Tyler Michaels News

Helly my Broadway World Minneapolis friends. I know it's been a while since I've shared anything with you, but that's because I've been all-consumed by the 174-show 11-day festival that is the Minnesota Fringe. If you have not yet sampled from this glorious smorgasbord, don't worry, the fest continues through August 9 with 4-7 shows offered each day at 15 venues in Minneapolis, plus 9 site-specific shows. Believe me, I understand that this can be overwhelming, but I'm here to help. Read on to see a list of my 10 favorite shows of the Fringe so far. Now get out there, open your eyes and your heart and your mind, and see some of the beautiful, challenging, hilarious, disturbing, silly, profound, amazing theater that this festival has to offer.

?Being a grown-up is hard. You have to be concerned about things like bills, a job, a house, traffic, the deterioration of the environment, and violence and injustice in our backyards and around the world. It's really a drag - no wonder Peter Pan doesn't want to be one! And while we boring and worried grown-ups don't have the option of returning to a blissful childhood, we can go to the Children's Theatre Company and forget about all of our grown-up worries, remembering and reveling in the joy and freedom of youth. What better choice for CTC, then, than the musical adaptation of J.M. Barrie's iconic tale about the boy who won't grow up? Kids love it because they see themselves in Peter, and we grown-ups see an even deeper meaning in the story as we watch the children around us grow up in an increasingly dangerous world, and long for our own days of innocence. It's a perfect choice perfectly executed by the entire cast and creative and technical teams. This PETER PAN is something quite magical, and quite simply the best thing I've seen at CTC.

Children's Theatre Company (CTC) is thrilled to present Peter Pan the Musical for the first time on our stage, now through June 21, 2015 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage. Ivey Award-winner Peter Rothstein directs with choreography by Joe Chvala (Flying Foot Forum). Scroll down for a first look at the cast in action!

Children's Theatre Company (CTC) is thrilled to present Peter Pan the Musical for the first time on our stage, April 21 through June 21, 2015 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage. Ivey Award-winner Peter Rothstein directs with choreography by Joe Chvala (Flying Foot Forum). The creative team of national theatre luminaries includes Set Designer Walt Spangler (Broadway credits include A Christmas Story the Musical, Scandalous, Desire Under the Elms), Costume Designer Linda Cho (Tony Award for A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder) and Sound Designer Philip S. Rosenberg (Broadway credits include The Elephant Man and A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder).

Yesterday I sat on the famous thrust stage of the Guthrie Theater and watched a bunch of soldiers, lovers, and fairies dance, sing, fly, converse, love, hate, and generally cavort around in a bare circular space. Or was it all a dream? Such is the Guthrie's latest production of perhaps Shakespeare's best loved romantic comedy, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, that after three hours of spellbinding theater, you're not quite sure if what you saw just happened, or perhaps, as Puck suggests in his epilogue, it was all just a dream. Artistic Director Joe Dowling has returned to an old favorite in his final season at the Guthrie, assembling a gorgeous and talented cast of local favorites with a few national talents thrown in. It's no wonder that he returned to this show; this MIDSUMMER is a dream of a production, with plenty of spectacle in the form of dancing, flying, singing fairies, humor in the form of typical Shakesperean hijinks, and heart in this sweet romance that ends with a neat happily ever after. Everything about it is truly a delight.

Votes are cast; polls are closed; and results have been tabulated! This was our biggest year yet! After a record number of voters in more than 60 regions worldwide, BroadwayWorld is very excited to announce the 2014 Minneapolis winners! Thanks to all who voted, and huge congratulations to all the winners!

It's your last week to vote for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Minneapolis Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 26th. Voting closes at the end of the year, in under one week!

Friends, the future of Minnesota theater, and perhaps American theater, is here. It can currently be seen in the Guthrie Theater's 9th floor Dowling Studio, where a group of smart, talented, ambitious, dedicated, hard-working young music-theater artists have created a beautiful new original musical, based on the biblical story of Jonah. It's everything I want theater to be - fresh, innovative, delightful, heart-breaking, inspiring, genuine, and epic. This is 7th House Theater's fourth production in less than two years, and they continue to explore new ideas and push the boundaries of what theater can be. They've proven themselves with three low-budget but high-quality productions, and now have the resources of the Guthrie behind them to expand even further in this production. The result is beautiful and breath-taking. If 7th House is the future of theater, we're in good hands.

