"A Lesson in Love" at Pillsbury House + Theatre

The new play A Lesson in Love is a really sweet and funny (and a little bit heartbreaking) romcom that ultimately is not about the love between two specific people, but about being open to love in general, in all its forms. It's beautifully and cleverly written by #TCTheater artist Nubia Monks, whom I know primarily as an incredibly talented singer and actor, in a way that feels real and grounded. With complete, complex, and lived-in performances by the two-person cast, and simple yet elegant design, A Lesson in Love feels like a little bit of a balm to a weary world. It may make you forget about all of the hate and fear that pervades our world, and remember what is possible with love. At least for 75 minutes or so. See it at Pillsbury House + Theatre now through October 19.

"A Walless Church" at Pillsbury House + Theatre

Certain religious traditions say that humans were created in god's image, but I've also heard it said that humans created god in their image. Which is often not a good thing. But this is a good thing: in Pillsbury House + Theatre's production of the world premiere new play A Walless Church (walless = wall-less = without walls), three Black women, "godlings," show us how to create god in just about 70 minutes (and they're not happy about the time constraint). You need a big emotion, a common intention, and a conduit (although this one isn't absolutely necessary). But they need our help. Join in this loving, playful, heart-warming ritual of a play happening four to five times a week through October 13 at Pillsbury House in South Minneapolis.

"Spittin' Seeds" at Penumbra Theatre

For two years, the artists in Penumbra Theatre's Ashe Lab Residency program have been working together to create a new work of theater/music/dance/poetry. The result is Spittin' Seeds, a 75-minute celebration of Black joy, community, culture, and resiliency. It touches on tragedy as well, but for the most part it's a magical, mystical, beautiful tapestry of song, dance, scenes, and visual delights. Including the talented cast comprised of #TCTheater veterans and young actors, it's a really lovely collaboration by all of the artists involved. See it at Penumbra through June 26 only.

"What to Send Up When It Goes Down" at Pillsbury House Theatre (outdoors)

Pillsbury House Theater returns to live theater with the play What to Send Up When It Goes Down by playwright Aleshea Harris (who also wrote the powerful revenge fantasy Is God Is produced by Mixed Blood Theatre a few years ago). Though written in 2019, this play could not be more relevant to this time and place. The time: coming out of a tumultuous year-plus that saw a devastating global pandemic, the continued murder of Black people by police that led to a racial reckoning, and an attempted violent overthrow of our government by white supremacists. The place: the parking lot outside Pillsbury House Theatre in south Minneapolis, just a few blocks from where George Floyd was murdered just over a year ago. This play was created by Black people for Black people as a safe space to gather, release, mourn, and celebrate the experience of being Black in America. Described as "part ritual and part theatrical experience," it's one of those rare plays that transcends theater to become an experience of real connection and communion with each other and what's going on in the world around us. This is the kind of profound, relevant, truly meaningful theater that I expected to come out of this last year, and I hope it continues.

"She Persists: The Great Divide III" at Pillsbury House Theatre

For the third year in a row, Pillsbury House Theatre is presented a collection of short plays that speak to our divided nation. The 2017 collection was subtitled Plays for a Broken Nation, 2018 was Plays on the Politics of Truth, and 2019 is an all-female collection/creation called She Persists. The series has been a really wonderful way to examine what divides us in a non-judgmental, non-threatening way, while offering a path towards hope and greater connection and conversation with each other. With most theater companies planning their seasons out a year or more in advance, it's difficult for them to immediately respond to what's happening in the world. But this series allows for that, with five brand new 10-minute plays that could not be more timely and relevant.