Cherry and Spoon 15th Anniversary Fundraiser for #TCTheater!

This summer marked 15 years of being a Twin Cities Theater blogger. My very first post on July 27, 2010, titled Origins, is very nerdy and idealistic. (Go ahead and read it; I'll wait here with my hands covering my eyes.) I've changed since then, my writing has improved (I hope), my worldview has broadened, and most importantly my experiences with #TCTheater have increased by leaps and bounds. When I started this blog in the summer of 2010, it was for the purpose of recording my experiences as a theater-going, and sharing them with others who might be interested (hear more of Cherry and Spoon's origin story on this episode of The Stages of MN YouTube show). I never imagined that 15 years later I would be at the theater 3-5 nights a week, receiving press comps to every theater in town, meeting my favorite artists, and being part of a theater blogging community (follow the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers here). I would like to celebrate this milestone by giving back to the #TCTheater community that's given me so much, and I need your help.

"One in the Chamber" by Three Saints Theater Company at the Hive Collaborative

New theater company Three Saints Theater Company is coming out of the gate with a brutal play that's tough to watch, but so relevant to our world today. One in the Chamber by L.A.-based playwright and screenwriter Marja-Lewis Ryan tells the story of one fictional family dealing with the aftermath of gun violence, at a time when so many real families in America are dealing with this. The play doesn't have an overtly political message, it just lets the devastating grief of this family speak for itself. This is a really powerful production, and an impressive and bold start for a new theater company. If you're looking for theater that is not an escape from our dark reality, but a reflection of it, check out One in the Chamber at The Hive Collaborative through October 25.

"Misery" at Yellow Tree Theatre

Yellow Tree Theatre is remounting their 2023 production of Misery, but with an all new cast, and it's just as thrilling as before! The stage adaptation of Stephen King's 1987 novel is relatively new, written by William Goldman, screenwriter of the 1990 movie. This story of a popular novelist's "number one fan" and the lengths she goes to is set in 1987, but it's themes of unhealthy obsession, mental illness, and violence are very timely. As returning director John Catron says in a note in the program, "This is not a story about monsters. This is a story about people pushed to their narrative breaking points. It's a sloppy beautiful mess of love, insecurity, fanaticism, co-dependence and addition. It's a story about the violence that is all around us and within us. If it's 1987. If it's 2025." What follows is my review of the 2023 production, updated to reflect the new cast, who absolutely make this worth seeing again. Or if you missed it last time, this is your chance to enjoy this tight thriller on Yellow Tree's cozy and intimate stage (continuing through October 19).

"The Book of Will" by Theatre Pro Rata at the Crane Theater

We all just take for granted that Shakespeare's 30+ plays have always been available - to put on a play, to read in school, to make a parody of. But it turns out that like many playwrights from centuries past, his plays might have been lost to us forever. A theater world without Shakespeare is unimaginable, and we have his good friends and actors in his company to thank for it. And we have this season's most produced playwright Lauren Gunderson to thank for giving us this story, and Theatre Pro Rata for bringing us the regional premiere of The Book of Will. It's a compelling and dynamic tale about 17th century publishing, as shocking as that may sound, and Pro Rata gives it fine treatment, with a great cast and simple yet effective design. See it the Crane Theater through October 11, and find out how Shakespeare's First Folio came to be.