"Shul" by Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company at Highland Park Center Theatre

On a weekend when there was yet another deadly attack on a synagogue, I can think of no better reaction to the devastating news than to go to our local Jewish theater and support Jewish artists, Jewish stories, Jewish culture. Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company's world premiere new play Shul, another word for synagogue, is especially appropriate as it deals with an inner city synagogue in danger of closing, and even references a bullet hole in the window. It's a beautiful, funny, poignant story about a group of people trying to keep their culture, traditions, and community alive in the face of ever-changing modern times.

"Noises Off" at the Guthrie Theater

A Christmas Carol is not the only thing playing in that big beautiful blue building on the river. Across the lobby from the 44th annual production of A Christmas Carol, the Guthrie is presenting a hilarious comedy that will make your face hurt from laughing so much. Noises Off is the perfect madcap comedy, perfectly executed by the cast, crew, and creative team at the Guthrie. The play within a play format allows the audience to peak inside the world of the theater and see what it might be like in rehearsal, backstage during a performance, and at the end of a long and troubled tour. It's a complete mess as things continue to go wrong for the fictional company, but the real-life company pulls it all off beautifully; this is impeccably organized chaos thanks to first-time Guthrie director Meredith McDonough and her team. If your thoughts about theater are, as one of the characters in the play says: "I don't go to the theater to listen to other people's problems, I go to be taken out of myself and hopefully not put back in again," this is the perfect play for that.

"West Side Story" at the Guthrie Theater

I grew up watching West Side Story. I've seen the movie dozens of times, listened to the music hundreds of times, and seen it on stage a handful of times (including the Ordway's gorgeous production last year). But I've never seen a West Side Story like the one currently on stage at the big blue building on the river. The Guthrie's West Side Story, directed by Artistic Director Joseph Haj and featuring new original choreography Maija Garcia (both children of immigrants), feels like it was made for today's world. A toppled over Lady Liberty dominates the set, and the musical's themes of institutionalized racism, prejudice towards immigrants, senseless violence, and hate born out of fear have never felt so relevant. It's still that timeless story of star-crossed lovers,* set to Leonard Bernstein's familiar, beloved, and gorgeous score, but with a cast that looks, moves, and feels like America today, for better or worse.

"Roller Derby Queen" by SOS Theater at Gremlin Theatre

A new #TCTheater company is debuting a new play by a first time playwright in a new St. Paul theater space that just opened this summer. What's more exciting than that?! The good news is that Roller Derby Queen is a great play - smart, funny, and well-written, with quirky but real characters played by a dreamy cast, clearly directed in this intimate space. I'm not entirely sure what SOS Theater is about yet, but based on the first offering of this "new production company dedicated to producing evocative works that present fresh and entertaining perspectives of this ludicrous thing called life," I'm intrigued, and hope to see more.

"Via Dolorosa" by Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company at the Highland Park Center Theater

In 1997, British playwright David Hare (whose work was recently seen in the Twin Cities via Park Square Theatre's production of Amy's View) traveled to Israel and Palestine to do research for a play about British involvement in the area. What he came away with was a one-man play in which he, the playwright, tells stories from his journey there. Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company is presenting Via Dolorosa to begin their 23rd season, and wow, is it fascinating. I realized just how little I know about the subject, and felt like I should have been taking notes for this engaging lecture. Vaguely familiar phrases like Six-Day War and Oslo Peace Accord sent me scurrying to Wikipedia this morning for details, but it would take weeks, months, years of study to understand all the complexities and centuries of history. This play doesn't attempt to spell everything out, but rather give one man's impression of the land he experienced and the people he met.

"You Can't Take It With You" at the Jungle Theater

About a year and a half ago, I cut down the hours on my day job so that I would have more time to do what I love - seeing and writing about theater. Which essentially means I took a pay cut in order to have more time to enjoy my life. This means that my bank account is a little smaller, but as the man said, you can't take it with you! It's a motto I live by, but had yet to see the play by that name until last night. I was pleased to discover that it celebrates this very spirit - doing what you love, surrounded by people you love (no matter how crazy they might be), and not sacrificing these things for a paycheck. Granted, not everyone is in a position to reduce their paycheck to spend time blogging, or dancing, or making fireworks, but it's a good thing to assess how you're spending your time (more precious and rare than money) every once in a while. Jungle Theater's production of You Can't Take It With You is funny, quirky, heart-warming, and with a cast so delicious it'll make you drool.

