"The Madwoman of Minneapolis" by The BAND Group at Calvary Baptist Church

The little theater in the basement of Calvary Baptist Church is becoming one of my favorite theater venues, because it's intimate and versatile. The latest example is The BAND Group's adaptation of the mid 20th Century French satire The Madwoman of Chaillot, which they're calling The Madwoman of Minneapolis. They've turned the space into a cafe, complete with food and drinks, which makes for an immersive and intimate (but not interactive, thankfully) experience of this charming little story, with a message of environmentalism and community over consumerism that couldn't be more timely.

"Bent" by The BAND Group at the Phoenix Theater

Partnering with OutFront Minnesota, The BAND Group is bringing us the 1979 play Bent about the imprisonment and murder of gay people in Nazi Germany. A look at the daily news should tell you that those days are not as long ago and far away as they may seem, with increasing violence and discrimination against the LGBTQ community. One of OutFront's current campaigns is to end conversion therapy, which is still legal in Minnesota. You can find more information about this and sign the petition here. And you can see The BAND Group's powerful and sobering production of Bent at the Phoenix Theater in Uptown through this weekend only.