"Rhinoceros" by 7th House Theater at A-Mill Artist Lofts

There have been various responses to the new presidency and the current political climate, including Facebook groups, letter writing and calling campaigns, petitions, and a nation-wide women's march. But what do artists do in response to injustice? They make art. Last weekend 7th House Theater opened a short run of what they call a "pop up production" of the 1959 play Rhinoceros, written by Eugene Ionesco as a response to the rise in Fascism in pre-WWII Europe. As company member David Darrow explained before the show, their new original musicals (which they've become known for) take about a year to plan, write, create, and produce, which makes it challenging to stay current. And they're not alone, most theaters plan their seasons months or years in advance, which is often necessary to secure talent and space in this busy theater town. But with this piece, 7th House is presenting "a specific work at a specific time in history." After just ten days of rehearsal, they very intentionally opened on the night of the inauguration, a work presented in what David called "a mostly sort of way." While the staging is minimal and actors have scripts in their hands, Rhinoceros is a work that is wholly entertaining, eerily relevant, and exactly what we need right now. Only three performances remain this weekend - don't miss this hot-off-the-presses, incredibly timely, excellent work from this talented young company.

"The Passage, Or What Comes of Searching in the Dark" by 7th House Theater at the Guthrie Theater

Musical theater is my favorite art form, and new original musicals are my favorite things in the world. I love seeing how music and theater can combine to tell a story in interesting forward-thinking ways. After re-imagining a couple of classic musicals (and one play), newish theater company 7th House Theater has turned to producing new original musicals. The Passage, Or What Comes of Searching in the Dark, is the third such creation to be presented in the Guthrie Theater Studio (now for just $9 per ticket). It's the first one for which company member David Darrow has written music, lyrics, and book (he's previously worked with a co-composer and/or book writer). I've loved all of their work, but this one feels more personal and more modern and forward-thinking than what they've done before. Jonah and the Whale is a folk musical that harkens back to the early 20th Century, The Great Work is almost operatic and classical in feel, but The Passage feels like it's continuing along the trajectory of modern musicals like Next to Normal and Fun Home - an intimate family story told with a small cast and modern inventive staging. And the result is truly something special. I can't help feeling that we're going to lose the incredibly talented artists of 7th House to New York someday (to Broadway's benefit), so we need to relish their work while we still can, and then someday we can proudly say "we knew them when."

"The Great Work" by 7th House Theater at the Guthrie Theater

It could be considered an act of hubris to name a new piece of music-theater The Great Work. But in the case of 7th House Theater's new original musical, their second in two years and just the fifth production in the short life of the company, it's a fitting title. This small and lovely story of an Austrian composer returning home, with his estranged late-in-life daughter in tow, is beautifully and poignantly told in just over an hour through stirring original music and innovative use of movement, props, and set design. A fruitful collaboration between 7th House company members (music and lyrics by the uber-talented David Darrow, book by Grant Sorenson, choreography by Cat Brindisi, directed by all three), the wonderful eight-person ensemble, the gorgeous six-person orchestra (directed by Jason Hansen, who also did the orchestrations), and creative set designer Kate Sutton-Johnson, this truly is a Great Work. I know these next two weeks are busy for many of us, but if you can spare an hour in your schedule to see this show, you will be rewarded (be sure to get your tickets soon before they're gone).

"Jonah and the Whale" by 7th House Theater at the Guthrie Theater

Friends, the future of Minnesota theater, and perhaps American theater, is here. It can currently be seen in the Guthrie Theater's 9th floor Dowling Studio, where a group of smart, talented, ambitious, dedicated, hard-working young music-theater artists have created a beautiful new original musical, based on the biblical story of Jonah. It's everything I want theater to be - fresh, innovative, delightful, heart-breaking, inspiring, genuine, and epic. This is 7th House Theater's fourth production in less than two years, and they continue to explore new ideas and push the boundaries of what theater can be. They've proven themselves with three low-budget but high-quality productions, and now have the resources of the Guthrie behind them to expand even further in this production. The result is beautiful and breath-taking. If 7th House is the future of theater, we're in good hands.

