Ogunquit’s ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ Makes Spectacular Splash

June 25, 2023June 28, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of *‘Singin’ in the Rain’* at Ogunquit Playhouse. Photo by Nile Hawver, Nile Scott Studios

‘Singin’ in the Rain’ – Story by Betty Comden and Adolph Green; Lyrics by Arthur Freed; Music by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown; Based on the classic Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film, by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, Inc. Directed by Jayme McDaniel; Musical Direction by Matt Smedal; Choreography by Kristyn Pope;
Scenic Design by Andy Walmsley; Costume Design by Dustin Cross; Lighting Design by Richard Latta; Sound Design by Germán Martinez. Presented by Ogunquit Playhouse, Ogunquit, ME, through July 15

By Linda Chin

No show fits Ogunquit Playhouse’s description as a self-producer of “big splashy musicals and side-splitting comedies” that attracts “casts of stars on its historic stage” better than Singin’ in the Rain, the spectacular romantic musical comedy based on the legendary MGM film. First staged at OP in 2009, director Jayme McDaniel returns to helm this production, Kristin Pope choreographs, and Matthew Smedal music directs. Broadway’s Max Clayton (Music Man) as leading man Don Lockwood, Christian Probst as BFF Cosmo Brown, Chiara Trentalange as actress Kathy Selden, Kate Loprest as co-star Lina Lamont, Greg Jackson as director Roscoe Dexter, Lance Roberts as producer R.F. Simpson and 19 ensemble members show their acting and singing chops, and literally – dance up a storm.

Ogunquit’s ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ Will Give Audiences a “Glorious Feeling”

June 21, 2023June 28, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Max Clayton in *Singin’ in the Rain’* at Ogunquit Playhouse. Photo by Nile Hawver, Nile Scott Studios

‘Singin’ in the Rain’ – Story by Betty Comden and Adolph Green; Lyrics by Arthur Freed; Music by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown; Based on the classic Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film, by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, Inc. Directed by Jayme McDaniel; Musical Direction by Matt Smedal; Choreography by Kristyn Pope; Scenic Design by Andy Walmsley; Costume Design by Dustin Cross; Lighting Design by Richard Latta; Sound Design by Germán Martinez. Presented by Ogunquit Playhouse, Ogunquit, ME, through July 15

by Mike Hoban

It’s always a challenge when an iconic movie musical – particularly one as beloved as ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ – is brought to the stage. Comparisons to legendary performers are inevitable, and when you include complex dance routines that are also among the most recognizable of all time (Gene Kelly’s title song and dance number and Donald O’Connor’s “Make ‘Em Laugh”), the stakes are sky-high. Luckily for the audiences of Ogunquit’s excellent staging of the classic, the cast and production team serve up a winner that ups the comedy quotient while still delivering first-rate performances of the musical’s song and dance routines.

Superb Cast Delivers Murderously Good Comedy with GBSC’s ‘Clue’

June 10, 2023December 27, 2023 michaelhoban4 Comments

Jennifer Ellis, Stewart Evan Smith, Sara Coombs, Bill Mootos, Mark Linehan, Paul Melendy, Maureen Keiller, Genevieve Lefevre in GBSC’s ‘Clue’. Photo Credit: Nile Scott Studios

‘Clue’ – Written by Sandy Rustin; Directed by Weylin Symes; Scenic Designer, Katy Monthei; Costume Designer, Deirdre Gerrard; Lighting Designer, Jeff Adelberg; Sound Designer, Caroline Eng; Properties Designer, Emily Allinson; Assistant Director, Tyler Rosati; Movement Consultant, Ceit Zweil; Production Stage Manager, Shauwna Dias Grillo; Assistant Stage Managers, Emily Fitzgerald, Cassie Lebeau; Production Assistant, Alexandra White; Production Manager/Master Electrician, Casey Leone Blackbird; Fight Choreographer, Alexander Platt; Scenery Built by The Ogunquit Playhouse Scene Shop. Adapted from the Paramount Pictures film written by Jonathan Lynn and the board game from Hasbro, Inc. Additional materials by Hunter Foster and Eric Price

