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Transatlantic Love Affair's 105 Proof at the Illusion Theater

Before seeing Transatlantic Love Affair’s 105 Proof at the Illusion Theater on Saturday night many of my fellow bloggers (you can learn more about the Twin Cities Theater Bloggers here) seemed surprised that I had never seen anything by TLA and told me I was in for a treat. And they were very right. The Transatlantic Love Affair presents their work in a very physical way that I had never seen before. They have no props or set pieces, the actors on stage, along with a handful of musicans, entirely create the world necessary for the show.

The Transatlantic Love Affair Ensemble. Photo credit Lauren B Photography.

In 105 Proof or, the Killing of Mack “the Silencer” Klein, the Transatlantic Love Affair takes on a mob story set in prohibition era Chicago. The story centers on a young man from southern Illinois, who after discovering his grandfather’s collection of moonshine gets involved in the sale is whiskey, and eventually finds himself entangled with the mob in Chicago. The actors comprised of: Amber Bjork, Emily Dussault, Heather Bunch, Derek Lee Miller, Eric Marinus, Allison Witham, Nick Wolf and Nick Saxon, play multiple characters in addition to pigs, a general store, a whiskey destiller, an automobile, a wall filled with picture frames and much more. It took a little while to get used to this style, but once I did the combination of the talents of the artists on stage and the intensity of the story kept me on the edge of my seat.

If you, like me, have never seen anything by the Transatlantic Love Affair before, I encourage you to go to the Illusion Theater and see 105 Proof (there are tickets available on goldstar). You might just find a new favorite theater company in town, I know I can’t wait to see the next thing that TLA creates.

105 Proof or, the Killing of Mack the “Silencer” Klein is playing at the Illusion Theater until November 20.


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