Cast Shines in Thought Provoking NIGHT OF THE IGUANA at GAMM

October 17, 2018October 17, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Gamm Theatre’s first show of their 34th season in their new theatre in Warwick is “Night of the Iguana” by Tennessee Williams which is based on his 1946 short story. He later developed it into a three act play. It is the darkly tragicomic 1961 show about humanity’s difficulty in hanging onto love, faith and grace, set on the brink of World War II when these things were sorely lacking which sounds a lot like things these days, too. The show is set in 1940 at a run down Costa Verde Hotel on the west coast of Mexico where the recently widowed Maxine Faulks sees a chance to hang onto her life and trade when an old pal from Texas visits her.

The Sins of the Father Come Out at Praxis Stage

October 15, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Review by James Wilkinson

All My Sons – Written by Arthur Miller. Directed by Joe Juknievich. Assistant Director/Stage Manager: Isabelle Beagen. Costume Design: Maureen Festa. Sound Design: Francis avier Norton. Movement/Intimacy/Violence Director: Kayleigh Kane. Produced by Praxis Stage at Chelsea Theatre Works through October 27, 2018.

It feels like Arthur Miller should be having more of a moment in theatrical circles than he currently is. Looking at his best work, you can see him wrestling with many of the ideas bouncing around in our contemporary political climate. What is America? What do we owe each other? How do the darker sides of capitalism affect the family unit? The individual? From the start of his career, Miller seemed to be taking the baton from Ibsen and using a theatrical framework to examine the relationship between the individual and society. One of Miller’s early works was even an English-adaptation of Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, a play that looks at the cost a man is willing to pay for speaking truth against the wishes of the people around him. Earlier this year, I decided to acquaint myself with more of Miller’s work and it was fascinating to find specific lines and scenes in those old plays that spoke to the current moment. It’s a sign of either an especially prescient writer or a stunted society that didn’t learn its lesson when the work was staged the first time around.

BLO’s ‘Barber of Seville’ a Comic and Musical Gem

October 15, 2018October 16, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Mike Hoban

THE BARBER OF SEVILLE – Music by Gioacchino Rossini; Libretto by Cesare Sterbini; Sung in Italian with English surtitles; Conductor David Angus; Stage Director Rosetta Cucchi; Set Designer Julia Noulin-Mérat; Costume Designer Gianluca Falaschi; Lighting Designer DM Wood. Presented by the Boston Lyric Opera at the Emerson Cutler Majestic Theater, 219 Tremont St., Boston through October 21

As I have stated in my previous reviews of opera, the extent of my experience with the form until this past spring has been limited to viewings of the Warner Bros. classic, “What’s Opera Doc”. And while that may disqualify me from having an informed opinion on the operatic qualities of the Boston Lyric Opera’s production of Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, I can say unequivocally that from a pure entertainment standpoint, Barber is a blast. From the opening strains of the overture (which should be instantly recognizable to anyone who has ever listened to classical music or, quite frankly, ever watched television in the previous century) to the joyful marriage of Rosina and Count Almaviva where EVERYBODY wins – even the ‘bad” guys – BLO’s ‘Barber’ is a comic and musical joy.

The Beautiful, Hideous Creation of “Frankenstein”

October 12, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Michele Markarian

“Frankenstein” by Nick Dear. Based on the novel by Mary Shelley. Directed by David R. Gammons. Presented The Nora Theatre Company and Underground Railway Theater, Central Square Theater, 450 Mass. Ave in Cambridge, through November 4.

Set or art installation? That’s what comes to mind when walking into the main stage of Central Square Theater, where “Frankenstein” is now playing. The set, designed by Cristina Todesco, is beautiful in its structure and design – red and silver, with two floors, and clear panels that open and close, like drawbridges. We see a man pace on the second floor, and on the first, a living, breathing, five bodied organism writhes. Play or movement piece?, you may think as the creature breaks free, gasping and panting, going from a five bodied monster to a six bodied one, before reducing itself to three. It is a play, based on the book of the same name, but certainly one of the more visually stunning theatrical events I’ve seen in a while.

‘Pride and Prejudice’: A Farcical Adaptation at the Trinity Rep

October 12, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Deanna Dement Myers

‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Kate Hamill, adapted from the novel by Jane Austen. Directed and Choreographed by Birgitta Victorson; Set Design by Michael McGarty; Costume Design by Olivera Gajic; Lighting Design by Dawn Chiang; Sound Design by Broken Chord Voice; and Dialect Coaching by Candice Brown Production Stage Managed by Meg Tracy Leddy. Performance through Nov. 4 at Trinity Rep., 201 Washington St., Providence.

