"Into the Woods" by Shoot the Glass Theatre at the Crane Theater

I've seen Into the Woods twice in the last six weeks, and six times in the last seven years (not counting the recent movie adaptation). And while I would love #TCTheater to diversify its choice of shows (there are quite a few duplicates and triplicates this season), I'm not going to complain about this one. Every time I see Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's exceedingly clever fairy tale mash-up that explores what happens after the "happily ever after," I love it even more. It's instantly familiar due to the fairy tale characters we grew up with, but then it lures you into a darker story. And it's a versatile piece that works just as well set in the forests of Asia as in a German beer garden. For their production, newish theater company Shoot the Glass Theater has gone with a stripped down, bare bones, unmiked approach that works beautifully. With minimal (but charming) set pieces and simple costumes, they're able to focus on the storytelling and the music, which is what it's all about.

"She Loves Me" at Lyric Arts

The 1963 Bock and Harnick creation She Loves Me is a delicious musical that stands the test of time. Based on a 1937 Hungarian play, the basic story has been told in multiple iterations, including the 1940 Jimmy Stewart movie The Shop Around the Corner, and the 1998 Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan remake You've Got Mail. But She Loves Me tells it in musical form, which IMO is always the better way to go. I saw it 13 years ago at the Guthrie and remember being completely enamored of it. My next experience with it was the live-stream of the 2016 Broadway revival, also quite yummy. And perhaps because of the success of that revival, there are three planned #TCTheater productions of She Loves Me within the space of year. First up is Lyric Arts in Anoka, to be followed by Daleko in New Prague in May, and as part of Artistry's recently announced 2018-2019 season. I may need to see all of these versions, because I found Lyric's production to be be just dreamy and extremely well done (with just one complaint that I'll get to later). Friends, if you like classic, clever, musically delicious, timeless musicals, head to Anoka before April 15. They have a loyal fan base and tend to sell out musicals, so you might want to get your tickets sooner rather than later (more info here).

Fringe Festival 2017: "The Wright Stuff, or You'll Believe They Can Fly!"

Day: 7

Show: 27

Title: The Wright Stuff, or You'll Believe They Can Fly!

Category: Comedy

By: Outlandish Productions

Created by: Josh Carson and Andy Kraft

Location: Mixed Blood Theatre

Summary: A comic and very fictionalized version of the true story of Orville and Wilber Wright who built and flew the world's first airplane.

Highlights: This show is a whole lotta fringey fun. Josh Carson and Andy Kraft are the odd couple brothers, the serious and ambitious Orville and the dimwitted and accident prone Wilbur. Sulia Altenberg is their no nonsense sister who longs to go to college and, you know, vote. Jim Robinson is their widowed Bishop father, just trying to hold the family together. We witness their first attempts at flight, during which Josh and Andy throw their bodies around the theater with abandon and no regard to their own safety, which is great fun for the audience. This cast is fantastic and hilarious (also including Mike Fotis and Tucker Garborg). But perhaps the best part of the show is the Greek chorus singing pop songs (Karissa Lade, Leslie Vincent, and Olivia Hedeman), the songs perfectly chosen (the most obvious being "I Believe I Can Fly").

Read all of my Fringe mini-reviews here.

"Company" by Shoot the Glass Theater at New Century Theatre

"Company! Lots of company! Years of company! Love is company! Company!" So ends my favorite Stephen Sondheim musical, the 1970 multiple Tony winner Company. A new theater company in town called Shoot the Glass Theater has kindly chosen to do this, my favorite Sondheim, on this, my birthday weekend, as just their second show as a company. They're presenting a fairly simple staging and a fairly straight-forward and traditional production at the New Century Theatre, with a talented young cast, some new to me, some familiar. I was thrilled to begin my birthday celebration with Bobby and his crazy married friends. If you're a Sondheim fan, act fast, because they're only doing six shows (discount tickets available on Goldstar).

