"Ragtime" at Park Square Theatre

I would like to say that Park Square Theatre's production of the musical Ragtime is the show of the year, but I know that it's only January, and there are 11 months to go.  But 2012 would have to be a pretty good year for this show not to make it onto my end of the year best of list.  I was a little afraid my expectations would be too high; I've been looking forward to this show for months because Ragtime is one of my favorite musical theater soundtracks and the cast list looked superb.  But I was not disappointed, the show lived up to my expectations in every way.  The cast is indeed superb and includes several of my favorites in top form; the music sounds divine thanks to the depth of talent in the large ensemble and the fantastic orchestra (as expected when Denise Posek of Theater Latte Da is the Music Director); and the costumes, choreography, and sparse set all add to the feeling of time and place - 1906 in New York City and its suburbs.  With a cast of 35, this is Park Square's largest production to date, but the stage did not feel crowded, just full of life and music and pain and beauty.

Ragtime is based on the 1975 E.L. Doctorow novel of the same name and tells the story of three families - an upper class White family, an African American family, and an immigrant family.  The three families' lives become intertwined with each other, as well as with several historical events and figures, such as anarchist Emma Goldman, magician Harry Houdini, and chorus girl Evelyn Nesbit (played by Kersten Rodau, Sasha Andreev, and Caroline Innerbichler, all perfectly cast and wonderful in their roles).  The hero of our story is Coalhouse Walker, Jr. (the charismatic Harry Waters, Jr.), a ragtime piano player in love with a poor servant named Sarah (Brittany Bradford in a beautiful performance that's completely different from the last time I saw her, as Gary Coleman in Avenue Q).  Coalhouse's journey takes a drastic turn when he's faced with discrimination and tragedy.

Sarah lives with the seemingly perfect well-to-do family consisting of a father, a mother, and a son, as well as mother's younger brother and father.  Curiously, these characters (with the exception of the son, Edgar) don't have names, so that they could be anyone or everyone.  I've seen Lee Mark Nelson and Christina Baldwin many times, but I don't think I've ever seen them perform together.  It was worth the wait, they both give great performances as these layered characters.  Mark makes Father both sympathetic and aggravating as he's caught in the old ways and refuses to change.  Christina gives Mother such strength and yearning, hope and determination, and her voice is amazing as always, especially in the moving ballad "Back to Before."  Noah Coon is adorable as little Edgar, the boy who mysteriously knows more than he should (warn the duke!).  Finally, Younger Brother is on a journey all his own, always looking for something to cling to and finding it in unfortunate places (or persons).  Aleks Knezevich (the rightful captain of the Pinafore) is perfect for the role in this perfectly cast show.

At the center of our third family is another one of my favorites, Dieter Bierbrauer, as a poor immigrant trying to make a better life for his daughter (the adorable and talented Megan Fischer, who doesn't have as much to do here as in last year's Annie).  Tateh's path crosses with Mother's several times, in what turns out to be a most excellent love triangle.  (Lee Mark Nelson, Christina Baldwin, and Dieter Bierbrauer singing in three-part harmony, I thought I'd died and gone to Minnesota musical theater heaven!)  All of the characters in this story are connected somehow, and what each does affects the others.  The ensemble is spectacular, and several of them shine in their spotlight moments, such as Timotha Lanae (who was also on board the Pinafore last summer) as Sarah's friend.

In addition to the perfect cast and music, the choreography (by another Latte Da regular Michael Matthew Ferrell), set design (by Rick Polenek), and costumes (designed by Andrea M. Gross) also add to the production.  I'm not sure where the direction (by Gary Gisselman) ends and choreography begins when you're moving this many people around a small stage, but not only is it flawlessly done but it also really enriches the characters and helps define their story.  The same can be said for the costumes, especially in the opening sequence, when all the upper class people are dressed in pale linen, the immigrants in dark earth tones, and the "Negroes" in bolder colors, creating an obvious division that melts away as their stories blur together.  The stage is sparse, with a second story around the edge of the stage to allow for characters to come and go in the background. The few set pieces almost look like "silhouettes" (as Tateh sings), allowing the story to be the focus.  A screen is occasionally lowered to display real images from the time period, further adding to the sense of time and place.

This is a heavy show, at times so difficult to watch that I closed my eyes to try to erase the images of violence and injustice.  But there are also lighter moments of humor (I particularly enjoyed the ode to baseball, "What a Game").  I read the book after first seeing the musical in 1998, and remember thinking that it's not a book that screams "make me into a musical!"  But it proves that no topic is off limits for musical theater, if done thoughtfully and respectfully and creatively.  Ragtime is such a musical. 

