This is the closing-- or almost closing weekend for three shows now on stage in town so I thought I'd give you a quick last minute guide in case you are deciding to catch one of the below: IT'S A MOTHER F**KING PLEASURE to recommend this hip, hot satirical take down of identity politics and [...]
More than 140 nominations in over two dozen categories of outstanding actors, directors, designers, choreographers, musicians, and productions and 5 awards for visiting productions were announced today by the Boston Theater Critics Association (of which I am proud to be president!) for The 42nd Annual Elliot Norton Awards. The awards ceremony will be held on [...]
THE TRIUMPH OF LOVE is an old story with eternal clout. This rapturous production now onstage at THE HUNTINGTON is a rollicking exploration of love and reason, gender and power, politics and class. Yes, it was written in 1732 by Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux and has a marvelous cast but it's the rip-roaring [...]
SPRING has sprung with a number of delightful, moving, first rate productions now in bloom on Boston stages! Here's my take on two of them, both of which speak to the moment we are in: the indispensability of LOVE and COMPASSION and the tragic consequences when they are missing. A MAN OF NO IMPORTANCE [...]
SO much theater and I've seen most of it! Here's my take on three running through MARCH 16! I loved LYRIC STAGE COMPANY's production of ART by Yasmina Reza starring a marvelous troika of veteran Boston stars who know just how to massage this three-way friendship into a roiling dramedy triggered by a piece of [...]
The Oscars Sunday night March 2 were masterfully handled by Brookline's own Conan O'Brien whose intelligence, sense of the absurd, and self-deprecating charm carried us through the wild and wacky tonal shifts of a long evening. He sang and danced and cracked us up, managed a heartfelt tribute to L.A. firefighters, and a straight up, [...]
It's the most foundational narrative in the western world: THE ODYSSEY, Homer's epic tale of Odysseus's ten-year journey home from the bloody decade-long Trojan war while wife Penelope waits and weaves. The Wizard of Oz, James Joyce's Ulysses, HarryPotter, SpongeBob SquarePants and countless other tales owe something to the aptly named Homer. It would be [...]
THE GROVE now onstage at the HUNTINGTON'S CALDERWOOD PAVILION is simply magnificent. Playwright Mfoniso Udofia has given us an extraordinary theatrical gift which exceeds all the demands of the medium. The second in her nine-play UFOT FAMILY CYCLE, informed by the playwright's own roots as a first first-generation Nigerian American who grew up in Massachusetts, [...]
An excellent performance and a moving piece of theater awaits you in Lowell at the MERRIMACK REPERTORY THEATRE! The legend who is Billie Holiday comes alive thanks to Jenece Upton who embodies the singer's tragic history and indelible vocals. Written by Lanie Robertson and directed by Candice Handy, LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR AND GRILL [...]
There's nothing funny about the current touring company production of FUNNY GIRL presented by Broadway In Boston and now onstage at CITIZENS OPERA HOUSE. It embodies everything that can go wrong with touring company productions: skimpy sets, costumes, and routine performances. Let it be said I LOVE THIS MUSICAL (Jule Styne/Music, Bob Merrill/Lyrics) which hangs [...]