"Teenage Misery" by Revisionary Theatre Collective at Sandbox Theatre

There's another new theater company in town. They're called Revisionary Theatre Collective, and they're making their debut with a remount of the 2013 Minnesota Fringe musical Teenage Misery. It was one of my favorite Fringe shows that year, about which I wrote:

What do you get if you combine the Stephen King novels Misery and Carrie with the musicals Sweeney Todd and Bye Bye Birdie? You get this odd and delightful mishmash of a musical, that doesn't shy away from the material it borrows from (the opening song is "attend the tale of Carrie Black," and Conrad Birdie is replaced by Shane West). A little rough around the edges, but the songs are great, with clever commentary on what it's like to be a young person growing up today, and winking jokes about "no time for proper character introduction, we only have an hour."

"The Realish Housewives of Edina" at New Century Theatre

I have not watched a single minute of a single episode of any of Bravo's popular Real Housewives TV series (Wikipedia tells me there are seven series, five of which still in production). Don't get me wrong, I love my reality TV, but more of the competition variety (Survivor, The Amazing Race, Top Chef, American Idol). I don't quite understand the fascination of watching "celebrities" in their daily lives, but there's no doubt it's a hugely popular phenomenon, and one that's ripe for parody. So it's a perfect time for this outrageous comedy by playwrights Kate James and Tim Sniffen of The Second City comedy machine. Their intention is for The Realish Housewives of X to play at regional theaters around the country, with slight tweaking for each location. Their first location - Edina. With a fabulous local cast, this show is a hilarious parody of the reality TV phenomenon.

New Century's wide and shallow stage (which can sometimes feel awkward) is a perfect fit for the preview show of the newest series of the Real Housewives-esque show, with cabaret tables in the audience adding to the fun and informal atmosphere. Host and creator Randy (Adan Varela, who also plays multiple other characters) introduces us to each of the housewives (curiously, only two of them have husbands). Ravonka (Kim Kivens) is the vaguely European royalty who carries her tiny dog around in her purse, demands that everyone "pay attention to me right now," and never sees her Baron husband. Claudia-Louise, aka CL (Quinn Shadko), has the perfect family and isn't afraid to tell everyone so. Gwen (Katherine Kupiecki) is an incarcerated politician trying to redeem her image with the public. Ditzy Desiree (Karissa Lade) is a fro yo addict and neck model. Brooke (Anna Hickey) is the newest member of the group, a self-made business woman who has made a fortune selling clothing with writing on the butt. Some of the other members of the group don't accept her "new money" so easily, causing the necessary tension for a show like this.

Anna Hickey, Karissa Lade, Kim Kivens, Quinn Shadko,
and Katherine Kupiecki (photo by Bridget Bennett)

Randy prompts the women to talk about their feelings as he shows them clips from the season, which are acted out in front of us. We see the women visit each others' work places, attend various charity events, and gossip with and about each other. There's a bit of audience participation as CL's husband and Ravonka's daughter are picked out of the crowd and played off of. Everyone in this cast is so loose and playful, yet precise in the characterization of their stereotypical housewife type, I imagine it will only become more fun to watch them play with the audience as the 8-week run continues. Each of these women (and Adan) is a hoot, but Kim Kivens as Ravonka is hysterical. Anyone who's seen her Michelle Bachmann impersonation knows how great she is at these over-the-top caricatures, completely committed with every look and gesture, but here she is absolutely Ravonkulous (meaning ridiculous and fabulous and any other -ulous word that might apply).

the housewives and Randy (photo by Bridget Bennett)

The creators have worked with locals to throw in plenty of Minnesota references, and we love that! From Zumbrota to Spalon Montage to the Galleria, these housewives hit all the local hot spots. Not to judge a book by its fashionable cover, but the opening night crowd seemed to include many "real housewives" types, leaving their husbands and kids at home for a night on the town. In fact, the show could be a brisk 90 minutes if they cut out the intermission, but then they wouldn't sell as many drinks to this crowd that seems intent on having a good time.

The Real Housewives franchise is an easy one to parody. OK I've never seen it, but it seems like there is plenty of fodder for comedy. It's pretty much a slam dunk, especially when played to a crowd that is obviously hungry for it, and this play delivers on that expectation. Funny, ridiculous, over-the-top, and with a cast that gleefully milks every moment. Playing through November 15 at the New Century Theatre in downtown Minneapolis, grab your best girl and guy friends, a few drinks, and settle in for some easy laughs.