"Brujería for Beginners" by 20% Theatre Company and Lightning Rod at Mixed Blood Theatre

Amongst the theater companies recently lost to the pandemic (and other reasons) are Theatre Unbound (featuring female-identifying artists and stories), Uprising Theatre Company (transgender and gender nonconforming artists and stories), and now 20% Theatre Company (all of the above). The rest of #TCTheater really needs to step up to make sure that these stories continue to be told, and that women and members of the LGBTQ+ community are given a seat at the table. One new company that will be taking up the mantle is Lightning Rod, "a transgender-led, majority BIPOC organism, dedicated to legacy, development and opportunities for queer and trans artists," which is partnering with 20% Theatre's on their 50th and final show. Brujería for Beginners opened at Mixed Blood Theatre last night and it was a bittersweet event, full of celebration as well as sober finality. The family dramedy, with a magical twist, is a sweet and charming show, and the energy in the firehouse was palpable.

"The Terror Fantastic" by 20% Theatre Company at the Crane Theater

The new play The Terror Fantastic, about a young gay woman grappling with anxiety and depression, is indeed both terrifying and fantastical. In 20% Theatre Company's production, now playing at the Crane Theater, mental illness is represented by an ever-present monster, the only escape from which is into a fantasy world.

"Ballast" by 20% Theatre Company at Mixed Blood Theatre

Now in its 12th season, the mission of 20% Theatre Company is "supporting and vigorously promoting the work of female and transgender theatre artists, and celebrating the unique contribution of these artists to social justice and human rights." The new play BALLAST is a perfect choice towards this necessary mission - it tells the story of two transgender people and their relationships with their partners, and features transgender actors in the cast. It's a hauntingly beautiful play with fully dimensional characters and relatable life struggles, and it touches on the role of faith as well. It's dreamlike and lyrical, even fantastical at times, yet grounded in the truths of the people whose story it tells. A few days later I find myself continuing to think about these beautifully flawed and human characters, and how important it is for all different kinds of people to tell their story, and to see themselves represented on our #TCTheater stages.

"FIVE" by 20% Theatre Company at Dreamland Arts

One of the things I most admire in theater is artists who tell their own very personal and often difficult story through their work. I find it incredibly brave to expose your life, heart, soul, heartaches, and triumphs on stage in front of a bunch of strangers, and this sharing of truth often results in the most affecting theater. The audience can sense the realness and the raw emotion they're witnessing. Such is the case with 20% Theatre Company's new work FIVE, written by Claire Avitabile. Claire is the founder and Artistic Director of 20% Theatre, named after a 2002 study which found that 20% of professional theater artists are women. 20% Theatre is "committed to supporting and vigorously promoting the work of female and transgender theater artists, and celebrating the unique contribution of these artists to social justice and human rights," work that is perhaps more important now than it ever has been in the company's 10-year history. FIVE is one person's specific story of overcoming childhood trauma, universal in its themes of loss, search for identity, and healing.

"If We Were Birds" by 20% Theatre Company at nimbus theatre

This is a tough one, friends. 20% Theatre Company's production of the new play If We Were Birds is not easy to watch, but it is so worth it if you can steel yourself to sit through what might be the most realistically brutal scenes I've ever seen on stage. There is a rape scene, actually more than one, that is so painful and difficult to watch that it almost seems gratuitous if it were not for the fact that too many women live this experience every day, on college campuses, in the military, at the hands of trusted friends, or in the spoils of war, which is the focus of this piece. Based on the Greek mythical characters, sisters and princesses of Athens Procne and Philomela, the play is, as director Lee Hannah Conrads notes in the program, "a classical interpretation of a contemporary tragedy."

Beloved daughters of King Pandion of Athens, Procne and Philomela live a happy and comfortable life. Younger daughter Philomela seems especially blissful and ignorant of the troubles that those who are not in her privileged position face. When celebrated soldier King Tereus of Thrace brings a gift of slaves to Pandion, Philomela is shocked at what they have to say and defensive of her father and way of life. To reward Tereus for his victories in battle, Pandion gives him his oldest daughter's hand in marriage. Procne must leave her sister and home to be a wife of the king. After a few years of a mostly happy life, Procne asks her husband to return to Athens and bring her sister for a visit. Tereus obliges, but on the return voyage he finds that he wants Philomela, so he sets her up in a cabin where he repeatedly rapes and tortures her. When Procne finds out, she vows revenge, and the sisters serve him up some black-eyed peas... or something. Something so dark and twisted only the Greeks could think it up.

