Arts Lifestyle Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 30, 2016April 30, 2016 ≈[Almost Equal To] The weatherperson says that Saturday will be 60 degrees, which feels pretty close to heaven after recent chills. Still, if the early morning is a bit too chilly for you, stop over at the American Swedish Institute to catch a free reading of Jonas Hassen Khemiri's play ≈[Almost Equal To], which premiered
NEWS: Sensory-Friendly Performance of The Lion King Coming to Minneapolis Arts Dance Lifestyle Music Theatre by Twin Cities Arts Reader - April 28, 2016April 28, 2016 Jelani Remy as Simba with the touring company of The Lion King. For parents of children with sensory, social, and learning disabilities (and adults who fall under those categories), going to the theatre as a family can be a nerve-wracking ordeal – or something that is entirely out of reach. Too loud noises,