"Fun Home" by Theater Latte Da at the Ritz Theater

The long-awaited #TCTheater premiere of the 2015 Tony winning best musical Fun Home is finally happening! I was lucky enough to see this brilliant and moving musical on Broadway and have loved it ever since, even driving to Duluth for the Minnesota premiere by an intrepid theater company known as Renegade in 2019. I'm thrilled to finally see a production in the Twin Cities, and no one better to do it than Theater Latte Da. The smartly and succinctly written 90-minute musical is perfectly cast, perfectly staged, and perfectly designed, for an emotionally satisfying and epic journey through one person's story of coming of age, coming out, and coming to terms with her parents' flaws and humanity; a specific story that feels so real and relatable. Apparently I am not alone in this opinion; some performances are already selling out and they've extended it a week. Don't wait - get your tickets now to see this modern musical theater masterpiece (through April 11 at the Ritz Theater in Northeast Minneapolis).

"The Root Beer Lady" at the History Theatre

History Theatre is currently remounting their 2023 original play The Root Beer Lady, in which playwright/performer Kim Schultz so beautifully captures the spirit of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) and the inspiring life and personality of Dorothy Molter, the last non-indigenous human living in the BWCAW. The Saturday Evening Post once called her "the loneliest woman in America," but throughout the play Dorothy shows us why, in fact, she was "the luckiest woman in America," because she lived an authentic life that was exactly what she wanted, despite society's and her family's expectations of what a proper young woman should do. Whether or not you have a personal connection to the BWCAW like I do (click here to read about that), The Root Beer Lady will engage and entertain you for 80 minutes or so, make you laugh, and maybe even inspire you to go for a hike, look up at the trees, or jump in a lake (continuing through February 23).*

"A Christmas Carol" at the Guthrie Theater

The Guthrie Theater is celebrating 50 years of A Christmas Carol* this year, and as a 21-year season subscriber, I have seen 19 of those productions (including the virtual one in 2020). There simply is nothing like it. Charles Dickens' story is one of such hope, such joy, such belief in the idea that it's never too late to change and grow and become a better person, that gratitude, kindness, and generosity are the highest of virtues. After 50 years, the Guthrie's production is a well-oiled machine, guaranteed to deliver the finest entertainment and the best quality production. But in addition to feeling familiar and comfortable, it also feels fresh and new every year, with the addition of new faces or adaptations, and it's filled with so much sincerity and heart that it will melt the Scroogiest of hearts. This is their fourth year using this succinct and faithful adaptation by Lavina Jadhwani, and the absolutely stunning design, with director Addie Gorlin-Han returning from last year's production. So if you haven't seen the Guthrie's Christmas Carol since before the pandemic, you should definitely check out this new version before it closes on December 29. And even seeing it for the fourth time, it's still chock full of delights for the eyes, ears, heart, and soul.

"A Christmas Carol" at the Guthrie Theater

Despite the freakishly warm late fall weather we're having in mid-November, the #TCTheater holiday* season is in full swing! The Twin Cities Theater Bloggers recently previewed all of the shows in our podcast Twin Cities Theater Chat, in which I said that for me, it just isn't Christmas without the Guthrie's A Christmas Carol. This is my 20th season as a Guthrie season subscriber and my 17th time seeing A Christmas Carol (it's not part of the subscription, so I skipped a few years, but not many). For me, it's as warm, comforting, and familiar as your favorite holiday food that you only have once a year, that immediately puts you in that mood of community, festivity, and fellowship. In their 49th annual production, the Guthrie is using the adaptation by Lavina Jadhwani and new design that debuted in 2021, with a few slight tweaks. Compared to previous adaptations they've used, it's more streamlined, hitting all of the highlights as it moves briskly through this familiar story in under two hours (including intermission). Every element of design and production is stunning and efficient in telling the story, for a gorgeous spectacle that's also brimming with heart and good humor. As I've written about A Christmas Carol in the past, "I never tire of seeing it, because Charles Dickens' story of redemption, community, family, and human kindness never gets old. It's a beautiful and necessary thing to be reminded that 'what brings us together is greater than what drives us apart.' That it's never too late to change, to grow, to become a kinder and more generous person." Continue the tradition, or start a new one, at Guthrie Theater now through December 30.

"The Root Beer Lady" at History Theatre

My first visit to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was in February of 2016, when I went on an eco-spirituality dogsledding trip with my alma mater, College of St. Benedict. We stayed at Wintergreen Lodge in Ely (owned by Arctic explorer and St. John's alum Paul Schurke, member of Will Steger's 1986 dogsledding expedition to the North Pole), visited the headquarters of the Save the Boundary Waters campaign (which just recently had a huge win with a 20-year mining ban in the BWCAW watershed), and of course, traveled by dogsled through the pristine wilderness of Northern Minnesota. I was so enamored of the beauty and stillness of the place that I convinced my friend that we needed to do a canoeing trip. We signed up for Ely Outfitting Company's annual "Women in the Wilderness" trip that fall, where we were joined by other adventure- and nature-seeking women, led by our friendly and knowledgeable guide Kate, for an incredible four days and three nights in the BWCAW. I've traveled and hiked all over the world, but this is the most fully immersed in Nature, far away from any signs of civilization, that I've ever been. Our little group had such a wonderful time and got along so well that we reunited last summer for another amazing trip. 

"The Song of Summer" at Mixed Blood Theatre

After a pretty intense 2018-2019 season of plays that included Is God Is, the trilogy Prescient Harbingers, Roe, and Autonomy, Mixed Blood Theatre is beginning their 2019-2020 season with something a little lighter. Playwrights' Center Affiliated Writer Lauren Yee (whose work has been seen in #TCTheater most recently in the Guthrie's production of The Great Leap) brings us a sweet and fun play that's almost a rom-com. The Song of Summer is not without substance, dealing with relationships, pop culture, and celebrity, but the story at its heart is one we've seen many times before. But it's told in a unique framework with an appealing cast, so it's a story I'm happy to watch. It's OK for theater to be light and sweet and fun, even at Mixed Blood, especially when this well written, directed, and acted.

"Charm" at Mixed Blood Theatre

Sometimes theater is more than just theater. Sometimes theater is about giving a voice to people whose voices are not often heard. Sometimes theater is about increasing our understanding of people who seem different than us, but who really are the same. Sometimes theater is about giving everyone a chance to see their lives and experiences reflected back at them, validating their existence and importance in the world. Mixed Blood Theatre's work often checks all of the above boxes, as is the case with the new play Charm by Phillip Dawkins.* Inspired by the true story of a transgender woman who teaches a charm school to homeless and at risk transgender youth, Charm premiered in Chicago last fall, but Mixed Blood's production is the first to include five transgender actors in the cast, which lends an air of poignant authenticity to this moving, funny, and at times difficult story.