At the Cape Playhouse, the Sounds of Rock ‘n’ Roll, ‘Buddy’ and Crickets Mark the Start of Summer

June 12, 2025June 13, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

The cast of ‘Buddy’ at The Cape Cod Playhouse. Photos by Nile Scott Studios.

The Cape Playhouse presents ‘Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story’. Written by Alan Janes. Direction by Meredith McDonough. Music Direction by Matt Cusack. Choreography by Felicity Stiverson. Sets by Lex Liang. Costumes by Kathleen Geldard. Lights by Kat C. Zhou. Sound by Jeff Sherwood. At the Cape Playhouse, 820 Main Street, Route 6A, Dennis, MA, through June 21.

By Linda Chin

Each summer, thousands of theatergoers who flock to the Cape Playhouse, a converted 1790 meeting house in Dennis, MA, set on twenty-six peaceful and pristine acres off Route 6A, are transported to a simpler time and treated to a professional production amidst a beautiful backdrop of history and nature. With the musical Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story as the Playhouse’s 2025 season opener, patrons should anticipate being transported to the years 1956 to 1959 and educated about aspects of musical legend Buddy Holly’s life and career, bearing witness to rock ‘n’ roll history in the making and treated to the sounds of “chirping” Crickets performing over 20 of Holly’s hits.

Gloucester Stage Breathes Fresh Life into A Beloved Classic, ‘The Glass Menagerie’

June 11, 2025June 11, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Liza Giangrande, Patrick O’Konis in Gloucester Stage company’s ‘The Glass Menagerie’
Photos by: Shawn Henry

‘The Glass Menagerie.’ Written by Tennessee Williams. Directed by Doug Lockwood. Scenic Design by Jenna McFarland Lord; Costume Design by Nia Safarr Banks; Lighting Design by Amanda Fallon; Sound Design by Aubrey Dube. Presented by Gloucester Stage at 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, through June 28.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Tennessee Williams’ classic autobiographical story of a struggling family, The Glass Menagerie, is no stranger to Broadway and community theater stages. It premiered in Chicago in 1944, where it was championed by several Midwest critics, and moved to Broadway in 1945. Subsequent Broadway productions were mounted in 1965, 1975, 1983, 1994, and 2005, with the likes of Jessica Tandy, Julie Harris, and Jessica Lange playing matriarch Amanda Wingfield. The 2013 revival transferred to Broadway from the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, MA. Known as a staple in college and community theaters’ repertoire since its 1944 début, the play and its straightforward staging is a reliable crowd pleaser and audience draw.

Trinity Rep’s ‘Blues For an Alabama Sky’ Could Use Some More Sky, but Its Blues Are Full Of Heart

June 9, 2025June 9, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of Trinity Rep’s ‘Blues For an Alabama Sky’. Photos by Mark Turek

Blues for an Alabama Sky – Written by Pearl Cleage; Directed by Jackie Davis; Scenic Designer Michael McGarty; Costume Designer Amber Volmer; Lighting Designer Erica Maholmes; Sound Designer Larry D. Fowler, Jr; Fight Choreographer Mark Rose; Vocal Coach Rebecca Gibel; Stage Manager Kelsey Emry; and Megan Dilworth as Delia; Taavon Gamnbe as Guy; Cloteal L. Horne as Angel; Dereks Thomas as Sam; Quinn West as Leland (“Alabama”) . Presented by Trinity Repertory Theatre, Providence, RI through

By C.J. Williams

What type of world is it in which a storm can blow through and leave nothing changed? You might say magical realism, Alice-in-Wonderland, or someone’s dreamscape – but Blues for an Alabama Sky is set in hard-as-nails Harlem during Prohibition, and while the storm of the plot in a well-structured play ought to leave the characters comedically or tragically changed, it doesn’t. Thankfully, the audience still gets to experience a few high points: humor and horror.

