"Bad Dates" at Artistry

Happy Valentine's Day, friends! What better way to celebrate this greeting card holiday than with some bad dates? Specifically, Artistry's production of the one-woman play Bad Dates. Actually it's less about relationships and dating than it is about a smart, strong, independent woman who decides she wants to have a little fun in her life, now that her career and family are on track. I was prepared to get my feminist hackles up about this dating play, but it turns out it wasn't necessary. It's not about finding a man to be complete; Haley's life is already full and complete, she just wants to have a nice dinner and talk to an interesting person every now and then. The play is funny and relatable, and perhaps even a bit poignant at times. In addition to that, it's written by a woman, directed by a woman, and stars a woman, so I'm more than happy to support and recommend it.

"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 Liar" at Park Square Theatre

Playwright David Ives' adaptation of the 17th Century French farce The Liar, now playing at Park Square Theater, is a like a Shakespearean mistaken identity comedy (two women are mistaken for each other, and there are twins) mixed with a bit of Jane Austen (it's all about who marries whom and what they can offer), told with a sort of Spamalot wackiness, but instead of music there is rhyme. Sure the plot is sort of sexist (a man woos a woman he barely knows, then quickly switches to another woman he barely knows, and the women only care about getting married), but that blow is somewhat softened by the casting of a woman in as the most offending man, the titular liar. And the silly plot is just a frame upon which to hang the clever and beautiful pentameters and the hilarious performances by this fantastic eight-person cast.

"The Christians" by Walking Shadow Theatre Company at Mixed Blood Theatre

Why do we believe what we believe? Can our beliefs change? What happens when those we love don't believe the same things we believe? How important is it to find a group of people that believe in the same things you do? These are just a few of the questions raised by Walking Shadow Theatre Company's excellent production of the thought-provoking play The Christians. In just 90 minutes or so, we witness the pastor of a hugely successful church lose everything because he preaches what he believes, which contradicts the teachings of the church, causing everyone in his life to reexamine their beliefs as well. And it just might have this same effect on the audience.

"Clybourne Park" at Yellow Tree Theatre

As a follow-up to their fun, light-hearted, crowd-pleasing holiday show A Hunting Shack Christmas, Yellow Tree Theatre is presenting Clybourne Park, a darkly funny and challenging play dealing with heavy and timely issues of race, class, gender, and gentrification. This is one of the things I love about Yellow Tree; they don't pander to their suburban audience with easily digestible fare, they challenge them with plays that might take them outside of their comfort zone. One of the biggest areas of improvement for Yellow Tree, now in their 8th season and taking their place among the heavy hitters in town, is increasing diversity on their stage (and in the audience). I'm thrilled that they've chosen two plays this season that tackle race head on (this play and the upcoming musical Violet), and hope that this trend of diversity, and even non-traditional casting, continues. But back to the play at hand - Clybourne Park is a funny, edgy, brilliantly written play (it won the Tony in 2012) and this production does it justice with a top-notch cast and director.

"Next to Normal" at Yellow Tree Theatre

"I don't need a life that's normal, that's way too far away. But something next to normal would be OK. Yes something next to normal, that's the thing I'd like to try. Close enough to normal to get by." This sentiment is at the heart of the Pulitzer Prize winning musical Next to Normal, which tells the story of a family dealing with mental illness and grief. Despite their issues, which are many, they're bound together by love as they struggle to get through each day. It's a deeply emotional and poignant story, and a universal human one. Even if your life hasn't been affected by mental illness, at its heart the show is really about the struggle to live your life, keep your family together, and be happy even in the midst of tragedy. Perhaps that's why I love it; it's a brilliant example of how the art form of musical theater can do something profound as well as entertaining. Even though this was my 6th time seeing the show (including twice on Broadway, once on tour at the Ordway, and local productions at Mixed Blood and BCT), I've never seen it quite like this. Yellow Tree Theatre chose it as the final show of their 7th season in their cozy space in an Osseo strip mall. The intimacy of the space brings you right into the Goodman family's life in a way that's not possible in a larger theater. The fantastic and well-matched cast brings out every emotion in the Tony winning score, under the direction of Ben McGovern in his Yellow Tree debut. This is the kind of show that's an experience; you don't just watch the show, you're immersed in it and taken on a journey. It's a difficult ride at times, and may leave you feeling emotionally exhausted, but it's a beautiful and rewarding experience.

