BLOG: It's Finally (FINALLY!) Spring

Signs of Spring Minnesota is finally clawing its way out of winter's gnashing maw, and even though we very nearly forgot that there ever was such a thing, spring is returning to the land. Birds are chirping, grass is greening, outdoor patios at cafes are filled to capacity and Minnesotans driven insane by the winter are standing around outside in shorts and t-shirts when the temperature has barely cracked 40 degrees. All around us, the land is coming into bloom again. In order to complete this heavy-handed metaphor, I'll stretch it further and say that there are signs of art blooming all around us right now! The next phase of St. Paul's arts boom is beginning, with the Knight Arts Challenge, which, sadly, is not a challenge to make art with or about medieval soldiers. The Knight Foundation has offered up $1.5 million to the average citizens to help make their art ideas for St. Paul come to fruition, and the best part is that the application--instead of the usual stress-inducing grant application process--is limited to 150 words. Even the Northrup auditorium is coming into full bloom again. After its three years of winter, the U of M's high class space is opening its doors again, beginning with American Ballet Theatre's rendition of Giselle, which completely blows my spring metaphor, since that ballet is all about death. But the most sure sign of light, life and sanity returning to the land is the upcoming MayDay Parade from In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre. It's a big one this year, since it will be the 40th time that a trail of humongous vaguely human cardboard and papier mâché creatures have marched through the streets of Minneapolis. If you've been itching to get out of the crushing isolation that has kept you indoors all winter and get elbow deep in a bucket of wheat paste, you can be part of the community that brings it to life. The Case of the Migrating Play Spring is also season-announcing season, that time when everyone tells you all at once what plays they're producing next season so that you can conveniently forget them all at the same time. It's also, occasionally, when a few companies find out that they've gone and picked the same plays. This usually happens with playwrights who are conveniently dead and in the public domain, and usually comes from the multitude of smaller companies who weren't able to properly check in with each other. However, every once in a blue moon, something happens that proves the accepted method for securing rights isn't exactly running like a Swiss watch. Last month, Park Square Theatre announced a hugely expanded and ambitious season that will coincide with the debut of their new second stage. To inaugurate the new subterranean Andy Boss Thrust Stage, Park Square picked a play that sent a bold message about how different things might be operating downstairs: Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play, a newer work about post-apocalyptic survivors trying to re-enact an episode of The Simpsons. Despite sounding like someone's wacky idea for a Fringe show, Mr. Burns has actually been rounding up plenty of critical praise in New York and Park Square had negotiated the rights to bring it in for its Midwest premiere. Except for the fact that the Guthrie had done the same thing. Somehow, agents representing the play and playwright had managed to grant the rights to both Park Square, who wanted to produce their own rendition, and the Guthrie, who wanted to do a joint production with San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. Obviously, there was only one way to settle this: Artistic Directors Joe Dowling and Richard Cook would enter the Thunderdome together, and, only one of them would leave! Or, they could have a chat on the phone and amicably work it out to everyone's mutual satisfaction, which is what they actually did. Sure, this means now that the Guthrie gets what it wants and Park Square gets a crack at another play they wanted, but, once again, the Twin Cities theater community missed a perfect Thunderdome opportunity. Politics: Ruining Art Since Forever You may have noticed that 2014 is a year that ends with an even number, which means at some point this year less than 40% us will go to the polls and elect people to various offices that 100% of us will be disappointed in next year. The closer we get to November, the more we will see politics dragged into every bit of our lives. So get ready for it, because you're totally in the spin zone. A few months ago, I talked about the national race to the bottom over tax breaks for movie shoots. Well, hold on to your butts, because this self-destructive spiral is coming to the theatre world as well. New York state just approved a major tax break for theater producers, even if the production only techs in the state without ever performing there. This trend was started (once again) by Louisiana, and New York is the fourth state to start handing out the tax breaks, so expect this to continue as legislators around the country try to pander to theatre people while simultaneously handing money back to millionaire for-profit ventures, because AMERICA. From where we stand in Minnesota, it looks like we're on the inevitable downward slope toward a world where gay people are just another mundane part of the human landscape, but, unfortunately, there are still plenty of people in the world trying to make a big deal about a man kissing another man. Over in Utah, a company producing Deathtrap received an irate letter from a patron who was shocked (SHOCKED!) by the the most widely-known man-on-man action in the history of theatre (seriously, Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve did this scene in the movie adaptation 30 years ago). You might think that Utah being Utah, there would have been some stammering apology from the theater company and immediate picketing. Instead, the Managing Director sent an amazing letter that is equal parts respectful and unapologetic. Recently, Gawker uncovered a Target training video shot here in Minnesota, featuring Minnesota actors, which is not all that uncommon considering that company is based here. What was different about this one, though, was that it was a transparent attempt by Target to discourage its workers from unionizing. Gawker contacted the actors, Dawn Brodey and Ricardo Vasquez, demanding that they explain themselves for doing their jobs. Fortunately, both of them turned out to be articulate people who confidently explained the moral and financial complexities at work. Get a Job! Are you an artist? Are you forced to work another job you don't much care for to support your art habit? You're not alone, friend. We're all broke and overworked together. Why don't we get together and make a bunch of DIY residencies for each other?