CAST (in alphabetical order): Fernando Barbosa, Sara Coombs, Jennifer Ellis, Lisa Kate Joyce, Maureen Keiller, Genevieve Lefevre, Mark Linehan, Paul Melendy, Bryan Miner, Bill Mootos, Katie Pickett, Stewart Evan Smith, Ceit Zweil. Performances through June 25 at Greater Boston Stage Company, 395 Main Street, Stoneham, MA 02180; Box Office: 781-279-2200 or greaterbostonstage.org

**by Nancy Grossman**

One of the hallmarks of growing up in the 1950s and 60s was the simplicity of it. On nice days, children played a variety of outdoor games with their friends – hopscotch, tag, hide ’n’ seek, and disorganized football or baseball, if there were enough kids to make teams. On rainy days or through the colder months, most families could gather around a selection of board games. Monopoly was probably the best-known and most popular, but Clue was one of my favorites for the mystery of it all. It was pretty exciting for a kid to have the chance to play detective and scope out who was the murderer, what was the murder weapon, and where did it happen? I probably didn’t know the term deductive reasoning, but I learned how to do it while playing a great game.

Fast forward about sixty years and CLUE (adapted from the board game and the 1985 Paramount Pictures film) is now onstage at the Greater Boston Stage Company. The black comedy/mystery features a fabulous ensemble cast playing a group of strangers invited to a dinner party where they are to confront their blackmailer, only to find themselves suspect when he is murdered. Mirth and mayhem (and not a whole lot else) ensue, but this trivial pursuit is an amusing ride.

Your gracious host is Wadsworth, the butler, captivatingly played by GBSC favorite Paul Melendy (Elliot Norton Award winner for The Legend of Sleepy Hollow). He sets the pace and tone as the other characters arrive on the scene and jump into the fray. Thanks to Ceit Zweil’s inventive movement design and Melendy’s physical comedy chops, seven actors snake and trot from room to room in a series of humorous parades, enhanced by atmospheric lighting changes (Jeff Adelberg) and zippy music (Caroline Eng, sound).

The familiar suspects include pompous Professor Plum (Mark Linehan), femme (is-she-or-isn’t-she) fatale Miss Scarlet (Jennifer Ellis), tipsy Mrs. Peacock (Maureen Keiller, over the top in a good way), stuffy Colonel Mustard (Bill Mootos), timid Mr. Green (Stewart Evan Smith), and serial widow Mrs. White (Sara Coombs, u/s). They are supported by the maid Yvette (Genevieve Lefevre) and cook (Katie Pickett, u/s) until they join the growing pile of bodies atop Mr. Boddy (Bryan Miner), the apparent blackmailer.

Scenic designer Katy Monthei and the Ogunquit Playhouse Scene Shop provide a dollhouse of a set with lots of moveable walls and a multitude of doors that add to the fun. Watch for little details like color-coded costumes (Deirdre Gerrard) and oversized murder weapons (Emily Allison, properties) to heighten the experience. Like any good detective, the more things you notice, the more likely you are to solve the puzzle. Kudos to Director Weylin Symes for putting together this crackerjack ensemble and helping them to show that murder and blackmail can be a team sport.

A.R.T.’s Spectacular ‘Evita’ Raises the Bar on the Term, “Production Values”

June 10, 2023July 24, 2023 michaelhoban1 Comment

Shereen Pimentel (Eva) in ***Evita*** at American Repertory Theater. Photo Credits: Emilio Madrid.