Next to Normal tells the story of what at first appears to be a "normal" American family, until the cracks begin to show. Diana and her husband Dan married young and started a family. They suffered a great tragedy that triggered Diana's bipolar disorder, which she's been dealing with for years. Everyone in the family suffers in their own way. Dan has to be the strong one as Diana falls apart, and therefore never gets the chance to deal with his own feelings about what happened. Their children, Gabe and Natalie, live in the shadow of the tragedy and are trying to deal with it on top of the normal problems that come with adolescence. Natalie's afraid that she'll follow in her mother's footsteps, and Diana's unable to be the mother that she wants to be. Diana hits rock bottom and undergoes ECT, aka shock therapy. It erases her memories, both the good and the bad, and she struggles to get her life and family back. Eventually they learn that there is no such thing as a "normal" family; all families look different and are dealing with their own unique issues, both big and small. The Goodmans struggle to find a way to get through theirs, and show us just what is possible with love.

Diana and Dan
(Jessica Lind Peterson and Jeremiah Gamble,
photo by Michal Daniel)

Yellow Tree co-founder Jessica Lind Peterson returns to the stage after a couple years absence in the role of Diana. Perhaps she was saving up all her vocal and emotional strength to pour into this intense role, and it worked. Her voice sounds as lovely as always, almost too lovely for this anguished woman, as she portrays Diana's highs and lows, her confusion, despair, loss, and hope. She's well-matched by Jeremiah Gamble as Dan, who gives a strong and heartbreaking performance as the caregiver who finally lets himself fall apart. As Natalie, Libby Anderson is a young powerhouse whom I look forward to seeing more of on stage, with a voice that's strong and clear and a charismatic stage presence. Lucas Wells plays the family's enigmatic son with energy and passion as he climbs around the two-level set. Grant Sorenson brings a sweetness to the role of Natalie's boyfriend Henry that makes this a couple to root for. Andy Frye makes the most of the supporting roles of Diana's doctors, and has a bit of fun with her rock star fantasies. With a small cast musical like this you need a group of actors that work and play well together, and feel like a family. Yellow Tree has accomplished that with this cast.

the cast of Next to Normal (photo by Michal Daniel)

The original Broadway set had three levels, and every production I've seen makes uses of multiple levels in some way. Yellow Tree has adapted this idea well to their small space, with an upper level that spans the back wall of the theater above the small thrust stage. The set is sparse and modern with minimal props or set pieces, just a judiciously used table and chairs (set by Eli Schlatter). There's not a lot of warmth in this home, which suits what the family is going through. The band (directed by Kyle Picha) is barely visible in the back of the stage behind a screen (they had to knock out a wall to make room for it!). And they sound great performing this fantastic score. Have I mentioned this is a rock musical? The driving score powers us through the story and never lets up, although it also has some lovely quiet moments. As several of my companions mentioned, music can take you places emotionally that mere words cannot, and this music beautifully brings out every varied and complicated emotion of the story.

If you haven't yet ventured out to Osseo to visit Yellow Tree Theatre, well, you're just not paying attention. They've always done great work but are really stepping up their game lately as they continue to challenge their audience and bring in top talent from around the Twin Cities. Next season is sure to be a continuation of this trend as they tackle some more intense pieces, including the Tony winning play Clybourne Park, and another one of my favorite musicals, the lovely and inspiring journey of Violet. But first, don't miss this beautifully heartbreaking production of one of the best musicals of this century. Tickets are selling fast but they have added a few performances, so get to the website or call the box office and snatch them up before they're gone!

"Boeing Boeing" by Torch Theater at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage

Boeing Boeing is the perfect screwball comedy. Though this tale of an American playboy in Paris with three "air hostess" fiances was a hit in France, the English translation flopped on Broadway in 1965. But the revival over 40 years later was a hit and spurred a flood of regional productions around the country. Fortunately for Twin Cities theater-goers, Torch Theater chose it as one of it's 2015 shows at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage. With a stellar cast, spot on direction, and a swinging '60s vibe created by set, costumes, and music, it's practically perfect in every way (to quote that other big show). I can't remember the last time I laughed so much at the theater!

Bernard lives in a swanky apartment in Paris with his three international fiances, none of whom know about the other two. He tells his friend Robert, visiting from Wisconsin, that he's able to pull this off due to careful planning and paying attention to the time tables of the women's three airline employers, and of course with the begrudging help of his organized maid Berthe. Everything runs swimmingly and all parties are happy with the arrangement until a perfect storm of weather over the Atlantic and faster planes causes all three women to be in the apartment at the same time. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Bernard, Robert, and Berthe go to great lengths to keep the women apart for as long as they can, which results in lots of physical comedy and door slamming. It's like a shell game trying to keep track of who's in which room. But of course it can't go on forever, and the truth, or some version of it, eventually comes out.

