James Sewell Ballet: In the Shadows
The approximate run time is between 90-115 minutes with one fifteen minute intermission.Frankenstein, zombies, and characters of Edgar Allen Poe come to life in this family friendly performance steeped in spooky delight and tragic majesty.Anchoring the performance is a new choral ballet titled Unfashioned Creature, featuring Twin Cities beloved artists Timothy C. Takach (composer), Penelope Freeh (choreographer), and the MPLS (imPulse) choral ensemble. The work is poetically rooted in Shelley’s Frankenstein, and explores key aspects relating to personhood: otherness, abandonment, despair, and hopeful yearning. Music includes cello, percussion, and the stellar singers of MPLS (imPulse) who will perform a fractured libretto comprised of Shelley’s text. Also on the program, remounts of two Sewell fall favorites: excerpts from “Takes on Poe” (2012); and “Grave Matters” (2011), which combines undead charm and morbid wit in a playful zombie ballet.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
Ananya Dance Theatre: Michhil Amra | We Are the Procession.
The approximate run time is 80 minutes with no intermission. Michhil Amra | We Are The Procession, Ananya Dance Theatre’s new, evening-length work, draws on the strategic interruptions created by the Uprising that followed the murder of George Floyd to ask: how can we create a more just world? Building on years of rigorous choreographic investigation, Ananya Chatterjea crafts a work that embodies the complex energies of disruption: rage, confusion, connection, joy, solidarity, and the strength and beauty of mutual liberation. The powerful BIPOC women and femme dancers of ADT offer an invigorating dance work, vibrating with hard-won connection and soulful beauty. They are joined in live performance by local music artists Douglas R. Ewart, Michelle Kinney, and Tarek Abdelquader, and acclaimed poet Douglas Kearney. Creative allies:stage director Marcus Young 楊墨composer/sound designer Greg Schuttecostume designer Annie Cadyscenic designer Laichee Yangfilmmaker Darren Johnsonlighting designer Kevin Jones Created through a long process that included public processions with wide cross-sections of our communities, who occupied public spaces and lifted up issues of intersectional justice, the performance of Micchil Amra marks the culmination of our shared hopes, dreams, and organizing labor. *ASL interpretation will be provided for this performance.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
Ananya Dance Theatre: Michhil Amra | We Are the Procession.
The approximate run time is 80 minutes with no intermission. Michhil Amra | We Are The Procession, Ananya Dance Theatre’s new, evening-length work, draws on the strategic interruptions created by the Uprising that followed the murder of George Floyd to ask: how can we create a more just world? Building on years of rigorous choreographic investigation, Ananya Chatterjea crafts a work that embodies the complex energies of disruption: rage, confusion, connection, joy, solidarity, and the strength and beauty of mutual liberation. The powerful BIPOC women and femme dancers of ADT offer an invigorating dance work, vibrating with hard-won connection and soulful beauty. They are joined in live performance by local music artists Douglas R. Ewart, Michelle Kinney, and Tarek Abdelquader, and acclaimed poet Douglas Kearney. Creative allies:stage director Marcus Young 楊墨composer/sound designer Greg Schuttecostume designer Annie Cadyscenic designer Laichee Yangfilmmaker Darren Johnsonlighting designer Kevin Jones Created through a long process that included public processions with wide cross-sections of our communities, who occupied public spaces and lifted up issues of intersectional justice, the performance of Micchil Amra marks the culmination of our shared hopes, dreams, and organizing labor. *For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
The Aunties
The Aunties is an invitation to come together to honor the women that shape, heal, and uphold Indigenous communities—the aunties—through an evening of contemporary storytelling, shared stories live from the stage alongside familial and archival photographs, and works of legacy. This world premiere commissioned by The O’Shaughnessy will feature stories by aunties from our local region, Justice Anne K. McKeig (Indigenous Name: Awaniikwe, meaning “Mist Woman,” White Earth Nation), Lyz Jaakola (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe), and Sandy White Hawk (Sicangu Lakota). Storytelling from the live performance will be preserved on film to become the heart of a narrative-driven documentary series featuring stories by local aunties across Turtle Island (North America). The documentary series is intended to create a cultural resource for future generations through films that capture the artistic, cultural, and visual integrity of the places and people from which auntie stories emerge. The Aunties live performance and film series creates a dedicated space for Indigenous storytelling tradition. Indigenous storytelling spans purpose, complexity and tradition. In St. Paul, storytelling is honored as a living art form that continuously shapes identity, facilitates healing, and builds solidarity across and within communities. We gather to honor the contributions and enduring legacy of our aunties, whose stories inspire new narratives and guide new generations of leaders. In Mni Sóta Makoce, The Land Where the Water Reflects the Skies, we come together in community to reflect on our collective history to nurture hope for a brighter future. *ASL interpretation will be provided at this show.*Patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/accessibility
TU Dance: THREAT
