Holiday Mashup of Dickens and Holmes is Both Familiar and Surprising

November 27, 2025April 8, 2026 CJ WilliamsLeave a comment

Jon-Vellante, Paul-Melendy, and Christopher-Chew in Lyric Stage’s ‘A Sherlock Carol’.
Photos by Nile Hawver

‘A Sherlock Carol’ – Written by Mark Shanahan; Directed by Ilyse Robbins; Featuring Paul Melendy; Leigh Barrett; Christopher Chew; Jon Vellante; Mark Linehan; Michelle Moran; Scenic Design by Erik D. Diaz; Costumes by Sophia Baramidze; Lighting Design by SeifAllah Solotto-Cristobal; Sound Design by Alex Berg; Presented by Lyric Stage Boston, Boston, MA running November 14 through December 21.

By C.J. Williams

Famously, Dickens’ A Christmas Carol opens with the line, “Marley was dead: to begin with.” Playing now at the Lyric Stage until December 21st, A Sherlock Carol, opens to the tune of “Moriarty was dead: to begin with”. The famous consulting detective is in a black, offensive, depression (throwing out friends and spitting “Bah!”). Moriarty is dead, and Holmes, self-obsessed and shut in on Christmas Eve, refuses all invitations from Watson to partake in holiday cheer…and Moriarty is dead. But that might just as easily have been said of Scrooge at the opening of his story, and Holmes, as we enter A Sherlock Carol, are dead themselves: They’ve both lost the thing that gives hope to the human heart.

Scrooge was essentially brought back to life. Can Holmes be?

“Tick, Tick…Boom” Delivers a Dynamic Exploration of Love, Loss and Adulthood

October 28, 2025April 8, 2026 Michele MarkarianLeave a comment

Anthony Pires Jr, Vanessa Calantropo, Johnny Shea in Umbrella Stage Company’s ‘Tick, Tick… Boom!’

“Tick, Tick…Boom”. Book, Music, and Lyrics by Jonathan Larson. Directed and Choreographed by Ilyse Robbins. Lighting Design by Ben Rush; Sound Design by Alex Berg
Scenic Designer by Erik D. Diaz. Music Direction by Jordan Oczkowski. Presented by The Umbrella Stage Company, 40 Stow Street, Concord, through November 23.

By Michele Markarian

The world of childhood promises an open road, where any and all dreams are possible, ignoring any pesky variables, like personality, talent, looks, connections, socioeconomics, and, well, fate. Which, as Carl Jung said, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate”. At some point in our twenties, we decide what kind of people we want to be and the kind of life we would like to live, as it dawns on us that we really can’t have it all. We are forced to choose, and the choosing isn’t always easy, especially for those of us who have our hearts set on a career in the performing arts.

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

May 21, 2025April 8, 2026 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.

SpeakEasy’s ‘A Man of No Importance’ Is Must-See, Feel-Good Theater at Its Absolute Finest

March 2, 2025April 8, 2026 Shelley SackettLeave a comment

Eddie Shields and Will McGarrahan in Speakeasy’s ‘A Man of No Importance’
Photos by Nile Scott Studios

‘A Man of No Importance’ – Based on the film, ‘A Man of No Importance.’ Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens; Music by Stephen Flaherty; Book by Terrence McNally; Directed by Paul Daigneault. Choreographed by Ilyse Robbins. Music Direction by Paul S. Katz. Scenic Design by Jenna McFarland Lord. Presented by SpeakEasy Stage Company. At the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center for the Arts, through March 22.

By Shelley A. Sackett

There is so much to praise about SpeakEasy Stage Company’s ‘A Man of No Importance,’ director Paul Daigneault’s swansong production after leading the company he founded for 33 years, it’s hard to know where to begin.

Daigneault Closes the Door on SpeakEasy Stewardship with Poignant and Timely ‘A Man of No Importance’

February 26, 2025April 8, 2026 Theater MirrorLeave a comment

Cast of Speakeasy’s ‘A Man of No Importance’. Photos by Nile Scott Studios

‘A Man of No Importance’ – Based on the film, ‘A Man of No Importance’. Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens; Music by Stephen Flaherty; Book by Terrence McNally; Directed by Paul Daigneault. Choreographed by Ilyse Robbins. Music direction by Paul S. Katz. Presented by SpeakEasy Stage Company. At the Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center for the Arts, through March 22.

By Mike Hoban

For the final show of a thirty-plus year career as the founder & artistic director of Boston’s SpeakEasy Stage Company, it’s interesting to note that Paul Daigneault chose the small but quietly beautiful A Man of No Importance for his final production. Producer and/or director of over 160 productions and winner of multiple Eliot Norton and IRNE Awards, Daigneault is equally adept at drama and musicals, including the mind-blowing two-part The Inheritance in 2022 and a slew of terrific musicals, the most recent being the Eliot Norton Award-winning The Band’s Visit. So it should probably come as no surprise that his final selection straddles the two genres.