Review: LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR TOUR at Westwood Minneapolis

The Love Your Neighbor Tour stopped in the Minneapolis area on September 10 at Westwood Community Church’s Bush Lake Campus, giving audiences a sneak peek at the upcoming Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical.

The evening featured Brotherhood stars Mauricio Martínez and Casey Elliott, along with writer, composer, and director Ross Boothe. The event included live performances, clips from the film, stories about making the movie, and conversations about the message behind it.

Brotherhood follows two next-door neighbors, Jon and Fabián. Jon, played by Elliott, is a lifelong American citizen, while Fabián, played by Martínez, is a Mexican immigrant who has spent more than a decade waiting for a resolution to his U.S. asylum application. As their lives and families become connected, the two are challenged to look beyond their differences and get to know one another.

Throughout the evening, audiences were shown several clips from the film and heard from Boothe, Martínez, and Elliott about their experiences working on the project.

Music is a big part of Brotherhood, which features 13 original songs written by Boothe. Martínez, Elliott, and Boothe performed during the event, giving the audience a chance to hear some of the music live. Martínez and Elliott are both incredible vocalists, and hearing them perform in person was one of my favorite parts of the evening.

The cast and creative team also talked about what drew them to the project and why they felt this was an important story to tell. Boothe shared more about creating Brotherhood and his hope that the story encourages people to see each other as individuals rather than simply through labels or differences.

The event also included a roundtable discussion with cultural lead Liliana Bolaños, local leaders, authors, and special guests. The conversation focused on what it means to love your neighbor and how people can create stronger connections within their own communities.

Although immigration is an important part of Brotherhood, much of what was shared during the evening focused on the relationships between the characters and the importance of getting to know people whose lives and experiences may be different from our own.

I enjoyed the format of the Love Your Neighbor Tour. It wasn't just a screening or a typical promotional event. The combination of live music, film clips, and conversations with the cast and creative team gave the audience a chance to learn more about the film and the people behind it.

Since we only saw portions of Brotherhood, I can't review the entire film yet, but I enjoyed what I saw. The clips made me interested in seeing how the full story develops, and the original music was one of the things that stood out to me most.

I also appreciated having the opportunity to hear directly from Martínez, Elliott, and Boothe. Their connection to the project came through during both their performances and conversations with the audience.

The Love Your Neighbor Tour was a great introduction to Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical and its message of empathy, connection, and taking the time to get to know the people around us.

Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical will be released in select theaters in October 2026.

Reader Reviews

To post a comment, you must register and login.