Cinderella's Ball - OperaTease for Young Folx by JNOC at Minnsky Theatre

If you have been following this blog, you will have read about OperaTease. First presented by Journey North Opera Company in June, there have been two subsequent presentations. The second was in July, and the most recent was earlier this month. Yesterday a new version was presented - this time for the young folx as instead of Opera arias, the songs were all Disney songs.  The audience was a great mix of families (some of the kids dressed up in their fancy dress, or even Disney Princess costumes), and folx who just like Disney. The production was at Minnsky Theatre - one of the few vaudeville revival theaters around, and one of the few theaters in the Twin Cities that is owned and operated by women and/or gender non-conforming folx.

The afternoon (as it was a matinee) was hosted by Colleen Meier (Producer & Executive Director of JNOC) and Jac Fatale (Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Minnsky Theater). To keep with the theme of the day Jac was dressed as Cinderella. Before each act, the hosts would introduce the singer, the song, and give a brief explanation of what style of performance it would be. Act One started off with the classic "Part of Your World" from The Little Mermaid. Sung by Soprano Corissa Bussian, Red Rider was pole dancing. Wait, I should maybe explain what OperaTease is? Typically each number is an aria sung by a member of Journey North Opera Company, while someone else is doing (often times improvising) a lyra number, a silks number, dance, bellydance, burlesque, or in this case - a pole dance. Being that it was a kids show, there was no burlesque, and while images of stripclubs may come to mind when I write 'pole dance,' this was a gorgeous number by Red Rider. Corissa has a gorgeous voice that was a perfect fit for this song. Red used a spinning pole, and told the story of the song visually - using some props on the floor, and using her body on the pole to pinpoint specific lyrics. Her lines were beautiful and strong, which made the fact that the number was mostly improvised even more impressive.

Next was a medley of two charming lullabies - "When You Wish Upon a Star" from Pinocchio, and "A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes" from Cinderella. Sung by Carmelita Guse who was also accompanying herself on ukulele, Jolie Meshbesher showed off her lyra skills, as well as her strong ballet skills. So much gentle strength was evident in Jolie's performance that perfectly complemented the beautiful soprano voice of Carmelita. Adding to the number was the fact that both performers were dressed in shades of complementing blue. A lovely and dreamy performance.

"True Love's Kiss" from Enchanted was sung by two voices that fit so naturally with the music - Soprano Anna Maher, and Tenor Wesley Frye. Otter was telling a version of the story in her own way with dance, and acting. It was clear that Otter was looking for love and hoping that Wesley would be the "True Love," but when she realized that Wesley and Anna were singing the song to each other, she also made the discovery that she needed to love herself. It was a great visual twist to most of the Disney/Romance/Princess stereotypes of the past (hopefully) where the Princess always needs/wants the Prince. In this instance, Otter recognized that she was good on her own, and truly loved and accepted who she was.

The next two numbers were also very good. "For the First Time in Forever" from Frozen was sung by Corissa Bussian (stepping in at the last minute), and Erica Hoops stepping on and giving us a peek of her Elsa (who would return in Act Two). Gigi Chaton showed the excitement, and some trepidation that Anna was going through via her strong movements, and acting choices in the Hammock. Kirstin Nelson did a stunning lyrical dance while Colleen Meier sang "How Far I'll Go" from Moana. Two beautiful numbers to lead us into our final number for the first half.

Melanie Lowin photographer
Tif Dynamite, Joel Mathias

Act One ended with "Les Poissons" from The Little Mermaid. Joel Mathias (Baritone) sang and acted the part of Chef Louis to perfection. With the help of two fish friends, seaweed, and a jellyfish, Tif Dynamite clowned her way through the number as Sebastian the Crab. So much laughter from the audience, and so much joy sending us out into intermission.

Act Two was hosted by Colleen (dressed as Mary Poppins), and Tif as Sebastian. It opened with Mezzo-Soprano Laura Horner singing the title track to "Beauty and the Beast." Wearing a gorgeous yellow gown, she was accompanied by Bunnie Rose Tailor doing her best Beast impression on the silks. The movements in the silks were slow and lyrical and matched perfectly to the sweetness of the song.

The mood was lightened by "Let It Go" sung by Erica Hoops as Elsa from Frozen. Victoria Velour added some nice touches of comedy to this very dramatic number by wearing a white outfit with three black buttons (like a snowman) then during the bridge actually getting into a big white snowman costume. It helped break the seriousness drama of the song and created a perfect balance to make for a joy filled, and adorable number. More comedy followed via the smooth, jazzy tones of Mezzo-soprano Christina Christensen singing "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" from The Aristocats. She shared the stage with a few other performers acting as cats, and Jeanette Chalgren tap dancing. Jeanette embodied the character by knocking off paper cups from the cabaret tables, teasing the other "cats" on the stage with toys, and generally having a blast tap dancing. Christina stepped into a box (as cats do), pulled out some toys, and a flute (which she played very well)! The number ended with all of them getting distracted when a pink feather boa was dropped from the ceiling.

We then went into "A Whole New World" sung by Soprano Amy Wolf, and the returning Baritone Joel Mathias. Their voices blended so well, and they were complemented by the athletic and acrobatic trapeze work of Harley Synn. Harley also came down from the trapeze and flew around the stage as Aladdin's flying carpet. This charming number was followed by another charming, sweet, and comedic number - "Kiss The Girl" from The Little Mermaid. The dashing Baritone Joe Allen came out to flirt and try his hand at getting the attention of Sitri Sophia who was belly dancing as Ariel with the long red hair and green dress. Our fish friends from Act One joined the fun as Joe tried some belly dance moves, and yet seemed to be so nervous at the prospect of actually kissing the girl that he made himself sick. Or maybe he decided his character was allergic to fish. Either way, it was a funny way to end the number which the audience loved.

Kristine Iten photographer,
Joel Mathia, Harley Synn, Amy Wolf

The audience also loved the final number. Colleen Meier returned as Mary Poppins, while Jac Fatale came out as Bert and the two of them (along with most of the company and audience) sang through the rousing classic tongue-twister "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." Personally I can't think of a better way to end the show - everyone having fun on-stage and in the audience. The kids loved it and some stuck around to get photographs with the cast, as well as photos in the Alice in Wonderland photo booth in the lobby.

OperaTease will be returning in October for an 18+ evening of Tricks and Treats. Minnsky Theater has productions almost every weekend. They have a bar with cider, beer, and wine, along with non-alcoholic drinks, and concessions. Check out their website for upcoming shows, and I hope to see you at one of them.