This Jonah and the Whale is a loose and modernized interpretation of the story of Jonah, set somewhere along the Mississippi River sometime in the last century. Jonah is a well-liked happy man, expecting a child with his beloved wife, and fixing anything that's broken in his small close-knit community, including the town clock. An unspeakable tragedy causes Jonah to run away from his life in search of something - peace, healing, answers, a reason to live. He joins the crew of a riverboat and seems to be making progress, until a storm tosses him overboard. The whale is never explicitly named, but Jonah ends up inside something, where he experiences the culmination of his personal crisis, a revelation, and decides to come home. A simple story really, but profound in its telling.

Jonah with Susan always behind him
(David Darrow and Kendall Anne Thompson,
photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp)

This is a true ensemble piece, with the eight-person ensemble and four-person band (some of whom cross over into the action of the play) taking turns narrating the story and playing various characters in it. At the center of the tale is composer David Darrow, with a heart-breaking and beautifully sung performance as Jonah. Kendall Anne Thompson is his ever-present wife Susan, with a beautiful clear voice that pierces the heart. The rest of the talented ensemble includes Matt Riehle (with a fantastic revival song), Gracie Kay Anderson, Serena Brook, and 7th House company members Cat Brindisi (leading a rousing gospel chorus), Derek Prestly, and Grant Sorenson. Tyler Michaels and Emily King have combined their talents to direct and choreograph this group, and created some really wonderful and innovative movement around the stage.

In just over six months playwright Tyler Mills, along with composer/lyricists* Blake Thomas (a gifted singer/songwriter, check out his music on iTunes) and David Darrow (who gave us a glimpse of his songwriting skills at the Fringe a few years ago) have written what feels like a full and complete musical. The clever, funny, and poignant book has light-hearted homey moments, with plenty of small details added that add color to the characters, as well as intense and personal drama. The score is in the style of "old timey folk/Americana music" (which just happens to be my favorite genre) and includes a gospel chorus, a revival tent song, a bar song, plaintive ballads, and a recurring wordless tune that ties the whole thing together. I'm crossing my fingers that they record a soundtrack; this is music I could listen to endlessly. In addition to the music, there are constant wonderfully inventive sound effects that illuminate the world of Jonah, many created by Mary Fox on various percussive instruments and objects.**

This is definitely the most elaborate set that 7th House has had. The black box theater that is the Dowling Studio is arranged in the frequent proscenium style, with the back of the stage area filled with ladders, barrels, crates, and a moving doorway, creating that early 20th century Americana feel. The simple costumes are also of that Americana dust bowl sort of style, with homespun dresses for the women and worker's coveralls for Jonah (set by Kate Sutton-Johnson, costumes by Mandi Johnson).

Jonah and the Whale is less than 90 minutes long but it feels epic, full and complete and layered, like you've gone on the journey along with Jonah and returned home changed. It's one of those experiences where time stands still and what's happening on stage is the only reality. This is a truly unique and special creation, with so much work and heart put into it by the cast and creative team. It makes my heart glad for the future of theater. I could not be prouder of or happier for the kids at 7th House for their continued success and growth as a company. Go check them out in this show if you can (two shows have been added and limited seats remain), and keep your eye on them in the future.

Jonah (David Darrow, photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp)

*Listen to Blake and David talk about writing the song "Wondering Wandering" on an episode of Twin Cities Song Story, hosted by Mark Sweeney.
**Mary and Blake have experience creating wonderful, whimsical, innovative sounds on Take it With You, their monthly radio show, recorded live in Duluth, which you can listen to here.


This article also appears on Broadway World Minneapolis.

"Little Shop of Horrors" by 7th House Theater Collective at Open Eye Figure Theatre

The great thing about the Twin Cities theater community is that not only can you see big lavish productions at the Orpheum, Ordway, or Guthrie, but you can also see small low-tech productions in odd or tiny spaces that will surprise and delight you every bit as much as those big productions, or even moreso. 7th House Theater Collective's 7-person (7 must be their magic number) stripped-down version of the cult horror movie turned off-Broadway musical Little Shop of Horrors is just such a show. This darkly funny and surprisingly sweet musical about a man-eating plant and the poor schlub who sells his soul to it, featuring a fun doo-wopy score, has long been one of my favorites, but I've never seen it quite like this. This talented young ensemble of seven (with no director to guide them) has put their own creative spin on this classic and created something fresh and fun and original.

