It’s May 5. Boston was originally expected to open yesterday. According to Mass.gov.com, that date was changed to May 18. It is important that we stay at home, use a mask that covers our noses and mouths when we’re outside, keep at least three to six feet from others, and to stay at home. For the love of Patti LuPone, please stay at home!
If you are a person who is consuming content and you can afford to, DONATE. If you can’t donate now, buy a ticket/tickets when the theatres reopen.
If you can do both, DONATE now and BUY A TICKET later.* Consuming streaming content without making a donation means that our theatres might not exist when the economy reopens.
Boston Baroque — This 2015 production of Handel’s Agrippinais sexy and hits a little too close to home. The vocals are gorgeous!
Entropy Theatre — Entropy Theatre offers Domestic Explorations, “a semiweekly series of recipes for creating meaningful experiences for yourself to have inside your home.” They just released Domestic Exploration #8. It is a delight!
Flat Earth Theatre – Flat Earth continues A. Lehrmitt’s sci-fi radio play Fine-Tuned Universe. New chapterswill stream for FREE on Saturday nights at 7pm through May 30th. Each week brings a new 20-minute chapter. Check Flat Earth’s YouTube channel if you missed the streamed reading.
Luminarium Dance – This week’s online performance features Luminarium’s 2012 production MYTHOS:PATHOS, originally presented at the Center for the Arts at the Armory (Somerville MA) and Arsenal Center for the Arts (Watertown MA), with a culminating sold-out performance at A.R.T.’s OBERON Theater (Cambridge MA).
Also! Luminarium Dance Company & Monkeyhouse are producing the seventh 24-Hour ChoreoFest! Malden Choreofest
Saturday, May 9
12-6pm: Live-streamed creation period
8pm: Live-streamed performance
Links become available at https://www.luminariumdance.org/choreofest at 12pm & 8pm on May 9th.
MassOpera – MassOpera is offering Mother’s Day Songs and Shout-outs through a virtual event on Sunday, May 10th at 4:00 PM. Check this SITE for details.
New Rep Theatre — New Repertory Theatre announces a call for the general public to describe their quarantine experiences for the Quarantine Creatives project. In an initiative to provide unique, engaging digital content while their doors are temporarily closed, New Rep aims to put real-life stories on the virtual stage. Submission form is HERE.
The Umbrella Arts — This week’s offering comes from Charlotte Anne Dore and Rosalita’s Puppets. “The Sea Story” is an undersea adventure tale based on Dore’s puppet characters.
Elsewhere on the Internets: The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center posted an “Alumni to Watch” list for Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and other platforms. The list doesn’t include links but it does include the names of the Theatre Center’s alumni and their attending years. Playbill: Patti LuPone, John Malkovich, Dylan Baker, More to Kick Off New Online Play Reading Series Broadway World: “Performing Arts Centers in South Korea Plan to Reopen This Week With New Guidelines,” by BWW News Desk. May the Fourth be with You… And also with Babu.
Boston Modern Orchestra Project and Odyssey Opera Release Schuller’s “The Fisherman and His Wife” Presented by Boston Modern Orchestra Project and Odyssey Opera Gunther Schuller: The Fisherman and His Wife (#1970) Opera by Gunther Schuller Libretto by John Updike Based on a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm Conducted by Gil Rose Featuring: Sondra Kelly (mezzo-soprano), Steven Goldstein (tenor), David Kravitz (baritone), Katrina Galka (soprano), Ethan Depuy (tenor)
Release Date: April 7, 2020 Available to purchase HERE
Review by Kitty Drexel
Boston, MA — The opening bars of Gunter Schuller’s The Fisherman and His Wife sound like the scoring for an episode of the Stark Trek: The Original Series. Not the opening theme song famous for it’s 70s crooning lounge jam. The organ, shivering strings, and cacophony coming from the woodwinds remind me of composer Fred Steiner’s work in the episode, “The Corbomite Maneuver.”
Gunter’s work doesn’t politely introduce its listener to his opera. We’re introduced to a dire world of conflict from the opening chords. The orchestra paints an uneasy ocean with low tones and dissonance. We’re caught in a negative reverie until a forceful “Meow!” (Katrina Galka as the cat) breaks the atmospheric tension caused by the orchestra. This small world hides stark unhappiness that unravels toward the ear in rumbling phrases.Continue reading →
There is more to do here, in this list, than there is time in the day. We sincerely hope your business keeps you happy, sane, and stable.
New offerings from MassMouth, New Rep, Sparkhaven Theatre, ArtsEmerson join the ranks of consistent givers Flat Earth Theatre, The Umbrella Arts, HowlRound & Liars & Believers.
