©photography by LKBachman

The Guthrie Theater presents a Full Circle Theater production of Under This Roof by Barbara Kingsley and directed by James A. Williams. 

May 4-20, 2018 – Dowling Studio

Guthrie Theater has devoted the Dowling Studio space to the creation of theater that wrestles with urgent questions and inspires dialogue.

This show definitely does that.

Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.  

Set in June 1948, in Cleveland’s Central neighborhood, Mamie and Raymond find themselves in a difficult situation due to a recent accident. They don’t want to ask for help but realize they must in order to survive. Based on a recommendation from a close friend, they hire a woman for in-home help who is also facing her own struggles. When she shows up at their door, it’s quite a shock and the story begins.

Under This Roof struck me in many ways. The most being how society has taught us to think a certain way, to judge people, to make assumptions. We are human and we all do it, many times unintentionally because it’s so ingrain. But when we are open and share our truth, that’s when true friendship can begin.

This is a story of love. The strength of love when faced with hard times and how our journey isn’t always what we plan. We will all have something unexpected happen in our lives, it’s inescapable. We make promises, we have dreams but our paths are almost always altered.

Along with a great show, the 9th floor of the Guthrie is such a wonderful experience because of the location and views. We love to treat ourselves at the Sea Change and then after the show, enjoy the amazing Minneapolis views!

©TracyBlowers

©TracyBlowers

For tickets and more information, click: Guthrie Theater

The mission of Full Circle Theater is to produce heartfelt, groundbreaking theater that artfully addresses issues of diversity and social justice for the 21st century audiences. Learn more here: https://www.fullcircletheatermn.org

The Twin Cities is full of amazing shows this season! Do you have plans to go to a show for the holidays? Annie is perfect for the whole family. There isn’t a more festive location as you walk through Rice Park on your way to the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts.

Annie‘s story is one of love, hope and family. A small voice to remind us that yes indeed the sun will come out tomorrow. A great quote from the Director, Austene Van, that really touched me – “The definition of family is also on a sliding scale of perspective, and looks very different to different people. How wonderful that we can create this kind of love for ourselves!”. Watching Annie’s attitude, strength and perseverance in the pursuit to find her family and then in the end creating her own is so inspiring. 

Carly Gendell who plays Annie in the evenings knocks it out of the park! Her voice and stage presence definitely carry the show. Annie also has some of my favorite Twin Cities actors. Ann Michels as Grace couldn’t be more perfect and I love Cat Brindisi as Lily St. Regis. PLUS…have I mentioned there is a dog in the show??! Sandy steals the show when she prances onto the stage. You could hear a collective “aaaaw” in the audience.

I can’t finish without mentioning the music, right? It’s always my favorite when the orphans sing Hard Knock Life but I find that Easy Street and Hooverville always stick with me and bring a smile to my face. 🙂

This festive, heart-warming production of Annie is an Ordway Original.

You can find more information and tickets HERE.

Also, to read other Theater Blogger’s reviews, visit our Facebook page @TwinCitiesTheaterBloggers.

Annie’s story reminds us how many older children are searching for a family. During intermission, the Ordway shared information about Ampersand Families. They are a wonderful resource. If you are interested in ways that you can help children and teens who are awaiting adoption, visit www.ampersandfamilies.org.

Happy Holidays!

The Abominables opens at Children’s Theatre this weekend! I had the opportunity to go backstage and I’m always blown away by the work and passion that goes into these shows. We are incredibly fortunate to have such a diverse and wonderful theater community here in the Twin Cities.

The Abominables is the very first Minnesota Hockey Musical! Produced in association with New York City’s extraordinary theatre company The Civilians. The musical is written and directed by Steve Cosson with music and lyrics by Michael Friedman and choreography by Joe Chvala.

“This hilarious musical is full of heart and insight into our pursuit of success and how we define it.” – Peter C. Brosius, Artistic Director. 

A cool note: This musical was created over a four year period, the development included interviews with over 75 hockey players, coaches and family members across Minnesota at tournaments, games and practices.

The Stage and Ice Rink – The Actors are on skates throughout the show! Can you imagine?

From Children’s Theatre Company:

Rink rats, hockey moms, tournament weekends and the quest to play your best – It’s tryout season in the Great State of Hockey! Mitch has always played on the A team for the Prairie Lake Blizzards – they are his guys – they’ve played together forever, but he’s worried this could be the year he gets sent down to the B team. When a new “kid” appears at Bantam tryouts, things go from bad to worse. From the land of ice and nice comes the first Minnesota hockey musical! Will you love it? You betcha!

Making the brick fireplace – it’s actually styrofoam. Can’t wait to see it finished. 

The coveted trophy!

Wigmaster, Robert A. Dunn showing us the Yeti wig! The girl behind him is kind of freaked out. 🙂 

Beautiful Yeti Princess Dress. 

You could be sitting here!! GIVEAWAY! Comment here, on my Facebook or Instagram (find me at @usoulphoto or click icon above) Children’s Theatre post by Thursday and I will be picking the winner of TWO FREE TICKETS on Friday. Good luck everyone! If you don’t win, here is a nice consolation prize. Click HERE for a $10 off promo code for tickets. 

As I was in the process of writing this blog, I am so sad to tell you that Michael Friedman passed away. This is a huge loss to the artistic and theater community. Here is the statement from Children’s Theatre.

Statement from Children’s Theatre Company on the passing of Michael Friedman

It is with heavy hearts that we share the news with our community on the passing of composer Michael Friedman who died on September 9^th at the age of 41. Michael was the composer and lyricist of The Abominables, which is to receive its world premiere performance on Friday, September 15 in our UnitedHealth Group Stage.  The Abominables was commissioned by CTC in 2011 and is written by Michael and his longtime collaborator Steve Cosson of The Civilians.

 “Michael was an extraordinary artist and an incredible human being,” said Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius. “He was brilliant, wildly funny and so deeply caring about other people. Michael was such a joy; his boundless energy, his infectious enthusiasm and his ability to be so fearlessly self-critical and clear eyed in the pursuit of something truly extraordinary made him utterly unique. He never rested, was a brave explorer of new possibilities and was one of the most creative forces you would ever meet. We deeply mourn his passing and feel truly blessed to have had this opportunity to work closely with him and bring his work to our audiences.”

While we are deeply saddened that Michael will not see the world premiere, we feel fortunate to be able to bring one of his final works of art to the stage and share his artistry with the community, in particular, with children and families. We dedicate the performances of The Abominables to Michael Friedman. For more information about The Abominables, please go to childrenstheatre.org.