Lyrics by Tim Rice. Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Directed by Sammi Cannold. Choreography by Emily Maltby, Valeria Solomonoff; Music Direction by Mona Seyed-Bolorforosh; Scenic Design by Jason Sherwood; Costume Design by Alejo Vietti,; Lighting Design by Bradley King. Presented by the American Repertory Theater in Association with Shakespeare Theatre Company at the Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle St., Cambridge through July 30.

by Shelley A. Sackett

A cross between an iron maiden and a fairy princess gown, the replica of Eva Peron’s famous Dior strapless gown hangs suspended over a neon-framed stage. Like a mummified 3-dimensional diorama, the white bejeweled dress takes on a life of its own, its bodice both unsettling and beckoning, warning the audience: look but do not touch.

Gloucester Stage’s ‘Private Lives’ Injects New Life into Comedy Classic

June 7, 2023June 29, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Katie Croyle and Gunnar Manchester in ‘Private Lives’ at Gloucester Stage. Photos by James Grow

‘Private Lives’ – by Noël Coward; Directed by Diego Arciniegas; Scenic Design by Izmir Ickbal; Sound Design by Eric Hamel; Costume Design by Nia Safarr Banks; Lighting Design by Anshuman Bhatia; Fight & Intimacy Direction by Angie Jepson. Presented by Gloucester Stage at 267 E. Main St., Gloucester, through June 25

by Mike Hoban

Early on in the classic Noel Coward comedy Private Lives, Victor, the blissfully unaware second husband of Amanda, the beautiful and sophisticated socialite, laments to her, “I wish I knew you better,” to which she quickly replies, “It’s just as well you don’t.” Truer words were never spoken, and over the next two hours, he and Sybil Chase, his equally unlucky marital counterpart, will get to know their new spouses in ways that they never bargained for in this riotous season opener for Gloucester Stage.

Small Town, Big Dreams in Lyric’s ‘Rooted’

June 6, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Katherine Callaway, Karen MacDonald, and Lisa Tucker in ‘Rooted’ at the Lyric

Written by Deborah Zoe Laufer. Directed by Courtney O’Connor. Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland, Costume Design by Chelsea Kerl, Lighting Design by Karen Perlow, Original Music and Sound Co-Design by Dewey Dellay, and Sound Co-Design by Andrew Duncan Will. Properties by Lauren Corcuera.

by Linda Chin

In crafting Rooted, the story of two small-town, medium-aged women with big dreams, playwright Deborah Zoe Laufer returned to her childhood roots in the Catskills for inspiration. Besides Hazel (Karen MacDonald), an energetic, fast-talking waitress and primary caregiver of her younger sister, Emery (Lisa Tucker), who has a physical disability and uses a walker, the fictional town of Millerville’s inhabitants include Stuart, Giancarlo, and dozens of other potted plants who live with the people-phobic, biophilic Emery in a tree house – named Mabel – that she hasn’t emerged from in over a decade. There are also lots of animals – birds in the sky above, cows in the pasture below. From the safety of the tree house, Emery does plant research and broadcasts her results via YouTube, and is satisfied with having no direct human contact – just peace, calm, and quiet. In contrast, Hazel is dissatisfied and bored with small-town life, and though she loves her sister deeply, she desperately wants to escape.

A Life-Affirming Production Of ‘The Color Purple’ at Umbrella Stage

May 30, 2023May 31, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘The Color Purple’ at Umbrella Stage

Book by Marsha Norman. Music and Lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray. Produced by Brian Boruta. Directed by BW Gonzalez. Music Direction by Nathanael Wilkerson. Choreographed by Najee A. Brown. Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland. Lighting Design by SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal; Sound Design by James Cannon. Costume Designer: Danielle Domingue SumiHair, Hair & Makeup Design by Schanaya Barrows. Through June 4 at Umbrella Stage, 40 Stow St., Concord, MA.

by Linda Chin

Umbrella Stage’s production of The Color Purple, a musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, is – in a word – epic.

Designers Janie E. Howland, Danielle Domingue Sumi, and SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal have created a world that is simultaneously unassuming and powerful: an unpainted, multi-level structure constructed of rough-hewn beams and natural wood deck boards, unadorned, well-worn period costumes in earthy tones, and soft, dusky lighting punctuated with jewel tones (including the titular color) transport us to rural Georgia in 1909-1949.

