Speakeasy’s Absorbing ‘Heroes’ is Guaranteed to Spark Discussion

September 14, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Elise Piliponis, Karen MacDonald, Jesse Hinson, Dayna Cousins, and Nathan Malin in *Heroes of the Fourth Turning*. Photos by Nile Scott Studios.

Heroes of the Fourth Turning – Written by Will Arbery; Directed by Marianna Bassham; Set Design by Baron E. Pugh; Costume Design by Rachel Padula Shufelt; Sound Design by Elizabeth Cahill; Lighting Design by Jeff Adelberg. Presented by Speakeasy Stage at the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont St. Boston through October 8

by Mike Hoban

There’s a lot to unpack in playwright Will Arbery’s Heroes of the Fourth Turning, the thought-provoking political drama now running at Speakeasy Stage. Brilliantly acted by a terrific ensemble, Heroes is billed as a look at “a country at war with itself,” but in truth delves more specifically into the internal divides within the Catholic wing of the Republican party brought on by the election of Donald Trump. Interestingly, the play is set in 2017, two days before the solar eclipse and just one week after the white nationalist riots in Charlottesville – which means that the play pre-dates the 2020 election and the ensuing insurrection at the Capital that led the Republican party to desert their conservative principles in deference to the Big Lie pushed by the former president.

Dorset Theatre Festival Closes The 2022 Season in Triumph with Its Remarkable World Première of “Thirst”

September 7, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

David Mason and Kathy McCafferty in THIRST at the Dorset Theatre Festival. Photos by Joey Moro

‘Thirst’ — Written by Ronán Noone. Directed by Theresa Rebeck; Scenic Design by Christopher and Justin Swader; Sound Design by Fitz Patton; Lighting Design by Mary Ellen Stebbins, Costume Design by Fabian Fidel Aguilar. Presented by Dorset Theatre Festival, Dorset, Vermont. The run has ended.

by Shelley A. Sackett

Arriving early for “Thirst,” playwright Ronán Noone’s dazzling new play, is a stroke of good ole Irish luck. A crisp sound system pumps toe-tapping traditional pub music, setting a jig-worthy mood. Functional period lamps bathe the livable kitchen set in warmth, creating a cozy tone for arguably the best theatrical experience of the 2022 summer season.

By the time the Irish lilted announcements herald the play’s start, the audience has been transported to another time and another place.

And what a time and place it is.

Anna Deavere Smith Revisits Powerful ‘Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992’ Through New Lens at the A.R.T.

September 5, 2022September 22, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Wesley T. Jones and Elena Hurst in A.R.T.s production of *Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992*. Photo Credits: Lauren Miller

Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 – Conceived, Written, and Revised by Anna Deavere Smith; Directed by Taibi Magar; Scenic Design by Riccardo Hernandez; Costume Design by Linda Cho; Lighting Design by Alan C. Edwards; Sound Design by Darron L West. Projection Design by David Bengali. Presented by American Repertory Theater in association with Signature Theatre at the Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle St., Cambridge through Sept. 24.

by Mike Hoban

In 1992, at the height of the riots following the “not guilty” verdict of the four white L.A. police officers who had been caught on videotape delivering a brutal beating to Black motorist Rodney King, I was having a conversation with a Black male coworker, to get some perspective on why the city was on fire. “Listen,” he told me in an even but pointed tone. “If you’re a Black man in this country, there’s almost zero chance that you haven’t been stopped by a cop at least once – for no reason – by the time you reach 21.” And as Congresswoman Maxine Waters (who is quoted in the play) directly put it, “(The) riot is the voice of the unheard.”

‘The Inheritance Part 1’ Shines at Trinity

September 1, 2022September 13, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of ‘The Inheritance Part 1’at Trinity Rep

by Tony Annicone

Trinity Repertory Company’s opening show of their season is the 2020 Tony Award and 2019 Olivier Award winning play “The Inheritance” by Matthew Lopez. This two part play is about the aftermath of the AIDS crises, and takes place from the summer of 2015 to spring of 2018 and encompasses the gay identity of the 21st Century. Lopez uses EM Forster’s 1910 novel as the framework for his new tale and sets it in current day New York. The two Schlegel sisters from the original novel are transformed into two gay men in this new show. The 30 year old couple are Eric Glass, a political activist and Toby Darling, a writer, who have been partners for seven years. Shortly before they become engaged, they meet two strangers, an older man who lived through the AIDS crisis and a younger man yearning for a brighter future. These three generations deal with many situations and meetings that occur in the course of this three hour show. Toby must deal with success of a play he’s written as well as some self-doubt. This leads him into precarious situations, including a drug induced party and an unfortunate encounter with an escort. On the other hand, Eric seems to be on the right track. This upsets their planned future leaving it in disarray. Joe Wilson Jr. brings out the pathos and the comic moments excellently in this superbly written show. He elicits marvelous performances from his talented cast as they run the gamut of emotions. This splendid masterpiece is given a resounding and very well-deserved standing ovation at the close of the show.

The Inheritance Part 2’ Shines at Trinity

September 1, 2022September 30, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of ‘The Inheritance Part 2’at Trinity Rep

by Tony Annicone

Trinity Repertory Company’s second show of their season is the continuation of their opening show, “The Inheritance” Part 2. When originally presented, the show was performed in seven hours, intended to be seen on the same day. After Part 1, the audience wonders if Eric will ever learn about his inheritance from his friend and benefactor. In Part 2 we continue to learn what someone receives personally from their own family including how they were brought up is also an inheritance. It also discusses what you do with what you have been given and what it can do for you. Can it help you or hinder you? Hopefully, you can fix the problem or let it ruin your life. The first play dealt with what one gets from their ancestors and paying homage to those who came before you. How their struggles in the past influence you now and in the future. Even though part 1 conclusion created a sense of peace and importance, part 2 starts off in a more flippant manner with Henry going back to being more stoic. Part 2 still has its heartbreaking moments and rivets you to your seat in anticipation of what will happen to Eric and to Toby.