Stacia Rice, Zach Curtis, and Sam Landman
(photo by Thomas Sandelands)

I can't decide who in this six-person cast is my favorite; they're each my favorite in different moments. Director Craig Johnson has set the perfect campy tone with precise comedic timing that the cast executes brilliantly. Sam Landman as Bernard is the picture of a cool and confident '60s playboy, until his perfect plan starts to fall apart and he becomes increasingly more desperate. As square Wisconsinite Robert, Zach Curtis* literally throws himself around the set in service of the comedy. Mo Perry's* expressions as put-upon maid Berthe are priceless; add to that her impeccable line delivery and she's quite the scene stealer. And the three air hostesses are all hilarious and fabulous. Stacia Rice (Torch's Artistic Director) is the master of the entrance, making Italian Gabriella's presence known with an arm flung elegantly over her head, her cape and gloves thrown down, commanding attention. As American Gloria, Rachel Finch is smart and confident, walking around the apartment doing exercises and eating her pancakes with ketchup. German Gretchen is embodied by Sara Richardson with her wide expressive eyes, her head cocked perfectly to the side in her short blond wig as she pauses for laughter, sweet one minute and sour the next.

Mo Perry and Sara Richardson
(photo by Thomas Sandelands)

Since the characters come from different countries they all speak in accents, but they're not meant to be realistic. They're the delightfully exaggerated accents of comedy - French, German, Italian - even American Gloria speaks with a tony East Coast accent, and Wisconsinite Robert sounds decidedly Midwestern (read Stacia's thoughts on the accents in this article in the Pioneer Press). Every aspect of the show is over the top, yet somehow you still seem to care about these characters and want to see them end up happy.

Eli Schlatter's set design looks like something out of a '60s sitcom: clean lines, bar stools, black leather furniture, a globe bar, corded phone, and a bright orange bean bag that gets much use. Katherine B. Kohl has created mod faux stewardess uniforms that are to die for, complete with matching hats, coats, gloves, shoes, and what looks like authentic vintage bags from TWA, Alitalia, and Lufthansa. The music playing before the show and during intermission is the icing on the cake, perfectly completing the cohesive '60 theme of the show.

Staging a play from the '60s about a man with three fiances during Women's History Month could be a mistake, but somehow it doesn't seem sexist. It's clear that the women have the upper hands in this polygamous relationship, and they all get what they want in the end. It seems that Bernard really does care for them all, even if he is lying to and manipulating them. And in the '60s, "air hostess" was one of the few careers open to women that allowed them to be independent and travel the world; these women are no pushovers.

Boeing Boeing is a hilarious broad comedy, perfectly executed by the Torch Theater team. If you're looking for a good laugh, go see it between now and April 4 (discount tickets available on Goldstar).


*It's worth noting that Mo Perry and Zach Curtis are doing double duty; they're concurrently appearing as Mrs. and Mr. Capulet in Romeo and Juliet at Park Square Theatre, which is mostly performed during the daytime for students. So it's logistically quite possible, but also probably creates a bit of whiplash going from the great romantic tragedy to this high comedy. On second thought, that probably makes it easier.


This article also appears on Broadway World Minneapolis.

"The Coward" by Walking Shadow Theatre Company at Red Eye Theater

Nick Jones' 2010 play The Coward is a spoof of that gentlemanly period in England when it was appropriate, nay necessary, to challenge a man to a duel if he in any way besmirched your honor. It's a play with a lot of men fighting, and one woman to fawn over them as they fight. Walking Shadow Theatre Company has turned this idea on its head, casting women in all the male roles and a man in the one female role. It's an interesting twist that makes these proud and silly men look even more silly, maybe because we all know women are too smart to get involved in such petty and deadly disputes. It all amounts to a lot of bloody good fun.

The young gentleman Lucidus is pressured by his father to participate in duels to defend the family honor (which, by the way, got his two older brothers killed). But Lucidus would much rather classify butterflies by their beauty or go on a pie-tasting picnic with his friends, dressed in top hats and tails. He eventually agrees to a duel, but is afraid to fight it. He goes to the town pub to hire a man to fight for him, and finds Henry, who is happy to fight as long as he can do it by his rules. I don't want to spoil the outcome of the duel, but when there's a "blood designer" and two "blood assistants" listed in the credits, it's safe to say there will be blood. And lots of it. Henry gets a taste for dueling as Lucidus, and begins challenging people all over town, much to Lucidus' dismay. The situation gets even worse when Lucidus' father discovers the ruse and decides he likes Henry better, and adopts him as his son while disowning Lucidus. Lucidus agrees to one final momentous battle to settle the matter once and for all.

Linda Sue Anderson, Briana Patnode, Suzie Juul, and
Shelby Rose Richardson (photo by Dan Norman)

This wonderful cast of women (and one man) gleefully revels in the concept and the bloodletting, under the direction of Walking Shadow's co-Artistic Director Amy Rummenie. The always excellent Briana Patnode makes Lucidus likeable despite his cowardice. Jean Wolff is strong and pompous as his stern father, and Charlotte Calvert is a delight as the duel-loving Henry. Also having great fun are Suzie Juul and Shelby Rose Richardson as Lucidus' pals, and Chase Burns, the lone man in the cast, as Lucidus' haughty love interest. Last but not least, Linda Sue Anderson is a hoot as an addled old man and Lucidus' loyal butler.