Hugh Kennedy and Anna Sundberg
(photo by Kerri Pickett)

It's 1937 New York, and the extended Sycamore family is about as eccentric as they come. Grandpa quit his job 35 years ago because he didn't enjoy it, and spends his time raising snakes and attending commencements. Daughter Penny and her husband Paul keep busy writing plays and making fireworks, respectively, while their daughter Essie, who lives in the house with xylophone-playing husband Ed, studies dance and makes candy. Various other oddball friends and employees fill the house, with daughter Alice as the only seemingly "normal" one. She works in an office on Wall Street, and falls in love with the boss' son. As you can imagine, when Alice brings Mr. Kirby and his conservative wealthy parents home to meet the family, much hilarity ensues. Will these two very different families ever make peace so that these two crazy kids can get hitched?

Angela Timberman, John Middleton, and a kitty!
(photo by Kerri Pickett)

This is a huge and star-studded cast, with many favorites from the Jungle and other local stages, including three real-life married couples (although only one of them actually plays a married couple). And there's not a weak link among them, including the two kittens! Each actor is so committed to the role and bringing out each character's delightful and specific quirks, while still making them seem like real people. In fact I don't know where to begin in singling out individual performances, for fear of leaving someone out! But I'll give it a go:

Angela Timberman, Cathleen Fuller, Hugh Kennedy,
Nathaniel Fuller, and Julia Valen
(photo by Kerri Pickett)

There's Angela Timberman as the loveable flake of a mother (I don't think it's possible for a human to upstage her, but a kitten can, especially when it starts playing with her earring!); John Middleton as her fireworks-obsessed husband; Cathleen and Nathaniel Fuller as the stiff and conservative Kirbys, both of whom have a little more life inside them than initially seen; Anna Sundberg as the sweet and relatively normal Alice; Hugh Kennedy, as charming as ever as her Mr. Kirby; Elisa Pluhar and Peter Lincoln Rusk as a couple of loyal employees that fit right in with this odd family; Charity Jones as a boozy actress who spends most of her time onstage collapsed in a heap; the delightful Julia Valen as Essie, constantly dancing and fluttering in her ballet slippers, frequently getting up on those toes; sharing a cute and easy chemistry with Max Wojtanowicz as her husband who accidentally distributes communist messages; Jay Albright, goofy as ever as Paul's fireworks buddy; Allen Hamilton as the frighteningly intense Russian dance teacher; Wendy Lehr as the Grand Duchess who makes blintzes, a third-act appearance that's worth the wait; Gabriel Murphy as the shocked IRS agent who enters the home and doesn't know what he's getting into; and last but not least, Raye Birk who, like Grandpa, is the heart and center of the show. Phew! Trust me, they're all fantastic and play together so well under Gary Gisselman's direction that every performance is a joy to watch. In fact there's often so much goodness going on at once on different parts of the stage that it's impossible to take it all in!

All of this craziness takes place in the Sycamore home, beautifully designed by Tom Butsch to use every inch of the Jungle's small stage. There's a foyer, office area, alcove for Ed's xylophone and printing press, stairway, dining table, and several doorways with set decoration continuing outside the doors. The walls are covered with framed photos and artwork, and every corner is crammed with books and tchotchkes. Amelia Cheever's '30s period costumes are beautiful (including several pairs of shoes I would like to own) and perfectly suited to each character. The lighting by Don Darnutzer and sound by Montana Johnson complete this specifically defined world (including several fireworks tricks on and off stage), with period music playing during intermissions and a post-curtain call song that perfectly sums up the evening: the best things in life are free!

What else can I say about You Can't Take It With You than it's an absolute delight and utterly joyful. Head to the Jungle between now and through August 9 for a pick-me-up and to revel in the good things in life.

"When the Moon Hits Your Eye" by Theater Latte Da at the Lab Theater

Continuing their mission to "create new connections between story, music, artist, and audience by exploring and expanding the art of musical theater," Theater Latte Da is presenting three new works as part of "NEXT: New Musicals in the Making." The creators spend two weeks workshopping the piece with Theater Latte Da's Artistic Director Peter Rothstein, Music Director Denise Prosek, and a talented cast of local actor/singers. At the end of that period they present the work to audiences, who are invited to give feedback on what they've seen. For a musical theater fan like myself, it's an exciting opportunity to observe and maybe even take part in the creation of a new piece of music-theater.

