TCTB Review Roundup: ANTIGONE at Park Square Theatre

February seems to be the month for telling strong stories with all-female casts. Antigone, showing at Park Square Theatre through March 3, is a strong addition to this pattern and our bloggers loved it. Here's what they had to say:

Cherry and Spoon says "Park Square continues that exciting new tradition with an ancient woman's story, told by a group of modern, diverse, talented women who make this 2000+ year old story feel urgent, necessary, and now" https://bit.ly/2GLEkof

Play off the Page says "This is powerful storytelling, filled with movement and life. It was like a well choreographed dance." https://bit.ly/2S8hkCd

Twin Cities Stages says "Park Square has a fantastic show currently playing downstairs on its Andy Boss Thrust stage." https://bit.ly/2IhWMY0

TCTB Review Roundup: A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC by Theater Latte Da at the Ritz Theater

No one seems to love Stephen Sondheim as much as Theater Latté Da, and this month they are remounting one of his classic shows: "A Little Night Music." Several of our bloggers attended; see their thoughts below!

Cherry and Spoon says "A Little Night Music is one of the best musicals from one of our best living composers, brought to life by one of #TCTheater's best interpreters of music-theater." https://bit.ly/2TXlEpD

Compendium - Minneapolis says "It's a great way to escape our current polar vortex and worth a visit for Theater Latte Da's perennially excellent execution." https://bit.ly/2X41xrs

Play off the Page says "Sondheim is as beautiful and complicated as love itself. Go, lose yourself in this dreamy world." https://bit.ly/2GtMS3Y

Brett Talk says " Singing a song is one thing but being able to act it and connect with the lyrics as a character is another and Wingert knows how to do that." https://bit.ly/2SJ0jmX

photo by Dan Norman

TCTB Review Roundup: THE WOLVES by the Jungle Theater at the Southern Theater

One of the hottest tickets in town is the revival of The Wolves by The Jungle Theater at The Southern Theater. There are only a few days to catch it before it closes on February 17 - check out our blogger's reviews to see why you need to go:

Cherry and Spoon says it's "just the kind of story we're craving right now." https://bit.ly/2teTrP8

Compendium - Minneapolis says "This is a show that is clearly made by women, starring women, for women, and I can't express enough how meaningful that experience was for me." https://bit.ly/2GGC0z7

Play off the Page says "I declare 2019 The Year of the Woman!" https://bit.ly/2THIvoL

Gina Musto says "If I liked this play the first time, I am absolutely infatuated with it this time around." https://bit.ly/2DxpVZx

Brett Talk says "Through Delappe’s brilliant and realistic writing, along with Sarah Rusmussen’s incredible direction, these nine women create truly a beyond remarkable ensemble." https://bit.ly/2GkB5VF

TCTB Review Roundup: SHE LOVES ME at Artistry

photo by Devon Cox

Nostalgic musical She Loves Me is open at Artistry MN through this weekend! A couple of our bloggers went and here's what they had to say:

Cherry and Spoon says "If there's a musical I have to see three times in a year (OK I don't have to, I choose to, because I'm me), I'm glad it's this darling little gem of a musical." https://bit.ly/2TK7urB

Brett Talk says "The most recent production of She Loves Me solidifies Artistry's commitment to producing quality musical theatre that should be seen by as many people as possible." https://bit.ly/2BwNKk3

Make sure to catch this show before it closes on February 17!

TCTB Review Roundup: February shows

The flurry of February #tctheater shows continues despite the wintry weather! Our bloggers have been busy trying to cover a wide swath of shows. Make sure to catch some of these before they close in the next week or two!

Compendium - Minneapolis on Mr. Popper's Penguins at the Children's Theatre Company: https://bit.ly/2TFd3r7

Cherry and Spoon on Hair by Theatre 55 at Mixed Blood Theatre Company: https://bit.ly/2WRTSfU

Cherry and Spoon on Isaac's Eye by Theatre Pro Rata at Gremlin Theatre: https://bit.ly/2SD55Sp

Cherry and Spoon on Flowers for the Room at Yellow Tree Theatre: https://bit.ly/2SL0pK4

Cherry and Spoon on The Devout by Transatlantic Love Affair: https://bit.ly/2WWu6Hf

Cherry and Spoon on My Beautiful Infinity by The Chameleon Theatre Circleat Bloomington Center for the Arts: https://bit.ly/2GmnGwe

TCTB Review Roundup: THE GREAT LEAP at the Guthrie

Our bloggers enjoyed the historical and dramatic aspects of THE GREAT LEAP, a new play about basketball and politics in the US and China in the '70s and '80s, now playing at Guthrie Theater through February 10. Tickets and info can be found here: 

https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/2018-2019-season/the-great-leap/

Play off the Page: https://bit.ly/2RYH1c3
"The set (designed by Sara Ryung Clement) is a basketball court, the coach’s office, and sometimes side streets and apartments. It all seamlessly flows from one to the other. Director Desdemona Chiang did an amazing job of using the large stage to emphasize the largeness of the court and the countries, and the intimacy of private spaces and lives. Stunning."

Compendium - Minneapolis: https://bit.ly/2MwwLCM
"That's why I appreciate creative, responsible historical fiction so much - I believe in its power and have seen the near-instantaneous changes it can inspire when it's done right (I mean, helloooo Hamilton). The Great Leap, now showing at the Guthrie Theater, is just such a show. It weaves two historical occurrences - basketball games played between U.S. and Chinese college teams in the 1980s and the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 - to help audiences understand what was at stake in the roiling change China experienced in the late 1980s"

Cherry and Spoon: http://bit.ly/cs_leap
"Inspired by her father, a Chinese-American who went to China to play basketball against Chinese teams, Lauren Yee has written a smart, funny, entertaining, educational, and thought-provoking play about basketball that isn't really about basketball at all."

Photo by Dan Norman

TCTB Review Roundup: Lorna Landvik's PARTY IN THE REC ROOM at Bryant Lake Bowl & Theater

Closing this weekend - Lorna Landvik's PARTY IN THE REC ROOM at Bryant Lake Bowl & Theater. Play off the Page says "She really knows how to throw a party. She dances in to loud rock music, mixes up a blender full of margaritas, and starts handing them out, then breaks into her first bit. She welcomes us with song, dance, a ton of laughs, and a side order of thoughtfulness. I’ve only seen the show twice, but I’m convinced that the answer to life’s most profound questions lies in dance moves and down home philosophy."

https://playoffthepage.com/2019/01/return-to-party-in-the-rec-room-starring-lorna-landvik/