Cast of Lyric Stage’s ‘Urinetown. Photos by Nile Hawver
“Urinetown” – Music and Lyrics by Mark Hollmann. Book and Lyrics by Greg Kotis. Directed by Courtney O’Connor. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston, through October 20.
By Michele Markarian
If I were to be perfectly honest – and somewhat lazy – this review would consist of only three words: See this show. But that wouldn’t be fair to the truly talented director, cast, and crew, so bear with me while I tell you why. It’s a hilarious script with a catchy score and pointed undertones that’s performed flawlessly in moments both tongue-in-cheek and sincere.
Cast of “Yellow Face” at Lyric Stage. Photos by Mark S. Howard
“Yellow Face.” Written by David Henry Hwang. Directed by Ted Hewlett. Scenic Design by Szu-Feng Chen; Projections Design by Megan Reilly; Lighting Design by Baron E. Pugh; Costume Design by Mikayla Reid; Sound Design by Arshan Gailus. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, Clarendon St., Boston. Run has ended.
By Shelley A. Sackett
Some plays are just good for you. Like drinking a peanut butter, kale, bone meal, and flax seed smoothie, the benefits outweigh the temporary discomfort. With the smoothie, its promise of increased vigor and decreased ailments offset its taste and texture. With “Yellow Face,” David Henry Hwang’s Obie award-winning play presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, its thought-provoking and post-theater-conversation-inducing messages outweigh the lackluster nature of its two-hour theatrical experience.
Joy Clark and the cast of “The Drowsy Chaperone” at Lyric Stage
“The Drowsy Chaperone” – Music and Lyrics by Lisa Lampert and Greg Morrison. Book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. Directed and Choreographed by Larry Sousa. Musical Direction by Matthew Stern. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston, through May 12.
By Michele Markarian
From the moment the Man in Chair (an engaging Paul Melendy) puts on a record of his favorite musical from the 1920s to shake himself out of a gloomy mood, we know we are in for a fun ride. Melendy’s sincerity, wry delivery, and easy charm set the tone for the rest of the show, where the acting is impeccable, the vocals are terrific, the songs are catchy, and the script is funny.
Trouble In Mind by Playwright Alice Childress. Directed by Dawn M. Simmons. Scenic Design by Shelley Barish. Costume Design by Rachel Padula-Shufelt. Lighting Design by Deb Sullivan. Sound Design by Aubrey Dube. At the Lyric Stage Company of Boston, Clarendon Steet, through February 4.
By Linda Chin
In his 1951 poem “Harlem” Langston Hughes poses an important question: What happens to a dream deferred? It continues with additional questions:
Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore – And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over—like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags, like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
In her 1955 play “Trouble in Mind,” Alice Childress (Hughes’ contemporary) tells the story of a group of Black and white actors rehearsing a play for Broadway. The play (within-the-play), “Chaos in Belleville” is an anti-lynching drama written by a white playwright, directed by white male director Al Manners (Barlow Adamson), and stars a Black actress, Wiletta (Patrice Jean-Baptiste), a seasoned actor who will be making her Broadway debut – a long-awaited dream.
Maureen Keiller, Kelby T. Akin, Dan Garcia, Gabrielle McCauley, Remo Airaldi, Pamela Lambert and Sarah Sinclair in “The Game’s Afoot” at Lyric Stage Photo: Mark S, Howard
‘The Game’s Afoot: Holmes for the Holidays’ by Ken Ludwig. Fred Sullivan Jr., Director. Janie E. Howland, Scenic Designer. John Malinowski, Lighting Designer. Chelsea Kerl, Costume Designer. Andrew Duncan Will, Sound Designer. Jennifer Butler, Props Artisan. At Lyric Stage, Clarendon Street, Boston through December 17.
by Linda Chin
Lyric Stage’s long-term Producing Artistic Director, the larger-than-life Spiro Veloudos – now a giant in the sky – knew his audiences well, especially the subscribers who filled the matinees. He invited them to his Clarendon Street “castle” to see a play or musical, have a good time, and to come back again.