If you've never seen Little Shop in any of its incarnations (see also the 1986 movie), here's a brief plot summary. Aspiring botanist Seymour finds a strange and interesting plant and brings it into Mushnik's Flower shop, where he works with Audrey. He soon finds out that the plant, named Audrey II, will only grow if he gives it blood, but in return it makes Seymour's life wonderful - the failing flower shop flourishes, Seymour becomes famous, and most importantly, he thinks it makes him look better in Audrey's eyes. But the dilemma comes when Seymour needs to find more sources of blood to satisfy Audrey II's growing appetite. He's sold his soul to the devil and there's no turning back.

On the tiny stage at Open Eye Figure Theatre, 7th House brings this morbidly hilarious world to life in a delightfully inventive and low-tech way, involving an overhead projector, a plastic shower curtain, a skull, fake blood, and a series of increasingly larger cardboard boxes. The show runs about 90 minutes including a short intermission, which feels exactly the right length. Similar to what Ten Thousand Things does in their productions, they've stripped the show down to its bare essentials to get to the heart of the piece, without any unnecessary fluff.

Company member Grant Sorenson plays Seymour with just the right mix of sweetness, lack of self-confidence, and a growing inner determination to do what he has to do to get what he wants in life, mainly Audrey. As Seymour's love, Maeve Moynihan is pitch-perfect, both in her powerful voice and in her portrayal of Audrey's charming ditziness. I've watched Maeve grow up on local stages; just six years ago she was little Carrie Ingalls in a musical version of Little House on the Prairie at the Guthrie, and now she's all grown up and playing one of the most iconic roles in musical theater. In between she was young Violet in my favorite Theater Latte Da show Violet (when I referred to her as "teenage wonder"), and Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz at the Children's Theatre (at which time I said "I only hope that after she becomes a big Broadway star she comes home every now and then to grace us with her talent"). It's a thrill to see her back on stage playing an adult, and I look forward to seeing what her bright future holds. Grant and Maeve make for a completely adorable Seymour and Audrey, and if you don't get chills at the end of "Suddenly Seymour," one of the best musical theater love songs ever written, you probably don't have a soul.

6/7 of the cast of Little Shop of Horrors
(photo by Kelly Nelson)

The other five members of the ensemble play all of the other roles, sometimes at the same time. Gracie Anderson, Liz Hawkinson, and Catherine Noble as the girl group Greek chorus sound fantastic and deliver the campy material the way you need to - with complete conviction. Robert Frost provides most of the musical accompaniment at the piano and serves as Musical Director, as well as occasionally getting in on the action of the show. Company member David Darrow's take on the gleefully maniacal and sadistic dentist, whether abusing poor Audrey, singing to his mother in a Norman Batesian kind of way, or getting high on laughing gas, is a true delight (and oh, by the way, he also plays guitar, trumpet, and percussion). In a clever twist, both Mr. Mushnik and Audrey II are played by the entire ensemble, which is kind of genius and turns what are usually duets into really fun group numbers in "Mushnik and Son" and "Feed Me." Seeing Seymour surrounded by the voice of the plant in several bodies gives it a whole new dimension.

This is only 7th House's third production as a company, after debuting last summer with a groovy production of Hair, followed earlier this year by the smart and sexy Cinephilia. If this group of young talented theater artists who have created a space for their work is not yet on your radar, they should be. Their next show is something that makes me very happy - a musical collaboration between David Darrow and the super talented couple Mary Fox and Blake Thomas*. Blake is one of my favorite musicians and an incredibly talented songwriter, and I got a taste of David's songwriting skills in his Fringe show a few years ago, so the two of them writing and creating together is something I would not miss for the world. Jonah and the Whale will play in the Guthrie's Studio Theater this December. But in the meantime, head to Open Eye to experience this darkly funny and delightfully inventive Little Shop of Horrors (playing through June 29 only).



*Click here to listen to Blake and Mary's radio show, Take it With You, recorded live monthly in Duluth. It's a wonderfully new and fresh take on the old radio variety shows of the past, full of hometown humor, heart, and Blake's original music.


This article also appears on Broadway World Minneapolis.

