"The Christmas Spider" by Skylark Opera Theatre at the Lowry Lab Theater

For the last several holiday* seasons, Skylark Opera Theatre has been presenting a modern one-act English-language opera. They're continuing that tradition this year with the one-weekend-only performance of The Christmas Spider, based on a Ukranian folktale. The super sweet story of a poor family finding miracles in nature and kindness has been turned into a beautiful and accessible opera. It would be the perfect introduction to opera for kids, with a sparse 45-minute runtime and two adorable and talented children in the cast. But no matter your age, it's a heart-warming and moving piece that as always is gorgeously performed by Skylark. Catch one of the four remaining performances at The Lowry Lab Theater inside St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists in downtown St. Paul, which is particularly pretty right now with all of the lights and the recent snowfall. It makes for a very festive outing.

"The Gift of the Magi" by Skylark Opera Theatre at the Lowry Lab Theater

Last weekend, Skylark Opera Theatre presented an opera based on the classic O. Henry story The Gift of the Magi. It's a simple story of love and sacrifice, but one that's stood the test of time and receives a beautiful musical treatment in this opera adaptation by David Conte (music) and Nicholas Giardini (libretto). Unfortunately it was a short run that has now concluded, but with any luck they'll bring it back next holiday* season. And mark your calendars for next June when Skylark will be presenting the Sondheim revue show Marry Me a Little, featuring songs cut from some of his musicals

"My Ántonia" by Illusion Theatre at The Lab at The Lowry Building

Willa Cather's 1918 pioneer novel My Ántonia is required reading in many schools, and with good reason. It beautifully brings to life a period in American history that might otherwise be forgotten, with language so poetically descriptive that you can see the landscape and feel the heartbreak of the characters. Several years ago, Illusion Theatre and playwright Allison Moore adapted My Ántonia into a play that perfectly captures the spirit of the novel. The original production won two Ivey Awards in 2010, and lucky for us Illusion continues to bring it back every couple of years and take it on tour around the Midwest. This year the production with an all-new cast visited Cather's Nebraska hometown and the farmhouse of the woman who was the inspiration for the character of Ántonia. Sitting in the Lowry Lab Theater in downtown St. Paul, I was swept away into the prairies of Nebraska, tears streaming down my face; I can't imagine how much more impactful this piece must be in the place and surrounded by the people that it so lovingly describes.

My Ántonia tells the story of a young immigrant girl in late 19th century Nebraska, through the eyes of her childhood friend Jim. The adult Jim narrates the story as he's returning home to visit, and his memories of his time on the frontier and the girl that he loves come to life on stage. We watch Jim and Ántonia grow from children playing on the prairie to young adults making their way in the world. Even though Jim and Ántonia's life paths diverge (he goes to Harvard and becomes a big city lawyer, she stays home and raises a family and a farm), they share a connection that cannot be broken by time or distance. Jim's nostalgia for the Nebraska prairie is inextricably intertwined with his memories of the girl that he knew and the boy that he was.

Andrea San Miguel as Ántonia
(photo by Lauren B. Photography)

While I missed the original production, I did see the show two years ago and was so emotionally affected by it. I was eager to see it again and see if it's as good as I remember. It is. The wonderful new cast is led by Andrea San Miguel as Ántonia, a bright and enthusiastic young girl who grows up and goes through hardships, but never loses her love of life. Zach Keenan is the naive young Jim, while Dan Hopman is the older and wiser version of the same character, watching scenes from his past with great affection and wistfulness. This piece is a true ensemble piece, with the small cast ably playing the many roles of townspeople and their various accents; one standout is Anna Hickey as Antonia's proud and fast-talking (in Czech!) mother and farm girl turned dressmaker Lena.

A big part of the success and emotional impact of this piece is the music by Roberta Carlson. The three-piece off-stage orchestra provides a constant soundtrack to the story, and so specifically brings you to that time and place, tinged with memory. The language of the play (which I assume was largely taken from the book) paints such a picture I that almost wanted to close my eyes to better see it, but then I would have missed the simple but effective images of waving grass or a plow against the sunset projected onto the backdrop. The writing, acting, direction by Michael Robins, music, and images combine to create a feeling of nostalgia for a past I never knew, but that as a descendant of pioneer immigrants is in my bones somehow.

