"Legacy of Light" at Theatre in the Round

A historical fiction rom com featuring female scientists? Sign me up! Playwright Karen Zacarías' Legacy of Light, now on stage at Theatre in the Round, is just my kind of play. It has a little of everything - comedy, romance, history, philosophy, poetry, science, fantasy, love, grief. The true story of 18th Century French mathematician and physicist Émilie du Châtelet is told alongside of the story of a fictional modern female scientist, the two stories speaking to each other in expected ways. A smart and funny play about smart, funny, strong women, their ambitions and accomplishments, as well as the obstacles they face because of their sex, is just what we need right now. See this lovely production at Theatre in the Round weekends through March 16.

Fringe Festival 2016: "The Chair-Builders"

Day: 9

Show: 41

Title: The Chair-Builders

Category: Drama

By: Catalog Models

Created by: Gemma Irish and Mark Sweeney

Location: Phoenix Theater

Summary: A couple is building chairs for a dinner party, but really they're figuring out how to build a life together.

Highlights: It's another quirky and delightful musical from Catalog Models* (book by Gemma Irish, music by Mark Sweeney). This one veers into the realm of the fantastical, as a couple meets a woman (Megan Kelly Hubbell) who, in exchange for the two chairs they're attempting to build, will make all their fears disappear. They agree to the exchange, and without fears, their jobs in insurance seem a little unnecessary. He decides to quit and become a lounge singer. She decides to stay, but learn to juggle in her spare time. It's a silly diversion but brings up some important questions. How many of our life decisions are based on fear? Would we make different decisions if we didn't have any fear of the result? Or does our fear serve us in some way? The songs are interesting, well-written, and well-placed within the story (although I would have preferred more live music and less recorded tracks). The Chair-Builders is an oddly sweet little musical journey through life and relationships.

*Listen to Gemma and Mark talk about the process of writing the piece on Mark's podcast Twin Cities Song Story.

Fringe Festival: "Into the Unreal City"

Day: 4

Show: 15

Title: Into the Unreal City

Category: Musical theater

By: Catalog Models

Written by: Gemma Irish and Mark Sweeney

Location: a walking tour that begins outside the Rarig Center

Summary: Zeke and Bet are a young married couple struggling with the small and big questions in life. The audience follows them around the city as they discuss, sing, remember their past, and dream of their future.

Highlights: One of four all new "site-specific" shows at the fringe, Into the Real City takes place on the city streets and campus walkways of the West Bank neighborhood.* Musician Zeke and writer Bet are happily married but struggling to find time for each other and their dreams. As we follow them, they run into younger and older versions of themselves. Not much happens; they sing a few songs, ask questions, and look forward hopefully into the future - "the doing and the learning and the figuring." It's unabashedly sincere and romantic - the cynical need not apply. Along the way you get to experience the sights and sounds and smells of the neighborhood in an immersive experience. Yes sometimes you can't hear them, or there's a bit of awkward silence while wait-wait-waiting for the light to change, but that's part of the uniqueness of the experience. The trio of Zekes (Russell Dugger, Tristan Miller, and Mark Sweeney) and Bets (Amber Davis, Laura Mason, and Shaina Ferguson) are all lovely and appealing (and do get as close as you can to the performers, they won't bite, and it will enhance your experience). This is a wonderfully unique theater experience - just what the Fringe is for (this is one that you definitely want to reserve in advance - with an audience of just 20, it's a high sell-out risk).

*You will be walking outside and going up and down stairs, so plan accordingly.

Fringe Festival: "The Unknown Matters"

Day: 8

Show: 22

Title: The Unknown Matters

By: Broken Boot Theatre

Created by: Mark Sweeney

Location: HUGE Theater

Summary: Two friends and colleagues explore ideas lofty (dark matter, new planets, the universe) and mundane (snacks!).

Highlights: I found the music in this piece, written by Mark Sweeney, to be completely lovely. He and Katie Bradley harmonize about physics and the universe and friendship and life, accompanied only by a ukulele, and the result is hauntingly beautiful. The plot is simple - Peter and Sarah work together, spending their days researching the vastness of the universe, until Peter gets sick and they are forced to rethink their routine and their life. But not in drastic, dramatic ways; this is a quiet and subtle piece. They make great use of silence, leaving plenty of room for ideas to breathe. The question on the chalkboard asks, "What are you waiting for?" Possible answers: "equality for all, adventure, ice cream, planets, dark matter, something to begin." In the busyness of the Fringe Festival, The Unknown Matters is a reprieve of quiet, simple beauty.

Read more of my fringe fest reflections…

… including my top 5 shows