"Marie and Rosetta" at Yellow Tree Theatre

I first heard of Sister Rosetta Tharpe when I saw Park Square Theatre's regional premiere production of the play Marie and Rosetta in 2018. Known as the "godmother of rock and roll," she certainly should be more well known, and this play makes sure that she is. Yellow Tree Theatre was scheduled to do the play last season, but had to reschedule it to this season, and it was worth the wait. Written by Playwrights' Center affiliated writer George Brant, Marie and Rosetta imagines the night of the first performance of Rosetta and her protege/duet partner Marie Knight. A night in 1946 Mississippi when there was no room at the inn for two black women singers, so they rehearsed and slept in a funeral home with a kindly owner. This play with music paints a beautiful picture of these two very different women, their music, and their relationship, as well as the hardships both faced in their lives and careers, and brings these two musical legends to vivid life.* Unfortunately I caught the show at the end of the run - there are only four more performances before it closes this Sunday, so get out to Osseo soon to catch this great two-hander!

"Marie and Rosetta" at Park Square Theatre

For two nights in a row, I experienced rousing gospel music as part of #TCTheater. In other words, was a good week. The night after seeing Penumbra Theatre's annual gospel rendition of the nativity story Black Nativity, I attended opening night of Park Square Theatre's regional premiere of the new play Marie and Rosetta, the true story of lesser known gospel legend Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Written by Playwrights' Center affiliated writer George Brant, Marie and Rosetta imagines the night of the first performance of Rosetta and her protege/duet partner Marie Knight. A night in 1946 Mississippi when there was no room at the inn for two black women singers, so they rehearsed and slept in a funeral home with a kindly owner. This play with music paints a beautiful picture of these two very different women, their music, and their relationship, as well as the hardships both faced in their lives and careers, and brings these two musical legends to vivid life. A "joyful noise" indeed.

"Grounded" by Frank Theatre at the Playwrights' Center

Drones are everywhere. The increased use of unmanned aerial vehicles in war is all over the news, and is even the focus of this season of Homeland. But you never think about the person behind the drone, the one who's flying it remotely and pushing the button to make the hit on the target, to sometimes devastating effect. Frank Theatre's Grounded does just that. A fighter pilot who has been grounded is reassigned to fly military drones from half a world away. In this one-woman show starring the always excellent Shá Cage, we watch this pilot adjust to her new job, new family, new schedule, until the effects take their tole and she's no longer as grounded as she appears.

The unnamed main character is the epitome of a tough fighter pilot, loving nothing more than being up in "the blue" and fighting for her country. She's forced to give that up, at least temporarily, when she falls in love and gets pregnant. After a few years at a desk job she longs to return to the blue; even though she loves her husband and daughter, it's not enough. She reports for duty and is told she'll be remotely flying drones rather than going up in planes, and is assigned to a base outside of Las Vegas. She initially thinks she's being punished, but is eventually convinced that drones are where it's at. She moves with her family into a house in the suburbs and begins her daily 12-hour shift of flying drones, returning home to her family at night. War as a 9 to 5 job may sound nice, fight the bad guys during the day and then go home to your family, but this pilot learns that it's not as easy as it sounds. It becomes increasingly difficult for her to separate her day job of killing "military age males" from her home and family life in the suburbs. Instead of transitioning out of war mentality once a year on leave, she has to do it every day, and soon the lines begin to blur, to the detriment of both her work and home life.

Shá Cage as the grounded pilot
(photo by Tony Nelson)

Before the show, Sousa marches get the audience into the military mood. About five minutes before the show starts Shá Cage walks out and stands at attention, her arm in salute (you try holding your arm in salute and see how quickly your arm fatigues!). Shá is an excellent choice for this role. She's strong enough to command the stage and play this strong woman, but also convey her vulnerable side with her family, as well as the cracks that begin to appear as she struggles with the transition between the two. I attended a preview, so Shá had her script in hand, flipping pages and occasionally glancing down at it to orient herself in the 90 minute one-woman show. But this did nothing to take away from her fully realized and emotional performance. And she's only going to get better over the course of the run as the script is let go. Her performance is allowed to shine in the simplicity of the design; the stage is bare except for a chair and bench, with only subtle changes in lighting to set the tone (set by Joseph Stanley, lighting by Mike Kittel).

Grounded is a fascinating look at the sacrifices made by and challenges facing those who work in the military, at home and abroad, as well as more generally the challenges of being a working mother. It also touches on the idea that everything we do is being watched. An idea which, if not totally true, seems to be where the world is moving, which is a disturbing thought. Grounded continues at the Playwrights' Center through November 23.

"Elephant's Graveyard" by Theatre Pro Rata at Nimbus Theatre

The play Elephant's Graveyard is one of those "truth is stranger than fiction" stories. In 1916, a five-ton circus elephant was hung in the town of Erwin, Tennessee after killing a man. You read that right - they hung an elephant. Theatre Pro Rata's production of the play tells the story so vividly that it's absolutely horrific. By that I don't mean that it's a bad play, on the contrary it's so good at telling this tragic story that as an animal lover, it's almost unbearable. I'm not sure I could use the word enjoyable for the experience, but it's a completely captivating and fascinating look at a bizarre historical incident with larger implications about the way that we have historically treated and continue to treat animals (and other second-class citizens) in this country.

The play is written as a series of monologues, in which circus people and townspeople take turns telling the story directly to the audience. They take us through the excitement of a circus coming to a small town, the unique lives of circus performers of that era (see also the bizarre and wonderful HBO show Carnivàle), and the horror of the hanging. It's like one long story being told by multiple people. I don't think think I've ever seen a play with so many characters in which they never talk to each other. It's an effective storytelling device and lets us get inside the heads of all of the characters to learn how they view the event, whether it's as the triumph of the American spirit, or a business failure, or the death of a true friend, or a similarity to the other lynchings happening in the South.

Emily Dussault, Ben Tallen,
and Wade A. Vaughn

This is a true ensemble piece. There's no main character (other than Mary the elephant, who looms large even though we never physically see her or any representation of her), rather each of the 13 actors and two musicians share the spotlight equally, including Wade A. Vaughn with an electric performance as the ringmaster, Neal Skoy as Mary's heartbroken trainer, and young Jillian Jacobson representing the children of Erwin.

Adding greatly to the mood of the piece is the period appropriate music by Theo Langason on guitar and Shannon Foy on percussion. The cast also occasionally adds its lovely voices to the music. Particularly noteworthy are a haunting duet between Joy Dolo's townsperson and Emily Dussault's Ballet Girl, and Ethan Bjelland's preacher song.

The story takes place on a completely bare stage, with only a bench as an occasional prop/set piece, and lights evoking a big top. This really allows the audience to focus on the descriptive language and the images it evokes in our minds. The colorful costumes also stand out in this bare environment, from the red coat of the ringmaster and the green of the ballet girl, to the more drab colors of the hardworking townspeople (costumes by Mandi Johnson).

Elephant's Graveyard is my first experience with Theatre Pro Rata, and I like what I saw. It's storytelling at its best - completely captivating and so vivid that you feel like you're actually seeing the events play out, which in this case can be painful. Playing now through March 2 at nimbus theatre.