In anticipation of Hub Theatre Company’s upcoming production of Eugène Ionesco’s The Bald Soprano and The Lesson, Theater Mirror sat down with director Bryn Boice and the producing artistic director of Hub Theatre Company, Lauren Elias. We discussed the importance of absurdism in 2026, how to be recognized by directors, a surprising anecdote involving a Saturday Night Live alum, and, of course, Hub Theatre Company’s upcoming theatrical offering.
Ahamefule J. Oluo in ‘The Things Around Us’, coming to the Emerson Paramount Center Photo Credits: Alex Dugan
By Kilian Melloy
Jazz musician, stand-up comic, playwright, screenwriter… Ahamefule J. Oluo is all of that and more. The author of two previous shows blending storytelling and music drawn from their own life and those of their parents, 2014’s Now I’m Fine, and 2019’s Susan, Oluo brings their latest, a solo show titled The Things Around Us, to The Emerson Paramount Center’s Robert J. Orchard Stage from February 20 – 22. The Things AroundUs constitutes the third part of what’s become a trilogy, but, unlike the previous two shows, it’s a solo piece: Oluo will create the show’s music using loops rather than an orchestra. With a stand-up’s instincts for engaging with the room and a musician’s ear for the language of sound, the artist will present audiences with a unique experience that he tells us is hard to describe — but not to understand, not once you’ve had it.
Oluo took some time to chat with Theater Mirror about the show, how it grew out of past projects, and the loneliness of being backstage with no one but themself.
Nael Nacer in CST’s ‘The Moderate’. Photos: Nile Scott Studios.
‘The Moderate’ — written by Ken Urban. Direction and Multimedia Design by Jared Mezzocchi. Scenic Design by Sibyl Wickersheimer; Lighting Design by Kevin Fulton; Sound Design by Christian Frederickson; Assistant Projections Design by Emery Frost. A Catalyst Collaborative@MIT Production presented by Central Square Theater, 450 Mass. Ave, Cambridge through March 1.
By Shelley A. Sackett
The Moderate is not for everyone.
Kudos to Central Square Theater for its excellent job of warning that the play contains mature themes, including images, video, and audio depictions of violence, nudity, and racism. Its Content Transparency Statement goes even further, stating, “Central Square Theater cares about the well-being of our audience. We are committed to sharing information about stage effects, sensory experiences, and topics people may find distressing in advance of attending our productions.” The theater recommends that audience members be older than 17. (See full program here).
Kaila Pelton-Flavin, Olivia Fenton, Sarah Newhouse, Aislinn Brophy, and Chloe McFarlane in Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s Little Women. Photos by Benjamin Rose Photography.
Little Womenby Kate Hamill; Directed by Shana Gozansky; Set Design by Jenna MacFarland Lord; Scenic Design by Danielle Ibrahim; Costume Design by Zoe Sundra; Lighting Design by Deb Sullivan; Sound Design by Julian Crocamo; Intimacy Direction by Liv Dumaine; Stage Managed by Dominique D. Burford. Produced by Actors’ Shakespeare Project (ASP) at the Dorothy and Charles Mosesian Center for the Arts in Watertown, MA. Runs through March 1, 2026.
By Julie-Anne Whitney
It takes courage to adapt such a widely beloved novel as Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. Playwright Kate Hamill’s bold theatrical reimaginings of classic literature have, themselves, become hugely popular amongst regional theater companies. Hamill has been named one of the most produced playwrights in America every season since 2017, and Boston theater companies have been producing her plays for years (i.e., The Odyssey, Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson, Emma, Dracula, Vanity Fair, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility). Hamill’s unique skill is taking a well-known story, maintaining its core themes, and then turning it on its head by presenting the story through a decidedly contemporary and/or feminist lens and offering a fresh, unexpected perspective of characters we know and love.
‘Kevin Kling: Unraveled’ − Written and performed by Kevin Kling; Music by Robertson Witmer; Directed by Steven Dietz; Scenic Design by David M. Barber; Costume Design by Peggy McKowen. Produced by Merrimack Repertory Theatre in partnership with the Contemporary American Theater Festival at the Nancy L. Donahue Theatre in Liberty Hall at 50 E. Merrimack St. in Lowell through February 8th
By Mike Hoban
On its surface, Kevin Kling: Unraveled is a one-person show centered on how one man deals not only with his own physical disabilities but also with the perceptions of others. But Kling − and his show − are not defined by his disability. He is first and foremost a gifted storyteller whose performance is more likely to remind one of Jean Shepherd (the narrator of the holiday classic A Christmas Story) than comic Josh Blue (whose cerebral palsy serves as a launching pad for his jokes).
