"Sickle" by Theatre Novi Most at Mixed Blood Theatre

Sickle is a brutal play that's tough to watch. This is not a play to go to for a fun night out and to forget your troubles. It's a play that shines a light on a little known part of history known as the Holodomor, a genocide by starvation perpetrated by the Soviet Union on the people of Ukraine in the 1930s, with striking parallels to what's happening today. This Minnesota premiere play, written by Chicago-based playwright Abby Fenbert, is beautifully and devastatingly brought to life by Theatre Novi Most and an incredible cast of five women, baring their souls on stage as they pay homage to the strength and resiliency of the Ukranian people, particularly the women. I can't help but be reminded of the story of the Ukranian woman who, in the early days of the current war, gave sunflower seeds to a Russian soldier so that when he died on Ukranian soil, something beautiful would grow. That woman is a descendent of the women represented in this play - fierce, loyal, loving women who will stop at nothing to protect their family, their home, their land. The limited run of Sickle concludes on May 10, click here for tickets and info on special events like live music and a Ukranian food truck. Novi Most is partnering with Stand with Ukraine MN for this production; click here to find out more about them and learn how you can support Ukraine in their current crisis.

"The Turn of the Screw" at Gremlin Theatre

It's just over a week past Halloween, and less than a week since we said goodbye to the 13th annual Twin Cities Horror Festival. But spooky season is still with us, for multiple reasons. One of those reasons is Gremlin Theatre's new production of The Turn of the Screw, a chilling ghost story that feels like a continuation of TCHF. So if you're not ready to turn the page from Halloween to Christmas yet, go see this expertly executed classic ghost story. an allegory about the very real evils in our world!

"Fetal" at Frank Theatre

For their first show back from the pandemic, Frank Theatre is bringing us a world premiere new play written in reaction to the Supreme Court's 2022 decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. Fetal puts a personal face (four personal faces, actually) on this issue that has long been used as a political cudgel, with little regard to how decisions and laws affect actual humans. In just 80 minutes, we go through this journey with four fictional women who represent countless real women whose choices have been taken away from them in the last year and a half. And it's a smart, thoughtful, engaging, and inspiring play, just what I've come to expect from Frank Theatre. They're performing it in their intimate (read: tiny) studio space which means seating is very limited, so make your plans and get your tickets soon. Performances continue Thursdays through Sundays until November 19, and if you attend the Sunday matinee you also get to attend one of the best post-show discussions in town, in which experts on the topics discuss how the issues of the play affect us in real life.

"Airness" at Park Square Theatre

Park Square Theatre finally returns from their extended intermission with a really fun and feel-good play about a national air guitar competition. It sound ridiculous, but truth is stranger than fiction - this is actually a real thing. LA-based playwright Chelsea Marcantel has set Airness within this world where people travel the country to compete with 60 seconds of playing an imaginary guitar. But like any story, it's not really about air guitar; air guitar is the backdrop against which is set this sweet and funny story of community, friendship, finding your people, and pursuing your passion. The fantastic cast embodies this lovable group of oddballs so well that you find yourself rooting for them and becoming invested in their story. With the stage appeal of a rock concert and the heart of a chosen family story, Airness is a great welcome back for Park Square (continuing through June 5).

"Anamnesis" by The Moving Company at the Southern Theater

Two years after their last live show (during which interval they produced a charming, funny, and profound little web series called Liberty Falls 2020), the Moving Company is back on stage where they belong. As I found my seat in the nearly full-to-capacity vaxxed and masked crowd at the Southern Theater last night, and saw the black tarp-covered object filling the space under the historic arch, I had no idea what I was in for. But after ten years of experiencing this company that is the descendent of the famed Tony-winning Theatre de la Jeune Lune, I knew it would be unique, inventive, and, yes, moving. Anamnesis is all that and more (continuing at the Southern Theater through December 4).

"Hopscotch: Pop-Up Plays about the Future" by Wonderlust Productions at Frogtown Farm and Park

Wonderlust Productions' newest project is popping up in St. Paul parks this weekend and next. They asked an intrepid group of playwrights to imagine a future world. Which, as co-Artistic Directors Leah Cooper and Alan Berks admitted in their pre- and mid-show talks, is a difficult thing to do right now. But these ten playwrights, some of #TCTheater's best, did just that. The result is Hopscotch, a series of ten ten-ish-minute plays presented in two sets. I caught one set on a perfectly gorgeous late summer afternoon in Frogtown Farm and Park, and it was an entertaining, inspiring, and at times worrisome look at our future, and through the imagined hindsight, our present. Click here for more information and to make a pay-what-you-will reservation for today's two sets at Frogtown, or next weekend at Newell Park.