Minnesota Opera’s production of The Grapes of Wrath last month invited comparisons to Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, as does this new production by another, smaller local company. Is a trend afoot? Lost in the Stars is a jazzy American opus calling for a largely black cast, though its composer is Kurt Weill, better known for … Read more
For its next trick, Ballet of the Dolls pairs some hot and sweaty stage antics with Cajun and early Zydeco music. The he-Dolls will dress down for this occasion, donning muscle shirts and cut-off jean shorts, while the ballerinas are set to prance about in satin slips. But just as country music evolved into a … Read more
Though Jeune Lune dubbed its current season “Mozart and Molière,” this reprise is the only one drawing from both artists. By marrying Molière’s Don Juan to Mozart’s Don Giovanni, both of which were inspired by the legendary Spanish character, this show imagines a pair of lady-killers driving cross-country in a 1950 Plymouth coupe. Dominique Serrand, … Read more
Find out for yourself whether this play, which piqued the ire of Strib columnist Katherine Kersten and conservative bloggers all around town, is worth the fuss. The Pope and the Witch tells the story of a fictional pontiff who, under extenuating circumstances, starts running with a witch doctor who dabbles in abortion and drugs. But … Read more
The kora looks a bit like a prize-winning pumpkin speared by a tree branch, but this twenty-one-string gourd sings like a harp or a lute, depending on how it’s coaxed, and its romantic trill underpins the urgent rhythms of traditional Malian music. There’s only one kora player as good as Toumani Diabaté, and that’s his … Read more
In the span of a few weeks at the Cedar, it’s possible to experience a dozen-piece African band, a haunting hardanger fiddle player, an Iowan folksinger, a Saami joiker, and a legendary bluegrass band. This intimate, no-frills venue, which resembles a middle school auditorium circa 1970, conjures the true spirit of community, with children playing … Read more
Iron John has replaced his men’s drum circle with the sweet, soaring harmonies of Cantus’ nine angelic male singers. Cantus premieres A Sound Like This by Twin Cities composer Edie Hill, which sets to music the mystical verse of Indian bard Kabir, as translated by Robert Bly. Kabir, a fifteenth-century weaver and poet, is said … Read more
Every time we see an ad for the Gap’s laughably unattractive Red campaign for Africa, we cringe for Bono. The man who started his career writing great political songs should stick to that, rather than shilling a failing clothier’s misguided marketing schemes. He could take a cue from Ted Leo, whose catchy and beguiling indie … Read more
This fiddling, clogging, four-girl jug band reveres old-time American music, rabble-rousing, and knocking down gender boundaries. But unlike their compatriots the Dixie Chicks, Uncle Earl’s music is open to a wide range of influences. How else to explain their choice of Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones as producer, their occasional lyrics sung in Mandarin Chinese, … Read more
Six regionally based artists take cues from nature in artworks that are—and this is not intended as a backhanded compliment—both clever and stylish. Made from foam, plastic, and felt, Liz Miller’s Errant Ecosystem sprawls over three walls with graphical aplomb, while Holly Anderson Jorde’s quartet of seasonal ceramic assemblages radiates a 50s vibe. And the … Read more