Photo courtesy of Bedlam Theatre

Have you been to Bedlam Lowertown yet? Just weeks after its grand opening celebrations, the place is at last open for business every day, with full kitchen and bar service and performances almost nightly – indeed, a variety of live theater, music, improv and dance is already on the docket. I saw Ryan Underbakke’s “The Beast” there a couple of weeks ago – a challenging but thoughtfully produced bit of physical theater of the kind that, pre-Bedlam, you’d have needed to cross the river into Minneapolis to find.

The menu is simple but delicious, taking full advantage of the wealth of top-shelf ingredients, locally produced meat, dairy and produce readily available in the neighborhood. (You have to try something from the fancy hot dog menu; the turkey banh mi and maple/buffalo fried cauliflower, in particular, are also killer.)

“The Beast” by Ryan Underbakke, on stage recently at Bedlam Lowertown. Photo courtesy of Bedlam

I’m gushing, I know, but it’s hard to overstate the promise offered by a well-appointed gathering spot and performance space like Bedlam around here. St. Paul has always boasted a number of landmark performing arts organizations and big-ticket venues. We’ve got the Ordway and the O’Shaughnessy, Minnesota Opera and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; Park Square Theater, History Theatre and Penumbra; TU Dance. Certainly, the city’s universities, local bars and restaurants also do their part to showcase a wide range of local artists. But this side of the river hasn’t had much by way of stable, affordable and easily accessible venues for mid-sized local theater companies, independent choreographers and performing artists to present their work – until now. Right off the new Green Line and across the street from Union Depot, within easy walking distance of all the amenities of downtown and Lowertown, Bedlam is poised to become a neighborhood arts and community anchor in short order.

The Big Lowdown is returning for 2014. Photo courtesy of Farrington Starnes and Bedlam Theatre

On a related note: Bedlam is bringing back The Big Lowdown for a second year; this time they’re partnering with PlaceBase Productions to present the choose-your-own-performance, roving, neighborhood spectacle. For this year’s iteration, they aim to re-imagine the city as a playground. In fact, Bedlam’s currently looking for ensembles and community players to participate, if you’d like to get involved. The working description of the event in the call for performers reads:

[In the summertime in Minnesota] after dinner, the kids rush outside to play evening games until the sun sets. The games are different in every neighborhood, since they tend to grow out of the playground landscape that is available. Games like Ghost in the Graveyard, Kick the Can, Sardines, Freeze Tag… The alleyways, parking lots and open spaces are full of games that have emerged from the unique spaces of the neighborhood. … For this year’s Big Lowdown, audiences will get to experience the Lowertown Playground first hand. They will walk to 8 different sites … where performance groups will have transformed that space into a playground. As they walk, audiences will also meet a cast of playful characters with whom they will explore the nature of play.

Get acquainted with Bedlam Theatre online at www.bedlamtheatre.org.