The first installment, When the Moon Hits Your Eye, was presented last weekend at the gorgeous Lab Theater. This "play with music" was written by playwright Jon Marans (who also wrote Old Wicked Songs, which Latte Da did at the Guthrie Studio in 2008) and features several diverse songs in the public domain. It's a slice of life in the neighborhood known as Hell's Kitchen in NYC, specifically the corner of 48th Street and 9th Avenue. It's a fantastic neighborhood that's rich with stories (if you're in NYC to see some shows, do not eat anywhere near Times Square, instead head over to 8th or 9th Avenue, where the real people live, work, and eat). Our characters include engaged couple Natalia (Emily Gunyou Halaas) and Larry (Rudolph Searles III), Natalia's mother Felizbella (Michelle Cassioppi), her ex Matthew (Steven Grant Douglas), and the grieving Debbie (Sara Ochs), all of whom live in the same building. Their landlord Gian Carlo (Raye Birk) also works in the barber shop on the ground floor, and the widow Liz (played by Nancy Marvy), who used to teach in the neighborhood, is friendly with the residents. These seven characters make up a little family, and the play shows us a few days in their intersecting lives - weddings, affairs, first dates, illnesses, break-ups, career changes, and other usual stuff of life. And of course, music accompanies their life. Music as diverse as an Italian opera, the plaintive Boll Weevil song ("lookin' for a home"), a haunting Scottish border ballad, a Mongolian love song, and a Portuguese celebratory song. The characters narrate each others' actions (partly due to the fact that this is a reading, partly as a story-telling choice), but in a really interesting and interactive way. They don't just blankly read the narration, rather they convey their feelings about what's going on through the reading. The language is beautifully descriptive; you can easily visualize the action as it plays out in different areas of the building. All of these pieces combined to tell a really lovely story, funny, poignant, and completely engaging. I think the creators have something really special here, and I'm excited to see where it will go next. Although I might call it a musical rather than a play with music. Characters sing to each other in character, espressing their emotions, and walk down the street singing. That, to me, is the very definition of a musical.

I know this is supposed to be about the work, but without the fabulous performances by every one of the seven cast-members, you cannot appreciate or even really see the work. They spent about two weeks with this material, and though they had scripts in front of them, they were able to create fully rounded characters with a wonderful chemistry and sense of family between them. Steven and Emily's duet on the border ballad is an absolute dream, Sara sings gorgeously in Mongolian, and Rudolph's Italian opera is thrilling. Raye and Michelle portray a sweet and tender later-in-life love story, and Nancy's character is the heart of the building. And did I mention that they all speak in authentic-sounding accents, and sing in multiple languages? This wouldn't be an easy piece to do with four weeks of rehearsal, how much more challenging with only two weeks and a constantly changing script!

As anyone who reads this blog knows, musical theater is my favorite thing in the world. But I think I love it most for what it can be, and often isn't in whatever movie has been most recently adapted to the Broadway stage. Theater Latte Da strives to elevate the art form that is musical theater and move it into the future. That's what NEXT is all about, and judging from the first selection, it's going to be an amazing three weeks at the Lab Theater. Up next is C., a new musical adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac by Robert Elhai and Bradley Greenwald. Following that is Bessie's Birthday, which has been expanded from the one-act musical presented as a part of Passage of Dreams four years ago (one of my favorite shows of the year). I remember thinking when I saw it that it could and should be expanded into a full-length musical, so I'm thrilled that they're doing just that.

If you're a fan of music-theater, or just enjoy seeing the creative process at work, I highly recommend you attend one or both of the remaining selections in "NEXT: New Musicals in the Making."

the beautiful bare stage of the Lab Theater,
where anything can happen

"Long Day's Journey Into Night" at the Guthrie Theater

Long Day's Journey Into Night is the autobiographical masterpiece of American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The son of an actor, he was born in a hotel at what is now Times Square - you can't get much more ingrained in the history of American theater than that. This piece was so personal to him that he left instructions that it not be published until 25 years after his death. His life reads like a tragedy, full of drug addiction and mental illness, so it's no wonder that this most truthful of all his plays is a tragic family story. Set in 1912 at the family's summer home on the sea, the mother is a morphine addict (as was O'Neill's mother), the father and two sons alcoholics (O'Neill's older brother died of complications of alcoholism at the age of 45). The action of the play takes place all in one day as it journeys into night (such a beautiful and poetic turn of phrase). There is love in this family, but also anger, frustration, and desperation. With the Guthrie's usual top-notch production values and stellar (and primarily local) cast, it's a heavy, intense, thought-provoking, and deeply rewarding look at an American classic.

