A Thrilling, Imaginative “Sacre” by CIRCA

February 11, 2023February 11, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Sacre’ at the *Boch Center Shubert Theatre*

by Michele Markarian

“Sacre”. Created by Yaron Lifschitz and the Circa Ensemble. Directed by Yaron Lifschitz. Music by Philippe Bachman and Igor Stravinsky. Presented by the Celebrity Series of Boston, Boch Center Shubert Theatre, 265 Tremont Street Boston, through February 11.

Watching “Sacre”, I couldn’t help but think of my first trip to India. The streets were crowded with activity – tuk tuks, people four or five deep on motorbikes, cars, regular bicycles. My colleague and I stood on one side of the road, jittery, panicking, eventually darting tensely across the street like rabbits on steroids. The people who lived there, though, had no such fear. They calmly and serenely crossed the street, as if they were working with the chaos and motion, and not against it. “Sacre” has a similar flow to it, a synergy between cast members of safety, trust, and belonging that’s only frightening if you’re on the outside looking in.

‘Bad Jews’ at the Gamm Theatre

February 6, 2023May 10, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Gamm Theatre’s second show in 2023 is the one-act play “Bad Jews” by Joshua Harmon. The show premiered back in 2013 and is a dark comedy about faith, culture, and how our honor to our family and history influences us. 10 years ago was a relatively peaceful time for Jewish people, but since the 2016 election, the tide has turned in the other direction with White Supremacists rearing their ugly heads and antisemitism ramping up – t not only in the United States but around the world, too. The play becomes a warning about not becoming complacent in these troubled times and to be aware to make sure that the atrocities of the past do not repeat themselves. “Bad Jews” uses humor, not only to entertain but to educate us that even though some people are unlikeable, they still struggle to understand the problems as well as to be understood. Harmon uses four characters in this show to display what he’s concerned about. The turmoil occurs after a grandfather dies in New York, leaving a treasured piece of religious jewelry that he successfully hid from the Nazis during the Holocaust. The heirs – who are cousins – not only fight over the family heirloom but about their religious faith, cultural assimilation, and last but not least, the validity of their romances. Director Tony Estrella casts these four roles splendidly and elicits an in-depth vision of their inner thoughts and feelings which they convey in a comic as well as a meaningful way for the audience to understand completely. The off-kilter set by Patrick Lynch conveys the strained family dynamics beautifully. You can see into every room of the set. Stage manager Kelsey Emry keeps things running smoothly all night long.

The Huntington’s ‘The Art of Burning’ Smolders and Sparks

February 6, 2023February 6, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Adrianne Krstansky, Michael Kaye and Rom Barkhordar in The Huntington’s ‘Art of Burning’
Photo Credit: T Charles Erickson

“The Art of Burning” by Kate Snodgrass. Directed by Melia Bensussen. Scenic Design: Luciana Stecconi; Lighting Design: Aja M. Jackson; Sound Design: Jane Shaw; Costume Design: Kate Harmon. Presented by The Huntington, Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, 527 Tremont Street, Boston through February 12.

by Shelley A. Sackett

Patricia (Adrianne Krstansky), a frumpy middle-aged painter, opens Kate Snodgrass’ ‘The Art of Burning’ mid-conversation with her friend Charlene (Laura Latreille). “Sometimes we have to kill the things we love to save them,” she announces seemingly out of the blue. Charlene adds critical context. The two have just seen a production of “Medea” and are debriefing outside the theater.

In the ancient Greek tragedy by Euripides, Medea takes vengeance on her unfaithful husband Jason by murdering his new younger wife as well as her own two sons, after which she escapes to Athens to start a new life. To Charlene’s discomfort, Patricia not only sympathizes with Medea, she praises her.

“She saves her children,” Patricia explains. “She doesn’t want to but she has to. The world will make their lives miserable and she doesn’t want that. She loves them.” Patricia may look mousey, but she is a mouse that roars.