Summer 2014 Must-See Musicals

It's hard to believe with the weather we've had, but summer is just around the corner. And if you're a musical theater fan like I am, it's going to be a great one! Here are a few summer musicals I'm looking forward to this year. I realize most people aren't able (or willing) to see as much theater as I do, so take a look at the list and see what piques your interest, and go see some local musical theater! (Click on the title to find out more info about the show and how to order tickets.)

Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Minneapolis Musical Theatre, June 6 - 29
I saw this hilarious and smart political-satire-emo-rock-musical on Broadway in the fall of 2010 and absolutely loved it. I've been waiting for a local theater company to do it, so I'm thrilled that Minneapolis Musical Theatre chose it as their final show of the 2013-2014 season.
Update: read my review of the show.

Candide/Berlin to Broadway, Skylark Opera, June 13 - 22
I've enjoyed attending Skylark Opera's summer festival for the past few years because it introduces me to shows I'm not familiar with, typically musicals that veer a little more towards the opera side. This year they're doing Bernstein's operetta Candide and a celebration of composer Kurt Weill (The Threepenny Opera). And the fantastic casts include some of my faves: the fabulous Baldwin sisters (Jennifer Baldwin Peden in Candide and Christina Baldwin in Berlin to Broadway), Bradley Greenwald, and Dieter Bierbrauer (both in Berlin to Broadway).
Update: read my review of the shows.

Little Shop of Horrors, 7th House Theater Collective, June 20 - 29
The uber-talented young musical theater artists who last summer brought us a raw and real production of the ground-breaking musical Hair return this summer with Little Shop of Horrors, the dark comedy about the man-eating plant. With just seven performers (including the band), it's sure to be another wonderfully sparse reinvention of a classic. (Ticket prices are a mere $12, but if you can afford more, you can help support them through their fundraising campaign.)

My Fair Lady, The Guthrie Theater, June 28 - August 31
The Guthrie's summer blockbuster is everyone's favorite rags to riches story, My Fair Lady, which includes such gems as "I Could Have Danced All Night," "On the Street Where You Live," "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," "Get Me to the Church on Time," and "The Rain in Spain." While none of the lead actors are local (boo), the supporting players and ensemble include many local favorites (yay), including Robert O. Berdahl, Angela Timberman, and superstar Tyler Michaels. It's sure to be a big beautiful production.

RENT, Lyric Arts, July 11 - August 3

Last but not least is my favorite musical RENT. It's a show I will go see anytime, anywhere (I've seen it 13 times over the past 17 years). I'm super excited that Lyric Arts in Anoka is doing it this summer; I've been pleased by everything I've seen there so I think they'll do a great job. No day but today!

UPDATED TO ADD...

A Little Night Music, Mu Performing Arts, July 25 - August 10
I forgot about this one when I was writing my list last month, but obviously, Mu + Sondheim = must-see. Two years ago they set Sondheim's fairy-tale inspired Into the Woods in the woods of Asia with an all Asian-American cast, and it was truly delightful. I can't wait to see their take on another Sondheim classic. Send in the clowns!


This article also appears on Broadway World Minneapolis.

"Cinephilia" by 7th House Theater Collective at the Q.Arma Building

I admit it, I'm not a movie buff. I spend so much time at live theater that I rarely have time to go to a movie theater. And I grew up watching TV, not old movies, so my education in classic cinema is sorely lacking. Not so the characters in the play Cinephilia. They live and breathe movies, and speak to each other in movie quotes like my cousins speak to each other in Friends quotes (or I sometime speak in musical theater quotes). But of course, the play is not about movies. Rather, movies are the language through which playwright Leslye Headland explores the ideas of relationships, sexual politics, friendship, and self identiy. 7th House Theater Collective has chose Cinephilia as it's second production, following last summer's wildly successful production of the American Tribal Love-Rock Musical Hair. As a new theater company, they and the audience are still figuring out who they are and what sort of work they want to do.This is a great choice and continues them on a nice trajectory - the grass-roots hands-on feel of a small theater company, an intimate staging, and a youthful and modern production (yes Hair is set in the 60s, but its themes are timeless). I look forward to seeing where they go next.

