Theater arts has been at the center of the creative atmosphere within Minnesota for decades. The varied array of local venues have both fostered talent through the years and brought world-renowned individuals to present their artistic approaches to our Minnesota stages. The theater scene has also been integral in social dynamics within our communities…from social issues, race, to gender.
The likes of The Guthrie, Mixed Blood, Penumbra, Park Square, Stages Theater, History Theatre, Theater in the Round, Duluth Playhouse, and so many more have drawn audiences in and left an indelible mark.
Collected here are a selection of interviews, performances, critiques, and profiles of those behind and in front of the curtains.
June 18, 1993 - MPR’s Beth Friend profiles St. Paul playwright Marion McClinton’s Enlightenments on an Enchanted Island, an Illusion Theater production, and interviews the playwright about the work and race in American culture.
June 24, 1993 - Sally MacDonald, of Playwrights Center; and Ross Miller, a 14-year-old playwright, talk about local Young Playwrights Summer conference, sponsored by Playwrights Center and St. Thomas University.
July 2, 1993 - First Friday’s Beth Friend profiles Nagamandala, a play that weaves together two Kannada folk tales, exploring themes of marriage, fidelity, and female agency. Segment includes interview with playwright Girish Karnad.
July 14, 1993 - MPR’s Catherine Winter interviews Minneapolis playwright Timothy Mason about his play, Levitation. The work explores a man’s attempt to come to terms with the inevitability of his own parents' deaths.
July 29, 1993 - MPR’s Tom Fudge reports on "Both Sides Now," a sexual harassment play collaboration between Illusion Theater and Robins Kaplan LLP Law Firm.
August 27, 1993 - MPR’s Cathy Wurzer interviews playwright Rebecca Rice about Penumbra Theatre production of Waiting in Vain. Rice talks about Sudeka Linda Harrison and youth in the arts.
September 10, 1993 - MPR’s Kitty Eisele interviews American composer Pauline Oliveros and playwright Ione, who details Njinga the Queen King: The Return of a Warrior, their musical theater production and opera.
October 1, 1993 - MPR’s Bob Potter interviews Garrison Keillor on bringing back the original A Prairie Home Companion name.
October 4, 1993 - MPR’s Leif Enger profiles the dire state of affairs for small town theatres in rural Minnesota. Enger visits the Rialto Theatre in Grand Rapids and The Chief Theatre in Bemidji to find two very different outcomes.
October 8, 1993 - MPR’s Cathy Wurzer interviews director Bain Boehlke and actress Greta Schwerner on their stage production of The Diary of Anne Frank. The artists detail the approach in presenting the work.