Quirky, Funny and Flaky — NSMT’s ‘Waitress’ Is Feel-Good Summer Fare

June 9, 2025June 9, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Christine Dwyer (Jenna) and Brandi Chavonne Massey (Becky) in WAITRESS at North Shore Music Photo©Paul Lyden

‘Waitress.’ Written by Jessie Nelson. Music and Lyrics by Sara Bareilles. Based on the motion picture written by Adrienne Shelly. Directed by Kevin P. Hill. Music Direction by Milton Granger; Choreography by Ashley Chasteen; Scenic and Lighting Design by Jack Mehler; Costume Design by Rebecca Glick; Sound Design by Alex Berg. Presented by North Shore Music Theatre, 54 Dunham Rd, Beverly, MA through June 15.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Who doesn’t love a thick slice of pie, especially in the summer when fresh fillings are ripe and especially sweet? “Sugar, butter, flour” is the mantra chanted like a lullaby throughout Waitress, the wonderfully staged musical now playing at North Shore Music Theatre. Although pie takes center stage throughout the almost two-and-a-half-hour performance (with one intermission), Waitress is no simple, indulgent, or sentimental high. Meaty themes like domestic abuse, infidelity, empowerment, motherhood, and self-fulfillment are the secret ingredients that keep the show rolling and the audience from lapsing into a sugar coma.

Central Square Theater Presents A Winning “Mrs. Warren’s Profession”

June 3, 2025June 3, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Melinda Lopez, Luz Lopez in Warren’s Profession’ at Central Square. Photos by: Nile Scott Studios

“Mrs. Warren’s Profession”, by George Bernard Shaw. Directed by Eric Tucker, Bedlam. Presented by Central Square Theater, 450 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, through June 29.

By Michele Markarian

A conference room table with leather chairs and a light fixture suspended above, bearing a ticker and dominating the traverse stage of Central Square Theater wasn’t what I expected when I walked in to see Central Square’s production of Mrs. Warren’s Profession. Yet it aptly set the tone for this timeless play about conventionality, morality, and a woman’s right to earn a living.

Charming, Engaging, and Clever — A.R.T.’s Musical ‘Two Strangers’ Has It All!

June 2, 2025June 2, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Sam Tutty and Christiani Pitts in A.R.T.’s ‘Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)’.
Photos: Joel Zayac

‘Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York).’ Written by Jim Barne and Kit Buchan. Directed and Choreographed by Tim Jackson. Scenic and Costume Design by Soutra Gilmour; Lighting Design by Jack Knowles; Sound Design by Tony Gayle and Cody Spencer; Orchestrations by Lux Pyramid; Music Direction by Jeffrey Campos. Presented by A.R.T.’s Loeb Drama Center, 64 Brattle St., Cambridge through June 29.

By Shelley A. Sackett

Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York), in its American debut at the American Repertory Theatre,is the perfect antidote to our bleak, cold spring. This sunny, upbeat two-hander musical romantic comedy is as beguiling as it is impeccably acted, directed and produced. In short, it is a full-blown fabulous evening of musical theater at its finest.

Central Square’s ‘Mrs. Warren’s Profession’ Works Wonders

June 1, 2025June 3, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

The cast of ‘Mrs. Warren’s Profession’ at Central Square. Photos by: Nile Scott Studios

‘Mrs. Warren’s Profession’ – George Bernard Shaw. Directed by Eric Tucker. Stage Management by Fanni Horváth. Scenic Design by David Gammons. Sound Design by Nate Tucker. Lighting Design by Jeff Adelberg. Costume Design by Leslie Held. Video Design by Maxwell Mandell. Intimacy Coordination by Jesse Hinson. A collaboration between Bedlam and Central Square Theater, ‘Mrs. Warren’s Profession’ runs from May 29th to June 22nd at 450 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139.

By Charlotte Snow

As much as I love a period piece, I’ve found my fondness for them tainted due to the current administration’s efforts to place Victorian-style restrictions upon inalienable human rights. So, I was fully dreading a night full of corsets and bell skirts. To my relief, I walked into the theater and found the stage set with a faux rustic conference table, tricked out with rolling chairs, and above, a floating screen flashing disparate numbers. I sighed a deep breath of relief reminiscent of the first vape hit at the start of the play. I remained curious as to how the meaning of the playwright’s words would be changed when placed out of the context he originally intended.

