Sketch comedy has been Brave New Workshop’s modus operandi ever since it launched its first revue in a little Northeast Minneapolis coffeehouse in 1961. So its presidential election show was a quadrennial tradition from 1964 to 2016, before COVID scuttled it in 2020.

But Brave New Workshop is tapping into the current electoral zeitgeist again with “No Country for Two Old Men.” And, seeing as thinking on your feet is an essential part of the troupe’s improvisational training, it’s appropriate that the past month’s events have forced the team of writer/performers to revise and revise again.

Brave New Workshop’s first election show since 2016, “No Country for Two Old Men,” features, from left, Doug Neithercott, Isabella Dunsieth (front), Denzel Belin and Jeffrey Nolan. (Courtesy of Hennepin Arts)

For example, that title may have seemed obsolete when President Joe Biden dropped his re-election bid. But it works in the context of the opening song, a recap of the campaign thus far that allows audiences to laugh at events that may have seemed too worrisome at the time.

The show is a landslide winner in the political comedy category. “No Country for Two Old Men” is the funniest thing the company’s concocted since before the pandemic, a high-energy collection of skits and songs that tosses caution overboard and could be the ideal antidote for news-infected gloominess.

While TV viewers speculate about who’s going to play Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on “Saturday Night Live,” it bears remembering that that show was made possible by pioneers like Brave New Workshop and such kindred contemporaries as Chicago’s Second City and Los Angeles’ Groundlings.

And please note that it’s far more thrilling to experience this kind of comedy up close in an intimate space like the theater that now bears the name of company founder Dudley Riggs. Not only that, but the writing’s often much better and more slickly delivered than on “SNL.”

Even if you think that you’d rather escape political discussions altogether, perhaps what you need is an opportunity to laugh about all that’s happened in recent months. If you witnessed Biden’s decline with heart-sinking sadness, check out the hilarious version of him offered by new addition Jeffrey Nolan, who brings smiles as he mumbles raspily about “histrionic achievements” and “exploding health care.”

Or enjoy the campaign advice offered by Doug Neithercott’s “Pander Bear,” who oversees the dumbing down of candidate Lauren Anderson’s stump speech. And witness divisiveness in action in a game of “Black or Woman” or its dance-pop antidote, Isabella Dunsieth’s Madonna-esque “Ethnically Ambiguous.”

Granted, the material isn’t consistently strong. Denzel Belin’s burlesque-style profession of lust for old white male politicians and a brief tutorial on “Project 2025” lack the cleverness or bite of the bits around them. But bite is preponderant in most of this revue, and what a welcome return that is after a few years of post-pandemic carefulness.

Directed with briskness and punch by Brave New Workshop’s artistic director, Caleb McEwen, it bears echoes of the delightfully snarling shows he created early this century in tandem with wife Katy McEwen. While some may complain that “No Country for Two Old Men” isn’t an equal-opportunity offender, it will likely evolve to include more campaigning critiques for Kamala Harris and Walz.

And our governor does make a cameo courtesy of Neithercott. Given a little more time, his imitation might rival his spot-on Donald Trump.

Brave New Workshop’s ‘No Country for Two Old Men’

When: Through Nov. 2

Where: Dudley Riggs Theatre, 824 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis

Tickets: $40-$32, available at bravenewworkshop.org

Capsule: The bite is back at Brave New Workshop.

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Prosecutors in western Minnesota have filed a gross misdemeanor charge of reckless driving against a college hockey player from Lakeville following a 2023 crash that killed one of her teammates.

The fatal crash one year ago at a four-way stop about 25 miles west of Willmar involved an SUV carrying four members of the Gustavus Adolphus women’s hockey team returning home to St. Peter from a weekend trip to Aberdeen, S.D.

Gianna Kate Gasparini, 20, of Lakeville, was driving a Chevrolet Equinox carrying three of her fellow teammates. Jori Lynn Jones, 19, of Little Canada, died as a result of her injuries. The other two passengers were Lily Mortenson, of Champlin, and Kayla Marie Bluhm, of Chisago City.

The criminal complaint filed this week in Chippewa County District Court accuses Gasparini of not stopping at the intersection of Minnesota Highways 40 and 29, and striking a Dodge Caravan minivan crossing the intersection at around 12:40 p.m. on Aug. 23, 2023.

The allegations are based on the findings of an accident reconstruction report by the Minnesota State Patrol and statements by a witness.p headlines f St. Clod LIVE 5-30-24 fixed

According to the criminal complaint, a witness told a State Patrol trooper that the Dodge minivan, driven by Brandi Kay Rasmussen, of Benson, had stopped at the intersection and was proceeding southbound when the collision occurred. The witness said the Equinox did not stop and appeared to be going a little over 60 mph, according to the complaint.

The accident reconstruction report stated that Gasparini was traveling at 78 mph prior to the crash and struck the minivan at 55 to 65 mph.

In interviews following the crash, Gasparini told the State Patrol that she had not traveled on the road previously and did not notice it was a four-way intersection “until way too late.” She said her front seat passenger told her there was a stop sign just a few feet before the vehicle entered the intersection and she hit the brakes.

