Praxis Stage’s Black Comedy ‘The Arsonists’ Educates, Entertains

September 11, 2024September 12, 2024 michaelhoban1 Comment

Kim Carrell and Daniel Boudreau in Praxis Stage’s ‘The Arsonists’

The Arsonists – Original play by Max Frisch. Translation by Alistair Beaton. Directed by Bob Scanlan. Costume Design by Maureen Festa. Lighting Design by Kevin Fulton. Sound Design by Mackenzie Adamick. Presented by Praxis Stage. At Chelsea Theatre Works, 189 Winnisimmet Street, Chelsea, MA, through Sept. 15.

by Mike Hoban

“When people show you who they are – believe them” – Maya Angelou

There’s not a lot of subtlety in the point of view being expressed in Praxis Stage’s production of The Arsonists, the 1953 work by Swiss playwright dramatist Max Frisch, but the play still delivers a chilling reminder of how our mainstream media has warped our ability to apply critical thinking to even the most obvious of choices. Praxis was formed on November 9th, 2016, as a response to the election of Trump with the goal of linking theater and activism, and it’s never been more starkly on display than here.

Praxis Stage’s Absurdist ‘Birthday Party’ is an Actor’s Showcase

April 16, 2024April 16, 2024 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Daniel Boudreau, Sharon Mason and Keving Paquette in Praxis Stage’s ‘Birthday Party’
Photos by Alex Aroyan

The Birthday Party – Written by Harold Pinter; Directed by James Wilkinson; Costumes by E. Rosser; Lighting by Michaela P. Purvis. Presented by Praxis Stage at the Chelsea Theatre Works, 189 Winnisimmet Street, Chelsea, through April 28^th

by Mike Hoban

As the lights dimmed for intermission at the opening of Praxis Stage’s superbly acted, well-directed The Birthday Party, the patron in front of me not-so-quietly whispered to his companion, “What the F*#k was that?”

It’s a question that won’t get answered by the end of the play, but for some, the joy may be in the journey. The Birthday Party was Harold Pinter’s first full length play. It opened in London in 1958 and closed after only eight performances due to disastrous reviews before being successfully revived in later years. The play is a prime example of the Theatre of the Absurd, a movement popularized from 1940 to 1960 by playwrights like Pinter, Samuel Beckett, and Ionesco which advanced the notion that life is illogical, without purpose and devoid of meaning.

Praxis Stage Sets the Crown on King John

February 5, 2020 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Michael Underhill as King John in Praxis Stage’s ‘King John’

Review by James Wilkinson

‘King John’ – Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Kimberly Gaughan. Assistant Director: Elena Toppo. Lighting: Erik Bailey. Sound/Music Design: Kimberly Gaughan and Daniel Boudreau. Presented by Praxis Stage at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts January 30-February 16, 2020.

You’re not going to catch me arguing everything that ever fell out of Shakespeare’s head reeks of brilliance. The man may have hit unparalleled levels of artistic genius, but every artist has an off day. Trust me, Shakespeare had several. I’m always confused when I see notices for productions of The Comedy of Errors because its existence means at least two people got together in a room and said, “This is going to be good.” (I promise you, it won’t) There’s a flip side to that coin, though, underrated plays that don’t see nearly as many productions as their more notable counterparts. (There’ll always be a special place in my heart for the outright lunacy that is Titus Andronicus.) Praxis Stage’s new production makes the argument that King John belongs in that latter category and it’s damn strong one at that. It’s not a perfect production, but I’m going to go ahead and dump most of the flaws it has on the shoulders of Shakespeare. In any case, the positives with Praxis’ production vastly outweigh the negatives. There’s a hipness to it, an inner groove that you succumb to. It slinks right up and before you can say a word, lights your cigarette then vanishes. The move is so effortlessly cool that it’s only later you realize you probably shouldn’t be smoking.

The Sins of the Father Come Out at Praxis Stage

October 15, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

Review by James Wilkinson

All My Sons – Written by Arthur Miller. Directed by Joe Juknievich. Assistant Director/Stage Manager: Isabelle Beagen. Costume Design: Maureen Festa. Sound Design: Francis avier Norton. Movement/Intimacy/Violence Director: Kayleigh Kane. Produced by Praxis Stage at Chelsea Theatre Works through October 27, 2018.

It feels like Arthur Miller should be having more of a moment in theatrical circles than he currently is. Looking at his best work, you can see him wrestling with many of the ideas bouncing around in our contemporary political climate. What is America? What do we owe each other? How do the darker sides of capitalism affect the family unit? The individual? From the start of his career, Miller seemed to be taking the baton from Ibsen and using a theatrical framework to examine the relationship between the individual and society. One of Miller’s early works was even an English-adaptation of Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, a play that looks at the cost a man is willing to pay for speaking truth against the wishes of the people around him. Earlier this year, I decided to acquaint myself with more of Miller’s work and it was fascinating to find specific lines and scenes in those old plays that spoke to the current moment. It’s a sign of either an especially prescient writer or a stunted society that didn’t learn its lesson when the work was staged the first time around.

Praxis’ Successfully Blends Comedy, Political Commentary in ‘Accidental Death of an Anarchist’

December 5, 2017December 5, 2017 michaelhobanLeave a comment

By Mike Hoban

Accidental Death of an Anarchist – Written by Dario Fo; Adapted/Translated by Gavin Richards & Gillian Hanna; Directed by James Peter Sotis. Presented by Praxis Stage at First Church Boston, 66 Marlborough Street, Boston through December 17

Who says political theater has to be dour?

Not Praxis Stage, which has updated Dario Fo’s 1970 farce, the Accidental Death of an Anarchist, to deliver a very funny take on how western capitalist political systems “deal with” dissent. The re-worked script also fires a few broadsides at the circus that is the current United States political debacle, with references to “alternative facts” and “Fake News” sprinkled throughout. The play is based on a real life case where an anarchist, who was being interrogated in connection with a 1969 bank bombing in Italy, either jumped or was thrown to his death from the fourth-story window of a Milan police station. If that sounds a little heavy-handed, don’t worry, there’s plenty of clever dialogue and physical comedy to keep the non-Democratic Socialists entertained.

Praxis’ “Jesus Hopped the A Train” a Tense, Provocative Journey

May 13, 2017May 13, 2017 michaelhoban3 Comments

by Michele Markarian

“Jesus Hopped the A Train”. Written by Stephen Adly Guirgis. Directed by Dayanne C. Byron Walters and Daniel Boudreau. Presented by Praxis Stage at the Dorchester Art Project, 1486 Dorchester Avenue through May 21.

Walking into the tiny, bare bones space at 1486 Dorchester Avenue, where Praxis Stage is performing “Jesus Hopped the A Train”, I was immediately filled with a stab of homesickness for those theater spaces that used to thrive in Boston and Cambridge before the gentrification of theater prevailed – The Leland Center. The Piano Factory. Little Flags Theater. Without large budgets and grants, theater artists had to rely less on production values and more on sheer energy and talent – which this production has an abundance of.