John Skelley and Helen Carey as mother and son

On the night I attended the play, shortly before the lights came up in that lifelike and lived-in seaside home built on the thrust stage, there was an announcement that the role of family patriarch James Tyrone was to be played by Raye Birk, rather than James' usual portrayer, Peter Michael Goetz.* A slight murmur of disappointment rippled through the audience, but 30 seconds after Raye Birk stepped on stage I forgot that anybody other than him was supposed to be playing this role. I've been a fan of Raye's for years, but I'm even more in awe of his talent after watching him step so smoothly into a role that he'll probably only play a handful of times in the six-week run of the show. He and the rest of the cast completely embody these characters both physically and emotionally, and make your heart break at the tragic situation they've created for themselves. The beginning of the play is almost hopeful. Mother Mary (a fragile and fluttery Helen Carey) has just returned from her latest attempt to get sober and seems to be doing well, despite the men in her family watching and reading into her every move and word (it's almost as if their suspicion of a relapse is a self-fulfilling prophesy; they expect her to return to her addict ways and so she does). Youngest son Edmund (a stand-in for the playwright) is sick with consumption (played by John Skelley, who, thanks to his constant cough and the make-up and wardrobe, looks and sounds convincingly sickly, sallow, hollow-eyed, and thin in an oversized sweater). Things go
downhill as the day

the Johns Skelley and Catron as the Tyrone brothers

progresses and pre-lunch drinks turn into pre-dinner drinks turn into an after-dinner binge (as the elder son Jamie, John Catron is such an excellent drunk that I was afraid he was going to fall over!). Heartfelt discussions and confessions (in vino veritas, as Jamie says) are shared between various pairs of characters, but the day ends with the family stuck in the tragedy of self-destruction.

If you're a fan of the American theater, head to the Guthrie between now and February 23 to experience this classic.


*Update: Raye Birk is permanently taking over the role of James Tyrone from Peter Michael Goetz, who has returned to his California home to take care of a personal matter. I'm sorry to see Peter go and I wish him well, but rest assured that the role is in good hands.

"King Lear" at Park Square Theatre

Park Square Theatre's new production of Shakespeare's King Lear* sets the classic story of an aging king going mad in Prohibition era America, complete with guns, gowns, and lots of drinking. The strong cast brings the characters to life, most of whom end up dead by the end of the play in typical Shakespearean style. Along the way, stories of betrayal, loyalty, disguised identities, power, manipulations, and eye gouging (gross) are told in intensely dramatic fashion. I have to admit, Shakespeare is not my favorite (I much prefer Park Square's last show, the new two-person play Red, more about ideas than action), but this play is worth seeing for the masterful performances of the cast in these meaty roles, directed by Peter Moore (a much different tone than his other show I saw this week, the sketch comedy 2 Sugars, Room for Cream).

I've seen King Lear once before, a Royal Shakespeare Company production at the Guthrie, starring Sir Ian McKellan. But since that was pre-blog and my memory is not as good as it used to be, I really didn't remember much about it (other than I saw way more of Gandalf than I ever wanted to!). So it was with a fresh eye that I saw this production, and was able to appreciate Raye Birk's performance without any baggage of past performances of this classic theater role. As King Lear, he convincingly transforms from powerful and genial, to irrationally angry, to pitifully lost, to compassionately loving, often in one scene. With such a range of emotions, it's no wonder this is such a coveted role, and Raye plays every one of those emotions to the hilt.

Another performance I particularly enjoyed is Jim Lichtsheidl as the bastard son of a lord who manipulates his father into believing that his brother is plotting against him, while playing with the affections of two of Lear's (married) daughters. Jim is so deliciously evil that you almost want to root for him in his schemes (and what is it about a mustache that instantly makes a man look more devilish?). Dan Hopman also impresses as the wronged brother, who hides out as a bum, and is thereby able to protect his father (the regal Stephen D'Ambrose) after the aforementioned eye gouging.

