Twin Cities Theater Chat

Welcome to Twin Cities Theater Chat. This podcast is created by members of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers to share our love of theater, promote theatergoing, and support our theater community. On today’s episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon is chatting with father-daughter co-directors Michael and Cat Brindisi of Chanhassen Dinner Theaters . They discuss the Chanhassen’s production of Beaut...

We continue our series on the History Plays , an epic Shakespearean event where the Guthrie is presenting Richard II, Henry IV, and Henry V with a rotating repertory cast. On today’s episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon is chatting with Jan Chambers , scenic designer for the History Plays . This is one of several Twin Cities Theater Chat podcast episodes featuring the  epic Shakespeare event...

We continue our series on the History Plays , an epic Shakespearean event where the Guthrie is presenting Richard II, Henry IV, and Henry V with a rotating repertory cast. On today’s episode, our bloggers are chatting with the titular kings of each play. We start with Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN and Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon in conversation with Tyler Michaels King and Daniel Jose...

~SPECIAL OFFER~  The Twin Cities Theater Bloggers will be participating in a Talkback on Saturday, April 27 following the 1:00 p.m. performance of Richard II. Use our discount code to get 20% off this performance. Call the Guthrie box office and use the code TCBLOG. On today’s episode, Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN is speaking with Trevor Bowen ,  costume designer of the History Plays serie...

~SPECIAL OFFER~  The Twin Cities Theater Bloggers will be participating in a Talkback on Saturday, April 27 following the 1:00 p.m. performance of Richard II. Use our discount code to get 20% off this performance. Call the Guthrie box office and use the code TCBLOG. On today’s episode, Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN is speaking with Em Rosenberg , an actor, vocalist-musician, arts administra...

Welcome to Twin Cities Theater Chat. This podcast is created by members of the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers to share our love of theater, promote theatergoing, and support our theater community. On today’s episode, Rob Dunkelberger of the Stages of MN and Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon are speaking with Joseph Haj, artistic director of the Guthrie Theater about the upcoming History Plays series...

On today’s episode, Julie Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love and Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon are digging into the work of Pangea World Theater and their upcoming show Hecuba. They’re chatting with Adlyn Carreras, General Manager at Pangea and Suzanne Victoria Cross, Pangea’s Production Manager, who is also playing the title role in Hecuba.  Hecuba, by Marina Carr, will be playing at the Southe...

On this episode, Rob Dunkelberger of the Stages of Minnesota is chatting with John Gebretatose and Jada Pulley, co-directors of the Black and Funny Improv Festival , which runs March 21st through the 24th at HUGE Theater (now at 2728 Lyndale Ave). The Black and Funny Improv Festival features four days of workshops and performances featuring world-class Black improvisors from across the country and...

On today's episode, Keith Russell of Life in Revue is joined by director/choreographer/dancer/actor/everything Kyle Weiler. Kyle takes us on a journey from the Juilliard School to his time touring as Riff in West Side Story to the surprising story behind his being cast in Hamilton on Broadway. He's back here in Minnesota and quickly winning the admiration of our bloggers with his work di...

In this episode, Jill Schafer of  Cherry and Spoon and Mary Aalgaard of Play Off the Page   are chatting with director, composer, and arranger Jason Hansen, who is composing music for and music directing Theater Latte Da's Stones in His Pockets (Jan 24 - Feb 25, 2024) . In this year's Twin Cities Theater Blogger awards , Jason received the Favorite Music Director award for Falsettos, Nex...

We've got a lightning round of 2024 recommendations!  Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN , Julie Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love , Mary Aalgaard of Play Off the Page , Keith Russell of Life in Revue , and Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon discuss the shows they recommend and are anticipating. Shows discussed include: Ironbound by Frank Theatre at the Gremlin - 1/19/24 to 2/11/24 The Last F...

In this episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon sits down with Richard Hitchler, Founder and Artistic Director of Theatre 55 and Prudence Johnson , jazz and folk singer extraordinaire.  They discuss Theater 55, their new production of Cabaret , and Prudence Johnson's return to acting as Sally Bowles.  Performed by a cast of actors 55 and up, this Cabaret continues Theatre 55’s work of reint...

