Audiences Tickled Pink by The Queen of Versailles at Emerson Colonial Theatre

August 5, 2024August 5, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Kristin Chenoweth and F. Murray Abrahamin“The Queen of Versailles” at Emerson Colonial Theatre. Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy

THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES – Produced by Bill Damaschke, Seaview, and Kristen Chenoweth, through her production banner Diva Worldwide Entertainment. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Book by Lindsey Ferrentino based on the documentary film “The Queen of Versailles” by Lauren Greenfield and the life stories of Jackie and David Siegel. Directed by Michael Arden. Scenic and Video Design by Dane Laffrey; Costume Design by Christian Cowan; Choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant; Music Supervised by Mary-Mitchell Campbell; Lighting Design by Natasha Katz; Sound Design by Peter Hylenski. At Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through August 25th.

by Linda Chin

I must have missed the memo. For the beautiful and ebullient crowd at the Emerson Colonial Theater attending the highly anticipated new Stephen Schwartz musical, hot pink and sequins were the colors of choice, minidresses to ballgowns with floor-grazing trains the length of choice, boas and bling the accessories of choice. The Queen of Versailles – starring Tony and Emmy award-winner Kristen Chenoweth as Jackie Siegel – is a rags-to-riches-to-rags musical that follows working-class teenager “Jackie Mallory, who has a minimum wage salary” and lives in Endwell, NJ. She gets a degree in engineering – part of her lifetime dream is to work at IBM – but gets “pulled in a new direction.” There are plenty of references and allusions to Broadway shows and pop culture, and product endorsements for McDonald’s and Louis Vuitton (“the two bags under my eyes”). The show is enjoying a pre-Broadway run through August 25 at the Emerson Colonial Theatre (location and date of the Broadway run to be announced at a later date), and if the response at the opening night performance I attended is any indication, audiences are already tickled pink with the production.

Emerson Colonial Theatre’s Dazzling “Queen of Versailles” Showcases Kristin Chenoweth’s Super-Sized Talent

August 4, 2024August 4, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of *“The Queen of Versailles”* at Emerson Colonial Theatre. Photo Credit Matthew Murphy

“The Queen of Versailles” — Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Book by Lindsey Ferrentino based on the documentary film “The Queen of Versailles” by Lauren Greenfield and the life stories of Jackie and David Siegel. Directed by Michael Arden. Scenic and Video Design by Dane Laffrey; Costume Design by Christian Cowan; Choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant; Music Supervised by Mary-Mitchell Campbell; Lighting Design by Natasha Katz; Sound Design by Peter Hylenski. Produced by Bill Damaschke, Seaview, and Kristen Chenoweth, through her production banner Diva Worldwide Entertainment. Presented by Emerson Colonial Theatre at 106 Boylston St., Boston through August 25.

By Shelley A. Sackett

There is no more perfect setting for a play about Versailles and consumerism gone awry than Boston’s own Colonial Theatre, with its gold, glitz, and Rococo splendor. On opening night last Thursday, the festive crowd for “The Queen of Versailles,” the Broadway-bound musical extravaganza, was dressed as if auditioning as contemporary cast extras with bling, boas, and bottles of champagne.

But that was nothing compared to Dane Lafrey’s lavish Louis XIV worthy set, thankfully on pre-curtain-rise display to accommodate selfies and elicit oohs and aahs.

S-O-S: Sensational-Outstanding-Spectacular ‘Message In A Bottle’ Takes Boston by Storm

March 30, 2024March 30, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Message In A Bottle’ at Emerson Colonial Theatre

‘Message In A Bottle’ – Directed and Choreographed by Kate Prince. Music and Lyrics by Sting. Music Supervision and New Arrangements by Alex Lacamoire. Set Design by Ben Stone. Video Design by Andrej Goulding. Costume Design by Anna Fleischle. Lighting Design by Natasha Chivers. Sound Design by David McEwan. Presented by Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK and ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through March 30.

