Theater: ‘…I’m Turning into My Mother’

1998.By Rohan Preston, Star Tribune

Directed by Peter Rothstein and produced by Theater Latte Dá, 7 p.m. today, 11 p.m. Sat., 1 & 3 p.m. next Sun., Loring Playhouse, 1633 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls. $10. 612-337-6666.

Tod Petersen uses the kitchen as a backdrop and his mother as the foil to tell some warm and risible stories about growing up in Mankato, Minn. Petersen is joined by singers Aimee Bryant and Katy Elsen. They hoot it up in style, mining lodes of “mother” wit in heartfelt ways, mixing music with monologues to tug at or soft spots. The mother does not come out with hairpins dangling, but she’s just as unaware of how much she reveals. The show also gets a lift from Bryant’s dreamy singing and Elsen’s hearty renditions of mother-themed songs.