This country is always struggling, always changing, always trying to better itself.  And there are always going to be tragedies and set-backs along the way, but hopefully each generation leaves the world slightly better for the next generation, for all the Coalhouse Walker IIIs of the world.  Ragtime deals with what it's like to be an American, then and now, good and bad.  As Gary Gisselman said in a post-show discussion, it's about racism and immigrants and the rich vs. the poor, themes that we are still dealing with today.  But it's also about family and love and hope for the future.  Ragtime officially opens tonight and plays through February 19, and it's definitely worth seeing.  It may even be worth seeing twice!



Ragtime trailer from Park Square Theatre on Vimeo.

"A Christmas Carol" at the Guthrie Theater

The Christmas season has officially begun - we had our first snowfall here in the Twin Cities over the weekend, and I saw the Guthrie's annual production of A Christmas Carol last night.*  And even though the snow might melt shortly, A Christmas Carol continues through the end of the year.  So if you're looking for a way to get into the holiday spirit, this show will do it.  The themes of Charles Dickens' classic tale go beyond any religion or holiday; being kind to everyone, spending time with the people you love, appreciating what you have in life, and sharing with those less fortunate are ideas we can all stand to remember at all times of the year.

This year's show is fairly similar to last year's version, again using the new adaptation by Crispin Whittell and direction by Joe Dowling, with just enough tweaks to make it interesting for return customers.  The fabulous set (by Walt Spangler) is the same as last year, depicting a street scene with shop windows and a revolving centerpiece to reveal the inside of the office of Scrooge and Marley.  For the Fezziwig scenes a huge set of shelves with all kinds of goods rolls out for a backdrop.  There's some pretty amazing engineering going on.  Much of last year's cast returns, with some reshuffling and new blood added.

Highlights include: 

• J.C. Cutler is a very convincing Scrooge, especially in his transformation to the joyful, generous man dancing through the streets sharing his wealth and his love (read this StarTribune article to find out more about our Scrooge).
• Zach Fineblum was equally convincing in the reverse transformation.  From the young open-hearted Scrooge to the miserly old Scrooge, he almost physically transforms before the audience's eyes.
• The fabulous Angela Timberman, aka Miss Hannigan,  reprises her role as Scrooge's boozy maid.
• Kris L. Nelson also reprises his role as the loveable and hard-working family man Cratchit.  It's a family affair again; his brother Lee Mark Nelson plays several characters including Mr. Fezziwig, and his wife Tracey Maloney plays the Ghost of Christmas Past, floating in on feathers and light to remind Scrooge of what he lost.
• Sam Bardwell was a bit of a scene stealer as the dim-witted party guest Topper and young Scrooge's friend (roles he also played last year).
• Other faves include Robert O. Berdahl as the jolly Ghost of Christmas Present, Suzanne Warmanen as the charming Mrs. Fezziwig, and Viriginia S. Burke as Cratchit's hard-working wife.
• Some of the dialogue about the rich vs. the poor sounds oddly current, including the rich man who insists on being called a "job creator."
• This production again features a flock of talented kids, some of whom I recognized and some of whom are new.  What fun to be able to play make-believe in such a realistic way!
• As usual, the dancing at the party is wonderful (movement by Joe Chvala of the Flying Foot Forum).  It's quite a feat just to manage the large cast of people moving in and out, and make it look smooth and natural.

The Guthrie's all around top-notch production of A Christmas Carol is a Christmas card come to life.  A Dickensian Victorian scene complete with dingy children begging on the streets, snow softly falling, a turkey and figgy pudding feast, carolers in bonnets and full skirts, merry dancing, mistletoe, and of course the famous phrase delivered by an adorable sweet-voiced child, "God bless us, everyone!"



*I received two complimentary tickets to this play as part of "Blogger Night at the Guthrie."  Very nice seats in the front row of the balcony, center stage, which provided a very nice overhead view of all the action on stage.

"The Burial at Thebes" at the Guthrie Theater

The Burial at Thebes is a typical Greek tragedy - someone defies the will of the gods and their life falls apart as everyone they love dies.  But what's not so typical is the musical accompaniment that adds to the story.  This is a Greek chorus that actually sings!  Combined with powerful performances by the entire cast, it's a wonderful and jam-packed 90 minutes of theater.