By Linda Chin

The spectacular touring production Message In A Bottle that is taking cities in the US by storm – LA, Denver, Chicago – has washed ashore at Boston’s Emerson Colonial for a limited run (through March 30) before making its way down the East Coast to Charlotte, NYC, DC, and Philadelphia. World-class, award-winning creatives Sting (music and lyrics), Kate Prince (director and choreographer), and Alex Lacamoire, of Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen fame (music supervision, new arrangements), have built a show with no spoken narrative or dialogue. A phenomenal corps of 14 storyteller dancers tell an urgent, and unfortunately timely, tale – of families displaced from their war-torn villages, of three siblings separated from their parents and one another, of refugees seeking safety and new places to call home – with the universal languages of movement and music.

‘Message In A Bottle’ is a Sublime Synchronicity of Song, Dance and Story

March 27, 2024March 27, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

‘Message In A Bottle’ at Emerson Colonial Theatre

‘Message In A Bottle’ — Music and Lyrics by Sting. Directed and Choreographed by Kate Prince. Music Supervisor and New Arrangements by Alex Lacamoire; Set Design by Ben Stones; Video Design by Andrej Goulding; Costume Design by Anna Fleischle; Lighting Design by Natasha Chivers; Sound Design by David McEwan. Presented by Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK Production with ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company at Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through March 30.

By Shelley A. Sackett

The only negative comment that anyone could possibly utter about the earth-shattering Message In A Bottle is that it is an unforgivable shame that its Boston run is a mere five days (seven performances). My suggestion is to interrupt reading this review, trust the reviewer, and jump on your computer to secure tickets while there might still be some left.

Yes, it really is that good.

Dance Musical ‘Message In A Bottle’ Featuring the Music of Sting, Comes to Emerson Colonial (Interview)

March 20, 2024March 20, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

The Emerson Colonial Theatre’s will present a seven show run of the touring dance/theater production Message In A Bottle, based on the music of Sting and works from his band The Police. Featuring 28 songs, some re-mastered and re-interpreted, and developed by Kate Prince, Artistic Director of ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company, Message tells the story of displaced refugees and their struggle to find a new home. Theater Mirror’s Mike Hoban spoke with Associate Choreographer Lukas McFarlane in anticipation of the show’s opening on March 26 (through March 30).

by Mike Hoban

Theater Mirror: How did the idea for Message in a Bottle come about?

Lukas: Kate Prince (the show’s creator) grew up with the music of Sting and the Police and is huge fan. One day she was listening to Sting’s “Desert Rose” and thought, what if we (put together) a show using the music of Sting and the Police? She wrote an email to one of our producers, Sadler’s Wells, and within a couple weeks Sadler’s had her in a meeting with Sting in a hotel lobby pitching this idea to him, which was really cool and quite surreal for her.

A Sure Thing at the Emerson Colonial: Pretty Woman the Musical

February 29, 2024February 29, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Crossroads Live presents PRETTY WOMAN The Musical. Book by Garry Marshall & J.F. Lawton. Music and Lyrics by Bryan Adams & Jim Vallance. Based on the Touchtone Pictures motion picture written by J.F. Lawton. Original Broadway Production Directed and Choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. Choreography Recreated by Rusty Mowery. Direction Recreated by DB Bonds. Music Supervision, Arrangements, and Orchestrations by Will Van Dyke. At the Emerson Colonial Theatre, Boylston Street, Boston, through March 3, 2024.

By Linda Chin

Once upon a time in Hollywood, sometime in the 1980s, a handsome corporate raider named Edward Lewis, in town to close a business deal, meets a very pretty woman named Vivian Ward at her “office” on Hollywood Boulevard. Vivian and Edward (Ellie Baker and Chase Wolfe play the now iconic roles made famous by Julia Roberts and Richard Gere) are from very different walks of life. Edward’s upbringing included prep school, polo matches, classical music, and opera, and he is wealthy, a billionaire, in fact. She doesn’t have a steady job, can barely make ends meet, and never finished high school, but is street smart – more adept at driving a stick shift than Edward, who admits that his first car was a limousine – and making small talk with people in the 99% than Edward, who has much less exposure and EQ.

