An Absorbing and Inspiring ‘Middleton Heights’

April 10, 2023 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of Middleton Heights at the Umbrella Arts Center. Photos: Gillian Mariner Gordon

Written by Hortense Gerardo. Produced by Brian Boruta. Directed by Michelle Aguillon. Scenic Design by Al Forgione. Lighting and Projection Design by SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal. Costume Design by Maureen Festa. Sound Design by James Cannon. Presented by Umbrella Stage Company, Concord, MA, through April 23^rd.

by Linda Chin

Named after a fictitious suburb of Cleveland where a dual-doctor couple from Manila has been recruited to work as medical residents, Middleton Heights is a new play that ambitiously spans five decades and three generations of an Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) family’s immigrant experience. Infused with Tagalog and Ilocano words and references and filled with vivid vignettes that are culturally specific and universally relatable, the script is informed by Hortense Gerardo’s twin professional vantage points as an anthropologist and playwright. And though Gerardo contends that this is not an autobiographical play, it does reflect her own lived experience – including being the daughter of two physicians, growing up in a Cleveland suburb, and having roots in the Philippines.

Umbrella Stage Company Delivers Energetic ‘RENT’

November 14, 2022November 14, 2022 michaelhoban2 Comments

Cast of RENT at The Umbrella Arts Center. Photos by Gillian Mariner Gordon.

“RENT” By Jonathan Larson; Directed by Julia Deter; Musical Direction by Jeff Kimball; Choreography by Hannah Shihdanian; Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company at The Umbrella Arts Center, 40 Stow St. Concord, MA. Performances through Dec. 4^th (no show, 11/24).

by Tom Boudrot

If, like me, you’re one of the few people in the world who’ve never seen the multiple award-winning show RENT, the Umbrella stage in Concord offers a wonderful opportunity to see it in an intimate setting. Or if you’ve seen it previously and it’s been a while, this local production is worth another look. Despite noticeable audio problems that did not get resolved by the end of the performance on press night, the talented players sang, danced and acted with the kind of energy theater professionals can reach down deep and pull out, night after night. Further upping the energy level, the theater was packed with a loud, eclectic mix of appreciative fans for this performance, which was doubly refreshing in this post-pandemic era.

Gothic Horror & Humor in the “#Me Too” Age at The Umbrella Arts Center

October 4, 2022October 4, 2022 michaelhobanLeave a comment

*Harker (Joseph Jude) is surrounded by Dracula (Dustin Teuber) and his “wives” (Emily Sheeran and Bowen Huang) in ‘Dracula, a feminist revenge fantasy, really*‘ at *The Umbrella Stage Company*

“Dracula, a feminist revenge fantasy, really.” By Kate Hamill; Based on the novel by Bram Stoker; Directed by Michelle Aguillon; Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company at The Umbrella Arts Center, 40 Stow St. Concord, MA. Performances through Oct. 30th.

by Tom Boudrot

The season-opening production of The Umbrella Stage Company is action-packed, funny, scary and perfect for the Halloween month – but a word of caution, it’s definitely NOT for children under 16 years old. Award-winning writer Kate Hamill (who earned raves for her adaptation of Pride and Prejudice) tells the story of the 125-year-old vampire tale from a female perspective. Dracula, like so many 19^th century classics, still attracts an appreciative audience but has not necessarily aged well in today’s social climate.

Music, Comedy and Epic Fables Create Unique Experience in “The Old Man and The Old Moon” at Umbrella Stage

November 15, 2021November 15, 2021 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Cast of “The Old Man and The Old Moon” at Umbrella Stage in Concord

by Tom Boudrot

‘The Old Man and The Old Moon’ – By PigPen Theater; Director: Julia Deter; Music Director: Matthew Stern; Lighting Design: Ben Rush; Sound Design: James Cannon; Scenic Design: Baron E. Pugh; Costume Design: Brian Simons; Puppet Master: Veronica Barron. Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company, 40 Stow Street, Concord through Dec.5th.

