Sullivan Rep’s Sumptuous ‘A Little Night Music’

June 6, 2024June 6, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Sullivan Rep’s ‘A Little Night Music’ at Newton City Hall

Sullivan Rep presents ‘A Little Night Music’. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Hugh Wheeler. Direction and Choreography by Dan Sullivan. Music Direction by Jenny Tsai. Lighting Design by Erik Fox. Properties Design by Rick Grenier. Costume Design by DW. Hair and Makeup Design by Bridget Sullivan. Sound Design by Paul Roach. At Newton City Hall, Newton, MA, through June 8, 2024.

By Linda Chin

For two weekends in June, Sullivan Rep presents the second show of its inaugural season – A Little Night Music by the late musical genius Stephen Sondheim. Like his more popular musicals – the macabre Sweeney Todd or the fanciful Into the Woods, A Little Night Music has the masterful score and brilliant lyrics that are Sondheim’s trademark and is a story about love, longing, and romantic pairings that don’t have fairy tale endings. With a book penned by Hugh Wheeler, A Little Night Music is part operetta, part social commentary, and part bedroom farce and includes melancholic and laugh-out-loud moments.

A Deeply Moving, Hauntingly Beautiful “Dybbuk”

June 6, 2024June 6, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Arlekin Players’ ‘The Dybbuk’ at the Vilna Shul. Photos: Irina Danilova

“The Dybbuk”. Written by Roy Chen. Based on the original play by S. Ansky and adapted by Igor Golyak with Dr. Rachel Merrill Moss. Directed by Igor Golyak. Presented by Arlekin Players Theatre at the Vilna Shul, Boston’s Center for Jewish Culture, 18 Phillips Street, Beacon Hill, Boston, through June 23^rd.

By Michele Markarian

There’s an Old World, otherworldly feeling of the Vilna Shul, one of the oldest immigrant synagogues in the United States, with its high, cracked ceilings, elaborate chandeliers and Hebrew names engraved on the walls. Plastic and scaffolding are in the center of the long rectangular room, with the sound of water dripping. The house manager announces that the show will be one hour and fifty minutes without an intermission. My friend and I look at each other; the dismay and fear on her face mirrors my own. Little did we know that one hour and fifty minutes later, we wouldn’t want “The Dybbuk” to end. It’s a stunning, spiritual production where the worlds of the living and the dead are never far from one another. While this is a world premiere, coincidentally, Ansky’s original version was performed in Yiddish by the Vilna Troupe.

Gloucester Stage’s ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’ Sends Up Middle-aged Family Dysfunction

June 5, 2024June 8, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Gloucester Stage’s ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’. Photos by Jason Grow

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike – By Christopher Durang; Directed by Rebecca Bradshaw. Set Design by Kristin Loeffler; Costumes by Chelsea Kerl; Lighting Design by Anshuman Bhatia; Sound Design by Melanie Chen Cole. Presented by Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, through June 23

By Mike Hoban

In the opening scene of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Gloucester Stage Company’s first offering of its 34^th season, we meet Sonia (Adrianne Krstansky) and Vanya (Diego Arciniegas), having coffee in their picturesque farmhouse overlooking a pond in Buck’s County, PA. Although they are brother and sister (Sonia is adopted), they banter like an eccentric middle-aged (50s) married couple: The fire’s gone out, but they’re too indifferent to move on. Sonia has turned wallowing in self-pity into an Olympic sport, while Vanya seems more resigned to his fate. The pair has spent the last 15 years of their life taking care of their elderly, now deceased, parents. They lament not what could have been but how meaningless their lives are, particularly in contrast to their sister Masha – the B-list movie star who rose to fame as the protagonist of the wildly popular B-movie “Sexy Killer,” which she milked for four sequels.

Huntington’s “Toni Stone” Tells the Story of One of the Best Baseball Players You Never Heard of

May 26, 2024May 26, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

The cast of *Toni Stone* at The Huntington Theatre. Photos by T. Charles Erickson.

‘Toni Stone’ — Written and Directed by Lydia R. Diamond. Inspired by “Curveball: The Remarkable True Story of Tony Stone” by Martha Ackmann. Presented by the Huntington, in an arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French. At the Huntington Theatre, 264 Huntington Ave., Boston, through June 16.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Toni Stone, the subject and title of playwright Lydia R. Diamond’s new drama, has one helluva story to tell. As played by the pitch-perfect Jennifer Mogbock, she is also one helluva terrific storyteller and more than up to the task of narrating the events of her remarkable life.

Which is a good thing, because “Toni Stone,” now at the Huntington, ran almost three hours (with a long intermission and delayed start) on opening night last Wednesday.

‘Bluey’ Comes to Life in Boston

May 20, 2024May 25, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

*Bluey’s Big Play* at the Boch Wang Center. Photo Credit: Darren Thomas

“Bluey’s Big Play” — Story by Joe Brumm. Music by Joff Bush. Presented by BBC Studios and Andrew Kay in association with Windmill Theatre Co. at the Boch Center Wang Theatre. Run has ended.

By Shelley A. Sackett

It’s true what they say about grandparenthood — there is nothing like it. There are so many things you didn’t even consider doing when childcare duties sucked your days dry of time and energy. But now that those children are grown and have children of their own (and are willing to drive them to meet you at the theater!), the opportunity to not just attend but actually enjoy such events as “Bluey’s Big Play” are the payoff.

Which I did last Saturday with my Bluey-obsessed three-year-old grandson. We had a blast.