‘Pretty Woman the Musical’ Will Make You Forget There Ever Was a Movie Version

February 29, 2024February 29, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Pretty Woman’ at Emerson Colonial

“Pretty Woman the Musical” — Written by Garry Marshall and J.F. Lawton. Music and Lyrics by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance. Based on the Touchstone picture written by J.F. Lawton. Direction and choreography by Jerry Mitchell, recreated by DB Bonds and Rusty Mowery; Music Supervision, Arrangements and Orchestration by Will Van Dyke; Scenic Design by Christine Peters; Costume Design by Gregg Barnes; Lighting Design by Kenneth Posner and Philip S. Rosenberg; Sound Design by John Shivers. Presented by Crossroads Live at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through March 3.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Pretty Woman the Musical is much more than a theatrical remake of the 1990 rom-com film that launched the career of then-21-year-old Julia Roberts and her trademark mile-wide smile. The big-budget Broadway show stands on its own as a supremely enjoyable night of big pageantry, from the live orchestra, fabulous set, choreography, and humor to the terrific cast, who sing and dance their hearts out for two and a half hours (one intermission).

Comically Charged ‘Into the Woods’ Brings the Magic to Emerson Colonial

March 24, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Into the Woods’ at Emerson Colonial. PhotoCredits: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade

Into the Woods – Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; Book by James Lapine; Directed by Lear deBessonet. At Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St. Boston through April 2.

by Mike Hoban

For musical theater fans, there’s nothing quite like seeing the classics, especially when they’re done so wonderfully by an uber-talented cast. That is certainly the case with the national touring production of Into the Woods, now playing at the Emerson Colonial Theatre through April 2nd. Presented as a concert version of the Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine fan favorite, the audience roared its approval – not just after each completed song, but before the cast had even sung a note. But given the level of joy this production provided to the sold-out opening night crowd, it turned out to be more prescient than fanboy/girl worship.

Swenson Shines Like a 14-carat Diamond in ‘Beautiful Noise’ at Emerson Colonial

July 12, 2022November 29, 2022 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Will Swenson as Neil Diamond in *A Beautiful Noise* at the Emerson Colonial. Photos by Matthew Murphy

A Beautiful Noise – Book by Anthony McCarten; Music and Lyrics by Neil Diamond. Music supervision and arrangements, Sonny Paladino. Choreography, Steven Hoggett. Directed by Michael Mayer. Design team: David Rockwell (scenic design); Emilio Sosa (costume design); Kevin Adams (lighting design) and Jessica Paz (sound design). Presented by the Ambassador Theatre Group at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St. Boston through August 7^th.

by Mike Hoban

It seems only fitting that the producers of the Neil Diamond musical bio A Beautiful Noise would stage the pre-Broadway run in Boston at the historic Emerson Colonial Theatre. Not only was the venue home to debut performances of iconic Broadway shows like Anything Goes, Porgy and Bess and Oklahoma! (and more recently, Moulin Rouge), but Diamond is forever bonded to Boston since his pop hit “Sweet Caroline” was adopted by the Red Sox as a theme song for the 8^th inning stretch in 2002. The song, with its audience participation lyric, “SO GOOD! SO GOOD! SO GOOD!” became so wildly popular with fans that Diamond performed it on April 20, 2013, in the emotional first game back at Fenway Park after the Boston Marathon bombings. With that kind of passionate connection, maybe the Boston audience isn’t the best barometer of the quality of the show, but A Beautiful Noise – a joyous blast of fun with a surprisingly poignant book – seems destined to be a crowd-pleasing smash.

‘Freestyle Love Supreme’ at Colonial a High Energy Comic Blast

March 21, 2022March 21, 2022 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Chris Sullivan, Wayne Brady, Anthony Veneziale, Aneesa Folds in Freestyle Love Supreme at the Emerson Colonial Theater. Photos by Joan Marcus. (Brady is not part of the cast for the Boston dates).

“Freestyle Love Supreme” – Conceived by Anthony Veneziale. Created by Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Anthony Veneziale. Directed by Thomas Kail. Presented by the Ambassador Theatre Group at the Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston through April 2.

by Mike Hoban

What do you get when you cross improvisational comedy with hip-hop? Freestyle Love Supreme is what, and it’s a musical comedy blast. Boston is the second leg of the national tour of this unique entertainment experience, following a four-month return engagement to the Booth Theater on Broadway after the show won a special Tony Award last September. The concept of the show itself isn’t entirely new, as improvisational comedy groups have long incorporated long-form musicals into their shows, but the added degree of difficulty – fitting the improvised songs into a rhyming scheme in harmony with a beatbox – is nothing short of amazing.