Art Hounds: Opera, starring puppets

This week on Art Hounds: A performance of "Amahl and the Night Visitors" featuring life-sized puppets, "Baltimore is Burning" and "Tartuffe."

Dance writer Linda Shapiro recommends checking out "Amahl and the Night Visitors," a co-production of St. John's University and the College of St. Benedict in Collegeville featuring 23 life-sized puppets. St. John's Abbey acquired the puppets in 2008; they were originally commissioned by Queen Elizabeth and created by the Little Angel Puppet Theatre of London. The puppets have since been restored, and students from the colleges and St. John's Preparatory school have been trained to bring them to life. Performances are this Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Stephen B. Humphrey Theater.

Arts' Nest Executive Director Jenna Papke is excited for Underdog Theatre's first production, "Baltimore is Burning." The new play is inspired by the arrest and subsequent death of Freddie Gray. Papke says it's a great opportunity for Minnesotans to engage in the national racial dialogue. Performances run Nov. 18 through Dec. 2 at Savage Umbrella's SPACE in St. Paul.

Mixed Precipitation founder and Picnic Operetta creator Scotty Reynolds thinks now is a perfect time to go see "Tartuffe" at the James J. Hill House in St. Paul. Moliere's 17th century satire shocked audiences with its tale of a religious charlatan taking over a wealthy family's home. Wayward Theatre's production uses two floors of the historic mansion to bring this unsettling story to life.