'A Don't Hug Me Christmas Carol'
Give playwright/composer Phil Olson some credit. He has not created art with this spoof, set in the Bunyan Bay, Minn., tavern of Gunner Johnson. But for those people who know what they're getting into, Olson's "Don't Hug Me" series sells like hotcakes.
'Cinderella'
Reed Sigmund and Dean Holt dress up as the stepsisters (reminiscent of Bain Boehlke's and Gerald Drake's turns as the stepmother years ago). Maeve Moynihan, whose poise and talent have her young career on a limitless arc, is the title character in the Children's Theatre Company production.
'Beauty and the Beast'
An original production on the big stage at the Ordway features local favorite Laurine Price as the heroine. Director Robert Johanson takes a darker artistic vision than Disney imagined. The cast also includes Bradley Greenwald, Christina Baldwin and Zoe Pappas.
'Brett Favre's Christmas Spectacular'
Brave New Workshop's holiday show has some of the old standards and some new sketches this year. Our critic (Lisa Brock) described it as "maybe their tightest and most warmhearted holiday show yet." From my perch, as long as Mike Fotis and Lauren Anderson are working together, this show can do no wrong.
