"Afterlife: The Experience" by Sparkle Theatricals at the Wabasha Street Caves

I know Sparkle Theatricals for their dance and movement-based shows, but they also produce more immersive, experiential work. My first experience with the latter is their current production, Afterlife: The Experience, running for one more night only at the Wabasha Street Caves. I'll admit, part of the draw was to see the Caves, built into the sandstone bluffs on the Mississippi River across from St. Paul originally as storage, and later turned into a speakeasy during Prohibition with rumored visits from some of the era's most notorious gangsters. Now it's an event center, and a very cool theater venue. The conceit of Afterlife is that we're all (recently) dead, and our souls have arrived at the Caves on our way to somewhere else. A number of previously departed souls are there to guide us on our way. I found it to be overall a unique, interesting, and fun experience, although parts of it were a little too interactive and participatory for this introvert (I don't want to be part of the storytelling, I want to be a witness to it). A mix of theater, storytelling, party games, food and drinks, and dance, you have one more chance to enter the Afterlife on October 25.

"The Room with Closets" by Sparkle Theatrical at the Southern Theater

Immediately after seeing Sparkle Theatricals' original new work The Room with Closets, I posted on my Insta story: "I'm not sure what just happened, but it was exquisite. I feel like I was in a dream." This is one of those theater experiences that is so mesmerizing, that so fully and specifically creates a world through words, movement, music, and visuals, that it absolutely casts a spell over the audience. A spell that's hard to shake when you step out of the theater and back into harsh reality, like waking up from a dream that you don't fully understand but that created such lovely feelings you want to go back to it. It's also the kind of show that's really hard to describe; words fail. I'll do my best, but I encourage you to go see it for yourself. It's a beautifully unique piece, and the creators (theatrical director Jon Ferguson, choreographer Alejandra Iannone, technical director Rick Ausland, and this beautiful six-person ensemble) obviously put a lot of thought and care into every detail. See it at the gorgeous Southern Theater (a space that enhances every performance there) through this week only!

Fringe Festival 2016: "A Pie. A Duck. And a Shoe."

Day: 4

Show: 21

Title: A Pie. A Duck. And a Shoe.

Category: Something Different

By: Sparkle Theatricals

Created by: Alejandra Iannone and Rick Ausland

Location: Southern Theater

Summary: An old-fashioned variety show featuring comedy, magic, music, dance, and puppetry.

Highlights: I didn't see a pie, but there is a duck and a shoe. This is a refreshingly old-fashioned variety show, just a bunch of diverse acts meant to entertain. The evening is hosted by the very funny comedian/magician David Harris, who does short pieces between introducing the acts. Featured acts include passionate R&B singer Nick Jordan accompanied by Luke Darger on keyboard; a charming shadow-puppet show of "The Ugly Duckling" performed by Neal Beckman, Alejandra Iannone, and Joann Oudekerk; everyone's favorite tap-dancer Rick Ausland of Buckets and Tap Shoes; and rapper Carnage the Executioner who, despite the frightening name, is actually quite friendly as he teaches the audience how to beat box. A simple concept, nothing flashy, but a variety of entertaining acts.