Ogunquit Playhouse’s Exuberant ‘Come From Away’ Epitomizes the Phrase “It Takes a Village”

May 21, 2025May 21, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of ‘Come From Away’ at Ogunquit Playhouse

Come From Away. Book, music, and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein. Directed and choreographed by Richard J. Hinds. Music Direction by Sam Groisser. Scenic Design by Nate Bertone. Lighting Design by Richard Latta. Costume Design by Michelle J. Li. Sound Design by Kevin Heard. Wig/Hair & Make-Up Design by Emilia Martin. Presented by Ogunquit Playhouse, Maine, through June 14, 2025.

By Linda Chin

The award-winning musical Come From Away tells the remarkable true story of the tiny town of Gander (population 9,000) in Newfoundland, Canada – approximately 1,500 miles from NYC – that garnered global attention nearly 25 years ago. In 2001, the isolated community played host to nearly 7000 ‘come from aways’ (what Newfoundlanders called non-locals) on 38 international flights that were diverted there when the skies over the United States were shut down on September 11.

Doherty’s Dynamite Dolly Electrifies Lyric’s ‘Hello Dolly!’

May 21, 2025June 22, 2025 Theater Mirror1 Comment

Aimee Doherty (center) and cast in Lyric Stage’s ‘Hello Dolly! Photos by Mark S. Howard

‘Hello, Dolly!’ – Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman; Book by Michael Stewart; Based on “The Matchmaker” by Thornton Wilder; Directed by Maurice Emmanuel Parent; Music Direction by Dan Rodriguez; Choreography by Ilyse Robbins; Scenic Design by Janie E. Howland; Costume Design by Kelly Baker; Lighting Design by Karen Perlow; Sound Design by Alex Berg. Presented by Lyric Stage Company at 140 Clarendon St., Boston, through June 22^nd.

By Mike Hoban

In a world that seems to add a new layer of black clouds with each 24-hour news cycle, the Lyric Stage has gifted theatergoers with a joyous revival of the Jerry Herman-Michael Stewart Broadway classic Hello Dolly! The production, directed with panache by Maurice Emmanuel Parent, is essentially the theatrical equivalent of a blast of nitrous oxide – delivering laughter and euphoria in large doses. In a show usually defined by the star power of its leading lady, Aimee Doherty (as Dolly) seizes the role and makes it her own in an endearing performance that ranks up there with any of her multiple Norton and IRNE Award-winning musical theater performances. And she is well-supported by a cast of ringers and talented (relative) newcomers.

A Sumptuous “Light in the Piazza” Shines Over a Dim Plot

May 18, 2025May 18, 2025 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

The cast of *The Light in the Piazza* at The Huntington Theatre. Photos by Julieta Cervantes

“The Light in the Piazza”. Book by Craig Lucas. Music and Lyrics by Adam Guettel. Based on the Novel by Elizabeth Spencer. Directed by Loretta Greco. Presented by The Huntington, 264 Huntington Avenue, Boston, through June 15.

by Michele Markarian

“I think it is my favorite place on earth,” declares Margaret Johnson (Emily Skinner), gazing around a piazza in Florence with her daughter, Clara (Sarah-Anne Martinez). Margaret and Clara are in Florence so that Margaret can show Clara the highlights of her honeymoon, many years ago, that she took with Clara’s father, Roy Johnson (Rob Richardson). I assumed Roy was dead, but no, he is at home, cocktail in hand, taking care of business to afford the girls their trip. It is here in the piazza that Clara meets Fabrizio (Joshua Grosso), who is immediately, hopelessly stricken with love. Margaret does not approve, for two reasons – one, a childhood accident with a horse has left Clara with the mental capacity of a twelve-year-old, and two, she enjoys the dependency that Clara has on her. Fabrizio persists, and Margaret and Clara meet his formidable yet welcoming family – his father, Signor Naccarelli (William Michals), mom Signora Naccarelli (Rebecca Pitcher), brother Giuseppe (Alexander Ross) and Giuseppe’s wife, Franca (Rebekah Rae Robles). Fabrizio proposes marriage, Clara accepts, and Margaret escapes with her to Rome in the night. Will love win out?