As I watched The Old Man and the Old Moon I thought to myself, who wouldn’t want to see this mashup of so many of the really fun ideas in fiction and storytelling? The authors pull together some of our most beloved and entertaining concepts into one crazy quilt show that reaches far and wide. The hand of the Brothers Grimm can be felt as well as influences from such varied sources as JM Barrie’s Peter Pan, Homer’s Odyssey, and the stories of Oz and the Bible. There is such a wide range of sources to this work that it makes perfect sense to learn that the content of this stage performance was not created by one author or one musician but by PigPen Theater, a group that started as freshmen drama students at Carnegie Mellon School of Drama in 2007. They have since gone on to create works that have garnered awards and critic’s choice raves. It feels like everyone in PigPen Theater company got to contribute to The Old Man and the Old Moon. Where else can one find laughter, music, sea battles, puppetry, hot-air balloons, mythical cities of light, apocalyptic upheaval, ghosts, love’s devotion, mistaken identity… and a dog that catches fish on command, all in one story?

Umbrella Stage’s ‘Hundred Days’ Combines Concert and Drama

January 27, 2020January 27, 2020 michaelhoban2 Comments

*Jess Andra and Kirk Vanda as The Bengsons in Emerson Umbrella’s ‘One Hundred Days’*

by Tom Boudrot

‘Hundred Days’ – Book by The Bengsons and Sarah Gancher; Music and Lyrics by The Bengsons; Brian Boruta, Producer and Director; David Wright, Music Director; Ryan Bates, Scenic Designer; Brian Simons, Costume Designer; Seif Allah Sallotto-Cristobal, Lighting and Video Designer; Elizabeth Havenor, Sound Designer. Properties Design by Sarajane Morse Mullins; Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company, 40 Stow Street, Concord through February 16th.

If you’ve been cooped up with the cold weather and ready to get out for an evening’s entertainment, Hundred Days may be the perfect choice for combating those winter blahs. Why? Because it’s a smorgasbord of delights that has everything you’d like to see in a live show. Is this a concert? A musical? A comedy? A moving drama of love and loss? Yes, yes, yes and yes. It is all of the above.

Umbrella Stage Company Delights with a Mind-Blowing “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”

January 10, 2020January 10, 2020 michaelhobanLeave a comment

*Kirk Vanda as Hedwig in* *The Umbrella Stage Company*‘s *“Hedwig and the Angry Inch”* – *Photo by Briana Gately*

By Michele Markarian

“Hedwig and the Angry Inch”. Text by John Cameron Mitchell. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Trask. Directed by Julia Deter. Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company, 40 Stow Street, Concord, through January 12.

I had no idea what to expect from “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”, running four days this weekend at the newly revamped theater space of Concord’s Umbrella Stage Company. I bought the soundtrack when it was released in the late 90s; the music was fun and unlike any musical theater I’d heard. My only frame of reference for the show was watching Neil Patrick Harris perform the role at the Tonys. A friend of mine called me up sputtering during that performance, right after Neil Patrick stepped from the stage mid song to kiss his husband on the mouth. “Hedwig would never do that! It is not in character!” hissed my friend.

Umbrella’s ‘Fences’ a Powerful Retelling of Wilson’s Classic

November 5, 2019November 5, 2019 michaelhobanLeave a comment

(Damon Singletary as Troy Maxson and Dwayne P. Mitchell as Cory in Arts Umbrella’s ‘August Wilson’s Fences’ – Photos:Gillian Mariner Gordon)

By Tom Boudrot

‘August Wilson’s Fences’ – Directed by Michelle Aguillon; Scenic Design by Dan Daly; Lighting Design by Samuel J. Biondolillo; Sound Design by Aubrey Dube. Presented by the Umbrella Stage Company at the Umbrella Community Arts Center, 40 Stow Street in Concord, MA through November 23

I must begin by saying that while preparing for my visit to the newly renovated Umbrella Community Arts Center on a quiet side street off Concord Center, I was unsure of what I was getting myself into. From past experience I knew that community theater (which I later discovered was no longer the case at the Umbrella – which debuted as Equity in September) sometimes can be a mixed bag, and tackling the Pulitzer and Tony award winning, “Fences” from August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle of plays might be a bit daunting. But soon after the lights dimmed, I found myself transported to a front porch in a black neighborhood in 1950’s Pittsburgh, populated by a talented troupe of actors, and Wilson’s masterpiece soon unfolded before me.