This incarnation of My Ántonia continues for two more weekends at The Lab at The Lowry Building.* It's a beautiful piece of theater with all elements combining to bring to life this time and place and these characters. There's a reason this one keeps coming back. It'll make your heart ache in the best possible way. (Discount tickets available on Goldstar.)



*You can park in the Lowry ramp (entrance on Wabasha between 4th and 5th) and walk right from the ramp into the theater space.

"Angels in America: Millennium Approaches" by Theatre Coup D'Etat at the Lowry Lab

I had never seen Tony Kushner's masterpiece two-part play Angels in America live on stage before last week (in fact the only time I've seen Kushner plays is at "KushnerFest" at the Guthrie three years ago). But I fell in love with Angels in America through the 2003 HBO mini-series and have since been eager to see it on stage. So when I heard that local theater company Theatre Coup D'Etat (which I'd never heard of before) was performing the first part, Millenium Approaches, I jumped at the chance to see it. It was as I remember the TV adaptation to be - powerful, compelling, perplexing, and moving. After it ended, I found myself wondering when Theatre Coup D'Etat will present the second part, subtitled Perestroika, so that I can spend more time with these sympathetic and/or infuriating characters.

The play centers around two couples. Joe and Harper are a married Mormon couple that is struggling: Joe because he's gay but, like a good Mormon, has learned to "Turn it Off," and Hannah because of her addiction to pills in attempt to cope with that unspoken fact. As a result, she's clingy, terrified, and suffers from hallucinations. Joe has been offered a job in DC but doesn't want to take it because of how it will affect Harper. Joe's co-worker, Louis, is the first to confront Joe with the fact that he's gay. Louis himself is having a hard time because his partner, Prior, has AIDS and is in declining health (Louis is the infuriating character I referred to earlier). He turns his partner's illness into his problem; Prior is lying on the floor in pain, and Louis cries, why is this happening to me! He ends up leaving Prior, unable to handle his illness. It's easy to label Louis as a jerk because of this, but who really knows how they'd react to that situation unless they're in it? We'd all like to think we'd stand by someone we loved going through a terminal illness, but Louis is the embodiment of that tiny part of us that questions if we'd have what it takes. But Prior isn't left totally alone, he has his fiercely supportive friend, the drag queen/nurse Belize. And he has his hallucinations - of his ancestors who also died young, and an angel who comes to visit him in his sickbed. This is where the play ends, with much more to be explored.

Prior (James N. Stone) and Harper (Megan Dowd),
who only meet in a dream

The staging of the play is very simple, with black boxes serving as chairs, beds, bars, coffins. That and the intimate space at the Lowry Lab puts the focus on the actors and the emotions of the piece. At the heart of the piece is James N. Stone as the ailing Prior. He takes the character from healthy and making light of his illness, to writhing on the floor in pain, to dressing in drag as a comfort, and he carries the audience on the journey with him. Veteran actor Steven Flamm (he's been acting in the Twin Cities for over 40 years) is the gay lawyer who also has AIDS, but denies both facts to maintain his reputation as a high-powered attorney. Despite this, Steven manages to make him a likeable and compelling character. Michael Brown (that promising young actor from American Family at Park Square) shows more of his talents as Prior's friend Belize (think True Blood's Lafayette). Megan Down manages to make Harper crazy and sympathetic (in a much different role that her recent appearance in the farce Absolute Turkey at the Gremlin). Also good are Peter Beard as the closeted Joe who slowly comes unhinged, Brandon Caviness as Louis, and Katherine Preble as the wise rabbi who later transforms into a nurse and an angel.

Angels in America: Millennium Approaches continues through August 4 at the Lowry Lab in downtown St. Paul, and will then move across town to In the Heart of the Beast for a few weeks in late August. Definitely worth checking out to see this American classic. But it's not a short play - with three acts, two intermissions, and a total running time of 3+ hours, you'll want to go in fully rested and/or get some caffeine (advice that I unfortunately did not take). And with any luck, we'll have a chance to see Part 2 sometime in the not too distant future. (Goldstar half price tickets available for the Lowry and In the Heart of the Beast).