Gasparini had no alcohol in her system, and was not distracted at the time of the accident, according to the complaint. She told an investigator at the Montevideo hospital after the crash that she had not taken her medication for ADHD that morning, which she said helps her focus better.

The driver of the minivan, Rasmussen, said she had looked both ways before proceeding into the intersection.

“I didn’t see anything and then I went and all of a sudden, I’m just turning over and turning over and turning over,” the criminal complaint states she told a state trooper at the crash scene.

Gasparini and her passengers were transported to the hospital in Montevideo. Emergency responders began administering CPR to Jones at the scene, and it was stopped when she was pronounced dead approximately one hour after the collision was reported, according to information in the criminal complaint and accident report.

Gasparini has been summoned to appear Sept. 23 on the single charge. She is not under arrest but has been ordered to report to the county sheriff’s office to complete the booking process before her court appearance.

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Bruce Helmer and Peg Webb

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), signed into law in December 2017 and taking effect in January 2018, is set to expire on Dec. 31, 2025, unless Congress acts to extend it.

The TCJA had a lot of great tax-saving measures — too many to fully describe in this article — but the major ones included reduced tax rates for individuals, a higher standard deduction, a lowering of the alternative minimum tax (AMT), and a greatly increased federal estate and gift tax exemption. Unless Congress steps in to pass new legislation, all of these will go away at the end of 2025.

Fortunately, there are some tax strategies that you can use to lower your future tax bills. However, some of the more powerful ones take time to implement. So it’s not too early to start now.

What’s changing in January 2026?

Many federal income tax provisions under TCJA will revert to pre-2018 levels in the absence of Congressional action. Taking 2017 federal income brackets for illustration purposes, we estimate the impact on your income taxes as follows:

• Federal income tax rates and brackets: A single filer making between $100,526 and $191,950 in Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) currently pays a federal income tax of 24%. After TCJA expires, a taxpayer that falls most closely into that income bracket will pay 28% (depending on how the final 2026 income tax brackets are set).

• Standard deduction amounts: Married couples filing jointly can take a standard deduction of $29,200 in 2024; that amount will be cut to about $12,700.

• Alternative Minimum Tax exemptions and phaseout amounts: Created to ensure that high-income taxpayers pay a minimum amount of tax, the AMT’s current exempt phaseout of $609,250 for a single filer will be reduced to roughly $120,700.

• Child and other dependent tax credits: Currently, taxpayers can take a tax credit of $2,000 for each child; that credit will be cut in half, to $1,000, in 2026. The other dependent credit amount of $500 will go away completely.

There is at least one silver lining: The available limit on state and local tax (SALT) deductions will expire, meaning that taxpayers in high-tax states will be able to deduct the amount of state and local taxes they pay from their federal returns.

Income tax strategies to consider

There are at least two simple ways to prepare for the possibility of higher income tax brackets in 2026:

• Bring income forward, if you can: Accelerating income from bonuses or consulting work into 2025 will help lower your taxable 2026 income. Similarly, try not to defer income into 2026, as that income may be subject to higher rates.

• Consider Roth conversions: When you transfer money directly from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, you’ll pay taxes on the converted amount at your ordinary rate, so by acting before the end of 2025, you effectively “buy” taxes on the sale.

Estate planning strategies to consider

For high-net-worth investors and families, the sunsetting of TCJA estate planning benefits will be significant. The federal estate tax exemption will revert to pre-2018 amounts (adjusted for inflation), and the new exemption amounts will be roughly half the current amount.

Single filers who can now shelter up to $13.61 million will see that exemption amount cut to about $7 million (taking the 2017 amount and indexing it to inflation).

One can see the consequence of not taking any steps to protect an estate in the following example:

An elderly married couple’s estate currently valued at $20 million is not subject to estate tax, but in two years, it will be when TCJA expires. They currently have basic wills that leave everything to each other.

The couple figures under the current exemption amount of $27.22 million, they don’t need to worry about estate taxes. But let’s say Congress takes no action on the exemption question, and the federal exemption amount reverts to $14 million. At that point, their joint estate would be about $6 million over the exemption amount. At a 40% tax rate, the cost to their heirs from their inaction would be approximately $2.4 million, trimming the value of the estate by 12%.

Whether you are single or married filing jointly, if your net worth places you close to the 2017 federal exemption amount, you should review your tax plan with your financial adviser and estate attorney. Among the strategies you may wish to consider are the following:

• Annual and lifetime gifts: You can make annual tax-free gifts of up to $18,000 in 2024 to any number of people provided that your total lifetime tax-free gifts don’t exceed $13.61 million in 2024. In 2026, the federal estate tax exemption will revert to pre-2018 amounts which will be roughly half the current amount. In addition, gifts to qualified charities are always tax-free. So, if you were planning to gift assets to your family or charity anyway, now may be a good time to do it — and bring down the size of your taxable estate.

