Public Exposure by Market Garden Theatre

A bracing antidote to the holiday season's surfeit of sweetness, Public Exposure is a play that starts strong and maintains that drive all the way to the end.

The play is written by Keith Hovis, who also wrote the brilliant musical Teenage Misery. This piece is very different from that tongue-in-cheek horror-musical mashup, but provides ample evidence that Hovis is a playwright to watch.

Produced by Market Garden Theater, the Public Exposure experience starts with a rather adventurous trek to the performance space. In a neighborhood that seems to house mostly artists' spaces, you'll finally find the virtually unmarked but correct building. You'll follow a long series of stairways and hallways to get to the room called Maker Space Northeast. The unconventional space looks like a mess as you take a seat in an assortment of chairs hugging the walls of the space. Seating is truly limited, so definitely reserve tickets and arrive early if you attend.

But then the play begins, and it's all worth it. God bless small theater in unconventional spaces! The play opens and we are in the place where Ford (Nick Wolf) has been living (and partying) since losing his job. His friend and coworker Jen (Marci Lucht) comes to see him and gradually the story unfolds as she tries to interest him in a new business enterprise--basically, the opposite of online reputation defenders. When Hannah, another coworker, (Marika Proctor) drops by, things get increasingly complicated.

More than anything, the beauty in this play is in the tight, acerbic and witty script by Keith Hovis, who is SO on my ones to watch list. Considering this is the first time that this play has been performed, it's amazingly polished. The dialogue feels natural, even as the characters discuss the online ruination of others. And the other wonderful thing about this show is the ability to see such terrific talent up close and in-depth. All three actors do a kick-ass job.

Yay new plays! Yay fresh new talent!

Miss Richfield 1981 Answers Our Burning Questions!

Gorgeous photo from Miss Richfield 1981's
Facebook page

After seeing the hilarious Miss Richfield 1981 in Trailer House to the State House - Santa-Style! at the Illusion Theater (read our glowing review here), we had a few burning questions for highly acclaimed pageant title holder.

Despite the grueling schedule of her super-hot holiday show, Miss Richfield 1981 graciously agreed to answer a few of our questions with her customary style and verve.

Don't forget! If you missed Miss Richfield 1981 this holiday season, she will be back at the Illusion Theater in February for a sneak preview of her new show: Miss Richfield 1981's 2017 Prog-rum.

On to the Q&A!

Chatting about Fun Home on tour at the Orpheum Theatre

Fun Home national touring company. Photo by Joan Marcus.

I had the opportunity to see the touring production of Fun Home at the Orpheum Theatre this week. Even though it would be my third viewing, I was interested to see how the show would hold up on tour. Fellow theater bloggers Jill of Cherry and Spoon and Laura of Twin Cities Stages had also seen the show in New York, so we thought we'd try something different and chat about our experiences with the show this time around. (Carly didn't see the show this time, but saw it in NY and did some research on the shows.) The slightly edited transcript follows. 

All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 - Theater Latte Da at Pantages Theatre

2015 Production photo by George Byron Griffiths

Friends, there is a plethora of holiday shows for your theatergoing enjoyment this year, but I promise you:

No show will touch your heart more than All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 by Theater Latte Da at the Pantages Theater. Nor will you hear more exquisite music and singing.

The curtain rises on a dark stage, and gradually the cast of twelve men take shape through the fog, singing "Will Ye Go to Flanders?"

In seventy breathtaking minutes, we hear the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914, where British and German soldiers met in No Man's Land and played football, took photographs, exchanged addresses and buried their dead. And they sang.

White Christmas at the Ordway

Nature cooperated with the Ordway this week, providing a suitable snowy setting for its new staging of Irving Berlin's White Christmas. Based on the 1954 holiday film, the stage version is relatively new, having first played at the Ordway in 2006, in a memorable production that landed on Broadway two years later.

The Ordway's new production resembles that production, right down to costume and set designs. The musical introduces Bob Wallace (Dieter Bierbrauer) and Phil Davis (Brian Sostek) serving in WWII under General Waverly (James Detmar). Skip ahead ten years, and now it's 1954, where Wallace and Davis have turned their Christmas variety show into an act that is often featured on the Ed Sullivan show, where another of their Army buddies, Ralph Sheldrake (the always-delightful Randy Schmeling), is a producer.

