Dracula burns with sexuality: the oily count, dressed in smooth leather and crisp shirts, his creepy yet compelling accent, so obsequiously polite. And of course his gleamingly sharp teeth as he wraps the swooning maidens in his cape and drinks,…
Author: John Olive
Shirley Valentine at The Jungle Theater
Cheryl Willis is blessed with an easy-going, laid-back charisma. She quickly takes and holds the stage in Willy Russell‘s solo show Shirley Valentine (at the Jungle Theater, through March 20). Willis is tall, down to earth, wiry black hair, her…
The Winter’s Tale at the Guthrie Theater
At the very end of William Shakespeare‘s The Winter’s Tale (on the Guthrie‘s Wurtele Stage, through March 27) the statue comes alive. Hermione lives! She embraces, and forgives, Leontes. Wow. It’s one of the most thrilling moments in the canon,…
WTF at Mu Performing Arts
It’s entirely appropriate that WTF – excellent title – by Katie Ka Vang (Mu Performing Arts, at Mixed Blood Theatre, through Feb 6) is being produced in the midst of our nastiest winter in years. WTF is bleak, hallucinatory and…
Babe, The Sheep Pig at the Children’s Theatre Company
I can try to paint you a picture of Babe the amazing sheep pig: blinking, clutching Farmer Hoggett with his piggy fists, pudgy around the middle, with too short pink pants, head bald save for a small wiry shock of…
2 Pianos 4 Hands at Park Square Theatre
For every Vladimir Horowitz, for every Herbie Hancock – indeed, for every musical master you can name – there are thousand upon thousands of players who dedicate their lives to their instruments, who spend many many lonely hours practicing, only…
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at The Ordway
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (at the Ordway, through Jan 2) tries so hard to make you love it. First, there are the colorfully dressed children (30 at least), bouncing balls and grinning with relentless cheerfulness. Then, naturally, there’s…
Super-Powered Revenge Christmas #1 by Joking Envelope
The (thin and svelte) Red Avenger is flying his snow vehicle over the wintry City, along with his (rather less than svelte) sidekick Caribou Man (aka Rudy). Suddenly, the air is filled with flying droids from the dreaded H(erod) Corporation,…
Miss Richfield 1981’s Bingo Bonanza For The Holidays at the Illusion Theater
Miss Richfield 1981 has ridden her rusty and trusty Buick sleigh into downtown Minneapolis and double parked it outside the Hennepin Center for the Arts (no cop with any instinct for self-preservation would dare ticket her). She is now ensconced…
Cowboy Versus Samurai by Mu Performing Arts at the Guthrie’s Dowling Studio
Michael Golamco‘s amiable Cowboy Versus Samurai (Mu Performing Arts performing in the Guthrie‘s Dowling Studio, through Nov 28) is loosely based on Edmond Rostand‘s 1897 classic, Cyrano de Bergerac. Ah, but with one crucial distinction: Golamco’s letter composer, Travis, lacks…