BLOG: Following Up

Previously on News and Notes My favorite history teacher in high school became my favorite history teacher in high school when he broke it down this way: "History isn't just a list of dates and events. You'll never understand where you came from and where you are, much less where you're going, if you look at it that way. Everything that happened before is part of some thread that goes back in time. Sometimes those threads stay below the surface and look invisible, but they didn't go anywhere. They always come back up again." So, which that in mind, I'll start off this week by picking up a few threads that surfaced in previous Notes and Notes entries and which continue on, even if you stopped paying attention. Last week we talked about a certain long-dead playwright's birthday, and about how this particular scribe might be due for a rest. But, who are we kidding? We can't leave Shakespeare alone any more than my dog can leave a pizza on the floor alone. (Especially since the Twin Cities isn't getting any of TCG's million dollars for new plays) Since the old boy is turning 450, it's going to be a mighty big pizza on the floor this year. In St. Louis, the Shake 38 Festival will attempt to recreate all of Shakespeare's 38 plays in various formats, beginning on the Bard's birthday (well, the officially-recognized ones, anyway). In the city of Portland, Oregon (our mortal hipster enemy), a group of theater companies have banded together to make sure that all of Shakespeare's plays get full productions in the next two years. And, for you serious history buffs, you can now listen to ten original recordings of Orson Welles' Shakespeare radio adaptations. Had enough Shakespeare? NO YOU HAVE NOT, DAMN YOU! Did you know that Shakespeare coined a term important in theoretical physics? Or that even though we love celebrating his birthday, we're not exactly sure when it was? Or that, given enough time, someone will take the "chimpanzees typing Hamlet" thing way too seriously? But we have no more time for a dead man, now. We must continue with our journey into the past by checking in with the present... Two weeks ago, I talked a bit about a meeting I attended and the dismal state of equity in theatre. But how could I be so misguided? According to Rohan Preston at the Star Tribune, we're actually in "a moment of unprecedented diversity". In that same article, I also talked about the slow rise of dynamic pricing in theatre. But did you know this is all a capitalist plot to keep theatre from the masses? I didn't, either! Fortunately, Bruce Norris took some time at HowlRound to break it down for us, and the comments section there has become just as enlightening as the article itself. But we must go further, back into the mists of time… Three weeks ago, I shared with you how Bedlam's new facility in Lowertown is finally coming online. In fact, it already has, sort of, in that there has been an actual public performance there. The bar isn't quite open yet, but where there's a performer, drinking is bound to follow soon. The Applications of Arts The arts can encourage much more than the consumption of alcohol, though. They can be good for business. That's why you'll find more business schools and corporations encouraging their students and workers to learn about improv comedy. Apparently, being funny gets you more money. But what if you're not interested in making money? What if you care more about organizing and improving your local community? Fortunately, those two tend to go hand in hand, and since artists are used to being poor, why don't they get in the mix, too? In the Twin Cities, they are. A recent article from MinnPost lays out the ways that artist initiatives connected to the new LRT Green Line are helping to spur community development in the corridor linking Minneapolis and St. Paul. If you want to see how a strong arts culture can help both the money side and the community side, then check out this month's Smithsonian Magazine. The April edition lists the 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2014, and Minnesota's own Lanesboro clocked in at #10. What do they list as the secret to this small town's success? None other than Lanesboro's Commonweal Theatre, which the magazine cites as helping turn the town into the "bed and breakfast capital of Minnesota". Fest! Not that you shouldn't visit Lanesboro sometime, but you should know that we got our own hip things going on here in Minneapolis (or "Minnehipoils", as literally no one calls it). Even though we're still defrosting the landscape, we're still getting ready for festival season. It's never too early to start celebrating my favorite theatre event of all time, the Minnesota Fringe Festival. (In fact, I've already started by getting drunk and handing out cards advertising my totally out there one-man show Edward "Snowed-In": The Minnesotan's Guide to Top Secret Documents: The Nude Musical! to random people.) Machinations for the nation's largest non-juried theater festival are well underway: the venue line up has been officially announced. If you can't wait that long for a festival, though, the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival will be kicking into high gear soon. If you're flabbergasted at where to start in this smorgasbord of cinema, the Star-Tribune would like to give you the highlights. Your Psychology Today Before we go, I have two articles here describing how certain intricate theatrical things get made. You may only choose one; and what you choose says a lot about you. You may choose: (a) A TED talk about how the Henson company uses high tech gear to bring new puppets to life; or (b) A story about how the boxing in the new Rocky musical was choreographed to look real without killing anyone. Choose wisely.