ArtsEmerson Delivers Energizing and Creative Retelling of ‘The Magic Flute’

November 7, 2019November 7, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

(Cast of ‘The Magic Flute’ at ArtsEmerson)

by Michele Markarian

“The Magic Flute” – Adapted and directed by Mark Dornford-May. Performed by Isango Ensemble. Presented by ArtsEmerson, Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre, 219 Tremont Street, Boston through November 10.

The 21 or so performers of Isango Ensemble, a troupe made up of black South Africans, are unassuming and relaxed as they warm up onstage before the show begins. They could be neighbors you pass on the street, or strangers you see on the T, or colleagues in your workplace until their conductor, taut and precise, steps onstage and raises his arms. Isango Ensemble are immediately transformed into performers, filling the space with energy, musicianship and joy. This transformation, not something that audience members usually get to bear witness to, lasts throughout the next two hours during this magical retelling of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”. Truly an ensemble, the performers are so in tune with one another and the score that they are able to play without the benefit of sheet music. Their instruments consist of marimbas, drums, feet, hands, and in one cleverly executed instance, a trumpet.

Flat Earth’s ‘X’ Bends Time and Reality

November 7, 2019November 7, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

(David Anderson, Cassandra Meyer ponder their fate in Flat Earth’s ‘X’)

by Mike Hoban

‘X’ – Written by Alistair McDowall; Directed by Lindsay Eagle; Scenic Design by Darren Cornell; Costume Design by Erica Desautels; Lighting Design by Connor S. Van Ness; Sound Design by Kyle Lampe; Special Effects Design by Lynn Wilcott. Presented by Flat Earth Theatre at the Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown through November 16

As someone who can feel disconnected simply by being on the other side of the country on a business trip, it’s unfathomable to imagine the level of disorientation and longing that the characters in X, Alistair McDowall’s ambitious and perplexing space drama now being given its New England premiere by Flat Earth, must feel. Stranded literally billions of miles from home on a scientific exploration mission to Pluto and cut off from contact with Mother Earth as they await their rescue, X takes the horror of the abandonment that preschoolers experience when Mommy and Daddy mix up their daycare pickup assignments and put it on a megadose of steroids.

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

November 5, 2019November 5, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave 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.

SpeakEasy Stage’s ‘Admissions’ Pierces the Veil of White Male Privilege

November 1, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Nathan Malin, Maureen Keiller and Michael Kaye in SpeakEasy Stage’s Production of “Admissions.” (Maggie Hall Photography)

By Shelley A. Sackett

‘Admissions’ – Written by Joshua Harmon; Directed by Paul Daigneault; Scenic Design by Eric Levenson; Lighting Design by Karen Perlow; Costume Design by Charles Schoonmaker; Sound Design by Dewey Dellay; Stage Managed by Stephen MacDonald. Produced by SpeakEasy Stage Company at the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts through November 30, 2019.

Joshua Harmon’s terrific new play “Admissions,” now making its Boston premiere at SpeakEasy Stage Company through November 30, packs a timely wallop. Set at and near Hillcrest, a toney progressive New Hampshire prep school, the plucky drama starts out poking fun at Sherri, Hillcrest’s white admissions director who is not happy with the draft of the Admissions Catalog she has just received.

Beauty, Passion and Danger Converge in ArtsEmerson’s ‘Triptych’

November 1, 2019November 1, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

(Roomful of Teeth performing ‘Triptych’ at the Cutler Majestic Theatre. Photo: Maria Baranova)

By Michele Markarian

‘Triptych (Eyes of One on Another)’ – Composed by Bryce Dressner. Libretto by korde arrington tuttle. Featuring words by Essex Hemphill & Patti Smith. Directed by Kaneza Schaal. Presented by Arts Emerson, in association with Celebrity Series of Boston and New England Conservatory at the Emerson Cutler Majestic Theatre, 219 Tremont Street, Boston, through November 3.

Several different factors can draw one to see this show. Perhaps you’re an admirer of Robert Mapplethorpe, the controversial artist whose photographic work began in the 70’s until his premature death, from AIDS, in 1989? Or a fan of the poets Essex Hemphill or Patti Smith, whose works make up the text of the show? My curiosity was piqued upon learning that Bryce Dessner, a guitarist with The National, composed the score. Friends I ran into after the show were pulled by Roomful of Teeth, a Grammy-winning vocal project that they’d seen many times at Mass MOCA. Whatever your reasons, your emotions will certainly be aroused by this provocative, evocative, beautiful and sometimes disturbing concert punctuated by the written word, photographs, and the lonely, disinterested yet yearning presence of the graceful dancer Martell Ruffin.

‘Rent’ Still Sparkles at Boch Center

October 31, 2019October 31, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

by Robert Israel

Rent, 20^th Anniversary Tour – Book, Music, and Lyrics by Jonathan Larson. Directed by Evan Ensign. At the Shubert Theatre, 265 Tremont St., Boston, through November 10, 2019.