The Burial at Thebes is a translation of Sophocles' Antigone by Irish poet Seamus Haeney.  In Greek mythology, Antigone is a daughter of Oedipus (you remember him - the one who killed his father and married his mother).  So it's fair to say her life was doomed from the start.  When her brother is killed as an enemy of the state, King Creon (her uncle) declares that his body cannot be buried in the traditional way.  Feeling that she must obey the laws of the underworld rather than the laws of the mortal world, Antigone defies the King and attempts to give her brother a proper burial, knowing that it means her own death.  Creon will not back down and insists that she be put to death.  He realizes too late that he chose wrong, and is unable to prevent the tragic events that befall everyone he loves.

This is a large and talented cast in a show with a relatively short running time, which means the audience is treated to little gems of performances throughout the play, from Brian Sostek's comic relief as the guard who delivers the news to Creon that someone has broken his decree, to Greta Oglesby as the prophet with creepy unseeing eyes and a powerful voice, to Sun Mee Chomet as the doomed heroine, to Regina Marie Williams' brief appearance as the grief-stricken mother Eurydice.  And through it all Stephen Yoakam gives a powerful leading performance as Creon, transforming from a strong, confident, unyielding ruler to a grieving and remorseful father and husband.

On top of the great acting performances, or rather intermeshed with them, is some amazing music (composed by J.D. Steele of the fabulous Steele family, with piano accompaniment by his brother Billy and percussion by Marc Anderson).  The incomparable Robert Robinson leads the Greek chorus that sings and speaks with equal melodious beauty.  Every time Robert opens his mouth it's a "lift up your hands" kind of moment; add to that the beautiful harmonies created by Lee Mark Nelson, Richard Ooms, T. Mychael Rambo, and Joe Nathan Thomas, and you have some powerful music that really heightens the emotion of the play.  An imposing set of towering walls and flowing dramatic costumes add to the overall effect.

What more can I say, it was another amazing evening of theater, music, emotion, and drama at the Guthrie Theater.

"In Conversation with Rainn Wilson" at the Guthrie

It's fairly obvious that I'm a huge theater fan.  But I also watch way too much TV, and I love it when those two obsessions intersect, as they did at the Guthrie today.  Before becoming famous as Dunder-Miflin's assistant (to the) regional manager Dwight Schrute on The Office (one of my favorite TV comedies ever), Rainn Wilson was a theater actor in New York and around the country, including right here at the Guthrie.  His busy TV and movie schedule prevents him from coming back to the Guthrie to do a play (for now, anyway), but he was kind enough to spend the weekend in Minneapolis and share some of his experiences acting in theater, TV, and movies.  Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling conducted an informal interview of Rainn on the deck of the H.M.S. Pinafore on the thrust stage, followed by a question and answer session.  Rainn was charming, funny, and spontaneous as he interacted with the audience, and the two men obviously have a lot of respect for each other.


Rainn Wilson and Lee Mark Nelson in
Philadelphia, Here I Come!



Joe's questions led Rainn through the chronology of his career as an actor, beginning with earning an MFA from NYU and traveling around the country doing Shakespeare with The Acting Company (which partners with the Guthrie and presented The Comedy of Errors and Romeo and Juliet here in January).  Rainn first appeared at the Guthrie in 1996 in Philadelphia, Here I Come!, which he called "a singular moment" in his life and career.  His favorite plays are ones in which there's no limit to how funny and how tragic it can be.  He returned a few years later for The Importance of Being Earnest and The Venetian Twins (which included a planned "stabbing" of an audience member, followed by an ambulance driving onto the stage).

Rainn worked as a struggling actor in NYC and around the country for about ten years.  He had other odd jobs during that time, including owning a moving company called "The Transcendent Moving Company" with the slogan, "A man, a van, and a sense of higher purpose."  He moved from New York to L.A. when he saw that actors with a TV credit on their resume were more likely to get cast at some theaters.  He thought he'd do a few TV roles so that he could return to theater and have an easier time getting roles.  Turns out he had some early success in L.A., including bit parts in the movies Galaxy Quest and Almost Famous.  But then he didn't work much for a year and half, so he returned to what he loved.  He did Taming of the Shrew at the Old Globe in San Diego, and did "what he does best" - crazy, hammy comedy using every trick in the book to get laughs.  He had a great time, and upon returning to L.A. he started booking roles in TV and film.  He was cast as apprentice mortician Arthur in HBO's brilliant series Six Feet Under (starring native Minnesotan Peter Krause), which changed his life and eventually led to his role as Dwight on The Office.  Before he got the role he had seen the original British version, calling it "a revelation" because of, among other things, the awkward pause and the way they used the camera as another character.

