There's a lot of great theater in the Twin Cities right now. And a lot of full bladders.
Several current shows are playing without intermissions, including "Indecent" at the Guthrie Theater, "Constance in the Darkness" at Open Eye Figure Theatre and "Assassins" at Theater Latté Da. (Having not used an intermission for its recent "Man of La Mancha," either, that venue could be redubbed Theater Hold-It-In.)
"The Humans," which just finished a run at the Orpheum, also eliminated the mid-show 15-minute break. What's the deal? And, more to the point, when are we supposed to answer nature's call?
The short answer is: beforehand. The long answer is there's a fair amount of nuance when it comes to intermissions.
Some theaters are more prone to them than others. At Children's Theatre Company, where even the less-than-90-minute "Corduroy" will include an intermission when it opens March 9, they listen to their audience.
"Part of it is kids' attention spans. Kids need attention breaks," says Melissa Ferlaak, CTC's senior communications manager. "They need to get up and stretch their legs and they may need to use the restroom."
Adults like to do those things, too, of course. That's why signs are going up this week at performances of "Indecent" to let audiences know there's no intermission — emphasizing information that's also included in the program and being conveyed by ushers.
At 100 minutes, the Paula Vogel drama slightly exceeds the Guthrie's unwritten rule that 90 minutes is how long patrons will sit still without a break. Although staffers were on alert for problems at the first performances last weekend, visitor services manager Katherine Mayer says they did not materialize.