Cast of “Assassins” at Lyric Stage Company. Photos by Mark S. Howard
‘Assassins’ – Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by John Weidman. Courtney O’Connor (Director). Dan Rodriguez (Music Director). Ilyse Robbins (Select Choreography). Baron E. Pugh (Scenic and Lighting Design). Rachel Paula-Shufelt (Costume Design). Alex Berg (Sound Design). At Lyric Stage, Clarendon Street, Boston, through October 15, 2023.
by Linda Chin
Like the late composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim, Lyric Stage has not shied away from exploring challenging themes or dark material. But opening a theatre season in the angry aftermath of a post-Trump America with one of Sondheim’s less familiar works – about violent attacks on U.S. presidents, no less – is a risky proposition. Assassins takes us into the minds of nine men and women who gained notoriety through our nation’s history because they killed (or failed to, but gave it a good shot) former Presidents Lincoln, Garfield, Roosevelt, McKinley, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Kennedy). Not exactly uplifting fare, but in the capable hands of director Courtney O’Connor, music director/conductor Dan Rodriguez and his four-piece orchestra, and 15 outstanding actors, audiences can expect a thoroughly engrossing and entertaining theater experience.
Jared Troilo, Kirsten Salpini in “Fascinating Rhythm”
By Michele Markarian
“Fascinating Rhythm” – Created by and Starring Kirsten Salpini and Jared Troilo. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston through July 16.
“Fascinating Rhythm,” created and performed by Kirsten Salpini and Jared Troilo, is a lively and entertaining tribute to the music of George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein, with the intimacy and warmth of a house party to which you’ve been specially invited. The two talented performers periodically don costumes (Gershwin and Bernstein, who else?), play piano, and sing their way – with inspired pockets of audience participation – through a well-rounded catalog of works by both composers.
Katherine Callaway, Karen MacDonald, and Lisa Tucker in ‘Rooted’ at the Lyric
Written by Deborah Zoe Laufer. Directed by Courtney O’Connor. Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland, Costume Design by Chelsea Kerl, Lighting Design by Karen Perlow, Original Music and Sound Co-Design by Dewey Dellay, and Sound Co-Design by Andrew Duncan Will. Properties by Lauren Corcuera.
by Linda Chin
In crafting Rooted, the story of two small-town, medium-aged women with big dreams, playwright Deborah Zoe Laufer returned to her childhood roots in the Catskills for inspiration. Besides Hazel (Karen MacDonald), an energetic, fast-talking waitress and primary caregiver of her younger sister, Emery (Lisa Tucker), who has a physical disability and uses a walker, the fictional town of Millerville’s inhabitants include Stuart, Giancarlo, and dozens of other potted plants who live with the people-phobic, biophilic Emery in a tree house – named Mabel – that she hasn’t emerged from in over a decade. There are also lots of animals – birds in the sky above, cows in the pasture below. From the safety of the tree house, Emery does plant research and broadcasts her results via YouTube, and is satisfied with having no direct human contact – just peace, calm, and quiet. In contrast, Hazel is dissatisfied and bored with small-town life, and though she loves her sister deeply, she desperately wants to escape.
Music by Alan Menken. Lyrics by Glenn Slater. Book by Bill and Cheri Steinkellner. Additional material by Douglas Carter Beane. Direction by Leigh Barrett. Music direction by David F. Coleman. Choreography by Dan Sullivan. Scenic Design by Jenna McFarland Lord. Lighting Design by Christopher Brusberg. Costume Design by Kelly Baker. Sound Design by Alex Berg. Presented by Lyric Stage Company of Boston, through May 14
by Linda Chin
With composer Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid, Little Shop of Horrors) behind this musical, I was surprised to leave the Lyric without a song stuck in my head. Have faith, however – with its star – (and sequined) studded cast divinely directed by Leigh Barrett, spirited choreography by Dan Sullivan, and a funk-R&B-gospel-disco score soulfully conducted by David F. Coleman, Sister Act lives up to its billing as a “feel good” musical comedy. Regardless of what church you belong to, after seeing this show “you will go out in joy (Isiah 55:12).”
‘Preludes – Music, Lyrics, Book and Orchestrations by David Malloy. Directed by Courtney O’Connor. Music Direction by Dan Rodriguez. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston through February 5.
Where does creative inspiration come from? The heart? The mind? Are artists the instruments, or merely vessels for what can only be called divine? A blocked Rachmaninoff (the excellent and brooding Dan Prior) is told, “Virtuosity has its moments, but if you want to be truly great, use more…silence.” Silence and its space create room and stillness for ideas to flow through the subconscious. If you’ve ever wondered about the nature of creativity and the role of the artist, this is the play for you.