SWEENEY TODD

May 22, 2023June 7, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Tony Annicone

Trinity Rep’s closing musical of their 59th season is Stephen Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd,” which opened on Broadway on March 1, 1979, and won 8 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. This musical is a macabre tragicomedy based on the legend of a half-mad 19th Century English barber driven to crime when an evil judge takes his wife and daughter from him. Unjustly imprisoned, Todd eventually escapes 15 years later and vows to bring justice to the judge who destroyed his life and all the people of London. He forms a partnership with Mrs. Lovett, an enterprising bar mistress whose previously worst meat pies in London soon become the tastiest, with Todd’s victims as their secret ingredient. This musical also shines with a fabulous turntable set by the late Eugene Lee and Patrick Lynch with terrific costumes by Shahrzad Mazaheri. Director Curt Columbus infuses his cast with the energy and insight to pull off these complex characters. At the same time, music director Andrew Smithson taught the talented cast members the intricate and precise Sondheim music and lyrics in this over three-hundred-page score. The diction is crystal clear. Their combined efforts produce a sensational musical that must not be missed. It is rewarded with a resounding standing ovation at night’s close.

Addiction Recovery-Centered Theater Group 2nd Act Premieres New Work, ‘I’ll Be There For You’

May 20, 2023June 2, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

2nd Act is a collective of artists in recovery that uses theatre, film, and drama therapy to address the impact of substance use by empowering diverse and inclusive communities to promote understanding in the face of stigma. Founded in 1984 by Lynn Bratley as the Improbable Players, the troupe performed “prevention plays” in middle and high schools for the first quarter century of their existence, with titles like “I’ll Never Do That!”, a four-person play about a family affected by alcohol and drug use, and “Stages,” a two-person play about how alcohol and other drugs affect us at every stage of our lives. The group merged with Rhode-Island based COAAST (Creating Outreach About Addiction Support Together) in 2021 and expanded its programming to include a Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Theatre program and a Drama Therapy program.

The organizations have performed for well over a million audience members during their “extended run.” 2nd Act will hold its annual spring fundraiser on Tuesday, May 23rd at the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion in Boston from 6:00-8:00 pm. The evening will kick off with a VIP reception, including mocktails and light fare, followed by a premiere staged reading of our newest prevention play; I’ll Be There For You. This new show will be performed by actors in recovery and is based on interviews with Queer and BIPOC youth in recovery from Substance Use Disorder, and will highlight their voices as under-served members of our community. This premiere is intended to raise funds for I’ll Be There For You to tour middle and high schools in New England in the coming school year.

‘Beautiful’ Continues its Reign as King of Jukebox Musicals at Ogunquit Playhouse

May 17, 2023June 2, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Matthew Amira, Sarak Bockel in *Beautiful – The Carole King Musical* at Ogunquit Playhouse

‘Beautiful’ – Book by Douglas McGrath. Words and Music by Gerry Goffin, Carole King, Barry Mann, and Cynthia Weil. David Ruttura, Director. Joyce Chittick, Choreographer/Associate Director. Nick Williams, Music Director. Derek McLane, Scenic Design. Alejo Vieti, Costume Design. Richard Latta, Lighting Design. Kevin Heard, Sound Design. Roxanne De Luna, Wig Design. At Ogunquit Playhouse through June 10

by Mike Hoban

One of the good things about the plethora of jukebox musicals that have dominated the theater scene in recent years (as well as tribute bands in music venues) is that if you’re a fan of the artist, you can pretty much bank on having a reasonably good time. But if it’s the Ogunquit Playhouse’s spectacular production of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical, then you can count on having a GREAT time. Ogunquit has brought back the show barely six months after its run last fall (which I also saw), and if anything, the show feels even more energized in this restaging.