GAMM’s “Describe the Night” a Tale of Russian Disinformation

September 1, 2022September 20, 2022 Theater Mirror1 Comment

Donnla Hughes as Yevgenia, Michael Liebhauser as Isaac; foreground: Sean McConaghy as Nikolai in Gamm Theatre’s production of “Describe the Night”. Photos by Cat Laine

by Tony Annicone

GAMM Theatre’s opening show of their 38th season is “Describe the Night” by Rajiv Joseph, the Obie Award winner for Best American Play. The show spans 90 years and is set in Russia, eastern Germany, and Poland. We meet real life author, Isaac Babel, a wire-journalist, and writer of fantastic tales as he wanders the countryside in 1920. He soon develops a friendship with Nikolai Yezkov, a Red Cavalry Captain who insists on fact-based unimaginative stories. Babel’s diary about Soviet history is woven through the show wonderfully.

Gloucester’s ‘Paradise Blue’ Personalizes the Myth of Urban Renewal

August 31, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

The cast of ‘Paradise Blue’ at Gloucester Stage. (L to R Alexandria Danielle King, Durrell Lyons, Darian Michael Garey, Dereks Thomas)

Paradise Blue – Elyse Joyner and Logan Pitts, Co-directors; Janie Howland, Scenic Designer; Nia Safarr Banks, Costume Designer; Aubrey Dube, Sound Designer; Toni Sterling, Lighting Designer. Presented by the Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester through September 18

by Mike Hoban

There’s no shortage of compelling human drama in Paradise Blue, the ambitious 2018 play by Obie Award-winning playwright Dominique Morisseau, now playing at Gloucester Stage. The noir-tinged play explores the lives of the denizens of Paradise Blue, a jazz club nestled in the entertainment district of Paradise Valley in Black Bottom, a predominantly black neighborhood in Detroit in the late 1940’s. But the drama inside the club pales next to the looming threat that lies outside the club’s door – the impending gentrification that will destroy the neighborhood in the years to come under the guise of “urban renewal”.

“See if this plan to clean up the city don’t mean to clean us out,” says one prescient character to his bandmate. “Get rid of all the n***ers. Just like the Mayor say in his campaign – we the blight he talkin’ ‘bout.”

NSMT’s ‘Buddy’ an Entertaining Musical Journey

August 25, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Matt McClure (Buddy Holly) and the cast of BUDDY – THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY playing at North Shore Music Theatre thru August 28. Photos by © Paul Lyden

‘Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story’ – Written by Alan James. Directed and choreographed by Marcos Santana. Music Direction by Milton Granger. At the North Shore Music Theatre through August 28.

by Linda Chin

In contrast to the multi-generational theatregoers who attended Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella in July (including many young girls wearing princess dresses), the crowd at Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, skewed towards the older set – Baby Boomers who were eager for a fun night out reliving the rock and roll of their youth. So the audience for the third production in North Shore Music Theatre’s spectacular summer ‘22 lineup were likely familiar with the fact that Buddy’s story – his tragic death in a plane crash at age 22 – does not have a fairy tale ending.

Straight A’s for ‘School of Rock’ at Cape Cod Theatre Company

August 23, 2022August 23, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of ‘School of Rock’ at Cape Cod Theatre Company

School of Rock –Tristan Divincenzo, Director; Robert Wilder, Musical Director; Suzette Hutchinson, Choreographer; James P. Byrne, Scenic and Lighting Designer; Tristan Divincenzo, Projection Design; Robin McLaughlin, Costume Design; J. Hagenbuckle, Sound Design, Matt Kohler, Technical Direction. Presented by the Cape Cod Theatre Company, Harwich, through August 28.

by Linda Chin

With its current production of School of Rock, Cape Cod Theatre Company/Harwich Junior Theatre reinforces its long-standing reputation as Cape Cod’s premier multi-generational theater. Based on the 2003 film, the musical written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Julian Fellowes originated on Broadway in 2015. School of Rock tells the story of an out-of-work rocker, Dewey Finn, who takes on a job as a substitute teacher at the prestigious Horace Green school and forms a rock and roll band of fifth graders to try to win the Battle of the Bands.

Reagle Concluding Inaugural Season Under Bertone with a Spirited ‘Pippin’

August 8, 2022August 9, 2022 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Davron Monroe (bottom), Kenny Lee (top) and cast in Reagle Music Theatre’s ‘Pippin’

‘Pippin’ – Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz; Book by Roger O. Hirson; Directed and Choreographed by Artistic Director Rachel Bertone; Music Direction by Dan Rodriguez; Cameron McEachern (Scenic Designer), Frank Meissner Jr (Lighting Design), Robby Davis (Sound Design), Costumes by Emerald City Theatrical. Presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI) at the Reagle Music Theatre, Waltham through August 13

by Mike Hoban

The themes from 1972’s Pippin, now being staged at the Reagle Theatre in Waltham through next weekend, are as relevant as ever – maybe even more so for Gen Z and the tail end of the millennial generation. Much like that demographic, protagonist Pippin, son of medieval emperor Charlemagne, wants more out of life than an ordinary existence, because well, “when you’re extraordinary, you gotta do extraordinary things!”). In Pippin’s case, though, those “extraordinary things” are a lot more than just inventing an app or accumulating TikTok followers. He is, after all, the son of the ruler of much of Western Europe in the late 8^th and early 9^th centuries. The Reagle production, directed by artistic director (and millennial) Rachel Bertone delivers a richly comic version of the classic on the heels of Reagle’s brilliant production of West Side Story in July.