"A 1940s Radio Christmas Carol" at Lyric Arts

Lyric Arts' contribution to the #TCTheater holiday* season this year is A 1940s Radio Christmas Carol. It's a feel-good nostalgic kind of holiday show, full of laughs, groans, lovely music, and a few poignant moments. You really can't go wrong combining the Dickens classic with 1940s Americana. Lyric Arts has assembled a great cast that performs the material well - both musically and theatrically - with detailed design that'll put you in the holiday spirit.

"Sam's Son" by Bucket Brigade at Art House North

A new original musical is just about my favorite thing in the world, so the new musical Sam's Son by Bucket Brigade, a company that specializes in new work whose work I've enjoyed in the past, was on my must-see list in this busy #TCTheater October. Performed in the intimate, immersive space that is Art House North, I was not disappointed and found it to be a highly entertaining evening (complete with free intermission treats - root beer and a pretzel). While the plot points may be a bit cliche and predictable, the story is well told by the talented cast, with a fantastic original score tinged with gospel, bluegrass, and old-timey feel while still sounding like a modern musical. It's such a treat to see new work that is locally created (written by Bucket Brigade co-founders Vanessa and Jeremiah Gamble, and developed in part through Nautilus' "Rough Cuts" program) and showcases local talent in an intimate setting.

"String" at Yellow Tree Theatre

Seven years ago, just a few months after I started this #TCTheater blogging adventure, a friend told me about this little theater in a strip mall in Osseo. Since at the time I worked just a few miles away, I organized a group of coworkers to go see a play after work one day. That play was String, and the theater was Yellow Tree Theatre. I may not remember details of the show (I've seen a lot of theater in the intervening years), but I remember being so charmed by the experience at Yellow Tree's warm, inviting, intimate space that I've returned to see just about everything they've done, from goofy holiday comedies, to new original musicals, to classics of the American theater, to silly farce, and everything in between. As I've seen this blog grow beyond my wildest dreams to a place where I cannot possibly see all of the theater I'm invited to, people inexplicably know who I am, and I am given press comps to any theater in town, Yellow Tree has seen their theater grow to a place where now, in their 10th season, they consistently sell out shows, attract some of the top talent in #TCTheater, and have increased diversity of programming and artists. To celebrate, they're bringing back String, written by Yellow Tree co-founder Jessica Lind Peterson and co-starring her and her husband and co-founder Jason Peterson, their first time on stage together in years. If you're a Yellow Tree fan, it's a wonderful opportunity to celebrate this full circle moment with them, and if you've never been to Yellow Tree, it's time to make the (not that long) drive to the Northwest suburbs to see this charming, funny, quirky, sweet little play that started it all, a play that is "as Yellow Tree as plays get."

"Violet" at Yellow Tree Theatre

I fell in love with the 1997 Off-Broadway musical Violet six years ago after seeing Theater Latte Da's beautiful production in the Guthrie Studio. Produced on a sparse stage with a small cast and three-piece band, I found it to be so beautiful, raw, poignant, and relatable, that I went back and saw it again. It's one of my most listened to musical theater cast recordings, and is definitely in my list of top ten, maybe even top five, musicals. This lovely little musical finally made it to Broadway in 2014, where I saw it and loved it again.* But Violet is not a big splashy Broadway musical; it's more suited to small intimate spaces, which makes it a perfect choice for Yellow Tree Theatre. And even though this is a small musical by Broadway standards, it's huge by Yellow Tree standards. But they've really pulled out all the stops and created a beautiful and poignant production of this musical that's so close to my heart, featuring a wonderful ensemble cast that's the biggest and most diverse they've ever had. If you can snag a ticket before they completely sell out, I highly recommend you hop on the Yellow Tree bus and take this emotional and fulfilling journey with them.

"The 39 Steps" at Yellow Tree Theatre

Yellow Tree Theatre concludes their excellent sixth season with the zany British spy thriller comedy The 39 Steps, in which just four actors play dozens of characters and employ many delightful theater tricks to tell a story and entertain. It's another great choice for Yellow Tree's intimate stage, with its small cast, period feel, and fast and funny dialogue. The terrific four-person cast, director Anne Byrd, and the design team have obviously worked hard to make all of the tricks and transitions run smoothly and look effortless. The result is great fun and good old-fashioned theatrical entertainment.

