Theater Mirror’s Favorite Productions of 2018

December 31, 2018January 20, 2019 michaelhoban2 Comments

By Michele Markarian and Mike Hoban

Looking back, 2018 was a pretty eclectic year for Boston-area theater, with something for everybody – whether it be “serious” theatergoers or newcomers checking out the latest jukebox musical. So Theater Mirror Co-Editors Michele Markarian and Mike Hoban reflected on some of the more noteworthy theatrical events of 2018 and created their year-end lists. There are four overlaps – which says a lot about the strength of the productions in a year full of quality offerings – but there were also a lot of shows that could have made the lists that we just didn’t have room for.

Gloucester Stage’s ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ Finds Ray of Light in the Darkness

June 13, 2018June 18, 2018 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Mike Hoban

Dancing at Lughnasa; Written by Brian Friel; Directed by Benny Sato Ambush; Scenic Design, Janie Howland; Sound Design, Arshan Gailus; Lighting Design, Karen Perlow; Costume Design, Miranda Giurleo. Presented by Gloucester Stage at 267 E. Main St., Gloucester through July 8.

Is it possible to leave a theater with a smile on your face knowing that two of the play’s endearingly forlorn characters will die lonely deaths and that their siblings will live out the remainder their lives devoid of any real fulfillment? If you’ve just seen the Gloucester Stage production of Brian Friel’s classic work, Dancing at Lughnasa, then the answer is a resounding yes. Superbly acted by an exceptional ensemble and brilliantly directed by Benny Sato Ambush, the play explores the bleak but hopeful existence of the five Mundy sisters in the tiny village of Ballybeg in County Donegal during the Celtic harvest festival of the play’s title. Narrated in flashback from the point of view of Michael (Ed Hoopman), the now grown up son of the youngest sister, unwed mother Christina, the play details the summer of his seventh year, when forces from within and without conspired to push the heretofore resilient family to its breaking point.

The Quixotic, Passionate Drive of Golda Meir

March 30, 2017March 30, 2017 michaelhobanLeave a comment

By Michele Markarian

‘Golda’s Balcony’ – Written by William Gibson. Directed by Judy Braha. Presented by the New Repertory Theatre, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown through April 16.

Golda Meir was a fascinating character – passionate, driven, with a sense of personal destiny that was tied in to the “paradise” that she believed to be the State of Israel. Her early childhood was spent in Kiev, where she remembered her father boarding the door with wooden planks to keep out the pogroms. The family emigrated to Milwaukee, where the young Golda heard Ben Gurion speak, which marked the beginning of her life as a warrior and champion for the burgeoning State of Israel.

Essays In Idelness

March 17, 2017April 2, 2017 michaelhobanLeave a comment

by Larry Stark

(Essays in Idleness is a feature that periodically runs – uneditied – that expresses the thoughts of our founder Larry Stark)

THERE’S A NEW COMPANY IN BOSTON!

“THE FRONT PORCH ARTS COLLECTIVE” (https://www.centralsquaretheater.org/about/front-porch-arts-collective/) will be in residence at The Central Square Theatre for a year, and next weekend their first production will be a staged reading of Marcus Gardley’s play “The House That Will Not Stand” —as first in “The God’s Closet Reading Series” of at least six. The date is 26 March, at 7:00 p m., and reservations for this reading are recommended.