Jenny Piersol as Judy Haynes and Ann Michels as Betty Haynes.
(Photos by Rich Ryan Photography)

As a favor to yet another army buddy, the guys check out his sisters in their act (it's always about who you know!). They're impressed with the Haynes sisters, and Phil conspires with Judy Haynes (Jenny Piersol) to throw Bob and Betty (Ann Michels) together. Soon they're all on a train headed to Vermont, where the sisters are booked for the holidays.

Unseasonable heat is ruining business at the inn, which happens to be owned by General Waverly. Wallace and Davis decide to move their holiday show rehearsals to the inn to help out their old commanding officer. Rehearsal scenes allow plenty of opportunity for the cast to perform many of Irving Berlin's loveliest tunes.

And when Thomasina Petrus takes the stage as Martha Watson, the General's second-in-command at the inn, the show kicks into high gear, Thomasina Petrus is a joy to behold. In addition to running the inn, Watson has a history in show business. Her show-stopping rendition of "Let Me Sing and I'm Happy" makes me wish for the days when characters would reprise a show-stopping song.

The "let's put on a show" part of the story means that most of the songs can stand alone rather than being shoehorned into the plot, which is a relief after seeing some other jukebox musicals. A highlight at the top of the second act is "I Love a Piano," danced beautifully and athletically by Phil and Judy with the ensemble. Brian Sostek is a local treasure for his ability to combine dance and comedy, and it's great to see him really master this very traditional musical theater role. Jenny Piersol matches him step for step in the dances.

Brian Sostek as Phil Davis and Jenny Piersol as Judy Haynes.

Songs are sung, misunderstandings cause rifts that will later mend, and there are some corny jokes. It's a very traditional, family-friendly musical comedy with all the pretty costumes and tap dancing that a show can handle. The small ensemble does a good job of not making the stage feel too empty, but I did wish for more men to round out the scenes where the audience is meant to be made up of the soldiers from Waverly's unit.

The cast of White Christmas

The nineteen-piece orchestra does a wonderful job with the jazzy arrangements of the seventeen or so songs, from the well-known title tune, "Blue Skies," and "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" to the less-familiar but very charming "Snow" and "Falling Out of Love Can Be Fun." All of the songs are good; Berlin was no slouch as a songwriter. I've been listening to the 2006 cast recording for years and enjoy the whole thing.

White Christmas is a crowd-pleaser, and if it didn't quite live up to my personal memories of that first Ordway production, it's still an uplifting and entertaining evening of beautiful music and dance.




Musical Theater Rabbit Hole:

Thinking about the first White Christmas at the Ordway reminded me of these videos that the cast made while they were in St. Paul. It helps if you remember when the Saturday Night Live video "Lazy Sunday" was a big deal. Jeffry Denman played Phil Davis in that production and headed up this project.



There are even follow-up videos from 2007 in Boston and the 2008 New York production, if you're into theater people being weird. Also, Denman wrote a good book about a year in the life of a working Broadway actor called A Year With The Producers: One Actor's Exhausting (But Worth It) Journey from Cats to Mel Brooks' Mega-Hit. 

When I looked to see what he was up to these days, I found this nifty video of "Cool" from West Side Story, danced all over Central Park. Glad to see he's still out there making beautiful things.

Why I Love In the Heights (and you should too)

With the news Lin-Manuel Miranda's 2008 Tony-winning musical In the Heights is part of the 2017-2018 Ordway season, it just reminded me of how completely obsessed I was with this show when I first saw it on Broadway in July 2008.

The Ordway is presenting In the Heights in collaboration with Teatro del Pueblo from September 12-24, 2017. Don't miss it!

Okay, back to me. I mean, OBSESSED.  So obsessed that I avidly followed an In the Heights message board. So obsessed that we went back to New York in February 2009 just to see Lin-Manuel Miranda's last performance as Usnavi.

And so obsessed that I watched every single video about the show. Even back then, Lin-Manuel Miranda knew how to work social media. He posted fabulous, hilarious, insider videos and his genuine love for his work, the show and the theater came through in every one.