Procne (Jill Iverson)

Philomela (Suzi Gard)

The talented cast includes six women playing the Greek Chorus, each of whom represents a victim of sexual violence in a 20th Century war (or so the program notes; I didn't get that from the play itself, perhaps due to my own ignorance of foreign affairs). Dann Peterson is the warm loving father who reluctantly gives his daughters over to this man he admires a bit too much, Ethan Bjelland is menacing and frightening in his portrayal of the utterly reprehensible Tereus, and Jill Iverson gives a fierce performance as the protective older sister. But the star of this show is Suzi Gard as Philomela. Hers is a fearless performance, full of vulnerability and strength, and incredibly brave. She is literally thrown and dragged across the stage, wearing next to nothing, exposing herself physically and emotionally. Suzi's Philomela makes a believable transition from a carefree happy young woman to something scarred and broken, yet resilient. Kudos to fight coordinator Jessica Smith for making it all look so painfully real.

Tereus is a soldier who is unable to turn off his violent side when away from the battle field. I couldn't help but think of the recent allegations of domestic abuse and violence against NFL players, men who are also trained to be violent and aggressive at their jobs, some of whom seem unable to turn it off when they get home. This is definitely not a play that resides only in the past.

If We Were Birds is beautifully written by playwright Erin Shields; it feels epic and mythical, but also fresh and modern. The subject is a difficult one but one that's important to witness and examine, something that this production and this cast do well. It's a short run and playing through this weekend only, so get their quickly to experience this challenging and rewarding piece (discount tickets available on Goldstar).

"Changes in Time" by 20% Theatre Company at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage

I love finding new (to me) theater companies, and with over 70 theater companies in this theater-rich town, there are many I have yet to discover. Here's one I can cross off my "to do" list - 20% Theatre Company, "committed to supporting and vigorously promoting the work of female and transgender theater artists, and celebrating the unique contributions of these artists to social justice and human rights." (Their name comes from a study that found that only about 20% of professional theater artists are women.) Their current production, the new play Changes in Time, speaks directly to their mission. It's a story of a transgender individual, who was born in a girl's body but always felt like a boy. We see three scenes in her* life - as a teenager in the 1950s, and in 20 year increments in the 70s and '90s. Taken as a whole, the play is an effective and moving exploration of how it feels to be born in the wrong body, and how that affects the individual as well as their relationships with those who love them.

Wishes: We meet our protagonist Lorraine, or Rain as she prefers to be called, as a teenager away at camp in the 1950s. She sneaks out to meet her friend Court on their last night at camp. They share stories and snacks, and Rain sadly learns that what she feels is seen as weird even by the person she loves and trusts the most. In matching blue jeans, white t-shirts, and crewcuts, Chava Curland and Briana Zora Libby are charming and sweet as Court and Rain, a perfect picture of innocent young love.

Dresses: Twenty years have passed, and Lorraine returns home to Connecticut from Boston to attend her cousin's wedding with her mother. The entire scene takes place in the car on the drive there, and as often happens on a long drive, the two have an intense and real discussion and talk about things they've never talked about before. Lorraine's mother, perfectly groomed in a skirt and jacket with hat and gloves, can't understand why her daughter can't wear a dress, just once, for the wedding in which she's a bridesmaid. Lorraine tries to explain that it goes against every fiber of her being, but her mother just doesn't get it. Still, she loves and supports her daughter, and will do anything in her power defend her. Muriel Bonertz is a hoot as the prim and proper mother with a hidden depth of feeling, and has great chemistry with Heather Spear as the tough but tender daughter.

Changes: Another twenty years have passed, and much has changed - Lorraine is now Laurence, and his mother has died. This time it's his father's turn to have a real and intense discussion with the child that he loves but can't quite understand. You get the sense that he really loves Laurence and wants him to be happy, but can't quite wrap his head around the decisions he's made, and he misses Lorraine. The truth comes out, and it's not pretty, but it's a beginning that leads to greater connection. Chris Little makes his acting debut as Laurence, which is incredibly brave, but it's Dann Peterson who shines in this scene with his very natural and touching performance as a father coming to terms with the fact that the child he's always loved is still there, even though he might look different.

Theatrically, it's interesting to track one character through several stages of their life, especially when there's such change. From a more global standpoint, it's pretty great to use theater to give voice to an underrepresented community. Unfortunately there's only one more performance of Changes in Time (go directly to the Minneapolis Theatre Garage if you're interested), but I'm glad I caught this one before it closed.


*I feel like the English language is failing me, we need a gender-neutral pronoun!