Cinephilia unfolds on one night in the Brooklyn apartment of longtime friends and roommates Johnny (Torsten Johnson) and Plato (company member Grant Sorenson). Johnny's on-again-off-again lover (but not "girlfriend") Arden (Miriam Schwartz) wants more from him than he's willing to give, and is upset when he announces his plans to move to L.A. Plato walks into this argument and adds his opinions (and also much humor); it's clear these three have a comfortable, yet sometimes contentious, friendship. The arrival of Johnny's new girlfriend Natalie (company member Cat Brinidisi) complicates the situation further, as more secrets are revealed.

All four characters are cinephiles (and sort of movie snobs), and constantly talk about their favorite movies and directors, sometimes acting out entire scenes. One particularly important movie that seems to bear some resemblance to these characters' lives is Splendor in the Grass (which of course I've never seen but now really want to!). There are so many movie quotes in this play, and not being a movie buff, most of them I didn't recognize. In fact I'm sure many quotes went by that I thought was just original dialogue in the play. I imagine this would be quite a fun play for actual cinephiles, although a knowledge of film history is certainly not necessary to enjoy the play.

Miriam Schwartz and Torsten Johnson
in the cool space in the Q.Arma Building

The production takes place in the Q.Arma Building in NE Minneapolis - a very cool non-traditional theater space. A small corner of the room represents the Brooklyn apartment, with big windows looking out on the dark cold Minnesota night. About 40 folding chairs are set up facing the set; an intimate setting that allows you to get up close and personal with the work. With direction by company member David Darrow, the entire cast is great, so present and committed to their roles. And they need to be; in a small space like this there's nowhere to hide.

I should warn you that there is frank sexual language in the play, but nothing you wouldn't hear on an episode of Girls. In fact it reminded me a bit of the Lena Dunham-penned HBO series, in that it's set in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, features much sex and (semi) nudity, and showcases a group of friends who sometimes don't treat each other very well, but remain friends in spite of this. But the tone of Cinephilia is quite different from Girls. Where Girls is almost absurd and mocking in its comedy, Cinephilia feels more real and grounded. But also like Girls, none of these four characters are very likeable; each of them angered or frustrated me at times. Like many young people in their 20s, they can be pretty self-centered with not much self-awareness. But each has their sympathetic moments too. At one point Johnny says that he feels no one really knows him. Maybe that's because he's always speaking through the voice of movie characters. I'm not sure he even knows himself. Johnny escapes into movies and uses them to keep from becoming too invested in anyone or anything real.

If you love movies, or site-specific intimate theater, or if you want to see a group of smart, young, talented, dedicated theater artists creating a space for their work, you might want to check out this play. But act fast, only five performances remain (Sunday and Monday night, and next Friday, Saturday, Sunday). At just $10 a ticket (email for reservations or just show up), it's a bargain, and a great opportunity to see what the up-and-coming young theater community is up to.

"Hair" by 7th House Theater Collective at 514 Studios

Hair is a sneaky little show (subversive, one might say). This piece that James Rado and Gerome Ragni created in the late 60s lures you in with it's happy hippie, silly and fun celebration of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and then punches you in the gut with its serious and powerful themes of war and death and conformity. I always forget until I see it again what a remarkable thing it is that in 1968, the anti-war movement from the streets of NYC and around the country was represented on a Broadway stage, which before was relegated to more traditional musicals about things happening far away in time or space. Burning draft cards onstage in 1968 was a serious (and dangerous) artistic statement. But sadly, the idea of young people going off to war, never to return, is a concept that is not outdated. It's always a good time to put on a production of Hair in my opinion, and the talented young theater artists behind the 7th House Theater Collective agree. Theirs is a low-budget (they raised funds on Kickstarter), grass-roots, up-close-and-personal, raw and real production (perhaps similar to the first Off-Broadway production). But don't let this low-key vibe fool you, these kids have talent. And with the Chanhassen's Michael Brindisi as director, and choreographer Emily King, they have created a new interpretation of one of the most important pieces in musical theater history that's full of life and energy and raw emotion.

