Theater Mirror Reviewers Top Five Picks for 2021

December 31, 2021December 31, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

*Zurin Villanueva and Gregg Mozgala in the Huntington’s ‘Teenage Dick’*

Let’s face it, as eagerly as theatergoers anticipated the return to live theater in 2021, it was a fairly unremarkable year in terms of productions. And given that the season didn’t fully get underway until September (with the exception of Gloucester Stage’s solid outdoor programming at the Windhover Performing Arts Center in Rockport), there wasn’t a wealth of shows to weigh in on for a top 10 list for the year, and please bear in mind that reviewers did not see all of the shows. So here are the Top 5 lists as submitted by our participating reviewers (with links provided to original Theater Mirror reviews):

Believe the Hype- ‘Imagine Van Gogh’ at SoWa Power Station Is A Knockout

December 23, 2021December 23, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Shelley A. Sackett

‘Imagine Van Gogh the Original Immersive Exhibition in Image Totale©” is at the SoWa Power Station, Boston, through March 19, 2022. For tickets or more information, go to www.imagine-vangogh.com .

“Imagine Van Gogh the Original Immersive Exhibition in Image Totale©” has been advertising its arrival in Boston since last March. At last, the wait is over and, in a nutshell, it was well worth it.

It is hard to overstate the impact of walking into a 24,000 square foot architectural wonder that has been transformed into a blank canvas for multi-projections of 200 of the Dutch artist’s most vibrant and famous paintings. Viewers don’t just enter a gallery; they enter a world, miraculously passing through a magical keyhole that allows us to become part of these masterpieces.

An Invigorating “Fiddler on the Roof” Comes to Emerson Colonial

December 23, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ at Emerson Colonial. Photos by Joan Marcus

by Michele Markarian

‘Fiddler on the Roof’ – Book by Joseph Stein. Music by Jerry Bock. Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick Original Direction by Bartlett Sher; Direction Recreated by Sari Ketter and Shirley Butler. Presented by NETworks Presentations, Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston Street, Boston through December 26.

I love “Fiddler on the Roof”. I have seen this show more times than I can count, including a middle school production in Rhode Island with a then twelve-year old Andrew Burnap, winner of this year’s Tony award for his role in “Inheritance”, as a very convincing Tevye. It’s a great show, and it’s hard to imagine that any one production could make it even greater. But last night’s show at the Emerson Colonial did exactly that.

Christmas Revels Returns to Sanders Theater

December 22, 2021December 23, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

William Fournier and Carolyn Saxon with cast in ‘Christmas Revels’- Photos by Shep Ferguson

by Mike Hoban

‘The Christmas Revels: In Celebration of the Winter Solstice’ – Directed by Patrick Swanson; Musical Direction by George Emlen, Edmar Colon, Associate Music Director; Set Design by Jeremy Barnett; Sound Design by Bill Winn; Lighting Design by Jeff Adelberg; Choreography by Kelli Edwards; Costume Design by Kelli Edwards, Gillian Stewart, Tony Tucker; Heidi A. Hermiller; Projection Designer; Presented by Revels at The Sanders Theater at Harvard University, 45 Quincy Street, Cambridge, through December 23rd (run cut short by COVID concerns)

Following a year when the Christmas Revels celebrated its 50^th anniversary with a virtual performance made up mostly of taped snippets from the previous 49 years of shows, the Celebration of the Winter Solstice returns live once again to the magnificent Sanders Theater with its truly traditional holiday-themed fare. And while previous editions have taken us back in time to various locales of the northern hemisphere to celebrate traditions around the Winter Solstice (the shortest day), this year’s performance is set in a present-day English pub, where the patrons gather to sing traditional English village carols, led by pub owners Rita (Revels veteran Carolyn Saxon) and her partner (William Forchion). The pub is visited by time travelers from the Elizabethan era (or a Renaissance fair), who threaten to revoke the Christmas Revels charter for their failure to comply with some vague rules of conduct. It’s an interesting set up to a show that offers a number of creative twists to the standard programming.

Arlekin Players’ ‘Witness’ Unflinchingly Details the Jewish Experience

December 15, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Arlekin Players ‘Witness’ (virtual)

by Julie-Anne Whitney

‘Witness’– Written by Nana Grinstein with Igor Golyak and Blair Cadden; conceived and directed by Igor Golyak; scenography and costume design by Anna Fedorova; virtual design by Daniel Cormino; sound design by Victor Semenov; editing by Anton Nikolaev; cinematography by Austin de Besche; dramaturgy by Blair Cadden; stage managed by Kendyl Trott. This world premiere production runs at the (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab through January 23, 2022.

“Where do unwanted people go?” This is the question that Arlekin Players Theater is asking us to consider in their new virtual documentary theater piece, Witness.

Set on a ship that travels through time, Witness explores the seemingly endless migratory experiences of Jewish people throughout history. The source material for the script comes from historical letters, journals, and newspaper articles as well as recent interviews with immigrants and refugees from around the world. The story, written by Nana Grinstein, is inspired by the 1939 transatlantic voyage of the M.S. St. Louis. With over 900 Jewish refugees on board, the St. Louis was cruelly turned away from ports in Cuba, Canada, and the U.S., and ultimately forced to return to Europe. Of the more than 500 passengers who became trapped in Nazi-controlled countries, 254 of them were killed in concentration camps.