Q & A with Benjamin Knapton of ‘Sacre’, ‘The Rite of Spring’ Performance Re-Imagined as Circus

February 5, 2023February 5, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of “Sacre”, being presented by Celebrity Series of Boston February 9-111

Next weekend (February 9-11) the Celebrity Series of Boston will present “Sacre”, a re-imagining of “The Rite of Spring” by Australian contemporary circus company Circa, at the Boch Center Shubert Theatre. Theater Mirror had an opportunity to speak with acting artistic director Benjamin Knapton, who directed “Sacre”, last week.

TM: Tell us about Circa and how they differ from other circus arts troupes?

BK: In the early 2000s, Yaron Lifschitz (artistic director and CEO of Circa) took over a troupe called Rock n Roll Circus, and that company was doing some real different circus in Brisbane, Australia at the time. Yaron has a theater background, and when he started working with the (troupe) he essentially stripped it back, taking away the fancy costumes and lighting and set design, and really started to focus on the acrobatic body and what it could do, as well as the personalities and the emotional capacity of the performance. Since then, we’ve brought back sets and lighting and we do children’s shows (“Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus”), but the heart of that intent is still focused on the acrobatics, the acrobatic body and who the are performers are as people. With ‘Sacre’ for instance, there’s nothing on stage, it’s an empty black space lit by this one light. And it really focuses in on these extraordinary 10 acrobats who are in the show.

Hell Hath No Fury in “The Art of Burning”

January 31, 2023February 1, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Adrianne Krstansky, Michael Kaye, and Rom Barkhordar in “The Art of Burning” at The Huntington Photos by T Charles Erickson

“The Art of Burning” by Kate Snodgrass. Directed by Melia Bensussen. Costume Design: Kate Harmon Lighting Design: Aja M. Jackson Scenic Design: Luciana Stecconi Sound Design: Jane Shaw. Presented by The Huntington, Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, 527 Tremont Street, Boston through February 12.

by Michele Markarian

Patricia (Adrianne Krstansky) is a scary, angry, off-kilter painter. Her husband, Jason (Rom Barkhordar) has left her for his younger colleague, Katya (Vivia Font), and the two of them are duking it out for custody of their fifteen year old daughter, Beth (Clio Contogenis). Their family friend Mark (Michael Kaye) is acting as their mediator at Jason’s insistence, a fact that Patricia doesn’t appreciate. When Mark’s wife, Charlene (Laura Latreille) relays the story of a “friend” who’s having an affair, Patricia’s self-righteous and judgmental attitude about people who have affairs is alienating. Patricia is on a collision course, unhinged by the infidelity of Jason.

Good Things Come in Threes in Trinity’s ‘By the Queen’

January 23, 2023January 26, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Fiona Marie Maguire as Margaret 1, Paula Plum as Margaret 3 and Rachel Christopher as Margaret 2,. Photos by Mark Turek.

By the Queen – By Whitney White; Adapted from William Shakespeare’s Henry VI plays and Richard III; Directed by Brian McEleney; Set Design by Michael McGarty; Costume Design by Toni Spadafora-Sadler; Lighting Design by Christina Watanabe; Sound Design by Larry D. Fowler, Jr.; Fight and Intimacy Choreography by Angie Jepson; Dramaturgy by Andrew Watring. Photo by Mark Turek. Presented by Trinity Repertory Theatre in the Dowling Theater through February 12, 2023

by Jim Phelan

It is said that good things come in threes. It is no surprise, then, that a company with Trinity in its name should produce such a “good” artistic “thing” as the world premiereof By the Queen. At the core of Trinity Rep’s production is the fundamental technique of portraying one character using three actors – one for each stage of their life. The character is Queen Margaret of Anjou. Not only a significant historical figure, she is also the only character in Shakespeare’s canon to appear in four of his plays (Henry VI – Parts 1, 2, and 3, and Richard III). Director Brian McEleney calls her Shakespeare’s “longest-running, most complicated, and most fleshed-out female character.” By the Queen takes the audience on a tour of Margaret’s life through the Bard’s works, guided by the three Margarets. Along the way, they offer the wisdom that can only come from bearing witness to the ups and downs, the wars and love affairs, the births and murders, which only Shakespeare (and history) can script. The result is a thought-provoking and enjoyable Shakespeare-ish story (whether or not one knows the Bard’s plays) as told through the eyes of a modern-day storyteller with a message that is all her own.