Rainn also talked about a couple of other projects he's involved in; causes he's been able to support and promote because of his celebrity status.  He created the website (and companion book) Soul Pancake - a way for people to grapple with life's big questions in a way that's cool and accessible for young people.  Rainn and his wife (writer Holiday Reinhorn, who was in the audience) also work with the charity The Mona Foundation, "non-profit organization that supports grassroots initiatives focused on education and raising the status of women and girls in the US and abroad."  He spoke about his experience teaching the arts to adolescent girls in Haiti as one example of the foundation's work.  It's quite obvious that in addition to being a talented stage, film, and TV actor, Rainn is also a pretty cool person.

Rainn had great things to say about his time at the old Guthrie and the new facility, and commended Joe Dowling's leadership in bringing it to life (even if he did compare him to the Lucky Charms Leprechaun).  He also joked about the annoyance of the thrust stage and having to include the people on the sides.  There were a few people sitting there, and he directed them to other open seats so that he wouldn't have to worry about them.  He's very funny and quick-witted (despite never having done improv or stand-up) and would go off on tangents or get distracted by things or people in the audience.  He gamely answered many questions from the audience, everything from audition tips to "do you hang out with your co-stars."  Rainn ended the afternoon by encouraging everyone to support the Guthrie and local theater, a sentiment with which I heartily agree!

"Annie" at the Children's Theatre

You don't have to bring a child when you go to the Children's Theatre (especially when the show is the classic Annie directed by the prolific and talented local director Peter Rothstein), but it helps.  So I recruited my 12-year-old cousin (and her mom) to go with me.  I had never seen Annie on stage, just the movie version.  It's a truly joyous event, fun for kids and adults alike.

Of course the star of the show is Annie, and newcomer Megan Fischer (cast through an open audition at the Mall of America) does an amazing job with the role.  She's tough and tender, and has a beautiful strong voice.  But Annie is also a really wonderful ensemble show, and this strong ensemble (made up of CTC regulars and faves from other local theaters) sings and plays together beautifully. Standouts among the cast include Lee Mark Nelson (so heart-breakingly good in Master Butchers Singing Club at the Guthrie last fall) as Daddy Warbucks, transforming from the gruff and serious businessman to a father in love with his new daughter.  The comic relief is provided by the hilarious Angela Timberman as Miss Hannigan, Reed Sigmund as her brother Rooster, and Autumn Ness as his girlfriend Lily St. Regis (there's some really gross gum-exchanging going on between the two of them!).  Reed is almost over the top in his portrayal of Rooster, but it works.  "Easy Street" is one of the highlights, and Miss Hannigan cracked me up every time she called Ms. St. Regis, "you dumb ho ... tel."

In addition to Annie, there are a half dozen young girls playing orphans, and they're all adorable and funny and talented (I particularly enjoyed the "Oh my goodness!" girl).  I've said this before about child actors - I'm always so surprised at their talent, but really, kids are much more in tune with their creative, imaginative side than most adults are, so it shouldn't be surprising that they're good actors.  Still, it's impressive what they do at such a young age (and while still in school!).  The orphans also do a lot of the work of moving set pieces around, which seems natural to the story since mean Miss Hannigan makes them work all day.

In addition to the beautiful ballads "Tomorrow" and "Maybe," and anything the orphans sing (is there anything cuter than a bunch of little girls singing and dancing their hearts out?), I really enjoyed the ensemble songs "N.Y.C" and "I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here."  A lot of people moving around the stage in organized chaos (delightful choreography by Michael Matthew Ferrell).  Another highlight is the Annie/Warbucks duet "I Don't Need Anything But You," showcasing the great chemistry between Megan and Mark.

The show has been extended another two weeks through June 19, so you still have time to see it.  Bring a child if you have one.  Or go by yourself if you don't; there's no shame in an adult going to a children's theater when it's this good!

"A Christmas Carol" at the Guthrie

The Guthrie Theater presents A Christmas Carol every year, and this is the sixth year in a row that I've seen it.  They've been using the same adaptation for years, although last year was a condensed 90 minute version of it.  This year they're using a brand new adaptation by Crispin Whittell, directed by Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling.  The old version was great, but after so many years you know what's going to happen when, so it was a lot of fun to see a new twist on the classic story.  This version seems a little crisper, a little more modern.  There's no narrator like in years past, and it's a little funnier too.  The set is entirely new and features Scrooge's office with a safe full of money and a loft upstairs, from which he watches some of the action.  The ghosts fly in on wires, Christmas Past was right over my head!