“I love balls.”

So sighs the delightful Katie Croyle, who plays Lydia, the wild, youngest daughter of the Bennet family as she contemplates the upcoming party in their English neighborhood. This overshadows the traditional opening line (“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife”) and signals that there might be a contemporary spin on this classic tale of manners, misunderstanding, and proper matches.

“TOMMY” Bristol Theatre Company

October 11, 2018December 27, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Bristol Theatre Company’s latest show is the Who’s rock opera “Tommy” with music and lyrics by Pete Townshend and book by Townshend and Des McAnuff. Originally written as a concept album in 1969 and the movie in 1975, it was adapted into a stage play in the 1993 and ran on Broadway for almost 900 performances. The story is about Tommy, who as a four year old child witnesses his father kill his mother’s lover in self defense. As he stared at the mirror when this happened, he became deaf, dumb and blind. His parents search for a cure for many years and Tommy finds the one thing that he’s good at is pinball. When his upset mother finally smashes the mirror, Tommy recovers. Now famous for both becoming a pinball wizard and being cured, Tommy gets caught up in his fame, but when he returns, his fans turn on him. However instead of going back, to what he was before, Tommy turns to his family. This high energy show is beautifully executed, wins a standing ovation and it captivates the audience in while weaving a spell with fabulous singing, acting and dancing.

ASP Delivers a Stunning, Satisfying “MacBeth”

October 9, 2018October 10, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

By Michele Markarian

MacBeth. Written by William Shakespeare, in a modern verse translation by Migdalia Cruz. Directed by Dawn M. Simmons. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project, The United Parish in Brookline, 210 Harvard Street, Brookline through November 11.

As you walk into the nave of The United Parish of Boston, the setting for Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s “MacBeth”, you feel a deep sense of foreboding. Now okay, anyone familiar with the play has a pretty good idea of what they’re in for, but Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s productions are always wonderfully and dramatically atmospheric, and this show is no exception. Jon Savage’s stark, wood beamed set suggests both elegance and gloom, augmented by Laura Hildebrand’s lighting design and Elizabeth Cahill’s sound design. What follows over the next two and a half hours is one of the more accessible and affecting productions of “MacBeth” that I have ever seen.

Trinity Rep’s “Pride and Prejudice” a Gender-Bending Comic Romp

October 9, 2018October 9, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Reviewed by Tony Annicone

The opening show of Trinity Rep’s 55th season is “Pride and Prejudice” by Kate Hamill, an adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel. Written in 1813, the story depicts events, society and romance of that era. The four Bennet sisters, through their individual personalities, relationship to each other, their parents, societal acquaintances from all classes and finally their love interests reveal the manners and mores, the wit, pangs of the heart and the spunk of Austen’s characters.

Flat Earth’s ‘Delicate Particle Logic’ Artfully Examines Science, Truth

October 5, 2018December 27, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

(Christine Power, Thomas Grenon)

by Linda Chin

‘Delicate Particle Logic’ – Directed by Betsy S. Goldman; Darren Cornell (Set Design); Elizabeth Krah (Costume Design); PJ Strachman (Lighting Design); Brad Smith (Sound Design), and Christine Banna (Projection Design). Presented by Flat Earth Theatre at the Mosesian Center for the Arts’ Black Box, 321 Arsenal St., Watertown through October 13

One response to the question “What is the play with the [elusive] title Delicate Particle Logic about?” is as follows: it’s about scientists in Nazi Germany who discover nuclear fission and unleash the atomic age. A more elaborate, and less delicate description is that the play is the story of two scientists, one a German chemist (a man), one an Austrian physicist (a woman), who closely collaborated over decades and across borders and co-discovered the splitting of atoms, but didn’t end up splitting the credit.

Muppet Gone Wild – Hijinx Theatre’s ‘Meet Fred’ is a Darkly Comic Gem

September 29, 2018September 29, 2018 michaelhoban1 Comment

‘Meet Fred’ – Performance by Hijinx Theatre; Presented by Puppet Showplace Theater at the Boston Center for the Arts (BCA), Plaza Theatre, 539 Tremont St., Boston.

It really makes no difference whether you’re a fan of puppetry or not. Hijinx Theatre’s wonderfully absurd Meet Fred is bound to be one of the funniest and most original productions you’ll see this year. Meet Fred tells the story of Fred, a puppet in search of his humanity. Operated by three puppeteers (one for the head and voice, one for legs, the other for arms) he embarks on a journey that takes him through life’s essentials – work, love, regrets and revelations – all in a tidy 80 minutes. Along the way we’re treated to laugh-out-loud comedy that is definitely not for the kiddies.