You are loved, you are necessary, you contain multitudes. We look forward to seeing you again at the theatre!
All our love from six feet away,
Kitty, Queen of the New England Theatre Geeks
[Image of an embroidary hoop with stitching that reads, “wash your hands and don’t be a racist.”]
Action! by Design – Action! By Design launched Live Stream Local to connect audiences to the voices they love, virtually and to help support local artists. 6 – 7:30 P.M. on Thursdays, a local artist will enter their studio to stream music. Click the links for the lineup. Now there’s a Sunday Open Mic Night from Rascals!
ArtsEmerson – The Together Apart series presents Sequence 8. Sequence 8 from The 7 Fingers will be available to view from April 13-27, 2020. From the ArtsEmerson website:
“Contemporary circus arts require the utmost faith in your fellow performers. When it comes down to it, your life is quite literally in their hands. The lessons we, as the audience, learn from circus take on a new importance in light of our current circumstances; while we cannot physically hold each other, we prop each other up through zoom calls with family and friends, encouraging text messages, and sharing a common knowledge that by acting together, we help each other. We care for each other deeply, standing together by standing apart.”
Catalyze Playwriting Group – Catalyze presents Genie in the Machine: Virtual Plays on Artificial IntelligenceCome and join your friendly neighborhood science and science fiction play group for some readings that have to do with artificial intelligence!
Where, you ask? *https://mit.zoom.us/j/801660241*
April 18th
THE CANTEEN by Carl Danielson
THE ORPHIDY SMORLACK VARIETY HOUR by Nathan Comstock
April 25th
DEATHS OF DESPAIR by Anna Waldman-Brown
HADALYGIRL by Zach Barryte and Drache Bowens-Ruben
Flat Earth Theatre – Coming to Facebook Live, their new radio play Fine-Tuned Universe by A. Lehrmitt will stream weekly on Saturday nights at 7 P.M. from April 25th – May 30th. Each week brings a new 20-minute chapter. Fine-Tuned Universe: a radio play by A. Lehrmitt. Directed by Jake Scaltreto Saturdays, April 25th – May 30th, 7pm EST, Streaming on Facebook Live Featuring: Juliet Bowler, Kristen Heider, James Hayward, Chris Chiampa, Melissa de Jesus and Liz Salazar. With sound design by James Rossi
Homesick Play Project and Sparkhaven Theatre present a performance of Nosferatu, The Vampyrby M Sloth Levine with original music by Alissa Voth. HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 30 April 2020 at 3:30 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 5:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 6:30 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC-4).
HOWL Shakespeare – HOWL Shakespeare presents their first livestreamed event! Over a dozen of the Boston area’s boldest young Shakespeare performers performing a Socially Distanced reading of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM.
This reading is to raise money for Massachusetts General Hospital’s efforts to fight COVID-19. Don’t want to wait to donate? Donate to MGH here: https://tinyurl.com/HowlMSND Send us a screenshot of your donation receipt and we’ll give you a shout-out in the livestream
From Our Homes to Yours – Everything Possible – Boston Gay Men’s Chorus
(Our eyes are leaking.)
Huntington at Home – Huntington @ Home is a series of new programs to connect with our audiences right now and includes:
Sign up for Huntington @ Home and receive a phone call from a Huntington artist or staff member. Choose for a staff member to deliver a short monologue from a past Huntington production or have a discussion with a member of the Huntington’s acclaimed production team about how the theatre created one of your favorite plays or musicals. We want to do our part by sharing our collective love of theatre and storytelling on a personal level.”
Shakespeare over Zoom – “The Most Lamentable Comedy and Most Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisby”
MassCreative – Every Friday at 9:45AM, MassCreative will host a 15-minute COVID-19 Virtual Policy & Action Update to help you make sense of what Congress and the MA Legislature are doing to strengthen the social and economic safety net during this public health emergency. Their goal “is to keep these webinars short, sweet, and to the point.” REGISTER
MassMouth – “Live shows may be postponed, but this is still a good time to continue improving your storytelling skills. Join our online events, including coaching sessions, webinars and virtual classes. Learn more below HERE.”
Craft your story. Tuesday, April 28th. 7:30 ET. – Each story featured on Stories from the Stage is unique, but the principles behind a good piece are universal. Explore key story elements and hear about the experience of a former teller, Cecilla Viveiros. Free. Massmouth will share the World Channel registration link with the community shortly.
Story workshop. Sunday, May 3rd. 4:30pm ET. – One of the best ways to improve a story is to share it with others and get their feedback. In this workshop, exchange a story with five other participants and one of Massmouth’s coaches. Hear what they love about your piece, as well as their ideas for improvement. Free. Register online.
