"Natasha and the Coat" by Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company at Highland Park Center Theatre

For the final show of their 23rd season, Minnesota Jewish Theatre Company is bringing us the world premiere of a new play. LA-based playwright (and Playwrights' Center affiliated writer) Deborah Stein's Natasha and the Coat is an engaging look at a Hasidic Jewish family in the neighborhood of Williamsburg in early 21st Century Brooklyn, as well as the garment industry in that neighborhood. It touches on themes of immigration, gentrification, and how to maintain one's culture and traditions while still functioning in modern American society. While it could use a little tightening up (it's lacking in momentum in parts, and feels too long at 2.5+ hours), the likable and believable cast make it worthwhile.

"Suddenly Last Summer" at Theatre in the Round

It may be the beginning of the cold, dark, drab winter season here in Minnesota, but on stage at Theatre in the Round, it's still beautiful and lush late summer, with colorful flowers and chirping birds. But it's still pretty dark, this being Tennessee Williams' Suddenly Last Summer, a one-act play written in 1958. Like all of Williams' plays, it's beautifully tragic, or tragically beautiful. Flawed people, dysfunctional families, and a sense of despair. Oh, how I love it! Tennessee Williams is one of my favorite playwrights, but this was my first experience with this play. It was my second experience with Tennessee Williams at TRP (see also Summer and Smoke), and once again they have put on an excellent production of a sad, beautiful, disturbing Tennessee Williams play.

"Hamlet" by Theatre Unbound at the JSB Tek Box at the Cowles Center

Shakespeare's not known for writing a lot of women's roles. Part of this is no doubt a practical choice - in Shakespeare's day women were not allowed to be actors so all of the roles were played by men. Theatre Unbound turns this idea on its head by casting women to play all the roles. They won an Ivey a few years ago for their all-female production of Julius Caesar, and since then I've been itching to see their work. For whatever reason, I haven't, until now. They are closing their 15th season with an all-female production of Hamlet, one of Shakespeare's most well-known plays, and perhaps one with the fewest roles for women (two). A talented ensemble of eight women play all of the roles in this epic and beloved play, bringing a new dynamic to the story while allowing the humor and tragedy of the original to take center stage.

This is an inventive ensemble-driven production of a familiar play. Director Leah Adcock-Starr efficiently moves her cast around the empty white space as they play multiple roles, sometimes in the same scene. Actors are rarely offstage; instead sitting in white chairs right in front of the audience when not participating in the action. Zoa Green provides a lovely and appropriate soundtrack to the story, making a full range of sounds with just a couple of guitars, sometimes played like a cello or a drum. Costume designer Lisa Conley has dressed the cast in soft layers of white and gray, with characters differentiated by a hat or jacket. The ghost of the dead king is represented in a beautifully creepy ghost-like way. Ensemble member Laura Mahler introduces each scene and reads stage directions in an expressive tone that matches the scene, which is an interesting choice (and a helpful one to keep all the characters straight). This, along with the actors' pre-show onstage warm-up, gives the show a more informal feel, almost as if we're watching a rehearsal (although a polished one).

Laura Mahler and Kathryn Fumie

No pronouns were changed to reflect the fact that the stage is populated with women, but at some point gender ceases to matter as you get caught up in the story of these complicated and damaged people. Hamlet's devastating grief and playful madness are brought to life with great energy by Kathryn Fumie. Bethany Ford Brinkley gives an emotional performance as poor mad Ophelia, and then becomes Rosencrantz (or is it Gildenstern?) with a slight wardrobe adjustment and a completely different way of being in her body. Muriel J. Bonertz is appropriately dark and devious as the fratricidal king, Gretchen Emo is the gullible queen, Kathleen Hardy offers some light moments as Ophelia's father, and Nicole Joy Frethern is her supportive and loving brother. And then some - part of the fun of this show is watching these women transform into multiple characters, most of whom happen to be men.

Theatre Unbound's Hamlet is a fresh take on one of the most well-known plays in all of theater. And not just because of the all-female cast, but also because of the small size of the cast and the playful, innovative, ensemble-driven style of the show (continuing through May 31, with discount tickets available on Goldstar)

"Changes in Time" by 20% Theatre Company at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage

I love finding new (to me) theater companies, and with over 70 theater companies in this theater-rich town, there are many I have yet to discover. Here's one I can cross off my "to do" list - 20% Theatre Company, "committed to supporting and vigorously promoting the work of female and transgender theater artists, and celebrating the unique contributions of these artists to social justice and human rights." (Their name comes from a study that found that only about 20% of professional theater artists are women.) Their current production, the new play Changes in Time, speaks directly to their mission. It's a story of a transgender individual, who was born in a girl's body but always felt like a boy. We see three scenes in her* life - as a teenager in the 1950s, and in 20 year increments in the 70s and '90s. Taken as a whole, the play is an effective and moving exploration of how it feels to be born in the wrong body, and how that affects the individual as well as their relationships with those who love them.

Wishes: We meet our protagonist Lorraine, or Rain as she prefers to be called, as a teenager away at camp in the 1950s. She sneaks out to meet her friend Court on their last night at camp. They share stories and snacks, and Rain sadly learns that what she feels is seen as weird even by the person she loves and trusts the most. In matching blue jeans, white t-shirts, and crewcuts, Chava Curland and Briana Zora Libby are charming and sweet as Court and Rain, a perfect picture of innocent young love.

Dresses: Twenty years have passed, and Lorraine returns home to Connecticut from Boston to attend her cousin's wedding with her mother. The entire scene takes place in the car on the drive there, and as often happens on a long drive, the two have an intense and real discussion and talk about things they've never talked about before. Lorraine's mother, perfectly groomed in a skirt and jacket with hat and gloves, can't understand why her daughter can't wear a dress, just once, for the wedding in which she's a bridesmaid. Lorraine tries to explain that it goes against every fiber of her being, but her mother just doesn't get it. Still, she loves and supports her daughter, and will do anything in her power defend her. Muriel Bonertz is a hoot as the prim and proper mother with a hidden depth of feeling, and has great chemistry with Heather Spear as the tough but tender daughter.

Changes: Another twenty years have passed, and much has changed - Lorraine is now Laurence, and his mother has died. This time it's his father's turn to have a real and intense discussion with the child that he loves but can't quite understand. You get the sense that he really loves Laurence and wants him to be happy, but can't quite wrap his head around the decisions he's made, and he misses Lorraine. The truth comes out, and it's not pretty, but it's a beginning that leads to greater connection. Chris Little makes his acting debut as Laurence, which is incredibly brave, but it's Dann Peterson who shines in this scene with his very natural and touching performance as a father coming to terms with the fact that the child he's always loved is still there, even though he might look different.

Theatrically, it's interesting to track one character through several stages of their life, especially when there's such change. From a more global standpoint, it's pretty great to use theater to give voice to an underrepresented community. Unfortunately there's only one more performance of Changes in Time (go directly to the Minneapolis Theatre Garage if you're interested), but I'm glad I caught this one before it closed.


*I feel like the English language is failing me, we need a gender-neutral pronoun!