Jared Fessler - Page 7

Hawken Paul and Jeffrey Nolan are no strangers to bringing joy to the stage. The duo lives in Uptown Minneapolis and, for the past five years, has worked as teaching artists with the Children’s Theatre Company and the Zephyr Theatre Company.

We’re excited to share a conversation with the incredible Mandy Gonzalez, whose powerhouse voice and heartfelt storytelling have lit up Broadway in shows like Hamilton, Wicked, and In the Heights. Beyond the stage, she’s an author, a recording artist, and a performer who brings her whole heart to every project.

'Dog Man: The Musical' at the Pantages Theatre in Minneapolis is a delightful and uproarious experience that will have audiences of all ages laughing from start to finish. Based on Dav Pilkey’s Dog Man series, the show follows two imaginative fifth-graders, George and Harold, who decide to take their comic-book adventures to the next level by creating a musical about their favorite hero, Dog Man.

The holiday season officially arrived at Orchestra Hall as Jingle Bells & Jazz Noels filled the room with a generous dose of sparkle, swing, and good old-fashioned cheer.

Daniel Emmet, whose powerful voice and love of the holiday season will be performing as part of the TSO touring band. 

Disney On Ice’s Frozen & Encanto at the Grand Casino Arena in Saint Paul was a truly magical experience from start to finish. The show blends the worlds of Arendelle and the Madrigal family in a way that feels seamless, exciting, and full of heart. From the moment the lights dimmed, the ice rink became a stage for incredible skating, colorful costumes, and all the songs everyone loves to sing along to.

Live Nation and KOOL 108 present the legendary Trans-Siberian Orchestra, coming to Target Center on December 28 for two epic shows. The show will feature Minnesota native singer and song write Nate Amor. 

Marissa Bode’s appearance at the Coffman Memorial Union Theater on the University of Minnesota campus was an inspiring and engaging evening. She shared stories from her time working on the Wicked film and talked about how she developed her character, Nessa Rose, for the stage. Hearing her discuss the thought and care that went into bringing Nessa to life gave the audience a real appreciation for her craft.

Marissa Bode—celebrated for her standout performance in Wicked and recognized as a strong advocate for authentic representation in the performing arts—is joining us for a special evening at the Coffman Memorial Union Theater on December 2, 2025.

This December, the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus brings Broadway powerhouse Alex Newell to the stage for their Jingle Bells and Jazz Noels concert at Minnesota Orchestra Hall.

What did our critic think of 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE...BY CIRQUE DU SOLEIL at Northrop?

As we look ahead to this year’s Home for the Holidays concert, one of the artists we’re especially excited to introduce is Elise Karlstad. Elise is currently a junior at Otterbein University in Ohio, where she is pursuing her BFA in Musical Theatre and Dance with a Dance minor. She’s already begun to make a name for herself on campus and beyond, most recently appearing as Urleen in Otterbein’s 2025 mainstage production of Footloose.

​​​​​​​Disney On Ice presents Frozen & Encanto will glide into Saint Paul’s Grand Casino Arena December 4–7, 2025, bringing two of Disney’s most popular stories to life on the ice. Families can sing along to favorites from Frozen and the award-winning Encanto while enjoying impressive skating, aerial stunts, and colorful production numbers. We also caught up with Minnetonka native Gig Siruno, a longtime skater with the show who now steps into a new role as production manager.

With Jingle Bells & Jazz Noels almost here, we wanted to take a moment to spotlight one of our Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus members, Chris Unger (he/him). This year’s show has been a blast to put together—big band brass, holiday favorites with a fun twist, and a couple of theatrical moments they can’t wait for you to see.

Sarah McLachlan doesn’t make a big entrance. She just walks out, smiles like she’s greeting old friends, and settles in behind the piano as if she’s about to play something she wrote five minutes ago. That’s how the night started at the Armory, and the whole show kept that same unforced, almost conversational energy.

If you’ve lived in Minneapolis long enough, you’ve probably seen a touring Phantom (or at least pretended you did when talking to theatre friends). But the production now at the Orpheum through December 7 feels surprisingly alive. Not “reinvented,” not “modernized”—just performed with the kind of conviction that makes you remember why this show became a juggernaut in the first place.

Pentatonix brought a rush of holiday warmth to the Grand Casino Arena in Saint Paul on November 20, turning a chilly Minnesota night into something genuinely magical. From the moment the group stepped onstage with “Christmas in the City,” the atmosphere shifted—suddenly the arena felt like a bustling winter street scene, full of glitter and anticipation.

The first national tour of The Notebook opened its run at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts with a performance that felt both tender and freshly alive. The familiar love story—spanning youth, adulthood, and the late years of Allie and Noah’s lives—translated beautifully to the Ordway stage, where the audience settled into an evening of heartfelt storytelling and quietly powerful performances.

Stevie Nicks turned the Grand Casino Event Center in Saint Paul into a dreamscape on Wednesday night. Under swirling lights and a full house of devoted fans, she delivered a set that blended nostalgia, reverence, and pure rock-and-roll grace. At 77, her voice still carries that unmistakable rasp and warmth, and her presence is as magnetic as ever.