ASP’s ‘The Piano Lesson’ is a Supernatural Theatrical Experience

January 30, 2025January 30, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Jade Guerra, “ranney”, Jonathan Kitt and Omar Robinson in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of August Wilson’s *The Piano Lesson*. Photos by Nile Scott Studios.

‘The Piano Lesson’ – Play by August Wilson. Directed by Christopher V. Edwards. Scenic Design by Jon Savage; Costume Design by Nia Safarr Banks; Lighting Design by Isaak Olson; Sound Design by James Cannon. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project in partnership with Hibernian Hall. At Hibernian Hall, Boston, through Feb. 23.

By Mike Hoban

As the cold January winds send a chill through the streets of Boston and the change in the nation’s political climate sends shivers through the hearts of our most vulnerable, Actors Shakespeare Project has delivered a masterpiece of a production – just when we need it most. For the third straight year, ASP has staged a selection from August Wilson’s 10-play American Century Cycle about the Black experience in 20^th Century America, and while the previous offerings (Seven Guitars in 2023 and King Hedley II last year) were both on my (and most reviewers) annual ‘Best Of’ lists, ASPs The Piano Lesson catapults Wilson’s work into the stratosphere.

ASP’s ‘Emma’ Is Deliciously Incisive, Ingenious and Impudent

November 26, 2024November 26, 2024 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Lorraine Victoria Kanyike, Fady Demian, Josephine Elwood, and Liza Giangrande in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of ‘Emma’. Photo by Nile Scott Studios.

‘Emma’ — Written by Kate Hamill. Based on the novel by Jane Austen. Directed by Regine Vital. Scenic Design by Saskia Martinez; Costume Design by Nia Safarr Banks; Lighting Design by Deb Sullivan; Sound Design by Anna Drummond. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project at Multicultural Arts Center, 41 Second St., East Cambridge through December 15^th.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Jane Austen’s 1815 novel “Emma,” like all her other novels, explores the concerns and difficulties of genteel women living in Georgian–Regency England. Her Emma Woodhouse is a bright, wealthy, and confident young woman who basically has it all — education, intelligence, beauty, and money. She also has a surplus of self-confidence, pride and time. She is as spoiled, meddlesome, and self-deluded as she is witty, charming, and pithy.

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

May 19, 2024May 25, 2024 Theater MirrorLeave 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.

ASP’s Impressive ‘King Hedley II’ Is a Requiem to a Dream

March 20, 2024March 20, 2024 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

James Ricardo Milord and Omar Robinson in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of August Wilson’s *King Hedley II*. Photo by Maggie Hall Photography.

‘King Hedley II’ – Written by August Wilson; Directed by Summer L. Williams; Scenic Designer: Jon Savage; Costume Designer: Becca Jewett; Lighting Designer: Anshuman Bhatia; Sound Designer: Caroline Eng. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project at Hibernian Hall, 184 Dudley St, Roxbury, through April 7, 2024

By Shelley A. Sackett

August Wilson’s King Hedley II, the Pulitzer Prize nominated play, is set in 1985 in the same Pittsburgh Hill District backyard where Wilson set his previous work, Seven Guitars (which received a knock out production in 2023 by Actor’s Shakespeare Project). Jon Savage’s same terrific set (and Anshuman Bhatia’s spot-on lighting) adds continuity and interest.

It’s now 40 years and several generations later, and the upbeat, soulful guitar blues arias soundtrack of Seven Guitars has been replaced by a thrumming funeral march set in a minor key.

ASP’s ‘King Hedley II’ Brilliantly Examines the Bleak Underbelly of the American Dream

March 14, 2024March 20, 2024 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

James Ricardo Milord, Naheem Garcia, and Omar Robinson in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of August Wilson’s *King Hedley II*. Photo by Maggie Hall Photography.

‘King Hedley II’ – Written by August Wilson; Directed by Summer L. Williams; Scenic Designer: Jon Savage; Costume Designer: Becca Jewett; Lighting Designer: Anshuman Bhatia; Sound Designer:Caroline Eng. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project at Hibernian Hall, 184 Dudley St, Roxbury, through April 7, 2024

by Mike Hoban

There’s a folksy adage in recovery circles that goes, “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” The implication is that if you don’t fundamentally change your behavior, you’re not going to be able to overcome what is keeping you from being your best self – whether it involves booze, drugs, food, sex, shopping, or any behavior that dominates your life.

ASP’s Not-to-Be-Missed “How I Learned to Drive” Explores Abuse and Memory in a Tour de Force Production

November 9, 2023November 18, 2023 Theater Mirror2 Comments

Dennis Trainor, Jr. and Jennifer Rohn in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s *‘How I Learned to Drive’*
(Photo Credit: Nile Scott Studios)

‘How I Learned to Drive’ — Written by Paula Vogel. Directed by Elaine Vaan Hogue. Scenic Design by Baron E. Pugh; Lighting Design by Marcella Barbeau; Costume Design by Marissa Wolf; Sound Design by Mackenzie Adamick. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project at the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont St., Boston through November 25.

By Shelley A. Sackett

“You and Driver Education — Safety First,” a voice announces as the lights dim. A middle-aged woman steps onto a bare set, composing herself. She turns to face the audience, addressing them as though mid-conversation.

