Sun Mee Chomet News

Writing a sequel to one of the most beloved novels in English literature is a daunting and risky task. Audiences have such attachment to the original, and it could go wrong in so many ways. But playwrights Lauren Gunderson and Margo Melcon have gotten it so, so right in their theatrical sequel to Jane Austen's novel PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. In a sparkling new production at Jungle Theater, MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY is very reminiscent of Jane Austen, but also fresh and modern and new. It's a witty, smart, utterly charming new play that celebrates not just literal sisterhood, but women working together and supporting each other, both onstage and behind the scenes. I can think of nothing we need more at this moment in time.

Swedish playwright Jonas Hassen Khemiri's* work makes its area debut with Pillsbury House Theatre's excellent production of the odd and oddly titled ALMOST EQUAL TO . But odd in a good way, odd in that it's uniquely structured and covers many topics and doesn't always entirely make sense. In fact pre- and mid-show announcements break the fourth wall a bit and tell us what to expect (or not). According to the program, the play 'is a commentary on the constraints and effects of living within a capitalist economic system.' A mix of economics, sociology, and family drama, ALMOST EQUAL TO will leave you questioning the very meaning of money. In a world with vast inequalities of wealth, that's a worthy thing to think about in a play that's also engaging and entertaining.

Penumbra Theatre's Summer Institute is a leadership development program that trains teenagers to use their passion for the arts to promote social justice and equity. Across the Twin Cities, students are positively impacting their communities by standing up, speaking out, and moving those who listen with the power of performance.

The Playwrights' Center is excited to announce the 2017-18 McKnight National Residency and Commission recipient, 2017-18 McKnight Fellows in Playwriting, 2017-18 McKnight Theater Artist Fellows, 2017-2020 Core Writers and 2017-18 Core Apprentices.

Another smart and funny new play fresh from a successful Off-Broadway run has landed in Minneapolis. In addition to Josh Tobiessen's hilarious and heart-breaking LONE STAR SPIRITS at the Jungle Theater, we also have Qui Nguyen's ambitious and genre-blending VIETGONE at Mixed Blood Theatre. The playwright tells the story of his parents meeting a Vietnamese refugee camp in 1975 Arkansas in an inventive and totally unique style. VIETGONE is part rap musical, part romantic comedy, part bawdy sex comedy, part war story, and all engrossing. It's in-your-face and squirm-inducing, but is utterly effective in communicating the refugee experience and making at least this audience member rethink their views on the Vietnam War and American involvement.

Mixed Blood Theatre is proud to announce the final show in its 2016/2017 Season, Vietgone. In Vietgone, award winning pioneer of "geek theater" Qui Nguyen brilliantly chronicles the love story of his parents meeting in an Arkansas refugee center after fleeing Vietnam during the fall of Saigon in 1975. The playwright's journey to understand his parents' immigrant love story in the wake of war and loss is marked by wit, unrepeatable curses, and a comic book sensibility that ultimately packs an unexpected emotional punch. It's is a buddy story, a proto-feminist tale, an all-American romance, and a motorcycle road trip adventure that 40 years later revisits how we think about the heroes and victims of the Vietnam War.

We've heard a lot about KING LEAR's two lead actors but now it's time for the women -- at least one of them. Sun Mee Chomet takes on Regan in this production at the Guthrie Theater and relishes her character's evil ways.

'Disciplined' may seem an odd word to apply to a production of KING LEAR, a tragedy that is about personal and societal dissolution into madness, both individually and at large. But the current mounting in Minneapolis earns that moniker, both in actorly control and design restraint. The result is a masterful rendering that eschews excess but allows the human relationships to be bared and centered.

This pre-eminent children's theatre company is one of the wellsprings of new plays for young audiences, and has twice commissioned playwright Naomi Iizuka in that effort. This time, Iizuka has woven together aspects of seven different Japanese folktales to create THE LAST FIREFLY, the tale of a boy in search of his absent father.

Children's Theatre Company (CTC) is unveiling the world premiere of The Last Firefly, written by Naomi Iizuka and directed by CTC's Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius, beginning September 27. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Children's Theatre Company (CTC) will unveil the world premiere of The Last Firefly, written by Naomi Iizuka and directed by CTC's Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius beginning September 27.

