Christy DeSmith

He looks like a cross between Buck Owens and Morrissey—which, come to think of it, is a fairly apt description of the Chris Isaak sound. Whether you were drawn in by that bare-chested babe who pranced about the video for his biggest hit to date, “Wicked Game,” or genuinely fell for the man’s ethereal, rockabilly, … Read more

Regardless of all the reports about beleaguered Republican politicians, it’s liberals who’ve recently been found, by Pew Research Center pollsters, to be “less happy” than their compatriots at the other end of the political spectrum. This madcap musical was created in hopes of cheering them up. Joshua Rosenblum, a New York City-based composer/lyricist, channeled seven … Read more

A quartet of the state’s most compelling pieces of choreography come together in this sixth annual snapshot of the Minnesota dance community. An early standout this year is Our Perfectly Wonderful Lives, a riff on the allure of superstardom by one of our favorite physical-theater troupes, Off-Leash Area Contemporary Performance Works. Co-director Paul Herwig says … Read more

Master puppeteer Michael Sommers and his itinerant troupe are spending the summer gigging at local libraries and parks, as well as residential driveways, with two offerings: The Adventures of Katie Tomatie and Little Grandpa’s Big Adventure. They’re traveling light, with entire hand-painted sets and most of their characters—handmade puppets, that is—packed into single suitcases, but … Read more

Hands down, this retelling of the ’75 flick Monty Python and the Holy Grail is the Broadway hit of the decade. Its success owes to the Pythons’ pioneering formula—sketch comedy bits on flatulence, effeminate Frenchmen, and such—which, in turn, has attracted the loyal patronage of a most atypical theatergoer: the heterosexual white man aged thirty-five … Read more

This summer, those trapped in the concrete jungle seek relief by wearing nature on their T-shirts. Hot styles include a silhouetted flock of birds hovering over an oak tree, and baroque, often airbrushed, images of dense forests and meadow grasses. As one who rode the crest of this trend, how does botanist-cum-T-shirt designer Sarah Nassif … Read more

Chiropractors were the first to sound the alarm. Now, some women have answered by tossing aside their gargantuan handbags in favor of miniature versions. Clutches seem to be the most popular of these pint-sized purses; after all, they represent the natural progression from big to small, as their shapeless, hobo-esque forms echo that of the … Read more