Addiction Recovery-Centered Theater Group 2nd Act to Feature Storytelling at the Annual Fundraiser at the Huntington Theatre this Tuesday

May 20, 2024May 20, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

2nd Act’s Annual Encore: Celebrate Artists in Recovery, our spring fundraiser, which will be held on Tuesday, May 21st, 2024, at 7:00 pm at The Huntington Theatre (264 Huntington Avenue, Boston) in the Maso Studio.

By Mike Hoban

Boston – 2nd Act, a collective of theater artists in recovery who use theatre, film, and drama therapy to address the impact of substance use, will hold its annual fundraiser, Encore: Celebrate Artists in Recovery, at the Huntington Theatre this Tuesday. The troupe’s motto, “We believe in a world where all stories are honored, recovery is celebrated, and everyone gets a second act,” clearly defines its mission, will feature monologues by troupe members on the impact that 2^nd Act has had on their lives as performers and people in recovery. The evening will also include a video of 2^nd Act’s Social Emotional Learning Theatre Curriculum at Ostiguy HIgh School, Boston’s recovery high school.

Not Your Parents’ ‘Romeo & Juliet’ by Actors Shakespeare Project

May 19, 2024May 25, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Evan Taylor and Chloe McFarlane in Actors Shakespeare Project’s ‘Romeo & Juliet’

Actors Shakespeare Project presents ROMEO & JULIET. Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Marianna Bassham. Movement Choreography by Ilya Vidrin. Lighting Design by Deb Sullivan. Costume Design by Lisa Coleman. Props Design by Grey Rung. Scenic Design by Saskia Martínez. Sound Design by Jesse Hinson. At the Roberts Studio Theater, Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont Street, Boston, through June 2, 2024.

By Linda Chin

The works and words of William Shakespeare can be difficult to appreciate – and some may say, stay awake for – but after seeing their accessible production of Romeo and Juliet, I felt grateful that Actors Shakespeare Project chose to present this story this season (they last staged it a decade ago), and is part of the Boston arts and culture ecosystem in general. As seen in last year’s As You Like It, ASP intentionally blends stage (and Shakespearean) veterans with younger actors from local conservatories and communities, an ensemble of diverse storytellers playing diverse human characters – as I like it.

Ogunquit Playhouse’s ‘Waitress’ is Love At First Taste

May 17, 2024May 17, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Waitress’ at Ogunquit Playhouse. Photos: Nile Scott Studios

‘Waitress’ – Book by Jessie Nelson. Music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles. Based on the motion picture by Adrienne Shelly. Direction by Abbey O’Brien. Choreography by Cost n’ Mayor. Music supervision by Ryan Cantwell. Music directed by Leigh Delano. Original scenic design by Scott Pask. Lighting design by Richard Latta. Original costume design by Suttirat Anne Larlarb. Sound design by Kevin Heard. Wig design by Roxanne De Luna. At Ogunquit Playhouse, 10 Main Street, Ogunquit, Maine, through June 8, 2024.

By Linda Chin

Whether you’ve seen the original movie version starring Keri Russell, the musical’s world premiere at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Broadway transfer, and/or national tour – or aren’t yet familiar with this story – Ogunquit Playhouse’s production of Waitress, deftly directed by Abbey O’Brien and choreographed by Cost n’ Mayor, is a smart choice from the current menu of New England theater offerings.

‘Dial M For Murder’ a Worthy Addition to GBSC’s Murder Mystery Canon

May 15, 2024May 15, 2024 michaelhoban1 Comment

Lily Kaufman, Robert Murphy, Kimberlee Connor and Michael Ryan Buckley in Greater Boston Stage’s “Dial M for Murder.” Photos: Maggie Hall Photography

‘Dial M For Murder’ – Adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher from the original play by Frederick Knott; Directed By Weylin Symes; Lighting Design by Jeff Adelberg; Scenic Design by Katy Monthei; Costume Design byDeirdre Gerrard; Sound Design by Andrew Duncan Will. Presented by the Greater Boston Stage Company at 395 Main St, Stoneham, through May 19

by Mike Hoban

The Greater Boston Stage Company has long been a go-to venue for musicals, including classics like 42^nd Street, How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and last year’s Eliot Norton Award winner, Ain’t Misbehavin’, with fan favorite Guys and Dolls set to go up in June. In recent years, though, they’ve delved into another niche genre: murder mysteries, including a pair of Miss Holmes productions (starring Marge Dunn as a kind of neurodivergent Sherlock Holmes) as well as a riotous version of The 39 Steps in 2021 (although it was far more comedic than mystery) and Clue, another murder mystery comedy.

Apollinaire Theatre Company’s ‘Touching the Void’ Reaches for the Moon

May 9, 2024May 10, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Apollinaire Theatre Company’s ‘Touching the Void’

‘Touching the Void’ — Based on the book by Joe Simpson. Adapted by David Greig. Directed by Danielle Fauteux Jacques. Scenic and Sound Design by Joseph Lark-Riley; Lighting Design by Danielle Fauteux Jacques; Movement Choreography by Audrey Johnson. Presented by Apollinaire Theatre Company at Chelsea Theatre Works, 189 Winnisimmet St., Chelsea, through May 19.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Touching the Void is special on so many levels. Presented in the intimate Chelsea Theatre Works theater, director Danielle Fauteux Jacques has done a brilliant job of creating multiple settings (including the side of a mountain in the Peruvian Andes!) with minimal fuss and to maximum effect. The four actors (Patrick O’Konis as Joe, Kody Grassett as Simon, Zach Fuller as Richard, and Parker Jennings as Sarah) are equally stellar, and David Grieg’s script is meaty and engaging.