"Endometriosis: The Musical" at Theatre in the Round

The Minnesota Fringe Festival* is a great place for artists to develop and showcase new work. But truthfully, even the best shows at Fringe usually work best within that framework (less than an hour in length, presented at an experimental festival). But every once in a while, you'll see a show that feels like it has life beyond Fringe. The smash hit of the 2022 festival, Endometriosis: The Musical, was one such show. I knew immediately that this was more than "just" a Fringe musical, and "it needs to be seen by more people than just five (likely sold out) Fringe performances." Thankfully, the folks at Theatre in the Round (the venue for the 2022 show) saw that too, and have worked with the creators (book by Maria Bartholdi, music by Kristin Stowell, and lyrics by both) to develop Endometriosis into a full-length musical. Sadly, a show about women's reproductive health and the increasing dangers to it, and our ever more broken health care system, has only become more relevant in the last three years. What better way to bring attention to these issues, and to talk (and sing) about periods and other things related to "lady parts," than in an original musical? And to do it in such a fun, funny, entertaining way. As I wrote in 2022, Endometriosis: The Musical is "beautifully and cleverly written, both hilarious and poignant, and utterly relatable for any human who has ever menstruated." If you're looking for a new, original, relevant, locally created, silly, sobering, highly entertaining musical, go see Endometriosis: The Musical at the oldest theater in Minneapolis, and one smart enough to recognize the potential of this Fringey musical. 

The story begins when our protagonist Jane is made lead on a big project in her business job, due to the previous lead... well I don't want to spoil the ridiculousness of what befalls poor Brad. Our Jane loves business (the nature of the business is kept coyly vague) and has been preparing for this opportunity for years! But there's only one problem - she gets her period. You see, Jane has been suffering debilitating pain with her cycle for over a decade, and when she can't complete the presentation, her boss takes her off the account. This (and a little support from her friends) prompts Jane to finally go to the doctor to find out what's wrong and if anything can be done. As is true to real life, Jane has to go through multiple doctors and misdiagnoses until she finally ends up at a specialist who listens to her, acknowledges that what she's experiencing is not normal, diagnoses her condition as endometriosis, and offers her treatment to alleviate her symptoms. As the set design tells us, one in ten people who menstruate have endometriosis; it's a very common but little researched condition. But don't worry, this musical does not bore you with facts; it entertains with humor and catchy songs, with a few sobering facts, statistics, and real-life cases thrown in, but done in a clever way. There's a bit of fun fourth-wall breaking, and the show manages to not take itself too seriously, while exploring some very serious topics.

New to this production is #TCTheater favorite Shanan Custer, an expert at mixing humor and pathos, and in expanding a Fringe show into something more (bring back 2 Sugars!). She's the perfect choice to direct this show, and infuses the brilliant expanded script with zany humor that's also grounded in humanity. The cast has also been expanded, but thankfully Abby Holstrom returns as Jane. What I wrote about her in 2022 is even more true in this production: "Her portrayal is so empathetic and real, she really grounds the show in humanity amongst the wackiness going on around her, and has a voice that's so crystal clear and full of emotion I found myself tearing up in some of the more poignant moments." Abby's performance is what keeps the show from going overboard into just a weird wacky comedy, and is the conduit through which we connect to the very real emotions and issues at play. Also returning to the show are "a comedy/vocal dream team of a trio in Nora Sonneborn, Tara Borman, and Aly O'Keefe playing multiple characters and singing gorgeous harmony," now joined by Kate Cosgrove for a fabulous foursome. They all play too many different characters to count, including Tara as Jane's best work friend Miranda, Aly as Jane's mom who eventually learns to open up, Nora as the office stick-in-the-mud (singing the cringiest-in-a-good way song about her sexy gynecologist), and Kate as the office creep (in that she creeps up on people and surprises them). The guys in the cast are pretty great too, including Jack Strub with a couple of delightfully over-the-top performances as the weird boss and the aforementioned sexy gynecologist, Jack Bonko as a sycophantic employee and Jane's brother, and Christopher Knutson as poor Brad, Jane's roomie, and more.

Jane (Abby Holstrom) getting literally getting a "song and dance"
from her doctors (photo by Tom Taintor)

The score is chock full of fun, silly, catchy songs as well as poignant ballads, and as I wrote in 2022, "if they recorded a cast album of this fabulous score I would buy it, listen to it in my car, and sing along with every word." Music director Jean Orbison van Heel lead the three-piece band on piano, sitting just off stage in one of the entrances. The cast is not miked in this intimate in-the-round space, which is rare in musicals and makes the music feel more organic. The cast performs some fun choreography by Clair Frederick.

The minimal set design consists of a pink table that's used as a desk, bed, exam table (with stirrups that elicit a groan/laugh when they're revealed!), and more. The several chairs-on-wheels are painted various shades of pink, rolling over a checkerboard floor with squares of pink and green. This ties into the costume design, with most of the supporting cast in shades of purple or plum, Jane standing out in a green shirt and business pants. The ensemble dons jackets, lab coats, crazy side burns, or other accessories to signify character changes, with some fun props (like a walking, talking uterus) and larger-than-life light-up tampons hanging from the ceiling. It's all very on-theme and kitschy in the best way. (Set design by Sadie Ward, costume design by Ryan McCanna, prop design by Mark Steffer.)

It's a scary world right now, and threats to women's reproductive rights and health care, cuts to medical research funding (which was never great in terms of issues affecting primarily women), and our flawed health care system are a big part of that. My favorite way to bring attention to any issues is musical theater, and Endometriosis: The Musical does this brilliantly and in such a fun way. In the words of co-creator Maria Bartholdi, "we hope you laugh, loudly and often. But we also hope you leave with a little more fire in your heart - to advocate for better research, better care, and a healthcare system that truly sees and supports those who've been ignored for so long." One way they're making that easy to do is by collecting period products at every show for donation to Esperanza United, which is consistent with this show that speaks and sings about "the novel idea that our reproductive organs and our reproductive choices shouldn't hold us back from doing everything we want to do" (from my 2022 review).

*The 32nd Minnesota Fringe Festival is happening this summer - July 31 through August 10. Check it out and you might just see another diamond in the rough, or a polished gem!