Moonbox Offers End-of-Year Delights with ‘Passing Strange’

December 14, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Moonbox Productions’ ‘Passing Strange’ Photos: Nikolai Alexander

by James Wilkinson

‘Passing Strange’ – Book and Lyrics by Stew. Music By Stew and Heidi Rodewald. Created in collaboration with Annie Dorsen. Directed by Arthur Gomez. Associate Director: Regine Vital. Music Director: Julius LaFlamme. Associate Music Director: David Freeman Coleman. Set Designer: Lindsay Fuori. Lighting Designer: Aja M. Jackson. Choreographer: Elmer Martinez. Costume Design: Chelsea Kerl. Sound Design: James Cannon. Props Design: Michelle Sparks. Presented by Moonbox Productions at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, December 10, 2021-January 1, 2021.

It’s all about the atmosphere here. That’s the vibe you get when you walk into Moonbox Productions’ Passing Strange and the stage is awash in electric blue light. The performance space is devoid of furniture, the musicians haven’t yet taken their places on the side, but the theater already has a crisp glow to it. Get ready. Musicals as an artform tend to veer toward the bombastic. Even for supposedly intimate chamber pieces, it’s all about getting to that moment when mere dialogue doesn’t do the emotions justice and the songs explode out of the characters diaphragms. Passing Strange is working on a different wave length. It’s not that the show lacks big musical moments that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up, (they’re here and they rip), it’s that it gets to those moments in a much more circuitous way. Moonbox’s production is one that you slide right into and it feels as lived-in as a memoir. Everything we witness is through the eyes of our lead character; we’re practically under his skin.

“Wild: A Musical Becoming” Soars at A.R.T.

December 12, 2021December 23, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of “Wild: A Musical Becoming” at A.R.T. Photo Credits Maggie Hall – Nile Scott Studios

by Michele Markarian

“Wild: A Musical Becoming”. Book by V (formerly Eve Ensler). Music by Justin Tranter and Caroline Pennell, with contributions by Eren Cannata. Lyrics by Justin Tranter, Caroline Pennell and V, with contributions by Idina Menzel. Directed by Diane Paulus. Presented by American Repertory Theater, Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle Street, Cambridge, through January 2.

Admittedly, I was not 100% enthused about seeing a musical theater piece about climate change that was billed as a script-in-hand, concert production, but being a huge Idina Menzel fan, as well as a concerned citizen for the climate, I decided it might be worth it. Having seen it, I can say with conviction that even if you are not an Idina Menzel fan and are oblivious to the climate crisis, run, don’t walk, to your keyboard and order tickets to this musical happening. This is by far one of the most electrifying and energizing shows I have seen all year, delivering its urgent message with heart and hope. From the exuberant, toe tapping opening number by the entire cast of “Mouths to Feed”, the audience knew we were in for something special.

Huntington Theatre’s Ambitious ‘Teenage Dick’ Challenges Our Assumptions

December 10, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Louis Reyes McWilliams, Shannon DeVido, Emily Townley, Portland Thomas, Gregg Mozgala in ‘Teenage Dick’, at The Huntington Calderwood/BCA. Photos: Teresa Castracane

‘Teenage Dick’ – Written by Mike Lew; Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel; Scenic Design by Wilson Chin; Sound Design by Palmer Hefferan; Lighting Design by Amith Chandrashaker; Choreography by Jennifer Weber; Fight Choreography by Robb Hunter. Presented by The Huntington Theatre Company at The Calderwood Pavillion, 527 Tremont St., Boston through January 2, 2022.

by Shelley A. Sackett

From the moment he walks onto the bare stage and addresses the audience in the first of many private monologues, it’s clear 17-year-old Roseland High School junior Richard Gloucester (Gregg Mozgala) has an angle beyond just establishing a connection with the audience. What that angle is is less clear, and will shape-shift with dizzying speed during the next 70 minutes until the audience is left in a delicious murky space of questioning almost everything they thought they knew about both Richard and themselves.

NSMT’s ‘A Christmas Carol’ Delivers a Hopeful Holiday Extravaganza

December 8, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

David Coffee (Ebenezer Scrooge) and Alex Puette (Jacob Marley) in A CHRISTMAS CAROL at North Shore Music Theatre – Dec 2-23. Photos by Paul Lyden

By Mike Hoban

‘A Christmas Carol: A Musical Ghost Story’ – Adapted by Jon Kimbell. Based on the Novella by Charles Dickens; Director/Choreographer, Kevin P. Hill; Music Director, Milton Granger. Presented by the North Shore Music Theatre, Dunham Road, Beverly through December 23^rd

Following a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the North Shore Music Theatre returns with its own special spin on the Christmas Carol holiday classic with the 30^th anniversary presentation of A Christmas Carol: A Musical Ghost Story – and delivers the heartwarming tale of redemption with a terrific score along with a dose of pyrotechnics. The NSMT adaptation retains much of the dialogue and storyline of the original, as cold-hearted Ebenezer Scrooge is transformed into a loving and fully realized human being with the help of some friendly (and frightening) spirits showing him the way.

Peter Fogel Brings Jewish-Italian Heritage Show to the Arlington Regent for the Holidays

December 3, 2021December 4, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Michele Markarian

Peter J. Fogel, the actor and standup comedian is coming to town to perform Steve Solomon’s “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish, I’m Home for Holidays!”, a role he’s enacted, in one form or another, from South Florida to Trinity Rep in Providence. The one-man show will run from December 8 through the 19^th at the Arlington Regent Theater. Theater Mirror spoke to Peter from his home in Florida.

Theater Mirror: Tell us a little bit about the show.

Peter: The character I play is on his way home for the holidays and ends up stuck at Atlanta-Hatfield Airport, with relatives complaining and freaking out over the telephone. I play 25 different characters in about two hours. I think it’s a show that a lot of people can relate to. Generational boomers love it because they have to take care of their elderly parents. The play takes family dysfunction and makes people laugh about it.