Cast of Hive Theatre Company’s “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ Music and lyrics by William Finn. Book by Rachel Sheinkin. Directed by Margaret McFadden. Music Directed by John Eldridge. Stage Management from Kayla Copping. Scenic Design by Kevin Deane Parker. Sound Design by Geoffrey Edwards. Lighting Design by Narissa “Nars” Kelliher. Costume Design by Samantha Wolfrum. The Hive Theatre Company’s ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ runs from January 22nd to February 1st at 539 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02116.
By Charlotte Snow
It’s not every day that Boston is treated to a new theatre company…it seems like every month. However, it has been many years since a Boston theatre has focused on engaging a rather underrepresented demographic: teens and young adults. This is The Hive Theatre Company’s inaugural season, centered around “Competition, Community, and Coming of Age,” opening with The Wolves and now closing out with The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.
Noli Timere − Conceived and Directed by Rebecca Lazier; Choreography by Rebecca Lazier in collaboration with the performers; Net sculpture by Janet Echelman; Music composed and performed by Jorane; Lighting Design by Leigh Ann Vardy; Costume Design by Mary Jo Mecca. Presented by ArtsEmerson at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston, MA. Runs through February 1, 2026.
ArtsEmerson’s Noli Timere is a deeply moving exploration of trust and connection through the fusion of art, music, circus, and dance. Over the course of one thoroughly thrilling hour, eight performers take you on a gravity-defying emotional journey through a large-scale fiber art sculpture suspended 25 feet above the stage.
Chicago-based director Keira Fromm is no stranger to the work of playwright Joshua Harmon, author of Bad Jews, Significant Other,Admissions, and Prayer for the French Republic. Fromm is also a no stranger to premiering memorable work, having directed everything from Tanya Barfields’ lesbian romance Bright Half Life for About Face Theatre and David Auburn’s The Columnist at American Blues Theater to Halley Feiffer’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York City for Route 66 Theatre Company, all in their Chicago premieres, not to mention the U.S. premiere of British playwright Debbie Tucker Green’s harrowing hang for Chicago’s Remy Bumppo Theatre Company.
Ellen Keith and Tim Lawton in Yorick Ensemble’s ‘The Great Pistachio’
By Julie-Anne Whitney
The Great Pistachio(Boston premiere), by Nicholas Cummings; Direction, Scenic, Costume, and Prop Design by Rachel Hall; Lighting Design by Michael Jay; Fight Choreography by Sydney T. Grant; Puppet Design by Em Sheeran; Stage Managed by Ben Cantor-Adams. Produced by Yorick Ensemble at the BCA Plaza Black Box Theatre in Boston, MA. Runs through February 1, 2026.
If you’re looking for a good laugh – and a reason to keep going despite all the madness out there – head over to the BCA Plaza Black Box Theatre and catch The Great Pistachio, a new absurdist comedy about the pain of isolation, finding meaning in connection, and appreciating the importance of laughter and play in a dark and desperate world.
‘No Exit’ by Jean-Paul Sarte. Directed by Charlie Lunardi. Stage Management from Jack Henry Yeatman. Scenic Design by Jayoung Hong. Sound Design by Z Toto. Lighting Design by Alyssa Gonzalez. Prop Design by Melinda Kalanzis. Costume Design by Gaby Obando. Deadword Theatre Company’s ‘No Exit’ runs from January 20th – 21st and January 27th – 28th at the Rockwell Theatre, 225 Elm Street, Somerville MA 02114.
By Charlotte Snow
“Hell is other people,” Garcin cries to heaven and earth in Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit. Even if you disagree with the statement, Deadword Theatre Company offers a strong argument to sway any nonbelievers that humans are designed to be fundamentally disconnected from each other. Every itch, every fidget, every unnerving little gesture is felt throughout this production’s run time, and it’s perfectly agonizing − in the best possible way.
