Michelle O'Neill

The Guthrie Theater today announced casting for William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, directed by former Artistic Director Joe Dowling, who returns to direct at the Guthrie for the first time since his tenure with the organization ended in 2015.

Director Talvin Wilks puts it well: a?oeJourneying into the writing of Claudia Rankine is like taking a roller coaster ride through our nation's most complex and subtle quandaries regarding race.a?? THE WHITE CARD is a new play by the renowned 2016 MacArthur Fellow, and author of five collections of poetry. THE WHITE CARD avoids simplistic slogans in favor of a far more nuanced autopsy of the way that white privilege (and the obliviousness and self-righteousness it fosters) infect the actions of well-meaning white people.

Of the three shows currently running at the Guthrie, THE ROYAL FAMILY is definitely the lightweight, longer on comedy and razzle-dazzle production values than on importance. (The other two shows are KING LEAR and PROMISE LAND, a barebones physical theater take on the Hansel and Gretel tale retold as an immigrant story.) Loosely based on the Barrymore acting clan, THE ROYAL FAMILY follows three generations of a prominent and wealthy family of performers, with particular attention to the female line.

Medea. Even if, like me, you've never seen or read the play, we all know the story of the mother who kills her children. Worst mother ever, right? But maybe, as they say on CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, the situation is a bit more nuanced than that. Maybe there's more to the story, maybe other people in the story see it differently. Playwright Michael Elyanow (see also the beautiful play with music LULLABY) wanted to explore the story from the children's viewpoint. He writes in the playbill, 'I started writing THE CHILDREN as a response play where somebody does take action to defend those kids. In the writing, the piece revealed itself to be a fever dream, a time-traveling mystery, a fish-out-of-water comedy, a theatrical event with a perception shift in every scene until we get at what the play is ultimately, singularly about: trauma survival.' That's about as good of a description as I could imagine. THE CHILDREN is not an easy play to categorize, but it is a wonderful one to experience for 80 minutes. It'll challenge your perception of Medea, as well as your perception of time and space.

The weekend before last, New Epic Theater opened a strikingly beautiful and devastating production of the 1985 Off-Broadway play THE NORMAL HEART about the early days of the AIDS crisis. Last weekend they opened part two of their ambitious spring repertory production, Shakespeare's CORIOLANUS. The two plays share the same terrific eight-person cast, innovative and distinctive director Joseph Stodola, performance space, set, and overall look. Separated in time by about 400 years, THE NORMAL HEART and CORIOLANUS are in some ways similar and in other ways very different. Both continue the trajectory that this new company has set right out of the gate with visually and emotionally impactful work. The two plays will be performed in rep for the next two weekends, culminating in both shows being performed back-to-back on Saturday April 16. Friends, New Epic Theater is an exciting new addition to our bountiful theater community and I urge you to see one or both of these plays to experience their unique vision.

In just their second season as a theater company, New Epic Theater is tackling not one but two challenging and not often performed political plays with THE NORMAL HEART and CORIOLANUS, performed in rep (something that's also not often done). It's an ambitious undertaking for any theater company, much less a young one. But in this short time New Epic has already established themselves as a company that does striking work, both visually and emotionally. The first half of this pair of plays opened last weekend, a strikingly beautiful and devastating production of the 1985 Off-Broadway play THE NORMAL HEART about the early days of the AIDS crisis. Friends, this is a piece of theater not to be missed. The Normal Heart returns on April 7, but in the meantime you can see the other piece of the puzzle, Shakespeare's CORIOLANUS, this weekend, as I will be. Director Joseph Stodola and New Epic Theater have a unique vision, one that deserves to be seen.

