Moonbox Productions’ ‘Parade’ is an Ugly Tale, Beautifully Told

December 16, 2019April 8, 2026 Julie-Anne WhitneyLeave a comment

*Phil Tayler (center) and cast of Moonbox Productions’ “Parade” – Photos: Sharman Altshuler*

By Julie-Anne Whitney

‘Parade’ – Book by Alfred Uhry, Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown; Produced by Sharman Altshuler; Directed by Jason Modica; Music Direction by Catherine Stornetta; Choreography by Kira Trolio; Set Design by Lindsay Fuori; Lighting Design by Steve Shack; Sound Design by Elizabeth Cahill; Costume Design by Chelsea Kerl; Stage Managed by Cesara Walters; Dramaturgy by Allison Olivia Choat; Presented by Moonbox Productions at the Boston Center for the Arts (Roberts Theatre) through December 28, 2019.

In the early hours of August 17, 1915, a rabble of twenty-five men stormed a prison farm in Milledgeville, Georgia and captured Leo Frank, a Brooklyn-raised Jewish man wrongfully accused of raping and murdering Mary Phagan, a 13-year-old factory worker in his employ. After driving more than 100 miles back to Phagan’s hometown of Marietta, the angry mob hoisted Frank on top of a table under a large oak tree and demanded an admission of guilt. 31-year-old Frank repeatedly proclaimed his innocence – and was promptly hanged by the neck until dead. One month after the lynching, members of the group, The Knights of Mary Phagan, gathered around a burning cross on Stone Mountain near Atlanta, Georgia and ignited the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan.

BLO’s ‘Fellow Travelers – An Opera For Today

November 15, 2019April 8, 2026 Julie-Anne WhitneyLeave a comment

Timothy Laughlin (played by Jesse Darden) and Hawkins Fuller (Jesse Blumberg) in Boston Lyric Opera’s production of “Fellow Travelers,” playing Nov. 13-17 at the Emerson Paramount Center

By Julie-Anne Whitney

‘Fellow Travellers’ – Opera by Gregory Spears; Libretto by Greg Pierce; Based on the 2007 novel “Fellow Travelers” by Thomas Mallon; Conducted by Emily Senturia; Directed by Peter Rothstein; Set Design by Sara Brown; Costume Design by Trevor Bowen; Lighting Design by Mary Shabatura; Surtitles by Greg Pierce; Sung in English with English surtitles; Produced by Boston Lyric Opera at the Emerson Paramount Center Robert J. Orchard Stage through November 17, 2019.

Gregory Spears’ opera Fellow Travelers chronicles the doomed love affair between two men, State Department employee Hawkins Fuller and writer/reporter Timothy Laughlin, set during the height of McCarthyism in 1953 Washington D.C. The story sheds light on Senator McCarthy’s ruthless hunt for “sexual deviants” working for the federal government, otherwise known as The Lavender Scare.

Arlekin Players’ ‘The Seagull’ is Extraordinary

November 11, 2019April 8, 2026 Julie-Anne WhitneyLeave a comment

L to R – Anne Gottlieb (Irina Arkadina), Darya Denisova (Masha), Eric Andrews (Semyon Medvedenko) in Arlekin Players Theatre new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s ‘The Seagull’ – Photos by Irina Danilova

by Julie-Anne Whitney

‘The Seagull’ – Written by Anton Chekhov; Conceived and directed by Igor Golyak; Script translation by Ryan McKittrick, Julia Smeliansky, and Laurence Senelick; Scenic Design by Nikolay Simonov; Costume Design by Nastya Bugaeva; Lighting Design by Jeff Adelberg; Original Music by Jakov Jakoulov; Produced by the Arlekin Players Theatre at Studio 368 in Needham, MA through December 8, 2019.

As you walk up the stairs into Studio 368, the home of the Arlekin Players, and into the intimate black box theater, you feel a sense of uncertainty: the space is separated into three sections with two seating areas to choose from – one on the left and one on the right – with the performance space placed directly in the center of the room. There is a wooden arch with two black doors on either side and a large circle of sand in the middle of the floor. The space feels ominous- the only light emanating from the floor and from a few naked bulbs on the wall. You take a seat and you wait.

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

October 29, 2019April 8, 2026 Julie-Anne WhitneyLeave a comment

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

By Julie-Anne Whitney

‘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.

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.

GBSC’s Marie and Rosetta Shines light on Two Unsung (S)Heroes of American Music History

October 22, 2019April 8, 2026 Julie-Anne WhitneyLeave a comment

(Pier Lamia Porter as Marie and Lovely Hoffman as Sister Rosetta in Greater Boston Stage Company’s *‘Marie and Rosetta’*. Photos by Nile Scott Studios)

By Julie-Anne Whitney

‘Marie and Rosetta’ – Written by George Brant, Directed by Pascale Florestal; Music Direction by Erica Telisnor; Scenic Design by Baron E. Pugh; Lighting Design by Kathleen Zhou; Sound Design by John Stone; Costume Design by Michelle Villada. Co-Produced by Greater Boston Stage Company and The Front Porch Arts Collective at 395 Main Street Stoneham, MA through November 10, 2019.

In collaboration with The Front Porch Arts Collective, Greater Boston Stage Company (GBSC) continues their 20th Anniversary Season with the New England premiere of George Brant’s Marie and Rosetta. This 90-minute biographical play with music follows the revolutionary American gospel rock musician, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and her protégée, gospel singer Marie Knight, on the eve of their first rehearsal before embarking on a concert tour that would change their lives forever.