By Jacob Froelich What more could possibly be said about one of the world’s most popular and successful Broadway shows? MAMMA MIA! is one of only five shows to have run for more than 10 years on Broadway and has been viewed by over 60 million people worldwide. It was made into a blockbuster of…
by CHRISTINE SARKES Fun Home at the Orpheum Theatre is devastatingly honest, achingly funny and worthy of all the praise it has received. The musical won five Tony Awards last year, including Best Musical, and made history as the first show written exclusively by women to win that award. Based on Alison Bechdel’s best-selling and award-winning graphic memoir, Fun Home introduces…
by ERIKA SASSEVILLE I’ll admit, I may have been a terrible theater major. Before this week, I’d never seen Cabaret, either in film or on stage. Even so, my companion and I were blown away by Roundabout Theatre’s production playing through October 23 at the Orpheum Theatre. Cabaret premiered on Broadway in 1966 and picked up eight…
by CHRISTINE SARKES Complicated Fun at the History Theatre through May 29 is a weirdly coincidental musical retelling of the history of First Avenue and the acts that made it famous, including Prince, who played frequently and filmed many scenes in Purple Rain there. In fact, Chris Osgood of The Suicide Commandos opened the show with a moving tribute…
by MICHAEL J. OPPERMAN The musical Bullets Over Broadway, an adaptation of the Woody Allen movie of 1994, is a crowd pleaser. The movie script was nominated for an Oscar, and this production features original direction and choreography by multi-Tony award winner Susan Stroman (also known for her work on The Producers). The production has…
by CHRISTINE SARKES The Broadway classic and iconic A Chorus Line receives reverential treatment at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, with spot on, heavily local casting and fabulous triple-threat performances (dancing, singing, acting). It is worth the price of admission to remember the 1970s groundbreaking themes of coming out and coming of age in the…
By ELLEN FERRY. Anyone in search of the perfect evening out this holiday season should certainly consider a stroll under the glittering lights of St. Paul’s Rice Park, followed by a visit to the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. For a production as iconic as Rodger and Hammerstein’s “The Sound of Music,” I can…
Much like Christmas carols, Christmas plays already exist in such numbers that creating a new one that puts a fresh new spin on things is quite the challenge. Kudos to Lyric Arts, then, for accepting that challenge by commissioning and mounting Christmas in the Airwaves by playwright John Patrick Bray. Set in 1944, Christmas in the Airwaves follows the adventures of a…
Edit: Due to insanely high demand, this show’s run has been extended to August 9! See http://www.lyricarts.org During my years working in a professional theatre, I witnessed more performances of Grease in a few weeks than most people would see in three lifetimes. I got a little burnt out. I’ve turned down multiple invitations to see both…
by CHRISTINE SARKES SASSEVILLE Camelot, now at the Ordway through Sunday, offers a lush set design and costumes, classic Lerner and Loewe lyrics and the timeless Arthurian Knights of the Round Table fable of love, honor, chivalry and justice. The brilliant set design of the musical (Kevin Depinet) and orchestration (Marshall Keating) were freshly reimagined and updated to evoke a slightly…
Aisle Say - Twin Cities 