Other standouts in the cast include Jennifer Blagen and Stacia Rice as Lear's greedy daughters who flatter him until they get their inheritance, and then push him aside; Adelin Phelps (who played a version of Cinderella in my favorite Fringe show this summer) as the daughter who refuses to play his game and is disowned because of it, while still remaining loyal to the father that she loves; and Ansa Akyea as another loyal supporter of the king despite being banished and forced to assume a new identy (wouldn't it be awesome if banishment were still an available punishment today, and one could change one's hairstyle and accent and be completely unrecognizable to the people who know them best?).

Last but not least, Gary Briggle plays the fool as a former Vaudeville performer, who cheers his lord with songs and brings some much-needed levity to the show. One of my favorite parts of the play happens before the action of play actually begins. When I got to my seat about ten minutes prior to showtime, the cast was already on stage mingling at the King's party, as the fool (Gary) entertained them by singing songs ranging from opera to pop songs of the day ("You're the Top"). It's fun to observe the informal meetings and partings, not to mention the gorgeous dresses with full-length trains worn by Lear's daughters (costumes by Amy B. Kaufman).

Park Square Theatre's re-imagining of King Lear is playing now through November 11. It's worth checking out if you're a fan of Shakespeare or of great performances.

*I received one complementary ticket to the opening night of King Lear.

"The Sunshine Boys" at the Guthrie Theater

I've been looking forward to seeing The Sunshine Boys at the Guthrie since I heard it would star Peter Michael Goetz and Raye Birk, two of my (and I think everyone's) favorite Guthrie actors. Both of them have been in countless Guthrie productions since the 1960s, as well as many movies and TV shows. These two experienced actors are excellent at both comedy and drama (Peter recently starred in Long Day's Journey Into Night in DC and will reprise his role at the Guthrie early next year, Raye will tackle King Lear at Park Square Theatre this fall). This play gives them a chance to show off their comedy chops, and they do. Written by Neil Simon, The Sunshine Boys is about a pair of old Vaudeville performers who have had a falling out, but come back together in 1972 to perform on a TV show about the history of comedy. As you can imagine, it does not go smoothly, much to the delight of everyone watching.

Peter Michael Goetz as Willie Clark
and Robert Berdahl as his nephew Ben

Peter Michael Goetz is Willie Clark, who lives in a once glamorous but now run-down hotel in New York City. He's still working as an actor, doing the occasional commercial, but jobs are becoming fewer and farther between. He refuses to retire, and chides his agent nephew Ben (played by the wonderful Robert Berdahl, who serves as the straight man grounding these two crazies, dressed in a series of fabulous 70s era suits) about finding him a gig. It turns out Ben has found a gig for Willie, but it involves reuniting with his old partner Al Lewis (Lewis and Clark, get it?). Lewis unexpectedly retired 11 years ago, and the pair hasn't seen or talked to each other since. Willie reluctantly agrees to a rehearsal with Al to see how things go, chaperoned initially by Ben. It falls apart, but somehow they advance to an in-studio dress rehearsal. Act Two begins with the busy TV studio and we get to see the infamous "doctor sketch," in which Dudley Riggs (himself a real-life veteran of the Vaudeville stage and founder of the Brave New Workshop improv comedy troupe) appears. Until that, too, falls apart. The play ends with these two lifelong friends reminiscing about old times and facing the rest of their lives together. It's a true love-hate relationship, beautifully portrayed by Peter and Raye. The banter, the awkward silences, the way they play off of each other, the distinct way they walk around the stage, the broad New York accents, Willie's schlubby style in contrast to Al's fastidiousness, all of it is so precise and so much fun to watch.

Peter Michael Goetz's Willie Clark and Raye Birk's Al Lewis

As you can see from the sticker on the playbill above, I happened to attend on a night when they were holding a post-show discussion, an opportunity I never pass up (and you shouldn't either, if you're at all interested in listening to artists talk about their work). It was really fascinating to hear about all the work that goes into this seemingly effortless performance, and it made me want to watch it again. Peter said that rehearsing a comedy is torture, because there's no audience there to laugh so they don't know if they're funny or not. It's not until the previews that they figure out what works and what doesn't, and they have to adjust a little to allow for laughter. The opening was just last Friday, so he said they're still settling into it. Jennifer Maren (who plays the requisite blond bombshell in the sketch) talked about how a comedy like this is similar to a musical in that it has a certain rhythm and cadence. It's intricately choreographed, such as the scene in which Lewis and Clark spend several minutes moving furniture around to set up for their rehearsal and don't say a word. 