One thing that hasn't changed about A Christmas Carol is that it features a great cast.  Guthrie favorites include Isabell Monk O'Connor, Nathaniel Fuller, Suzanne Warmanen, Hugh Kennedy, and the brothers Nelson.  Kris plays Scrooge's clerk Bob Cratchit and Mark plays Marley's ghost in chains and gray face paint.  Mark's daughter Ella is one of the children in the cast, who were all wonderful.  I've seen quite a few productions with great child actors lately (Joseph, Billy Elliot), and I realized today that I shouldn't be surprised that kids are great actors.  All kids love to play make-believe, and kids are much more open and imaginative than adults, so it's no surprise that some of them thrive on stage.

This year's younger and heartier Ebenezer Scrooge is Daniel Gerroll (another theater actor with dozens of TV credits) in his second role at the Guthrie.  His dark wit and singular focus on making money believably transform into an openness and joy at life after witnessing his past and what's waiting for him in the future.  Angela Timberman is very entertaining as his drunken housekeeper Merriweather who's startled at his change in demeanor.  Nic Few plays the Ghost of Christmas Present with joyous energy and laughter that's contagious.  The streets of London and Fezziwig's party are populated with dozens of men, women, and children who laugh, dance, and sing.  I was sitting in the front row and felt like I was at a great party!

I enjoy A Christmas Carol every year and was delighted at this fresh new take on it.  Sets, costumes, and staging are always incomparable at the Guthrie, but it's the heart of the story embodied through the excellent cast, from Scrooge down to Tiny Tim, that make this a memorable show.

"The Master Butchers Singing Club" at the Guthrie

The Master Butchers Singing Club is a stage adaptation of the novel by local author Louise Erdrich.  I've read one or two of her books, so when I heard the Guthrie Theater was opening their 2010-2011 season with this play I decided to read the book.  I loved it.  It's beautifully written and full of rich characters and intersecting storylines, and deals with the epic themes of life, love, and death.  It takes place in the fictional town of Argus, North Dakota, where several of Erdrich's novels are set.  Fidelis Waldvogel has immigrated from Germany where he was a sniper in WWI, bringing along his wife Eva and their sons.  Fidelis and Eva run a butcher shop in town, and one day Delphine wanders in, changing the course of her life forever.  The daughter of the town drunk, she has spent several years touring the Midwest with an Ojibwe man named Cyprian in a balancing act.  All her life she's been searching for her mother and a sense of home, and comes to find it at the butcher shop.

Whenever a book you love is turned into a movie or a play, it's easy to get caught up in the things that were cut out or changed.  So I felt a little of that when I watched the play, but I tried to just let it go and let the play be its own entity.  And I came to like the slight changes they made, I think it's stronger piece because of it.  There's a lot of narration in the play, mostly from a woman whom the townspeople calls "Step and a Half."  She walks restlessly through the town, collecting things that people have thrown out and selling them.  She narrates the action of the play, as do many of the characters, often describing what they or other characters are doing.  It's an effective way to get Erdrich's beautiful prose into the play.

The strong cast is full of Guthrie favorites, as well as a few newcomers.  Lee Mark Nelson, who plays Fidelis, has been one of my favorites since he charmed me in She Loves Me a few years ago.  Not only does he sing in this play, but he sings in German!  Recent Ivey award-winner Katie Guentzel plays Eva, and Emily Gunyou Halaas is Delphine.  All three fully embody their characters' passion for life and love for one another.  That's one of the things that struck me about the book; Delphine and Cyprian truly love each other despite the fact that he's gay so they can never have a true marriage.  Fidelis and Eva truly love each other even though he married her as a favor to his friend who died in the war.  But the love between Delphine and Eva may be the strongest of all.  Eva is friend, mentor, and mother to Delphine, and Delphine helps Eva through some difficult times and takes care of her family.  At several points during the play I was wishing I had a tissue!

I love that the Guthrie commissioned this play because it's so specific to this region, in the same way the musical Little House on the Prairie was a few years ago.  Being a descendant of German immigrants to the Midwest, it's a story that feels very familiar to me, as if I could be watching my own history on stage.  I speak a little German, so it was fun to hear some German words thrown in here and there.  There are also several Native American characters in the play, and their culture blends with the German culture beautifully through music.  It's an interesting coincidence that I've seen two shows this week that deal with the history of Native Americans, although in very different ways.  The brilliant new Broadway musical Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson deals with the "Indian removal" of the early 19th century and the Trail of Tears, while in this show Step and a Half is a survivor of the Wounded Knee Massacre in the late 19th century. It's an important part of our history, especially here in the Midwest, so it's nice to see it being explored in theater.