Arthur Miller's 1953 play THE CRUCIBLE is a classic of the American theater, and dramatizes one of the greatest failings of the American, or rather pre-American, judicial system. During the infamous Salem witch trials of the late 17th Century, twenty people were put to death for the crime of witchcraft, following a long history of the execution of 'witches' in Europe. Arthur Miller explores the larger themes of this horrible incident through a very personal story of one affected family, making the play at once intimate and epic. Despite being over 60 years old, the themes of religious fanaticism, mob mentality, and persecution of people who are different are sadly as current as they were during the McCarthy era when the play was written. The Guthrie's grand production of this classic with a cast chock-full of talent is truly something to behold.

It's opening night of David Goldstein's SKIING ON BROKEN GLASS at the Guthrie and as the play forms around me, it feels all too familiar-a love that makes no sense, an escort, unsupportive peers, and a constant battle of conscience. The play is just a little expected but in the end it leaves you with something to chat about by the water cooler and captures a few very real moments that make it all worthwhile.

The Guthrie Theater today announced the cast and creative team for David Goldstein's moving drama Skiing on Broken Glass. The play premiered in the 2010 Minnesota Fringe Festival to sold-out crowds and was selected for the Fringe Encore series. Guthrie Artistic Director Joe Dowling helms a new, expanded version of the play featuring additional characters and accompanying storylines. Skiing on Broken Glass begins performances in the Dowling Studio on October 29.

On the heels of the explosive A Streetcar Named Desire, the Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for Tennessee Williams' drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. This Pulitzer Prize-winning classic about a Southern family in crisis receives its second-ever Guthrie staging. Last produced at the Guthrie in 1976 under the artistic leadership of Michael Langham, this production will play from January 14- February 26, 2012, on the Wurtele Thrust Stage. Lisa Peterson (Major Barbara, Oedipus and Mrs. Warren's Profession) will direct.

Television actress Emily Swallow (Guthrie: A Midsummer Night's Dream; Television: 'Ringer,' 'Southland' and 'The Good Wife') will lead the cast of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in the iconic role of the troubled, lovelorn Margaret (Maggie the Cat). Swallow will be joined by Twin Cities actor Peter Christian Hansen (Guthrie: Dollhouse, Macbeth, After a Hundred Years) as the indifferent, alcoholic, favorite son Brick.

On the heels of the explosive A Streetcar Named Desire, the Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for Tennessee Williams' drama Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. This Pulitzer Prize-winning classic about a Southern family in crisis receives its second-ever Guthrie staging. Last produced at the Guthrie in 1976 under the artistic leadership of Michael Langham, this production will play from January 14- February 26, 2012, on the Wurtele Thrust Stage. Lisa Peterson (Major Barbara, Oedipus and Mrs. Warren's Profession) will direct.

The Guthrie Theater today announced star casting for its three fall productions: Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing (September 10 - November 5, 2011 on the Wurtele Thrust Stage), Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney's The Burial At Thebes (September 24 - November 6, 2011 on the McGuire Proscenium Stage) and Obie Award-winning playwright Adam Rapp's new play The Edge of Our Bodies (October 22 - November 20, 2011 in the Dowling Studio).

The Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for its upcoming production of William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale.

The Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for its upcoming production of William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale.

The Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for its upcoming production of William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale.

Anyone walking into a production of Shakespeare's MACBETH should expect it to be a bloody affair. After all, it's one of his most gruesome plays - dark and weird and violent. Its newest incarnation at the Guthrie (the 50th Shakespeare production overall) doesn't falter on any of these; it's a taut and thrilling rendition of one of the Bard's most compelling works.

MACBETH by William Shakespeare and directed by Joe Dowling

In celebration of Macbeth, the Guthrie Theater's 50th production of a Shakespeare play, the Theater today released a photo retrospective of the past 49 productions, from Tyrone Guthrie's Hamlet in 1963 to the currently running Romeo and Juliet, co-produced with The Acting Company.

In celebration of Macbeth, the Guthrie Theater's 50th production of a Shakespeare play, the Theater today released a photo retrospective of the past 49 productions, from Tyrone Guthrie's Hamlet in 1963 to the currently running Romeo and Juliet, co-produced with The Acting Company.