Time is ticking on your last chance to vote for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Minneapolis Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 19th. Voting closes at the end of the year!

The Guthrie Theater presents the 7th House Theater production of Jonah and the Whale: A New Musical, a reimagining of the familiar Old Testament tale, set to original bluegrass and folk music.

Voting has now opened for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Minneapolis Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 4th.

Children's Theatre Company has announced that Alanna Saunders, who plays Tiger Lily in NBC's Peter Pan Live, will play Wendy in this spring's Peter Pan the Musical. Joining her will be 2014 Ivey Award-winner for Emerging Artist Tyler Michaels in the title role. Audience favorite Reed Sigmund, now in his 15th season as a CTC Acting Company member, brings his signature style to the loathsome, tortured Captain Hook. Peter Pan the Musical runs April 21 through June 21, 2015 on the UnitedHealth Group Stage and is directed by Peter Rothstein.

Voting has now opened for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Minneapolis Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 4th.

Voting has now opened for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Minneapolis Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of November 25th.

Charles Dickens' novella A CHRISTMAS CAROL has become a staple of holiday traditions. It shouldn't be surprising, then, that this classic story can currently be seen on multiple stages in the Twin Cities. The biggest of these is the Guthrie Theater; this is the 40th year that the Guthrie has produced A CHRISTMAS CAROL. I think it's safe to say this is one of their most popular shows every year, with many families incorporating it into their annual traditions. Lyric Arts is also producing the show on their Main Street Stage in Anoka. I was lucky enough to see these two different interpretations of this classic story on back-to-back nights. And while I do have a clear favorite between the two, it's really unfair to compare them too closely. Both are entertaining and creative interpretations of Charles Dickens' heartwarming story about the rich-in-money poor-in-friends businessman who learns through the visitation of four ghosts that it's better to be kind than rich.

For the first time in the Iveys' 10-year history, two people will share the Lifetime Achievement Award. Michael Robins and Bonnie Morris, co-producing directors of Illusion Theater, were honored at the celebration of Twin Cities theater on September 22 at the Historic State Theatre in downtown Minneapolis. Versatile actor-singer-dancer-improviser Tyler Michaels received the Emerging Artist Award.

There's a reason My Fair Lady is one of the most beloved musicals of all time. Not only does it feature a bunch of wonderful songs by Lerner and Loewe that have become classics, but it's based on the George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion that deals with issues of class, gender, societal expectations, and the intersection of wealth and power. It's a musical that has style and substance. The Guthrie's gorgeous new production does well by this classic. The show is perfectly cast, the familiar music sounds great, the choreography is fantastic, and the sets and costumes are luscious. This hugely entertaining show is definitely a must-see summer blockbuster musical.

The Guthrie Theater presents My Fair Lady, the hummable, quotable, utterly enjoyable musical for the whole family. Playing for the first time at the Guthrie, under the direction of Joe Dowling, My Fair Lady will feature Helen Anker as Eliza Doolittle, Tony Sheldon as Colonel Pickering, Donald Corren as Alfred P. Doolittle - all in their Guthrie debuts - and Jeff McCarthy as Professor Henry Higgins. BroadwayWorld has a first look below!

The Guthrie Theater presents My Fair Lady, the hummable, quotable, utterly enjoyable musical for the whole family. Playing for the first time at the Guthrie, under the direction of Joe Dowling, My Fair Lady will feature Helen Anker as Eliza Doolittle, Tony Sheldon as Colonel Pickering, Donald Corren as Alfred P. Doolittle - all in their Guthrie debuts - and Jeff McCarthy as Professor Henry Higgins. Performances began on the Wurtele Thrust Stage on Saturday, June 28, with an opening slated for tonight, July 4, 2014.

It's hard to believe with the weather we've had, but summer is just around the corner. And if you're a musical theater fan like I am, it's going to be a great one! Here are a few summer musicals I'm looking forward to this year.