Here's what I've seen onstage lately-- let this be a guide and a warning. DRACULA mounted by The Umbrella Stage Company in Concord, is seasonally appropriate with a twist. This version is playwright Kate Hamill's take on Bram Stoker's original which she dubs "A feminist revenge fantasy, really." I love a little Dracula and some [...]
SPEAKEASY STAGE has just kicked off its season with perhaps the most daring, intelligently written, and eye-opening production onstage right now in progressive theater circles: HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING. The play is a sharp, densely-written theatrical exploration of conservatism, specifically the rift between old and new Catholic conservatives as they debate the hot topics [...]
THE HUNTINGTON opened its fall season with the musical "SING STREET" based on the 2016 movie by writer/director John Carney. It's a coming of age story set in 1980's Dublin about a teenage boy who falls for a beautiful mysterious girl who calls herself a "model." So he claims to have a band and then [...]
TWILIGHT: LOS ANGELES, 1992 is the magnificent season-opening salvo at The American Repertory Theater! Anna Deavere Smith's astonishing theatrical document captures the fraught history of racism in America, here revised as an ensemble piece and sleekly directed by Taibi Magar. It's hard to imagine that Anna Deveare Smith ever acted all the parts herself, but [...]
It's our annual Boston theatrical ritual-- FREE Shakespeare on the Common presented by Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, and this summer's production is just what we needed after a year of too much of everything and always something-- so what better time for "Much Ado About Nothing"! Just sit back under the stars with a scoop of [...]
You certainly can...not touch it. And once you see this production of "can i touch it," especially if you have ever posed this and other imposing questions about a Black person's hair, you will understand why not. Company One Theatre presents this 4 person piece about "beauty"-- from beauty supply products and gentrification to who [...]
This week, I witnessed the world premiere, pre-Broadway opening of THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL: A BEAUTIFUL NOISE at the Colonial Theatre and immediately tweeted out:"Holly Holy Sh*t! The new Neil Diamond Musical is a hit!" I don't know if Mr. Diamond would approve of that profane couplet, but it certainly captures my shock and awe [...]
Here's a quick round-up of three plays now onstage in and around Boston! THE LIGHT now on at LYRIC STAGE. This beautifully staged and explosive two-hander is deftly directed by Jacqui Parker who guides her two-person cast through a roller coaster of emotions as they try to navigate a pivotal point in their relationship without [...]
The Boston Theater Critics Association of which I am proud to be president announced THE 39th ELLIOT NORTON AWARDS to honor the outstanding work by actors, directors, designers, ensembles and productions audiences have seen on greater Boston stages throughout the season. The awards which are usually presented live in a downtown theater, were announced in [...]
Race on over to the LYRIC STAGE to see the Tony Award-winning Best Musical A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER! This is a sparkling production of a truly hilarious farce featuring a crack cast in a crackpot musical murder mystery-- in reverse! We know who done it -- it's the how that keeps things [...]