Here's a few must-watch videos to get you psyched for In the Heights at the Ordway:

'In the Heights' - 2008 Tony Awards Performance - 96,000

Where it all started. "96,000" from In the Heights, performed on the 2008 Tony Awards.

In The Heights - Recording Session, 2008 Grammy Award Winner (Best Cast Album)

Gorgeous backstage look at the recording session for the cast album. See and hear the cast sing the heck out of this fabulous show.

Dreams Come True ... In the Heights 
For every musical theater nerd who sang the hell out of a cast recording in their bedroom, here's a holiday gift from the cast of In The Heights in December 2008.

I'm not crying, you're crying.

Okay, we're both crying.

Legally Brown: The Next Search for the Next Piragua Guy (link goes to the whole series playlist)
Lin-Manuel Miranda's faux reality series about the search for the next piragua guy is freaking hilarious, and features so many fabulous (and self-mocking) Broadway cameos and references. Including the "ubiquitous Seth Rudetsky"!

Seth Rudetsky Deconstructs Andrea Burns from In the Heights
The ubiquitous Seth tells us all about how fantastic Andrea Burns is. It's also a fabulous look at the complexity of the gorgeous music of In the Heights.

To Life; Vanessa's Wedding Surprise
So, Lin-Manuel Miranda married his Vanessa in 2010, and put together this fabulous wedding surprise. So stinking cute.

Seth Rudetsky Shows In The Heights' Josh Henry's Brilliance

Super crazy deep musical theater cut of Seth, Joshua Henry (who you'll see in Hamilton in Chicago), and Andrea Burns showing off Joshua Henry's fabulous musical theater improvisation that he does backstage during "Home" at In The Heights.

Happy watching! And listening!

A Christmas Carole Petersen at Theater Latte Da

After an absence of eight years from Twin Cities stages, Theater Latte Da reprises a favorite from the theater's early days.

I admit a nostalgic fondness for the scrappy little startup theater's shows produced in the tiny, inaccessible, but charming, Loring Playhouse. We first caught A Christmas Carole Petersen there in the mid-2000s, and were so charmed by it that we returned with our own mom and dad.

This year, Latte Da brings us an early holiday present at the theater's new home, the Ritz Theater.

A Christmas Carole Petersen is back, and it's a joy to see Tod and all the Petersens back onstage. Tod Petersen takes us back to his childhood in Mankato, where he is part of a boisterous family led by the wonderfully warm and sweet Carole Petersen. Tod takes on the persona of his mother, reading from her annual Christmas letters and providing calm and thoughtful support to her husband and four children.

We learn about Tod's first brush with the theater (and his first crushing disappointment) and laugh at his re-creations of childhood memories, from his first audition to family celebrations. By way of illustration, Tod and the Carolettes sing a variety of holiday songs, from traditional carols, through the dreidel song, to new numbers written by Tod Petersen himself, director Peter Rothstein, and music director Denise Prosek.

Tod Petersen, Sara Ochs, Ryan Lee, and Dominique Wooten.
Photo by Emilee Elofson.

Sara Ochs, Ryan Lee, and Dominique Wooten are all impressive performers in their own rights, and, as the Carolettes, they provide able support to the show, filling in as family members and revelers, playing a variety of instruments, and each taking a solo turn or two.

Though the Ritz is larger than the Loring, Michael Hoover's set for the show wisely keeps the performers close to the audience and feels quite cozy. As in previous years, music director Denise Prosek accompanies the production on piano from the stage, and is clearly a part of the show. An impressive number of additional instruments appear, from guitar and drums to ukelele and flute, played well by Prosek and the ensemble.

Tod Petersen, a well-known local performer, has a long history with Latte Da and an even longer history with director Peter Rothstein, who saw Tod playing his younger self and his mom at a party and thought there might be a show in it. The rest, as they say, is history.

The stories are funny and sad and heartwarming, and the music beautiful and cheery. The joy radiating from the stage is contagious; I can't recall being in an audience so ready to join in the fun! By the end of the show, you'll feel like you've spent a lovely time getting to know Carole Petersen and her very special and oh-so-relatable family.