• Special trusts: There are a number of trust arrangements that you can use to accomplish a variety of estate planning goals while reducing the size of your estate. For example, a Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (SLAT) allows the donor to make gifts to the SLAT using the lifetime gift exclusion. Upon the donor’s death, the beneficiary spouse receives net income and principal distributions; upon the death of the spouse, the secondary beneficiaries (usually the children and grandchildren) receive any remaining net income and principal. Other trusts can be structured to hold family business interests, insurance policies or a primary residence and remove these assets from the taxable estate.

If any of these strategies appeal to you, don’t wait!

One reason not to procrastinate is that estate planning is a complex process that takes time. Detailed estate plans can take 12 to 18 months to craft. Get started by getting an evaluation of your estate, if you don’t already have one. Make sure that you have or update basic estate planning documents such as wills, powers of attorney and health care proxies. Most importantly, you should contact a financial adviser to discuss your options well ahead of the Dec. 31, 2025, deadline. And remember to talk to a financial adviser, tax planner or estate attorney before taking any action that could have serious financial consequences.

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The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

Bruce Helmer and Peg Webb are financial advisers at Wealth Enhancement Group and co-hosts of “Your Money” on WCCO 830 AM on Sunday mornings. Email Bruce and Peg at yourmoney@wealthenhancement.com. Securities offered through LPL Financial, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC, a registered investment advisor. Wealth Enhancement Group and Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services are separate entities from LPL Financial.

 

Amy Lindgren

Now and then I like to write about random thoughts that are too small or personal to make into a column. Summer is a good time for small bits, so here are a couple of things currently on my mind.

Master’s degrees

Two Ramsey County commissioners recently proposed dropping the word “master” from its Master Gardener volunteer program to avoid confusion with the concept of slavery.

The program is affiliated with University of Minnesota Extension.

I recognize the good intent here, but my English-major self is flummoxed by the linguistic misunderstanding. Indeed, many words can have more than one meaning — a master who wields power over someone is a different word usage than a learner who has mastered a skill or concept. The first one, we don’t want. The second one, we do.

Questioning whether to use the word “master” is not new. For example, computer techs have mostly dropped the terms “master and slave” when describing primary computers and the interface terminals that serve them. Good. That was hurtful and unnecessary, especially with equivalent terms readily at hand.

But when it comes to dropping Master Gardener, it’s a problem. It’s also personal. I’m currently pursuing a Master’s degree and when I’m done, I do expect my diploma to say Master’s. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

My friend Norb Berg

A friend of mine died recently, although it would be a type of stolen valor to say we were close. We weren’t the kind of buds who swap stories over drinks or experience adventures together. He had those pals and the stories were epic. Norb Berg and I were more like esprit-de-corps friends, sharing a common mission to help others find work.

For one thing, we came from different generations, with completely different life stories. Norb had been: A prep school valedictorian, then an Army officer during the Korean War, then a scholar earning an advanced degree in Industrial Relations, then a family man raising four sons with his wife Marilyn, and then the first personnel director for Minnesota-based Control Data Corp. Thirty years my senior, Norb accomplished most of those things before I was born.

For those who don’t remember, Control Data became a global leader in supercomputers, but was still a fledgling corporation with fewer than 200 employees when Norb signed on in 1959. By the time he retired as second-in-command decades later, their workforce had rocketed to 60,000 employees, stationed all over the world. Norb had had a role, direct or indirect, in hiring each one of them.

Norb wasn’t shy about his achievements with Control Data, but I didn’t realize the full extent of his contributions until reading Mark Jensen’s book, “HR Pioneers” (North Star Press of St. Cloud, 2013).

According to Jensen’s research, Norb’s HR team literally changed the face of the American workplace. He’s credited with developing or co-developing multiple groundbreaking initiatives, including what’s believed to be the first version of an employee assistance plan. Their internal EAP, in fact, became globally recognized Ceridian, one of Control Data’s most successful spinoffs when the supercomputer business sunsetted here in the early ’90s.

In his retirement, Norb let his imagination fly, pouring energy into such disparate interests as creating a food bank and starting a red deer ranch — and sending emails to a local careers columnist. It didn’t take long for Norb to progress from being my correspondent to being a lunch partner, and then to the surprising role of patron.

In the last two decades of his long and generous life, Norb took on a very personal mission: To directly sponsor unemployed and under-employed workers for individualized career counseling. I never asked if he had other counselors in his extensive Rolodex, but I know he paid my small company to help everyone from school administrators and athletic coaches to sales reps and bankers to home health aides and even restaurant servers he had met randomly. It pleased him enormously to have a resource on offer whenever he met someone he wanted to help.

There are a lot of things I’m going to miss with Norb’s passing, not the least of which are the occasional lunches and ridiculous jokes he liked to tell. But the lesson I’m keeping is the ingenious double-dip benefit of his patronage scheme. Norb could have selected a polished placement firm for his referrals. He chose instead to provide a vital boost to a small, woman-owned business while simultaneously lifting up job seekers, one individual at a time.

Heck of a lesson, Norb, and one I won’t forget.

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Amy Lindgren owns a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com.