Christian Bardin

The plot of AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE seems ripped from today's headlines: think Flint, think Detroit. Of course, Norwegian Henrik Ibsen (an iconoclast in his day, generally regarded as "The Father of Social Realism" in western theater history) penned this prescient piece back in 1882. What the Guthrie is producing is a new adaptation by Brad Birch, first staged in 2016 in Wales. It's undergone further revision for this production. Birch's adaptation is most welcome. The familiar story is lifted up to a whole new level by the striking visuals and swift, intriguing transitions devised by director Lyndsey Turner and her design team.

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.

To close the 2017 Season, the Jungle presents its first holiday show - Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley - by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, directed by Christina Baldwin. Opening on November 18, this enchanting romance reunites Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice characters at the Darcy home for the holidays.

To close the 2017 Season, the Jungle presents its first holiday show - Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley - by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, directed by Christina Baldwin. Opening on November 18, this enchanting romance reunites Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice characters at the Darcy home for the holidays.

The Guthrie Theater has announced casting for the theater's summer musical, Sunday in the Park with George. Leading the cast will be Randy Harrison (Guthrie: The Glass Menagerie) who will play French pointillist painter George Seurat, a role originated by Mandy Patinkin in the 1984 Broadway production, and Erin Mackey (Guthrie: South Pacific) who will play Seurat's lover and model, Dot, a role originated by Bernadette Peters.

Y'all, Jungle Theater's LONE STAR SPIRITS got me feeling all the feels! Hilarious and heart-breaking, it's one of the best plays I've seen this year. Brought to us by wife/husband director/playwright team Sarah Rasmussen and Josh Tobiessen, it features crisply drawn characters beautifully brought to life by a brilliant five-person cast, an incredibly detailed and realistic set, family drama, a poignant exploration of small town life, ghosts, country music, and accidental gunshots. I was laughing throughout the show and wiping away tears at the end, which is pretty much my favorite kind of play. Friends, you'd be wise to get on down to the Jungle between now and May 7 to experience this practically perfect 90 minutes of theater.

The Playwrights' Center's 45th anniversary season kicks off October 17 with PlayLabs, a week-long new play festival featuring Core Writers Christina Ham ('West of Central'), Susan Soon He Stanton ('we, the invisibles') and Ken Urban ('The Remains'). Tickets are free and can be reserved at pwcenter.org/playlabs.

Mu Performing Arts released casting and thematic details today for the World Premiere production of ?tot: THE UNTOLD, YET SPECTACULAR STORY OF ?(a filipino)?HULK HOGAN?, June 17 - 26, 2016, written by playwright ?Victor Maog?and directed by ?Randy Reyes at Park Square Theatre's Boss Thrust Stage. This production is the final play of the 2015?2016 season and marks Mu's 50th World Premiere of new works by Asian American artists and playwrights.

When the ingenious gentlemen of Four Humors apply their unique, clever, and hilarious storytelling style to a classic such as THE INGENIOUS GENTLEMAN DON QUIXOTE OF LA MANCHA, it's a thing not to be missed. And even though I've experienced many such unique adaptations by Four Humors, as well as original work, last night's world premiere opening night still gave me something unexpected. As the play points out, everyone knows Don Quixote, even if you're never read the book or heard the name Miguel de Cervantes. Four Humors tells the classic story about honor, chivalry, and madness in a unique way using puppetry projection and by making Cervantes a character in the play, allowing the characters to step outside the story and comment on it. I believe this is Four Humors' debut at the Guthrie, which will no doubt expose a new audience to their often accomplished mission 'to create art that celebrates the humor, stupidity, and beauty of our world by letting the artist connect with the audience in a vulnerable and honest way.'

Enter a world ruled by fevered delusions and far-flung imagination, where a windmill transforms into a giant and a filthy innkeeper becomes a king. Join us in a realm of illusions and experience the story of a man who can no longer leave his beautifully imagined world, even after the curtain has come crashing down.

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.   

Girl Friday Productions is a theater company that specializes in large cast classic American plays. The bad news is they only do one production every two years. The good news is it's worth the wait. In their first time partnering with Park Square Theatre, they're presenting Thornton Wilder's comedy THE MATCHMAKER. With a funny and poignant story about love, money, and adventure, smart period set and costumes, a cast that is sheer perfection, and direction that keeps it all running smoothly, this MATCHMAKER is an absolute delight from top to bottom, start to finish. Go see it now (playing through July 26), or wait another two years for your chance to see this great company.

History Theatre produces the world premiere of a new musical by local artists Dominic Orlando (book and lyrics) and the late Hiram Titus (composer). BroadwayWorld has a first look at the show below!

History Theatre will produce the world premiere of a new musical by local artists Dominic Orlando (book and lyrics) and the late Hiram Titus (composer). The Working Boys Band tells the story of Professor C.C. Heintzeman, a German-born educator who believed in the power of music to give structure and purpose to people's lives, especially for the children who worked in the mills and factories of Minneapolis in the years before Child Labor Laws. The story of the Minneapolis Working Boys Band and its founder was suggested to History Theatre back in 2010 when Titus handed a photo of the band circa 1915 and his first draft of the opening number to artistic director Ron Peluso. In September of 2013, Titus submitted the show's finale just days before suffering a fatal cardiac arrest; Raymond Berg joined the team to finish the musical arrangements.

History Theatre will produce the world premiere of a new musical by local artists Dominic Orlando (book and lyrics) and the late Hiram Titus (composer). The Working Boys Band tells the story of Professor C.C. Heintzeman, a German-born educator who believed in the power of music to give structure and purpose to people's lives, especially for the children who worked in the mills and factories of Minneapolis in the years before Child Labor Laws. The story of the Minneapolis Working Boys Band and its founder was suggested to History Theatre back in 2010 when Titus handed a photo of the band circa 1915 and his first draft of the opening number to artistic director Ron Peluso. In September of 2013, Titus submitted the show's finale just days before suffering a fatal cardiac arrest; Raymond Berg joined the team to finish the musical arrangements.

A young man indoctrinated by the philosophy of the day. A philosopher dead certain in his reasoning. And a world that refuses to be constrained by reason of any kind.

A young man indoctrinated by the philosophy of the day. A philosopher dead certain in his reasoning. And a world that refuses to be constrained by reason of any kind.

Park Square's 36th season opens with a perceptible crackle when the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning play, AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY comes to its stage in September. Leah Cooper, in her Park Square debut, directs this gripping dark comedy that lit Broadway on fire in 2007.