The approximate run time is 60 minutes with no intermission. THREAT is a concert dance theater work that aims to provoke an interrogation of the roles we play as individuals and community in hierarchies. The work posits that hierarchies have the power to control our behavior and infiltrate our thoughts, even when no authority is present to enforce the rules. Using a physical language and soundscape that fuses multicultural traditions and styles of the West and the African Diaspora, this social exploration invites audiences into a modern narrative that speaks to the universal experience of authority, obedience, and rebellion. As a performance, THREAT employs multifaceted contemporary movement and theatricality that is bathed in an eclectic and evocative original score and set design. It is a work where orchestral strings, djembe drum, and spoken word bump into soundbites of Malcolm X, Jamaica Kincaid, Donald Trump and Fidel Castro — where new and old flags hang, representing freedom and control, safety and danger.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
TU Dance: THREAT
The approximate run time is 60 minutes with no intermission. THREAT is a concert dance theater work that aims to provoke an interrogation of the roles we play as individuals and community in hierarchies. The work posits that hierarchies have the power to control our behavior and infiltrate our thoughts, even when no authority is present to enforce the rules. Using a physical language and soundscape that fuses multicultural traditions and styles of the West and the African Diaspora, this social exploration invites audiences into a modern narrative that speaks to the universal experience of authority, obedience, and rebellion. As a performance, THREAT employs multifaceted contemporary movement and theatricality that is bathed in an eclectic and evocative original score and set design. It is a work where orchestral strings, djembe drum, and spoken word bump into soundbites of Malcolm X, Jamaica Kincaid, Donald Trump and Fidel Castro — where new and old flags hang, representing freedom and control, safety and danger.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
Contempo Physical Dance: National Choreography Residency
The approximate run time is 60 minutes with no intermission. Contempo Physical Dance premieres Indigo by guest choreographer Jaruam Xavier. The choreography becomes a ritual of remembrance that bridges the present and the remains of a distant past. Throughout whispers of otherworldly dreams, the dancers will embody physically and emotionally an abstraction of indigo blue. Dancers: Mary Mailand Schlichting, Aneka McMullen, Jacob Nehrbass, Laura Osterhaus, Sean Scantlebury and Marciano Silva dos Santos Photo credit to Bill Cameron.There will be an ASL interpreted post-show discussion after the performance. *Patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/accessibility
Letters Aloud: Thanks, But No Thanks, The Greatest Rejection Letters Ever
The approximate run time is two hours with one fifteen minute intermission. The road to success is paved with rejection and, boy oh boy, have we got the letters to prove it. Among the dozens of gems in this program; Andy Warhol is asked to pick up his painting at the front desk before it is hauled away and a young Sidney Poitier tries to borrow $100 from President Franklin Roosevelt (he said no).Don’t miss the chance to see Angela Davis, the beloved MPR News host, as she joins the Letters Aloud cast on stage, adding her unique touch to dozens of the most unforgettable rejection letters ever penned.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
Sarah Hagen: “Perk up, pianist!”
Often referred to as the next Victor Borge, Sarah Hagen has transformed her award-winning role as “concert pianist” into a stand-up, or rather, sit-down comedy. Pairing anecdotes from the road with some of her favorite pieces by Chopin, Debussy, and Liszt, Sarah takes audiences deep inside the world of a classical musician as she shares her earnest efforts to keep her spirits up in the midst of troublesome times. Part storytelling and part recital, “Perk up pianist!” has been described as “one of the best hours I’ve ever spent at the Fringe” [The Coast (Halifax)]. Directed by Rick Roberts.Created, written and performed by Sarah Hagen, with original compositions.*ASL interpretation will be provided at this show.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
Kevin Kling and Friends: Tales from the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log
The approximate run time is two hours, which includes one 20 minute intermission.Kevin Kling, Dan Chouinard and Simone Perrin perform their celebrated holiday show, Tales From the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log at The O’Shaughnessy this year. Joined again by the ever-popular Brass Messengers, the show has been performed every year since 1995 and has become a holiday tradition for many.Kevin is best known for his popular commentaries on NPR and the PBS series, “Almanac”. His hilarious, often tender stories have delighted audiences around the world. Dan Chouinard is a local musical legend, arranging, performing, and creating programs with the best of the best. Simone Perrin entertains and amazes audiences with a voice that ranges from sublime to comic genius.Add in the musical acrobatics and anarchy of the Brass Messengers for the makings of an evening where everything is planned and then anything can happen. Like the holidays!After the performance, Kevin will do a book signing in the lobby. It will feature these titles: The Dog Says How, Holiday Inn, Big Little Brother, Big Little Mother.SUBMIT A HOLIDAY STORY! We invite you to share a holiday story for Kevin Kling’s consideration to be read live at Tales from the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log on December 9. Hint: Stories that are brief (3-4 sentences) and humorous are most likely to be included! You may also submit a holiday photo [No gifs or video please] to go along with the story if you wish. *Please note: Not all submissions will be be included in the performance, and Kevin’s team will only reach out if they have clarifying questions about your story. Submissions are due by end of day December 4, 2023. SUBMIT YOUR STORY VIA THIS FORM:Submission Form *ASL interpretation will be provided at this show.*For patrons who would like to control the volume of their listening experience, assistive listening devices and sensory ear plugs are available upon request at the Ticket Office. More info at: https://oshag.stkate.edu/about-the-oshaughnessy/tickets/