This very pretty and proper set, in shades of red and pink surrounded by a in gilt frame (designed by Eli Schlatter), becomes the backdrop for some beautifully disgusting blood flow. Let's hope they have a dry cleaner on standby for Sara Wilcox's gorgeously rich costumes.

The Coward is a silly, fun, lighthearted romp through proper English duels, highlighting just how ridiculous the concept is, with a terrific cast that appears to be having as much fun as the audience. Playing through February 28 in the Red Eye Theater.

"The Rainmaker" at Yellow Tree Theatre

Sometimes something or someone comes along in life that changes everything. Such is Starbuck, aka The Rainmaker, to the Curry family in Depression era middle America in N. Richard Nash's play 60-year-old play. Yellow Tree Theatre is mounting a lovely new production of this play with an all-star team of YTT regulars and newcomers. It's funny and sweet, hopeful and devastating, a prime example of the beautiful theater that Yellow Tree has been doing for going on seven years, made only richer by the influx of talent from the larger Twin Cities theater scene.

The Curry family consists of patriarch H.C., smart and capable daughter Lizzie, older son Noah who runs the ranch, and the youngest, the easygoing Jimmy. The boys are worried about Lizzie's future and try to marry her off, first by sending her to a nearby town to stay with a family with six sons, then by inviting the local deputy over for dinner. But Lizzie isn't like other the other girls in town, flighty and flirty and intent on "getting a man the way he needs to get got." She speaks her mind, and thinks that no man would want her because she's always been told that she's plain. One hot, dry night, a stranger shows up and offers them something they're all craving - rain. Gullible Jimmy believes him, practical Lizzie and Noah do not, but H.C. wants to give it a chance just in the hopes of something happening.

Something does happen, maybe not what they expected, but something that changes all of their lives. Whether or not Starbuck is a rainmaker as he claims remains to be seen, but what he is is a dreamweaver, a catalyst for change to get them out of this rut they've fallen into. He's Professor Harold Hill, come to sell River City, or in this case, the Curry family, something more than a big band or rain, something much more vital - hope for the future, faith in something, and a belief in oneself. He teaches Lizzie to say "I'm pretty" and mean it, but it's not really about being "pretty," it's about believing she's a beautiful woman deserving of love and happiness and all that life has to offer. Even though the plotline about "marry her off before she becomes an old maid" could seem sexist and offensive, it's a product of its time and really represents any longed for and almost given up dream.

Lizzie and Starbuck (Dawn Brodey and
Peter Christian Hansen, photo by Keri Pickett)

Ivey Award winning director Craig Johnson brings out the best in this excellent cast. When Peter Christian Hansen's Starbuck says that he can bring the rain, I believe him, so perfectly does he portray this con man's confidence and determination, but also his uncertainty and insecurity that he only reveals to Lizzie in quiet moments. I've been a Dawn Brodey fan for a few years, but this may be the best I've ever seen her - so real and raw and natural; you can read Lizzie's every thought and emotion in her facial expressions and body language. Pat O'Brien brings a warm compassion to the role of H.C., who only wants the best for his three very different children. Nathan Cousins is adorable as the simple young Jimmy, and provides much of the humor, while James Rodriguez as the pragmatic Noah is the strong center of the family who may act like a jerk sometimes but has the best of intentions. Rounding out the cast are Tim Tengblad as the friendly town Sheriff who talks Jason Peterson's reluctantly charming Deputy File into letting go of past pain and his life of solitude for something more.

the Curry family at breakfast (photo by Keri Pickett)

Yellow Tree's intimate stage is crowded with furniture in the cozy Curry home, with an elevated part in the back as the Sheriff's office and, later, the tack room, allowing for easy and subtle transitions between scenes (scenic design by Eli Schlatter). It's so wonderful to be in that small intimate space, where you can see the expressions on the actors' faces up close and personal. There's nowhere to hide and no need to; each of them is so present in every moment, you could spend the entire show just focused on one of their faces and get a full experience of the story, although a slightly different one depending on who you chose.

This play marks the opening of Yellow Tree Theatre's 7th season in the little strip mall in Osseo. I've been with them since the 3rd season, and it's been a pleasure to watch them grow and succeed. They have a wonderful pool of talent that they regularly pull from, but to see them bring in the likes of Ivey Award winners Craig Johnson and Peter Hansen says a lot about how far they've come. I love to see the mixing and mingling of talent at theaters around town; I think it makes everyone better, as can be seen in this piece. The Rainmaker is a beautiful play and a beautiful experience at the theater. Head up to Osseo and spend some time with these warm, funny, stubborn, flawed, relatable people as someone comes into their lives and shakes things up so they'll never be the same.