Children's Theatre Company (CTC) will unveil the world premiere of The Last Firefly, written by Naomi Iizuka and directed by CTC's Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius beginning September 27.

YOU FOR ME FOR YOU. Judging by the title I wondered if this was a play about former American Idol judge Randy Jackson. But of course it's not, rather this regional premiere by Mu Performing Arts is about North Korea, a subject I (and most Americans) know less about than American Idol. I was fortunate enough to attend the play when there was a post-show discussion with the playwright Mia Chung and director Randy Reyes, facilitated by the Star Tribune's Rohan Preston (read his review here). Hearing from the playwright, the director, and the cast about their experiences creating this piece gave me greater insight into the story. Mia shared that because there is so little known about what North Korea is actually like, she felt freedom in creating this world through 'magic realism' and really tried to focus on the human aspect of the story. She succeeds beautifully, as I was completely engrossed in the lives of these characters as brought to life by Mu's strong cast. This specific story of North Korean refugees is also universal in its themes of family, love, and sacrifice, themes that will feel familiar to any audience.

The Twin Cities area is well known as a great theater town, so it is a fitting home to one of the nation's most celebrated new play festivals. The 32nd annual PlayLabs festival runs October 12-18 at the Playwrights' Center, a 44-year-old organization that is one of just a handful of play development centers in the country.   

2014-15 McKnight Theater Artist Fellows Austene Van and Sally Wingert, along with their collaborators, will present selections from works in progress on June 29 at 7 p.m. at the Illusion Theater.

?The village of Farmingtown has been devoid of men for so long that when one returns from the far away and long-lasting war, the first woman he meets rushes up to him and inhales him deeply. This hilarious and oddly touching moment at the beginning of Kira Obolensky's new play FORGET ME NOT WHEN FAR AWAY sets the tone for this playful and poignant fairy tale about a soldier returning to a home he once knew. Ten Thousand Things has been on the road with the show for a few weeks, performing at correctional facilities, community centers, and other unlikely venues. As director Michelle Hensley said in her introduction of the show, the fact that this play has resonated with such diverse audiences in different ways is a credit to the skills of the playwright, who has created a world outside of time and space that somehow feels familiar and relatable to everyone. This world is brought to life in the beautifully sparse way that only Ten Thousand Things can do, with a brilliant cast of six performing in a fully lit room in a space so small that they literally trip over the audience. The fanciful story is grounded in truth and made to feel very real by the universality of the story, the charming accessibility of the language, the up-close-and-personal performances by the actors in whom you can feel every nuance of every emotion through a look in the eyes, the twinge of a facial muscle, or a subtle movement of the body. Ten Thousand Things harnesses the magic of theater in its most basic form like no other company can.

The Off-Broadway League recently announced nominations in 18 categories for the 30th Annual Lucille Lortel Awards for Outstanding Achievement Off-Broadway. The Lortel Awards are being handed out tonight, Sunday, May 10, 2015 at NYU Skirball Center beginning at 7:00 PM EST, and BroadwayWorld will be updating the winners as they are announced!

The Off-Broadway League today announced nominations in 18 categories for the 30th Annual Lucille Lortel Awards for Outstanding Achievement Off-Broadway. The Lortel Awards will be handed out tonight, Sunday, May 10, 2015 at NYU Skirball Center beginning at 7:00 PM EST. Check out the full list of nominees below!

The Off-Broadway League today announced nominations in 18 categories for the 30th Annual Lucille Lortel Awards for Outstanding Achievement Off-Broadway. The Lortel Awards will be handed out on Sunday, May 10, 2015 at NYU Skirball Center beginning at 7:00 PM EST, and hosted by Emmy-nominated actors Anna Chlumsky (“Veep,” Broadway's Living on Love) and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (“Modern Family,” this summer's The Tempest). This year's event will once again benefit The Actors Fund.

LCT3/Lincoln Center Theater's production of brownsville song (b-side for tray), a new play by Kimber Lee, directed byPatricia McGregor, opened on October 20 at the Claire Tow Theater (150 West 65 Street). This New York premiere, which features Sheldon Best, Sun Mee Chomet, Lizan Mitchell, Chris Myers and Taliyah Whitaker, is playing a limited engagement through Sunday, November 16. Scroll down for photos from the opening night festivities!