We are excited to announce the winners of the 9th Annual Twin Cities Theater Bloggers Awards! This is our first full set of nominations since before the pandemic (in the intervening years we've just announced a few limited awards). The bloggers have voted for their favorites, the votes have been tallied and we are announcing the winners here on this podcast! Bloggers Jill Schafer of Cherry an...

We're well into holiday show season and we sat down with some of our bloggers to get their recommendations for the shows they're loving and looking forward to.  Keep in mind that theater tickets are a wonderful holiday gift for anyone on your list OR a donation to a theater in someone's name! On this episode of Twin Cities Theater Chat Recommends, we are joined by Jill Schafer of Ch...

In this episode, Rob Dunkelberger interviews the members of the Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society (MORLS) podcast and theater group: Tim Uren, Joshua English Scrimshaw, Shanan Custer, and Eric Webster. They chat about their love for old-time theater, performing live on stage, and what's coming up next for them. Tune in to hear the answers to these burning questions and more: Who IS Jimmy...

*SPECIAL MESSAGE* We're giving away two tickets to I Am Betty at History Theatre. Enter by filling out this form ! Contest ends 12/3/23, so enter today! It's beginning to look a lot like holiday show time. As our theater bloggers share the shows they're enjoying and looking forward to, remember that theater tickets are a wonderful holiday gift for anyone on your list! On this episod...

On this episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon is chatting with Eric Morris and Laura Rudolph Morris, Twin Cities theater artists and the proud new owners of the Hive Collaborative , a new artistic space in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood of Saint Paul.  You can check out the Hive Collaborative space at their upcoming show, All About Jane, the Eras of Austen, which runs December 1st through 4th...

Haul out the holly, cause we need a little holiday fun. Luckily, our Twin Cities theater community is ready to share some wonderful shows with you and your loved ones. Pro tip! Buy tickets for a show for gifts! Support your local theater! This episode features bloggers Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN , Erica Skarohlid of Lettered in Theatre , Jill Shafer of Cherry and Spoon , and Julie and Ca...

On this episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon and Kendra Plant of Artfully Engaging are joined by Emma Stratton , who is playing Jenny in the first national tour of the revised and gender-flipped Company.  We learned about Emma's love of all things Stephen Sondheim, dug into her Minnesota connections, and learned what it's really like touring in a major Broadway show. Company will be...

On this episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon and Kendra Plant of Artfully Engaging are joined by Butch Roy, Executive Director of HUGE Theater . They spend some time seriously geeking out about all of the ins and outs of HUGEs journey to theater ownership. The grand opening of Huge Theater's new space at 2728 Lyndale Ave in Minneapolis will be held on Friday, November 4th. Check out thei...

There's so much spooky theater goodness in the Twin Cities this year that Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN and Carol Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love had to put together a Super Spooky Special Edition of Twin Cities Theater Chat Recommends. We talk about the Twin Cities Horror Festival, comedy shows, cabarets and concerts, why this is clearly the year of the puppet, and strategize plans...

On this episode of Twin Cities Theater Chat, Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN and Carol Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love will be chatting with two of the people behind our favorite Halloween tradition: Duck Washington, Executive Director , and Nissa Nordland Morgan, Artistic Director of the Twin Cities Horror Festival . The Twin Cities Horror Festival is celebrating its 12th year, and Duck an...

In this episode of Twin Cities Theater Chat Recommends, we are joined by Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon ,  Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN ,  Erica Skarohlid of Lettered in Theatre , and Julie Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love who will recommend a few shows currently running in the Twin Cities. Shows discussed include: Falsettos at Theater Latte Da Passage by Pillsbury House + Theatre and E...

On this episode, Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon and Carol Jackson and Julie Jackson of Minnesota Theater Love are joined by Suzy Messerole, the Co-Artistic Director of Exposed Brick Theatre and Signe V. Harriday, the Artistic Producing Director of Pillsbury House + Theatre . We had a great time chatting about Passage , an upcoming co-production between Exposed Brick Theatre and Pillsbury House +...

In this episode of Twin Cities Theater Chat Recommends, we are joined by Jill Schafer of Cherry and Spoon ,  Rob Dunkelberger of The Stages of MN , and  Mary Aalgaard of Play Off The Page to recommend a few shows currently running in the Twin Cities. Shows discussed include: The Chinese Lady at Open Eye Theatre, A Chorus Line at Lyric Arts, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Dark & Stormy (at th...