The 39 Steps is based on the 1935 Hitchcock movie of the same name, in which Richard Hannay, a bored English gentleman with dark wavy hair, piercing blue eyes, and a pencil mustache, gets involved with a spy and goes on a cross-country adventure to save the world from some unknown evil. And since this is 1935, evil has a German accent. But the details of the plot and the chase really don't matter, it's the fun of the way that the story is told that matters. I've previously seen the show in larger venues (Off-Broadway and the Guthrie), so I was curious to see how a smaller production would handle the tricks of illusion. In some ways the low-tech version is even more fun; we can see the actors manipulating the effects, often with a wink to the audience, which only adds to the entertainment. There's a free-standing spinning door that represents the change of rooms, a puppet show of a plane with crash and burn effects, a car created by a trunk and a few chairs, a chase that requires imagination to follow the actors and their flapping coats to the top of a train, empty frames that create the illusion of windows, and invisible blinds. The scene changes are done quickly, with set pieces rolling on and off stage with remarkable speed. This is one of those shows that would be just as entertaining to watch from backstage.

Tristan Tifft, Stephanie Cousins, Sean Byrd,
and Nathan Cousins go for a drive 

And now a word about the cast, all of whom have been seen on the Yellow Tree stage before. Sean Byrd only plays one character but he does it well - the smooth and charming Richard Hannay. Stephanie Cousins excels at playing three very different woman who each become involved with Richard in different ways. But Nathan Cousins and Tristan Tifft steal the show as the "clowns" who each play dozens of characters of all ages and genders. They're able to create distinct characters not just through a quick wardrobe change, but also through change of voice and physicality. Sometimes they play multiple characters within the same scene, with just a quick spin and a different hat and accent to mark the change. Kudos to Peter Lerohl for designing a flexible set with lots of hidden tricks and to Carolann Winther for the ever-changing costumes that help the actors create the many characters. The whole escapade through city, planes, trains, automobiles, moors, and theater is brilliantly choreographed and flawlessly executed.

The 39 Steps continues at Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo through June 22. If you're a Yellow Tree fan I'm sure it's already on your schedule. If not, this is a good time to become one - head out to the suburbs and see what great theater you can find there (discount tickets available on Goldstar.com). And stay tuned for Season 7 which includes a classic play directed by an Ivey Award winner, a new Christmas play by the playwright of Miracle on Christmas Lake, and one of my favorite new musicals of this century.


This article also appears on Broadway World Minneapolis.

"Sylvia" at Yellow Tree Theatre

Have you ever wondered what your pet would say if it could talk? Playwright A.R. Gurney did, and he wrote a play about it. The result is a funny, sweet, slightly wicked, and very entertaining story that will resonate with anyone who's ever loved an animal. Yellow Tree Theatre is bringing back Sylvia from their first season, starring Yellow Tree favorite Mary Fox as the titular dog. It's a perfect role to showcase her many talents, and the play is a perfect fit for Yellow Tree's small and intimate stage.

I've never had a dog, but one of my two cats (the one that's not named after a character from a musical), is somewhat dog-like. He always has to be next to me, he comes when I call him, he drools, he can never get enough attention, he loves everyone, and he's bigger than some dogs. Nobody loves me like my Maxie, and such is Sylvia's feeling for Greg when he finds her as a stray in the park and brings her home. But the difference is that Sylvia can express her feelings in words, and boy does she! And the humans she interacts with can understand her, which makes for an interesting exploration of the relationship between a man and "man's best friend." Unfortunately, Greg's wife Kate is not as keen on the idea of a dog, having recently moved to the city after the kids left home for college. She reluctantly agrees to keep Sylvia, but begins to get jealous when Greg spends more time with the dog than with her. His version of a mid-life crisis is skipping out on work to walk the dog. Sylvia knows that Kate doesn't like her, and vacillates between trying harder to win her love, and flaunting her relationship with Greg. After many walks in the park, a painful spaying, heated arguments, and a therapy session, the situation comes to a head and Greg is forced to choose between his dog and his wife.

like most dogs, Sylvia makes a beeline
for the one person in the room who
doesn't like dogs

Mary Fox is one of those actors that I love to watch in whatever show she's in. She's a very natural actor and is always doing something interesting. She's very expressive, and this role allows her fully explore that as she embodies all the emotions of a dog - love, fear, frustration, pain, joy. All the emotions of humans, only bigger. She's dressed in human clothes (costume design by Sarah Bahr) that match her mood - fresh from the groomer, missing her master, sore from surgery. Sylvia's human family are played by Sean Byrd and Katie Wodele, who realistically portray the varying emotions of the situation. Tristan Trifft is a scene stealer whenever he appears as one of three completely different characters - the macho dog owner doing calisthenics at the dog park, Kate's cultured (woman) friend, and the ambiguously gendered therapist with some unexpected advice.