Gamm’s “Faith Healer” Explores Truth and Myth

January 17, 2023January 17, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Tony Estrella as Frank Hardy in Gamm Theatre’s “Faith Healer”. Photos by Cat Laine

by Tony Annicone

The opening show in 2023 at GAMM Theatre is the 1979 “Faith Healer” by the acclaimed Irish author Brian Friel, who also wrote “Translations” and “Dancing at Lughnasa.” This play deals with a faith healer, his wife and his stage manager, whose stories are told by each character from their vantage point and the audience learns there is a deep dark secret hidden in their relationships. The story is told in lyrical monologues about Francis Hardy’s performances and about a terrible event that shaped all that happened afterwards. Making her U.S. debut as a director is Donnla Hughes who originally hails from Ireland. She directs this show with a firm and steady hand. She completely understands the way that Friel writes these characters and has her performers bring out the inner workings of the three of them, so the audience grasps things completely during each of their monologues. The three characters are Frank Hardy, the faith healer, his wife or mistress, Grace Hardy and his manager, Teddy. They capture the memory and humanity of their situation in a beautiful and unique way which wins them a resounding standing ovation at the close of the show.

Lyric Stage’s Genre-Defying ‘Preludes’ Is A Trip

January 11, 2023January 12, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Preludes’ at Boston Lyric Stage

‘Preludes’ — Music, Lyrics, Book and Orchestration by Dave Malloy. Directed by Courtney O’Connor; Music Direction by Dan Rodriguez; Scenic Design by Shelley Barish; Costume Design by Rachel Padula-Shufelt; Lighting Design by Karen Perlow; Sound Design by Andrew Duncan Will. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon St., Boston through February 5.

by Shelley A. Sackett

I readily admit I am one of those theatergoers who enjoys plot, dialogue and purpose. You can throw in all the special effects, time warp gimmickry and non sequiturs you want, but they are the icing, not the cake. You can give me experimental, but don’t leave out the context.

So it took me some time to figure out exactly what was going on in ‘Preludes.’ In fact, it took me until intermission when I both googled a synopsis and read the playbill’s fine print.

High Spirited ‘Chicken & Biscuits’ Marks Front Porch’s First Solo Production

January 7, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Chicken & Biscuits’ by The Front Porch Arts Collective at Suffolk University Modern Theatre

‘Chicken & Biscuits’ — Written by Douglas Lyons. Directed by Lyndsay Allyn Cox; Scenic Design by Erik D. Diaz; Costume Design by Zoe Sundra; Lighting Design by M. Berry; Sound Design by Anna Drummond. Presented by The Front Porch Arts Collective at Suffolk University Modern Theatre, 525 Washington St., Boston through January 8.

By Shelley A. Sackett

The architectural bones of Suffolk University’s Modern Theater are a set made to order for ‘Chicken & Biscuits,’ the first solo production by The Front Porch Arts Collective, a Black theater company whose previous presentations have been in collaboration with other larger companies.

Theater Mirror’s Reviewers ‘Top 10’ Lists for 2022

January 1, 2023January 24, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of 42nd Street at Goodspeed Musicals 2022

Mike Hoban, Editor

The 2022 theatrical season got off to an inauspicious start, saddled by the persistent pandemic (which led to multiple cancellations of performances through the summer and some productions featuring masked performers) and a number of well-intentioned productions whose didactic approach on social-themed productions often wiped out any hope for artistic excellence. As the year progressed, both concerns became more muted, and paring down the list to a “Top 10” became much more of a challenge.