Hair is light on plot, but you don't need a complicated plot to have a story to tell and a truth to convey. Hair is about a "tribe" of young people living, loving, and protesting war on the streets of NYC. We follow Claude's journey as he receives his draft notice in the mail and processes it with the help of his friends (and a drug-aided hallucination), and makes a decision that affects everyone's lives. The novelty of this production is that it's done in the round in a small warehouse* in Minneapolis, with audience members sitting on couches and pillows, sometimes invited to take part. As you enter through the open garage door, actors are milling with the audience (and on a Monday night with many theater peeps in attendance, including Joseph and several of his brothers and a couple residents of Urinetown, it was difficult to tell the cast from the audience). They're dressed in modern clothes in the first act, which I was OK with, until they changed to period hippie clothes in the second act, which just felt right. The only set pieces are a couple of ladders rolled in and out as needed. The lighting is really cool, at times throwing shadows of dancing hippies up on the brick wall and huge flag, and creating a circle of light from which Claude cannot escape.

Listening to the 2009 revival cast album today, I realized they cut out a few songs and bits, and rearranged some things. But it works, there's a nice flow to the loopy ramblings of the tribe. The first act ends with the infamous nudity (tastefully and subtlety done, if there is such a thing a subtle nudity), and Claude is given a hallucinogenic drug just as the lights go down prior to intermission. The second act opens with everyone in the same position, now dressed in period hippie clothing. It's almost as if the play begins in modern times, and then they shed that modernity (literally) and everyone is transported back to the 60s in the second act with Claude's trip. Lots of bizarre things happen like in a crazy dream, including a brutal war sequence that's repeated and rewound several times, flowing through to Claude's decision to fulfill his duty.

this flyer for the Be-In looks suspiciously
similar to the one handed out during
the 2009 Broadway production

The cast of 13 is smaller than usual (the Broadway casts have been over 20), which causes some insignificant compromises - the women burn draft cards (which doesn't make sense logically but works aesthetically) and there aren't enough women of color for "White Boys," so one of the guys joins them. But all of the major characters are covered. And most importantly, this tribe really feels like a tribe - a group of people that love and trust each other, and play and work well together. Including - Katie Bradley as the pregnant Jeannie who's hung up on Claude; a fabulous Brianna Graham as Dionne (and Abraham Lincoln); Caroline Innerbichler, a perfect choice for the sweet innocent Crissy ("Frank Mills"); Derek Prestly as my favorite character Woof (although no making out with Mick Jagger's poster); Grant Sorenson in a very funny and well-done bit as a female (?) tourist encountering the hippies; and lovely harmonies by Rudolph Searles III and Tara Borman on one of my favorite musical moments of the show, "What a Piece of Work is Man."

The heart of this piece for me is the love triangle between Claude, Berger, and Sheila, with the strongest love being between best friends Claude and Berger. The trio of Matt Riehle, David Darrow, and Cat Brindisi play it well and believably. Matt is charismatic and playful with the audience, as Berger should be, at times a lovable and loyal friend, at other times a jerk. As much as I love Gavin Creel from the 2009 Broadway revival (so much so that I made a special trip to NYC to see him and the rest of the tribe before they took the show to London, and waited outside in the freezing cold of January to meet him after the show), David's version of "The Flesh Failures" is something I've never heard before. He turns the song into a desperate cry of confusion, terror, and despair, literally beating his chest as he tries to make sense of it all. He took this song that I've heard hundreds of times before and made me hear it in a whole different way. "Silence tells me secretly... everything" gave me chills. Finally, I had this thought while I was sitting there - someday when Cat Brindisi wins her first Tony Award, I'll be sitting at home on my couch cheering her on and remembering the day I heard her sing "Easy to be Hard" in a sweaty little garage space in Minneapolis.

My first experience with Hair, the Americal Tribal Love-Rock Musical (besides that one episode of the early 90s sitcom Head of the Class), was the 2004 Michael Brindisi directed production at the Pantages, starring a hugely talented cast that are still among my favorite actors working today. Now almost ten years later, this feels like the next generation of that production. The future looks bright, and I look forward to seeing what these young artists do in the next ten years. A few tickets remain for this weekend's final performances (did I mention they're free?). Get 'em while you can.

*514 Studios is a little tricky to find. It's actually on an alley parallel to Washington on the 3rd Street side, between 5th and 6th Avenues. Street parking is pretty easy to find, especially on the other side of Washington (and free after 6). The one downside of this space is that there are no concessions available. On a hot summer night, it would be nice to have a drink, which also often helps with interactive theater. ;)