As per usual at Yellow Tree, the choice of music for scene changes is perfect. From "I Want You to Love Me" and "I've Got a Crush On You" to various dog songs ("Hound Dog," "Me and You and a Dog Named Boo") at intermission.

man's best friend (Mary Fox and Sean Byrd)

Sylvia is the final show in Yellow Tree's 5th season, which was expanded from their usual four to five shows. Judging by the packed house on a Thursday night when I saw the show, they're doing all right. It's really exciting to see a thriving theater in an unremarkable strip mall in the suburbs, and to experience the community that they've built around it. Next season looks to continue this trend, opening with the classic family drama On Golden Pond and closing with the hilarious 39 Steps. Although my theater group's favorite pre-show dinner spot, Nectar Wine Bar and Bistro, has closed (hopefully temporarily), it's still and always worth a trip to Osseo to see some great theater in a cozy and intimate setting.

"Compleat Female Stage Beauty" by Walking Shadow Theatre Company at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage

"To the theater to see a play!" What's better than that? Compleat Female Stage Beauty is a play about theater, specifically about that time in the history of English theater when women were finally allowed to play female roles, taking over for the men who traditionally played female roles on the stage. In this play by Jeffrey Hatcher, it's a difficult time of transition. It reminds me of that time in American film when "talkies" replaced silent films, and silent film actors had to figure out a place for themselves in the new era, or fade away (at least that's what I learned from The Artist). Similarly, the men, or in this case, one particular man, who had previously only played female roles, had to figure out a new place for himself in a world that has changed.

The play is a fictionalized account based on the lives of several historical figures. Samuel Pepys kept a detailed diary of his life and the events in London in the 1660s, and serves as a sort of narrator, opening and closing the play (and uttering the above line several times). From what I can tell, he's a little like me - he enjoys going to the theater and writes everything down in his diary. If there were an internet in the 1600s, he probably would have had a blog too. :) The main character in the play is based on another historical figure, Edward Kynaston, one of the last male actors to play female roles on the English stage. When he finds out that "his" role of Desdemona in Othello is being played by a woman named Margaret Hughes  (another historical figure) in a theater across town, he feels threatened. Eventually the king rules that men cannot play female roles on stage, and Kynaston's life falls apart. His lover leaves him, because he preferred to see him as a woman, as the role he was playing (as Rita Hayworth famously said, "Men fall in love with Gilda, but they wake up with me"). He takes a job singing bawdy songs in a pub, quite a step down from Shakespeare. It's there that his friend Maria finds him and, with the help of the King's mistress, gets him to return to the theater. He had always thought, "a man playing a man, where's the artistry in that?" But in teaching Margaret how to play Desdemona better than he ever did, he discovers a new love for the theater and a way to apply his artistry to male roles, the only ones open to him. As Maria says to him, "We are never suited for the roles we most desire."

This is a great cast (most of whom were previously unknown to me), starting and ending with Wade A. Vaughn as Mr. Kynaston. He plays such a range of emotions (and costumes!) and does it all believably, emphatically, and sympathetically. He goes from an artist at the top of his game, to the object of mockery brought low, to a teacher and expert demanding respect. The play opens and closes with Desdemona's death scene, with Mr. K first as the murdered Desdemona and later as the murderer Othello, and I found myself wishing I could see the latter production. Jane Froiland (from last year's sublime Ten Thousand Things production of Doubt) is Mr. K's frenemy, the ambitious Ms. Hughes, who goes from merely a novelty to a good actress thanks to her association with him. Adelin Phelps is bubbly and entertaining as the boisterous comedic actress and mistress of the King. Matt Sciple as the scribe Pepys, Sean Byrd as the theater owner, and Teresa Marie Doran as the fresh-faced Maria are also wonderful in their roles, and along with the rest of the ensemble populate and bring to life this crazy aristocratic English Reformation society. The wigs, make-up, and costumes are quite astounding, and a lovely three-piece band accompanies the action with period music played on such instruments as the hammered dulcimer and melodica. All of which works to transport you back a few centuries.

There are three reasons I went to see this play: I found a half-price deal on Goldstar.com, I saw a Walking Shadow production at the Guthrie last fall and enjoyed it, and I love the Minneapolis Theatre Garage. Other than that I wasn't quite sure what to expect, which is often the best way to be surprised and delighted. "To the theater to see a play," indeed! (And I might have to check out the 2004 movie starring Billy Crudup and Claire Danes.)