Twenty years ago I attended the musical Rent at the Shubert in Boston, the very same theater where it is being performed anew. I have some vivid memories of the show back then that were rekindled when I attended this current, electrifying touring version. Today’s version has more pizazz, more spunk, and it sparkles, as if the cast has each imbibed a hefty swig of Kool-Aid doused with adrenalin. The production is spirited and is well worth attending.

Two Decades Later, ‘Rent” Is Still Going Strong

October 31, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

by Shelley A. Sackett

‘Rent’ – Book, Music and Lyrics by Jonathan Larson; Directed by Evan Ensign; Music Supervision and Additional Arrangements by Tim Weil; Choreography by Marlies Yearby; Scenic Design by Paul Clay; Costume Design by Angela Wendt; Lighting Design by Jonathan Spencer; Sound Design by Keith Caggiano. Produced by Work Light Productions at the Shubert Theatre – Boch Center through November 10, 2019.

Rent, the quintessential rock musical loosely based on Giacomo Puccini’s opera “La Boheme,” is celebrating its 20^th anniversary with a full-throated revival at the Shubert Theatre – Boch Center. One of the longest-running shows on Broadway (it ran for 12 years), Rent garnered a shelf full of awards in 1996, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, three Tony Awards and four Drama Desk Awards.

SpeakEasy’s Topical ‘Admissions’ Intends to Make You Uncomfortable

October 29, 2019November 1, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Nathan Malin, Michael Kaye and Maureen Keiller in SpeakEasy Stage’s Production of “Admissions.” (Maggie Hall Photography)

By Julie-Anne Whitney

The Boston premiere production of Joshua Harmon’s play Admissions, directed by Paul Daigneault, offers an unsettling behind-the-scenes look at issues of class and race through the eyes of the most privileged among us: wealthy, educated white people.

The story centers on Sherri Rosen-Mason (played with thoughtful sensitivity by Maureen Keiller), the head of admissions at Hillcrest, a small New Hampshire prep school, and her headmaster husband, Bill (played by the magnetic Michael Kaye), who have worked for years to expand the racial diversity of the school’s student body, which includes their son, a senior who is anxiously awaiting his college acceptance letters. Boston University student Nathan Malin, gives a commanding, stand-out performance as Charlie, son of Bill and Sherri, who spends the bulk of the play grappling with questions about privilege, fairness, fact versus opinion, and who “deserves” what and why.

Lyric’s ‘The Thanksgiving Play’ a Cornucopia Overflowing with Clever Theatrical Treats

October 27, 2019October 27, 2019 Theater Mirror1 Comment

(Jesse Hinson, Barlow Adamson, Grace Experience and Amanda Collins in ‘The Thanksgiving Play’ at Lyric Stage Company of Boston. Photos: Glenn Perry)

by Linda Chin

The Thanksgiving Play – Written by Larissa FastHorse; Directed by Scott Edmiston; Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland; Sound Design/Original Music by Dewey Dellay; Costume Design by Rachel Padula-Shufelt; Lighting Design by Karen Perlow. Presented by Lyric Stage Company, 140 Clarendon St., Boston through Nov. 10

In the opening scene of The Thanksgiving Play, now being presented at the Lyric Stage, the first of several children’s Thanksgiving limericks and songs within the play starts with verse, sung by a single white male Pilgrim (Barlow Adamson) to the familiar tune of the “Twelve Days of Christmas.”

On the fourth day of Thanksgiving, the natives gave to me –
4 Cornucopias,
3 Chief headdresses,
2 turkey gobblers and,
A pumpki-in in a pumpkin patch.

Anthem Theatre Company Spends Time with Poe’s ‘Creepy Ladies’

October 27, 2019 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

(Cast of Anthem Theatre Company’s ‘My Fascination with Creepy Ladies’)

Review by James Wilkinson

‘My Fascination with Creepy Ladies: A collection of horrors by Edgar Allan Poe’ – Conceived, adapted and directed by Bryn Boice. Devised by Anthem Theatre Company. Costume Design: Theona White. Lighting Design: Bridget K. Doyle. Presented by Anthem Theatre Company at the Boston Center for the Arts Plaza Black Box Theatre, 539 Tremont St., Boston through November 3, 2019.

When seeing shows to review I typically try to keep my notebook in my bag until the show is over. However, while waiting for Anthem Theatre Company’s production of My Fascination with Creepy Ladies to begin, there was a detail in the theater that caught my attention and seemed worth breaking this rule for the sake of remembrance. A song with an electronic synthesizer sound and a pulsating drum machine beat (what other decade could it be from but the 1980s?) was coming out of the theater sound system. It seemed an odd choice for a play that was going to be diving into the dark abyss that is the work of Edgar Allan Poe. Then I listened a bit closer and caught some of the lyrics. Nestled within that hypnotic beat, the singer chants out, “And I want you/And I want you/And I want so/It’s an obsession.” A Google search later that night revealed the singer to be Annie Lennox of the Eurythmics, the song, “Love is a Stranger.” I’ll leave you to look the rest up, but suffice to say, when Lennox starts howling the lines “Love is a danger/of a different kind/To take you away/And leave you far behind” you start to understand its placement in relation to Poe’s work. That a darker tale of obsession is hidden within a pop song connects with the cheeky title of Anthem Theatre gives its production.