"Wish You Were Here" at Strike Theater

For one weekend only, Strike Theater is bringing back their improvised dramedy show Wish You Were Here, in which a talented cast of improvisors explore the ideas of grief and loss as a normal part of life. But not in too heavy or sad of a way. It's still very funny and a little goofy, but with a tinge of melancholy and nostalgia as this group of pretend (but maybe also real) friends mourn the pretend death of one of their group. There are only two more performances, so head to Strike in Northeast Minneapolis tonight or tomorrow night for this bittersweet, funny, and original show. Visit their website for info on all of the comedy, storytelling, and spoken word shows and classes they offer, and mark your calendars for the return of my favorite Strike Theater show - The Great Strike Theater Improvised Bake Off - on April 21 (yes, they actually bake live in front of you!).

Minnesota Fringe Festival: "Five-Fifths of Mary Poppins" at Park Square Theatre

We're only three months away from the most hectic, exiting, exhausting, wonderful week in #TCTheater: the Minnesota Fringe Festival! This year's festival will take place August 1-11 (with the related Family Fringe happening July 26-28 and August 2-4), but events have been happening all year. May brings one of my favorite Fringe events, the "Five-Fifths" benefit, in which a popular movie is divided into five parts and handed to five Fringe companies for them to interpret as they wish. It's a very clever concept, and one that really showcases what's unique about each company. This year's choice was Mary Poppins, and the results were, as my friend Jules from Minnesota Theater Love succinctly put it, "weird and fun." Just like Fringe!

Fringe Festival 2016: "Broken English, Mother Tongue."

Day: 3

Show: 14

Title: Broken English, Mother Tongue.

Category: Something Different

By: minnerican productions

Written by: Javier Morillo

Location: Bryant-Lake Bowl

Summary: A one-man show about growing up in Puerto Rico and US Army bases around the world.

Highlights: I'll admit it, most of what I know about Puerto Rico is from West Side Story, and more recently that piece that John Oliver did. So this show was interesting and educational for me (but in a fun way, with quiz questions and Ricky Martin videos). But more than that, it's a well-told and very personal story of one person's life experience. Javier Morillo talks about growing up on U.S. Army bases in Puerto Rico and elsewhere, receiving a sort of Americanized education that didn't fully prepare him for moving to America for college. He talks about his mother's illness, his conflicted relationship with his tough soldier father, and the complicated relationship between Puerto Rico and the U.S. They say that the more specific something is, the more universal it is, and this show is a perfect example of this. Javier's very specific details of his life story encompass universal themes of family, childhood, and identity. Broken English, Mother Tongue. is funny, poignant, and entertaining. I'll leave you with this quote: "Puerto Rico wouldn't be Puerto Rico without the United States, but the reverse is also true."