What is the most Minnesotan Christmas show you can think of?   Photo by Allen Weeks Most of us would probably select something along the lines of A Christmas Story or Charlie Brown, and that would be understandable. But most of us would be wrong. Photo by Allen Weeks To

The North Loop is Minneapolis’ retail equivalent of a rags to riches story… Photo courtesy of Thrillist And it’s one that will be told for a very long time. Once considered one of the most undesirable areas of the city, the North Loop has become one of the hottest real

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

I’m always blown away by companies who manage to make true fiction come to life on stage. Photo by Kaitlin Randolph Especially when the art is abstract. To my mind, adapting an animationS auteur like Dr. Seuss to the stage would be a nearly herculean task – between the eye

As the weather cools down, date night heats up…  The brunch at Dalton & Wade is *legit* And comes indoors. Rather than spending halcyon picnics by the lake or tubing down the river, we must now turn inward (literally) to the cozy warmth of public establishments to break our winter

What a difference a few short years can make.  Photo courtesy of Chanhassen Dinner Theatres When Sister Act last came to the Chanhassen Dinner Theatres (CDT) it was 2015. The presidential election was just kicking into gear, Charlottesville had never happened, and Harvey Weinstein was still Hollywood’s friendliest movie producer.

It’s always fun to get a peek behind the scenes.  Photo by Jeremy Daniels I mean, who doesn’t want to feel like an in-the-know insider? With the ubiquitous ability to be a voyeur just about anywhere these days thanks to social media, is there anything we don’t already know? Photo

Yes, sir. Yes, sir. The piper pays him. Long before Lin-Manuel Miranda made spoken word (aka hip hop) the hottest trend on stages anywhere, Meredith Wilson penned the iconic opening number of The Music Man (quoted above), where a peck of salesmen jostle on a “train” while sitting on their sales suitcases.

The ambitious new musical from the Children’s Theatre Company leaves a lot of food for thought.  Photo by Dan Norman I’m always excited to see new work. I truly believe that the future of robust ticket sales for theaters of all stripes lies in commissioning new art that reflects the

The latest iteration of Disney’s classic cartoons has some fine moments. Photo by Deen van Meer The crowd at the Orpheum was getting restless. Two songs before the Act 1 finale we were informed that there was a technical issue and the action briefly paused. What on earth could we