Queer Joy, Center Stage

“We have an abundance of queer talent in the [Twin] Cities,” says Maxwell Freudenthal. “There should always be opportunities for our community to know: if you want to do a show, there’s space for you.”

As a transplant from Wisconsin, Freudenthal produced musicals during his college years at MCAD and participated in some small community theater productions after graduation. He soon realized that he wasn’t satisfied with the shows and roles available for queer representation.

“There were a lot of parts that I wanted to try and do or that I wanted to see that companies just weren’t doing,” he says. “If they did them, I wasn’t always impressed by how they handled the material, especially with queer characters and themes. A lot of times, things were omitted or changed or made to be more palatable that I did not agree with.”

Instead of complaining, Freudenthal channeled his skills as a full-time multimedia producer into producing a version of “La Cage aux Folles” at LUSH Lounge & Theater, an experience that he calls “incredible” and “validating.”

After producing “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” the year after that, the decision was made to formalize a nonprofit to help with donations and sponsorships in order to continue the work. Mixfit Theatre Company began to take shape, with its debut show planned for this summer before the hard decision to postpone it to the 2026 season.

One reason for the delay was the trauma Freudenthal encountered within the queer and theater communities. That’s why producing shows at LUSH was an easy decision. Not only do they have a stage, lighting and sound equipment, but it is a queer-affirming space.

Freudenthal describes school and community theater as a “bigger closet” — welcoming until you step on stage.

“Then you’re ostensibly cishet because queer characters aren’t called out in the script and you don’t want to risk offending an outspoken community member,” he says. “Your queerness is masked in the context of the performance.”

It’s part of a larger problem Freudenthal sees in theater: marginalized identities are often included, but rarely centered or celebrated.

In contrast, Mixfit’s casting philosophy is “if you can slay it, you can play it.” Without changing the script, actors can bring their unique perspective to a role and put their own twist on the shows. Particularly when someone queer or a person of color takes on a character traditionally portrayed by a cisgender, straight, white actor.

Freudenthal recalls an actor working with a costume designer to add nonbinary garments to a character, adding “they just kept talking about how much gender euphoria they were feeling that they hadn’t felt on stage before.”

He continues, “The opportunity to be visibly queer on stage and having a hand in shaping a character so that you feel seen and affirmed is extremely rare. It’s something I’ve had to campaign or fight for in the past, and that’s not what I want our actors or crew to experience.”

Ultimately, he says audiences can expect queer excellence from a Mixfit Theatre Company production. “We want highly engaging, immersive and diverse shows,” he beams. “Just queer joy and celebration.”

Donate or stay up to date on the upcoming season at mixfittheatre.org.