“Sometimes, to tell a secret, you first have to teach a lesson,” she says. “We’re going to start our lesson tonight on an early, warm summer evening.”

So begins Paula Vogel’s brilliant Pulitzer Prize Award-winning play, “How I Learned to Drive,” in which she examines the complicated ways in which we process the trauma, shame, and blame associated with pedophilia and family complicity. If the topic sounds heart-wrenching and heavy, that’s because it is.

All’s Well That Ends Well For Star-Crossed Lovers In ASP’s ‘As You Like It’

June 13, 2023June 13, 2023 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Genevieve Simon and the cast of Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s ‘As You Like It’. Photo by Nile Scott Studios

‘As You Like It’ – By William Shakespeare. Directed by Harold Steward. Associate directed by Brooke Hardman. Scenic Design by Ben Lieberson. Lighting Design by Amanda E. Fallon. Costume and Sound Design by Harold Steward. Props Design by Saskia Martinez. Associate Sound Design by Mackenzie Adamick. Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project in partnership with The Theater Offensive at Tufts University’s Balch Arena Theater, 40 Talbot Ave, Medford, MA through June 25

by Linda Chin

Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s current production of As You Like It, directed by artistic visionary Harold Steward, remains relevant and refreshing four centuries after it was first published in the Bard’s First Folio in 1623. This production also represents a first-time partnership between ASP and The Theatre Offensive.

‘Seven Guitars’ Is August Wilson – And Boston Theater – at Its Finest

February 20, 2023 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s ‘Seven Guitars’. Photo by Ken Yotsukura Photography.

‘Seven Guitars’ by August Wilson. Directed by Maurice Emmanuel Parent. Scenic Design by Jon Savage; Sound Design by Abe Joyner-Meyers; Original Music Composition by Dewey Dellay; Lighting Design by Amanda E. Fallon Presented by Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Hiberian Hall,182 Dudley St., Roxbury through March 5. Photo by Ken Yotsukura Photography.

by Shelley A. Sackett

It’s hard to know where to begin praising Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of August Wilson’s ‘Seven Guitars.’ Jon Savage’s urban backyard set, with its backlit city side panels, gardens, make-do furniture, and hints of multiple interior spaces, combines simplicity with depth. Amanda E. Fallon’s lighting, Dewey Dellay’s pitch-perfect musical compositions, and Abe Joyner-Meyer’s toe-tapping sound design complete the immersive capsule. We are indeed time travelers to a 1948 rooming house in Pittsburgh’s Hill District.

Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s ‘The Bomb-itty of Errors’ Brings out The Bomb in The Bard

May 31, 2022May 31, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s ‘The Bomb-itty of Errors’

‘The Bomb-itty of Errors’ — Written by Jordan Allen-Dutton, Jason Catalano, Gregory J. Qaiyum, Jeffrey Qaiyum and Erik Weiner. Based on ‘The Comedy of Errors’ by William Shakespeare. Directed by Christopher V. Edwards. Scenic Design by Baron E. Pugh; Costume Design by Zoe Sundra; Lighting Design by Max Wallace; Props Design by Steve Viera, Sound Design by Abraham Joyner-Meyers. Presented by the Actors’ Shakespeare Project at the Charlestown working Theater, 442 Bunker Hill St., Chares through June 26.

by Shelley A. Sackett

Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s “The Bomb-itty of Errors” is perfect pre-summer fare. Hip-hop and rap, a live DJ, a brilliantly exhaustive (and sometimes exhausting) script, some sublime acting and — as if that’s not enough — the Bard himself, camouflaged but hardly hidden. All wrapped neatly in a 90-minute intermission-less package that is as invigorating as it is boisterous.

ASP’s ‘Bright Half Life’ Shines Light on All Too Rare Love Story

January 27, 2020January 28, 2020 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Lyndsay Allyn Cox, Kelly Chick in ASP’s ‘Bright Half Life’ – PHOTO CREDIT NILE SCOTT STUDIOS

By Julie-Anne Whitney

‘Bright Half Life’ – Written by Tanya Barfield; Directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian; Scenic Design by Cristina Todesco; Lighting Design by Aja Jackson; Sound Design by Elizabeth Cahill; Costume Design by Zoe Sundra; Stage-managed by Lauren Burke. Presented by Runs through February 16, 2020 at the Plaza Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts.

How many times have you been in the theater and seen two women on stage who happen to love each other? Think about it for a minute and you’ll probably realize it’s a pretty low number.

There are several well-known plays which discuss or highlight LGBTQ+ characters such as The Children’s Hour (1934), The Boys in the Band (1968), The Normal Heart (1985), I Am My Own Wife (1992), Angels in America (1992), Stop Kiss (1998), The Laramie Project (2001), Indecent (2017), and The Inheritance (2018), among others. There are also a few popular musicals which feature LGBTQ+ characters such as La Cage aux Folles (1983), Falsettos (1992), Rent (1996), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (1998), The Color Purple (2005), Kinky Boots (2013), Fun Home (2015), and Jagged Little Pill (2018). But not one of these pieces features two women who love each other as the central focus of the story, and who are given the time to express their love for more than just a song or a couple of scenes. This is why Tanya Barfield’s Bright Half Life is an overdue breath of fresh air. A 65-minute play about the 40-year relationship between two women is a rare gift – one I have been waiting to receive nearly all of my life.