Guthrie Theater

(Minneapolis/St. Paul) — The Guthrie Theater (Joseph Haj, Artistic Director) announced it will present Kevin Kling’s Tales From the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log on Tuesday, December 7 at 7:30 p.m. on the Wurtele Thrust Stage. Single tickets are $28 and on sale now through the Box Office at 612.377.2224, 1.877.447.8243 (toll-free) or online at guthrietheater.org. For up-to-date information about the Guthrie’s health and safety policies, visit www.guthrietheater.org/health.

Kevin Kling returns to the Guthrie in his celebrated one-man show Tales From the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log. Best known for his popular commentaries on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” and his storytelling stage shows, Kling delivers hilarious, often tender stories that have delighted audiences around the country. With Yule Log, Kling spins hilarious yarns of family traditions and holiday merriment. Wry tales of Midwestern Americana, both old and new, take surprising turns from the bizarre to the insightful. Tales From the Charred Underbelly of the Yule Log features the Brass Messengers, Simone Perrin and Dan Chouinard.

Kling’s plays and adaptations have been performed around the world. As a playwright, he has penned 21A, Home and Away, Fear and Loving in Minneapolis, The Ice Fishing Play and Lloyd’s Prayer in addition to his co-adaptations of Carlo Goldoni’s The Venetian Twins and The Canterbury Tales for the Guthrie. In 2005, the Guthrie launched an eight-week regional tour of Kling’s Freezing Paradise: An Evening With Kevin Kling, which visited more than 20 Minnesota communities and performed in Iowa, Michigan, and North and South Dakota.

Kling’s first book, The Dog Says How, brought readers into his world of the skewed and significantly mundane. The following Kevin Kling’s Holiday Inn was a romp through a year of holidays and a lifetime of gathering material. Kling has written two children’s books, Big Little Brother and Big Little Mother, and his latest book, On Stage With Kevin Kling, contains the full texts from three of his popular stage pieces.

Kling grew up in the suburbs of Minneapolis and graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1979 with a B.A. in Theatre. His storytelling started when a friend from the now-defunct Brass Tacks Theatre asked him to perform his stories. Since then, he has been awarded numerous arts grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, McKnight Foundation, Minnesota State Arts Board, Bush Foundation, Jerome Foundation and others.

The Guthrie Theater’s 2021–2022 Season sponsors include the Minnesota State Arts Board, WEM 2000 Foundation of The Dorsey & Whitney Foundation, Target, The Shubert Foundation and U.S. Bank. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. The Guthrie is a grateful recipient of a federally funded Shuttered Venue Operators Grant.

Health and Safety Information
All ticket holders must show proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 or a negative COVID-19 PCR test result and a valid photo ID to attend a performance at the Guthrie. Ticket holders under age 18 may provide a school photo ID or an official school document with the student’s name. Masks that securely cover the nose and mouth are required regardless of vaccination status. (Bandanas and neck gaiters are not considered acceptable facial coverings.) A complete list of Guthrie requirements for masking, vaccination and testing is available at www.guthrietheater.org/health.

Land Acknowledgment
The Guthrie Theater acknowledges that it resides on the traditional land of the Dakota People and honors with gratitude the land itself and the people who have stewarded it throughout the generations, including the Ojibwe and other Indigenous nations.

The GUTHRIE THEATER (Joseph Haj, Artistic Director) is an American center for theater performance in Minneapolis, Minnesota, dedicated to producing a mix of classic and contemporary plays and cultivating the next generation of theater artists. Under Haj’s leadership, the Guthrie is guided by four core values: Artistic Excellence; Community; Equity, Diversity and Inclusion; and Fiscal Responsibility. Since its founding in 1963, the theater has continued to set a national standard for excellence in the field and serve the people of Minnesota as a vital cultural resource. The Guthrie houses three state-of-the-art stages, production facilities, classrooms, restaurants and dramatic public spaces. guthrietheater.org