The Children’s Theatre Company’s latest show is a perfect piece for Earth Day.   Photo by Dan Norman Literary adaptations to stage or screen are always a tricky thing. Few fans are as ardent about faithful story-lines as book readers, and navigating the process of visualizing the collective imagination of

What do you do when the weather is cold and #dryjanuary is only half over?   Photo from Thrillist. If you’re feeling a little stir crazy and uninspired with your dating life (I don’t blame you), look no further than this comprehensive list of winter date ideas that I pulled

“Let me say that we have failed to say something to America enough. However difficult it is to hear, however shocking it is to hear, we’ve got to face the fact that America is a racist country. We have got to face the fact that racism still occupies the throne

For one of my favorite annual roundups (books, duh), look no further. This #shelfie of goodies from my time interning at Graywolf Press is a regular fave. If you’ve never read any of their books, what are you waiting for?!  Devoted Compendium readers may remember my post halfway through last

Who says old dogs can’t learn new tricks?   Photo by Matthew Murphy Or perhaps it would be more appropriately phrased: who says old musicals can’t learn new tricks? Photo by Matthew Murphy Long time Compendium readers (thank you, wherever you are!) will remember my review four years ago (how?!?)

Traditions may be so-called for a reason, but it doesn’t mean they can’t be freshened up a bit.  Photo by Dan Norman It’s been a long time since I’ve attended a production of A Christmas Carol. As any good Minnesotan I’ve seen the Guthrie’s hallowed production before, of course, a

Broadway isn’t always better. At least that was my thought upon watching A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the latest (terrific) offering from Mixed Blood Theater. I was lucky enough to see the touring Broadway production of this show last year (you can read my review here),

Shakespeare is getting all kinds of fresh beginnings these days.  Photo by Amy Anderson And what a joyful trend it is! First we had the stunningly modern take on Romeo and Juliet at the Guthrie (read my review here – one of my faves I’ve written lately); now we have

“The man behind the myth” may be a cliche phrase, but it’s stuck around for a reason.  Photo courtesy of Matchbox Theater Such a phrase is perfectly applied to Einstein: A Stage Portrait, currently showing at Matchbox Theater. This one-man show places Einstein at the end of his life, reminiscing

What IS jazz music?  Photo by Maria Baranova How do you define it? Who are “real” jazz musicians? How do you listen to jazz? As arguably music’s most postmodern art form, jazz can be polarizing. People either love love love it, or they really love to hate it. The rest