"Twelfth Night" by Zephyr Theatre at the Great Banquet Hall

Stillwater's Zephyr Theater is back with a very short run of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, presented in the Grand Banquet Hall in Stillwater. It's billed as "a 1960s tropical comedy romance," with some inspiration from the iconic TV series Gilligan's Island. This allows for some fun with the costumes and design, which also incorporates Christmas decor, as Twelfth Night is traditionally celebrated as the 12th night after Christmas. I wish they had leaned more into the Gilligan's Island theme, I didn't really get much of it other than that the twins are dressed like Gilligan in the bucket hat, red long-sleeved shirt, and jeans. But it's a fun show, with seating at large round tables and food and beverages available to enjoy before and during the show, giving it a holiday celebration sort of feel. If you're in the Stillwater area, check out one of their three remaining performances this weekend.

"The Book Club Play" at Theatre in the Round

I used to be in a Book Club with a group of work friends. Once a month we would gather at someone's house, eat good food, drink wine, catch up on each other's lives, and maybe eventually get around to talking about the book. Which not everyone read, but I always did, and I would get frustrated that not many people wanted to actually talk about the book, at Book Club! I relate perhaps a little too much to the character Ana in Karen Zacarías'* hilarious play The Book Club Play, now on stage at Theatre in the Round. It's essentially a study of humanity as seen through the very specific phenomenon known as the Book Club. It's also an exploration of books, literature, art, and what makes some worthy and some not, some popular and some not. And are those two things mutually exclusive? You can see the very funny, real, and relatable The Book Club Play at the oldest theater in Minneapolis weekends through February 19.