I'm pretty sure I could listen to Peter Michael Goetz tell stories about his life in the theater for hours and hours. His experience in the early days of the Guthrie, on Broadway, and in Hollywood I'm sure provide many amusing anecdotes, like the time he walked onstage during a performance of a classical Shakespeare play dressed as Lennie in Of Mice and Men, back in the days when the Guthrie was a repertory theater (which he says he misses). This is why I love the Guthrie, for bringing actors of this caliber to my town and keeping them here, even after they venture to the East and West coasts.

The Guthrie may no longer be a repertory theater, but you can still see three excellent and very different shows at the Guthrie right now, each wonderful in its own way. Starting at the top, the lovely dance piece Swimming with My Mother is playing in the Guthrie Studio through this weekend. If you're looking for a good old-fashioned musical, go see Roman Holiday. And for a hilarious and intricate comedy, there's The Sunshine Boys. Or go see all three - sounds like a perfect weekend to me!

"Song of Extinction" by Theater Latte Da at the Guthrie Theater

I went to Theater Latte Da's production of Song of Extinction at the Guthrie' Dowling Studio, expecting to see great drama.  But what I didn't expect is that for a few moments, the drama in the audience overshadowed the drama on stage!  About ten minutes into the show I could hear people talking behind me.  My first thought was, "how rude, to talk out loud at the theater!"  But then I realized they were saying "we need medical attention," and, as you usually only hear on TV, "is there a doctor in the house?"  Within seconds the house lights came up, the action on stage stopped, and the ushers and numerous other important looking people rushed in, while we were told to "remain calm and in your seats."  A woman had passed out in her seat, but regained concsiousness before the paramedics arrived.  After a few minutes the actors went backstage, and the stunned silence in the audience turned to chatter as we waited for the paramedics.  The woman was taken out in a wheelchair and is hopefully OK.  The scene was reset, the lights went out, and we rewound to the beginning of the scene that was interrupted.  On with the show.  I have to admit, the excitement totally took me out of the play.  But fortunately it was near the beginning and I was soon able to get back into the world that was just beginning to be created in front of us.

Theater Latte Da usually does musicals, but they occasionally do what they call "a play with music."  This is one of those times.  Song of Extinction, directed by Artistic Director Peter Rothstein, is a new play by EM Lewis about science and life and death and relationships and music.  Max is a 15-year-old boy (played by high school junior Dan Piering, an impressive actor and musician) whose mother (Carla Noack) is dying of cancer and trying to protect her son as best she can.  Max's biologist father (John Middleton) seems to care more about a species of bug he discovered in Bolivia than what's happening with his family.  Faced with losing his wife and his life's work, he chooses to focus on the one that he might have some control over.  Max has no one to turn to, other than his music (he carries his cello in its battered case like a security blanket) and his science teacher, a Cambodian refugee who was the only member of his family to survive the Khmer Rouge.  Mr. Phan (David Mura) understands death and loss and is reluctantly drawn into being there for Max and his family when no one else can.

The theme of extinction runs through the play on several levels.  Max's father's species of bug only exists in a Bolivian rain forest that's about to be destroyed.  He desperately pleads his case to the businessman in charge, telling him that we don't know what the effects of the loss of one species are.  Mr. Phan's whole family became extinct, and as a science teacher he also teaches his students about extinction.  He assigns them a twenty page paper, and when Max is too frightened to be either at the hospital with his mother or at home with his father, he goes to Mr. Phan for help on the paper.  An angry Max asks, "why shouldn't I blow up the school if we're all going to die anyway?"  Mr. Phan calmly gets him to explore the idea in terms of the paper, but he sees that there's more going on, and gets Max to confide in him.  When Max finally turns in his paper after his mother's death, it's a story about his dad the biologist, and his mom's death, and ends with a song he wrote for the cello (an original piece composed by Latte Da Musical Director Denise Prosek).  The play ends with Max playing his "song of extinction" and pouring all of his feeling into the music.

The set design by Michael Hoover is really interesting and effective.  The main focus is a hospital bed surrounded by see-through walls with panels in them that also function as screens.  Old fashioned slide projectors are lined up at the front of the stage and project different designs and colors, as well as pictures of bugs, around the stage.

Song of Extinction is another great piece by Theater Latte Da that, while not a traditional musical, explores the place that music has in our lives.

