"Scrooge in Rouge" at Open Eye Theatre

This holiday* season, Open Eye Theatre is remounting** Scrooge in Rouge, which premiered last year, a show I called, "a little off-kilter, in the best possible way." The three-person musical reimagines the classic A Christmas Carol in the style of English Music Hall entertainment, meaning "witty lyrics, bad puns, and naughty double-entendres." The fabulous three-person cast portrays all of the characters in this story that hews fairly closely to Dickens' original, even including many of the famous lines you'll hear across town at the Guthrie. But there are a few ridiculous diversions too, resulting in a very entertaining and fun little show. You can see this alternative (or addition) to A Christmas Carol at Open Eye in South Minneapolis through December 29.

"Scrooge in Rouge" at Open Eye Theatre

Leave it to Open Eye Theatre to bring us a holiday* show that's a little off-kilter, in the best possible way. The three-person musical Scrooge in Rouge reimagines the classic A Christmas Carol in the style of English Music Hall entertainment, meaning "witty lyrics, bad puns, and naughty double-entendres." The fabulous three-person cast portrays all of the characters in this story that hews fairly closely to Dickens' original, even including many of the famous lines you'll hear across town at the Guthrie. But there are a few ridiculous diversions too, resulting in a very entertaining and fun little show. You can see this alternative (or addition) to A Christmas Carol at Open Eye in South Minneapolis through December 30.

"HAIR BALL! A Bigfoot Musical Adventure" by Open Eye Theatre at the Bakken Museum

"Friends, this is the sweetest, cutest, funniest, silliest, naturiest, heart-warmiest 80 minutes of music-theater you could see! Don't miss it!!" Such was my Instagram post last night after coming home from seeing Open Eye Theatre's new original music-theater-puppetry creation HAIR BALL! A Bigfoot Musical Adventure. This new tradition of outdoor summer musicals at the Bakken Museum's lovely green rooftop lawn was birthed out of the pandemic last year, and I hope it never ends. There's just nothing better than witnessing the creative talent of artists in the great outdoors next to one of Minnesota's beautiful lakes. HAIR BALL! is a fairy tale for kids with plenty for adults to enjoy too - great music, much humor, and fantastic performances by the cast. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets (continuing through June 19).

"LOG JAM! A Paul Bunyan Musical Spectacular" by Open Eye Theatre on the Bakken Museum's green rooftop

My second outdoor* theatrical production this year (and hence only the second show I've seen live in 2021) is Open Eye Theatre's delightful new original musical LOG JAM! A Paul Bunyan Musical Spectacular, performed on the beautiful green rooftop of the Bakken Museum** overlooking Bde Maka Ska. The scheduled opening night turned out to be a cold and rainy spring day, but the actual opening night one day later was a gorgeous, sunny, cool evening. In just over an hour this group of talented performers, including many familiar faces I've greatly missed seeing in the last 15 months without theater, told a sweet and silly story about Minnesota legend Paul Bunyan, and I smiled through the entire show. Fun, safe, and accessible, great for kids and grown-ups alike, LOG JAM is another exciting step in the return of our vital performing arts community (continuing through June 20).

"Hatchet Lady" by Walking Shadow Theatre Company at Red Eye Theater

On a Wednesday night with a nearly full house at the parking-challenged Red Eye Theater, I saw a bizarre and possibly brilliant creation. Walking Shadow's new bio-musical Hatchet Lady about temperance activist Carrie Nation is in some ways neither a biography nor a musical. There is music and it is somewhat about Carrie Nation, but it doesn't follow the structure of any musical I've seen. And that's a good thing. I'm at a bit of a loss how to talk about this one, but if you're looking for music-theater storytelling that is outside of the norm, you might want to try to snag a ticket to one of the few remaining performances. Going into its 3rd and final weekend, it seems to have built up quite a following based on word-of-mouth that has transcended the usual theater crowd. It's a wild 70-minute ride.

"The Holiday Pageant" at Open Eye Figure Theatre

Continuing with my marathon weekend of holiday shows (read more about that here), last night I saw Open Eye Figure Theatre's Holiday Pageant. Like Black Nativity is to Penumbra Theatre, The Holiday Pageant is Open Eye's annual tradition. And like Black Nativity, I had never seen it before this year. The show began as an entertainment for family and friends in the home of Open Eye Co-Founders Susan Haas and Michael Sommers (who wrote, directed, and designed this version), and has since expanded into the show currently on the charming, intimate, adorably tiny stage of Open Eye. The production values may have increased, with beautiful sets and costumes and a 12-person choir singing original songs by Victor Zupanc, but it still has that homey feel of a family pageant. We're luck that Susan and Michael have invited us into their home and family to experience this oddly sweet little gem.

"Cartooon" at In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre

I was tired and crabby last night when I made my way out into below-zero temps to attend In the Heart of the Beast's Cartooon. I had gotten in late the night before from a busy three-day business trip, which was preceded by six straight days at the theater. Due to a mix-up that afternoon I thought that the performance had been cancelled, and I was secretly relieved because that meant I could curl up on the couch and watch the new Sherlock, and then go to bed early. So I was a little disappointed when I found out that my rare night off was not to be. But I went anyway, because that's what I do. And I soon learned that it's impossible to be crabby while watching the delightfully creative and absurd Cartooon. My mood was completely turned around moments after stepping into the cold and musty-smelling theater, and with a 7 o'clock showtime and a running time of just over an hour, I was still home in time to go to bed early. As for Sherlock, he'll still be there waiting for me.

I had never attended a performance by In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre, but of course I've heard many wonderful things about them. I therefore had high expectations, and I was not disappointed. Cartooon is like a live-action cartoon acted out with two-dimensional puppets and countless crazy and creative props (everything AND the kitchen sink!), with the story told by a narrator (Maren Ward) and music provided by a ten-piece orchestra (led by music director and sound effects man Matt Larson) and a twelve-person choir (directed by Elizabeth Windnagel). The cartoon follows "Tummy da Talking Turtle" and his crocodile nemesis (think the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote), and a woman known as "bouncy bouncy," represented only by a pair of legs in red shoes.

The plot of the cartoon mostly consists of the two frenemies one-upping each other with physical insults, chasing each other around the world, blowing up dynamite, and other crazy machinations. It's reenacted three times with successively larger puppets. First hand-held (multiple versions), then life-size, then over-sized. Typical cartoon things happen, like a piano or anvil falling on someone, or a character running through a brick wall and leaving a hole the shape of their body, or eyes bulging and tongue rolling out (sometimes all the way to the taco place next door) at the sight of a beautiful woman. The way all of these things are represented is incredibly creative and inventive. Four puppeteers - Steve Ackerman (who also created and directs the show), Lauren Anderson, Jon Mac Cole, and Carly Wicks - manipulate all of these shenanigans at an incredibly fast pace, utilizing all areas of the theater in the chase around the world. The gags keep getting bigger and bigger (literally and figuratively), and the action happens faster and more furiously, until the whole thing devolves into a wonderfully chaotic mess by the end of the show. It probably takes them four times as long to set up the incredibly intricate workings of the show than it does to tear it all down again. But I'm certain the latter is much more fun.

I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like Cartooon before. Mind-boggling creativity, silly fun, with the audience in stitches the whole time. In short, it's utterly charming and completely absurd. So even if you're tired and crabby and it's freezing cold out (or maybe especially if that's the case), Cartooon is just the thing to brighten your day and warm you up. Just four performances remain this weekend, so get there while you can.