Theater is at its best when it’s accessible — at the very least, in keeping with the oldsters at Ten Thousand Things Theater Company, an area group dedicated to inclusive performance.
“Performing for audiences of all life experiences and backgrounds expands imagination,” they write on their website, “and challenges us to create work that’s honest, relevant and representative.”
Try more things to do in our fall arts guide.
The plays, musicals, and interactive shows happening this fall in St. Paul and across the metro area are proof of this concept. From ancient Greek tragedies to renowned Broadway shows to deeply personal explorations of human culture, these are among the many performances that use the ability of song and speech to inform our stories.
SEPTEMBER OPENINGS
“Iphigenia at Aulis” — Sept. 9 to Oct. 2. This musical show puts a contemporary tackle the play by Greek tragedian Euripides that sees Iphigenia, daughter of Trojan War hero Agamemnon, take control of her life. Ten Thousand Things Theater Company holds itself to a powerful inclusivity pledge and performs in nontraditional spaces so the audience feels a part of the production. Ten Thousand Things Theater Company: locations vary to make sure accessibility. Tickets: pay-what-you-can; tenthousandthings.org/
“Vietgone” — Sept. 10 to Oct. 16. Billed as a “love and war comedy,” this show follows two Vietnamese refugees who meet in Arkansas after the autumn of Saigon in 1975. And besides cultural observations of the Vietnam War’s aftermath, there are some rap breakdowns. Guthrie Theater: 818 S. Second St., Minneapolis. Tickets: $20 to $79; guthrietheater.org/
“Circus Abyssinia: Tulu” — Sept. 13 to Oct. 23. The family-run Circus Abyssinia returns with a show telling the true story of the primary Black African woman to win an Olympic gold medal, Ethiopian runner Derartu Tulu. Plus, the all-ages show is ready to music starting from Nineteen Seventies Ethiopian funk to the country’s modern pop. Children’s Theatre Company: 2400 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis. Tickets: $15 to $79, with lap passes available for youths under 3; childrenstheatre.org/
“The Humans” — Sept. 14 to Oct. 9. This Tony-winning family drama by contemporary playwright Stephen Karam finds each comedy and tragedy during a multigenerational Thanksgiving dinner. Lily Tung Crystal directs, and masks are required. Park Square Theater: Historic Hamm Constructing, 20 W. Seventh Place, St. Paul. Tickets: $40–$55 with a “pay-as-you’re-able” show at 2 p.m. Sept. 25; parksquaretheatre.org/
“The Table” — Sept. 15 and other dates. Discuss dinner and a show: This interactive theatrical performance is “a night of feasting, fellowship, song and shenanigans” at various venues, each traditional and non, across the state. Each show also features a meal prepared by different chefs each go-round; the St. Paul show’s menu is by K’s Revolutionary Catering, with East African dishes courtesy of northsiders Mariam Omari and Kotiareenia Taylor. Sod House Theater: rotating venues. St. Paul show (one-time performance) is at Frogtown Farm, 946 Minnehaha Ave. W., St. Paul. Tickets: sodhousetheater.org
OCTOBER OPENINGS
“Buddy! The Buddy Holly Story” — Oct. 1 to Oct. 30. Because the title suggests, this show (“part bio-musical, part rock ‘n roll concert, and part toe-tappin’ & hand-clappin’ celebration) centers around icon Buddy Holly, whose 1959 concert in St. Paul was one among his last. History Theatre: 30 E. tenth St., St. Paul. Tickets: historytheatre.com/
“Sally & Tom” — Oct. 1 to Nov. 6. A meta-play of sorts, the most important character on this show is herself a playwright, who becomes increasingly entangled in her script examining the connection between Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson, who owned her and fathered her children. Guthrie Theater, 818 S. Second Street, Minneapolis. Tickets $20 to $79; guthrietheater.org/
“Carmela Stuffed with Wishes” — Oct. 18 to Dec. 4. This play, geared toward children aged 5 and up, follows Carmela on her cumpleaños (birthday) as she runs errands and makes wishes on a dandelion she finds. But “when a sudden accident crushes her dandelion before she will make her biggest wish, can her brother help Carmela consider in the ability of wishes once more?” Children’s Theatre Company: 2400 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis. Tickets: $15 to $69; childrenstheatre.org/
“Fire In The Latest World” — Oct. 19 to Nov. 6. “Sam Shikaze, hard-boiled private eye, fights crime in Vancouver’s Japantown within the years after WWII,” the theater’s website says — oh, and that is the world premiere! If the play were a movie, the theater notes, it could likely be rated PG-13. Park Square Theater: Historic Hamm Constructing, 20 W. Seventh Place, St. Paul. Tickets: $40–$55 with a “pay-as-you’re-able” show at 2 p.m. Oct. 30; parksquaretheatre.org/
“Uncle Philip’s Coat” — Oct. 22 to Nov. 13. Staged by Six Points Theater (formerly the Minnesota Jewish Theater Company), this solo show featuring J.C. Cutler follows a struggling middle-aged actor who inherits the titular coat and traces its history. Six Points Theater: staged at Highland Park Community Center Theater, 1978 Ford Pkwy., St. Paul. Tickets: on sale Sept. 19; sixpointstheater.org/
“Cats” — Oct. 25 to Oct. 30. It’s a fast local stop — eight performances — for the famed Andrew Lloyd Webber musical based on poems by T.S. Eliot. This production keeps the unique music and costuming but updates the sound design and choreography. James Corden not included. Orpheum Theatre: 910 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis. Tickets: $40–$139; hennepintheatretrust.org/theatres/orpheum-theatre/
“Six: The Musical” — Oct. 25 to Nov. 6. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe-born comedy reimagines the ill-fated wives of Henry VIII — six in total — as members of a pop group. The production features an all-woman solid and band. Ordway Center for the Performing Arts: 345 Washington, St. Paul. Tickets: $50–$150; ordway.org/
NOVEMBER OPENINGS
“Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” — Nov. 8 to Jan. 8. Are these next few listings all holiday shows? Yes. But do they open early enough that they technically qualify for this text? Also yes. Here’s the situation: The miserly Grinch, as he tends to do, is about to destroy the favourite holiday of the Whos, until Cindy Lou, the smallest Who, steps in. It’s a classic. Children’s Theatre Company: 2400 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis. Tickets: $15 to $79; childrenstheatre.org/
“A Servants’ Christmas” — Nov. 19 to Dec. 18. One other addition to the lineup of early-opening holiday shows, this joyous musical — set in St. Paul in 1899 — follows Monica, who needs to maintain her Jewish identity secret when she’s hired to the household of the devout Christian widower Mr. Warner. History Theatre: 30 E. tenth St., St. Paul. Tickets: historytheatre.com/
“Cirque Dreams Holidaze” — Nov. 25 and 26. This Thanksgiving weekend, marvel at a holiday-themed musical show with circus acrobatics that appear not possible any day of the 12 months — let alone after eating turkey and pie. 4 shows across the 2 days. Orpheum Theatre: 910 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis. Tickets: $33–$103; hennepintheatretrust.org/theatres/orpheum-theatre/
“Beauty and the Beast: The Broadway Musical” — Nov. 30 to Dec. 31. You recognize it, you adore it. The classic 1991 Disney animated film, but onstage, with songs from the movie and original music. Ordway Center for the Performing Arts: 345 Washington, St. Paul. Tickets: $40–$120+; ordway.org/