"A Streetcar Named Desire" at the Guthrie

STELLAAAAAAAAAAA! Before last night, that’s pretty much all I knew about Tennessee Williams’ play A Streetcar Named Desire. But now I know what a fascinating, entertaining, tortured tale it is. I saw it last night as the final show of the 2009-2010 season in the Wurtele Thrust Stage at the Guthrie Theater (the final show in the McGuire Proscenium Stage is Scottsboro Boys, which I’ll see in a few weeks). As usual at the Guthrie, it was an amazing production.

Blanche DuBois has got to be one of the greatest characters in the history of American theater. Think Scarlet O’Hara, only without the “I’ll never go hungry again” strength. Blanche and her sister Stella were raised on a beautiful old Southern plantation to live a certain kind of lifestyle. That lifestyle has fallen apart, and Stella is now married to the abusive Stanley, living in a run-down house in New Orleans, and Blanche has gone from man to man, looking for someone to take care of her. She was raised to be the wife of a gentleman and mistress of a household, and doesn’t know how else to get through life. She’s still haunted by the tragic ending of her early marriage, which is beautifully illustrated by the sound and lighting in the play. At times you feel like you’re inside Blanche’s head, and it’s not a comfortable place to be!

The story begins when Blanche comes to New Orleans to visit her sister (and takes a streetcar named, yes, Desire, to get there). She meets Stella’s husband Stanley, a brute of a man, verbally and physically abusive toward his wife. But he has that charm and passion (e.g., “Stellaaaa!”) that, like most abusive relationships, keeps Stella coming back to him. Stanley and Blanche do not get along, and when Blanche overstays her welcome and Stanley discovers the truth about her past and why she’s there, he uses it against her. Her fragile world comes tumbling down.

The all-around solid cast features Guthrie regular Stacia Rice as Stella Kowalski, Guthrie newcomer Gretchen Egolf as Blanche DuBois, and 1999 graduate from A Guthrie Experience for Actors in Training, Ricardo Antonio Chavira (Carlos from Desperate Housewives), as Stanley Kowalski. Gretchen beautifully portrays Blanche’s charm and wit that's covering for a person on the edge of falling apart, and who eventually steps over that edge. I felt the most sympathy for Blanche in this play. Sure she’s made some poor choices in her life, but she’s just doing what she knows and trying to find someone who will love her and take care of her. As her suitor Mitch (Brian Keane) tells her at one point, “You need somebody. And I need somebody, too. Could it be - you and me, Blanche?” I really wanted that to happen for her, for both of them, even as I knew it wouldn’t.

Stacia and Ricardo have a believable passion and ease with each other as Stella and Stanley. Ricardo is so good I wanted to boo him when he came out for the curtain call! Stanley is not a likeable character. In a way, Blanche is the lucky one, because she hit bottom and might now get some help to rebuild her life. Stella is stuck with abusive Stanley, and you know it’s only going to get worse. To quote Wicked (I mentioned I’m a theater geek, didn’t I), “If that’s love it comes at much too high a cost.”

Other notable members of the cast are frequent musical theater performer Ann Michels, and my “costar” and one of my favorite local actors, Raye Birk. For those of you who don’t know, I also have a burgeoning career as a movie extra – catch me at minute 56 of the Coen Brothers’ 2009 film A Serious Man. Raye plays the doctor in the film, and even though my scene was not with him, I consider him my costar. ;-).

Another digression: several weeks ago I saw Stacia and Ann in the audience of Circle Mirror Transformation in the Dowling Studio at the Guthrie; I think they were just beginning rehearsals at the time. The play was a really funny and touching look at a community acting class and the lives and relationships of the participants. A show about actors must draw actors, because I also saw Randy Reyes (Song in the Guthrie’s recent production of M Butterfly) in the audience.

I’ll close this first “review” on Cherry and Spoon with some memorable quotes from the show. Even though I’ve never seen the play before, some of them were familiar to me because it’s become a part of our culture.

“I don't want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic. I try to give that to people. I do misrepresent things. I don't tell truths. I tell what ought to be truth.”

“I never met a dame yet that didn't know if she was good-looking or not without being told, and there's some of them that give themselves credit for more than they've got.”

“Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.”

Thanks for reading, and check out this production if you get a chance. It's haunting and tragic and at times, funny. Even though it was 3+ hours long, it didn't feel that long. It was another wonderful night at the Guthrie, my favorite place on earth. :)