Story workshop. Sunday, May 17th. 4:30pm ET. – One of the best ways to improve a story is to share it with others and get their feedback. In this workshop, exchange a story with five other participants and one of Massmouth’s coaches. Hear what they love about your piece, as well as their ideas for improvement. Free. Register online.
Museum of Science – ArtsBoston has a super convenient list of sites to access the Museum of Science online.
New Repertory Theatre — NEW! In the Wings Artist Salon Series Presented by Artistic Director, Michael J. Bobbitt. Head over to New Rep’s Facebook page on Sundays at 2:00 for a live panel. Host Michael J. Bobbitt will be joined each week by local artists, to discuss the state of theatre post-COVID-19. This week: Boston area Playwrights
Puppet Showplace Theater — Puppetry is alive and well, and we’re here to give you as many doses of hand-crafted creativity as you need to survive this disaster. Sign up for their first Virtual Hatchery, watch an Online Performance, or Take Action to help them support puppeteers during closure.
The Hatchery: Virtual Project Night/ Tuesday, April 21 | 6:30 – 8:30 pm. FREE Virtual “Drop-in” Event – Donations Welcome – Join Resident Artist Sarah Nolen for Puppet Showplace Theater’s first-ever digital Hatchery! Now, from the comfort of your home or studio, connect with fellow puppeteers and puppet-curious artists in a low-stress Zoom Room setting. Participants can share and discuss project ideas, works-in-progress, and strategies for creative resilience during a pandemic. Join for all or part of the time!
April 30 – Next Live Performance! – Celebrate the power of DIY theater in miniature! In early April, the amazing artists of Great Small Works gathered Toy theater practitioners from all over the world the world to share original short shows, many of which were created in response to the present circumstances. All performances are still available to watch, and a new festival is coming April 30th. Don’t have time to watch two full nights? Check out Resident Artist Sarah Nolen’s performance “Don’t Stop the Pot!” on Day 2 at 1:41:35.
Faye Dupras’ new children’s series, Cozy Corner(It has a catchy theme song and puppets!)
Upcoming TCG Webinar — Please join TCG for our upcoming CARES and Community Care: A “What Now?” Webinar on Tuesday, April 21, 2020, 4-5:30pm ET. To register, please click HERE.
The Umbrella Stage Company is now accepting video audition submissions for its 2020-2021 Season. For more information and instruction, click on the links below.
Private Coaching for Adults & Youth Private coaching in acting, audition techniques, public speaking and more! NOTE: PRIVATE COACHING IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ONLINE.
Date Night: Unlocking Shakespeare’s Text – Apr 24, 2020 to Apr 24, 2020 — ONLINE! Grab a date and join this introduction to Shakespeare’s approach to poetic drama.
GAME NIGHT! Online Improv Playground Apr 25, 2020 to Apr 25, 2020
ONLINE! Let’s come together, all ages and abilities, to play using skills and techniques from the world of Improvisation.
Civil Discourse Society: The Art of Persuasion– Apr 30, 2020 to May 28, 2020 ONLINE! Join our newest club! Civil Discourse Society is for mastering the art of persuasion. Consider the language you use, and your approach to truly activating dialogue in your private and public.
Open Door Theater Presents “Into the Woods,” March 27 – April 5, 2020
Be careful what you wish for! Open Door Theater brings Into the Woods, the award-winning musical twist on beloved fairy tales, to the Dragonfly Theater in Acton, March 27 to April 5 at www.opendoortheater.org.
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by James Lapine
Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine
Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick
Open Door Theater of Acton’s enchanting production of Into the Woods will run March 27 – April 5 at the Dragonfly Theater at R.J. Grey Junior High, 16 Charter Road, Acton. A musical twist on beloved fairy tales, the story follows Cinderella, Little Red Ridinghood, Jack (with his beanstalk), Witch, and Rapunzel as they meet in the woods and discover the true power of “I wish.”
Performances Into the Woods will include ASL interpretation at three performances, open captioning at all performances, a Sensory Friendly/relaxed performance, and an audio-described performance.
Tickets can be purchased HERE.
Accessibility information can be found at this link.
Friday, March 27th at 7:00pm / ASL
Saturday, March 28th at 7:00pm / ASL
Sunday, March 29th at 1:00pm / ASL
Friday, April 3rd at 7:00pm
Saturday, April 4th at 1:00pm / sensory friendly Act I only
Saturday April 4th at 7:00pm / audio described
Sunday, April 5th at 1:00pm /
Over the company’s 40-year history, Open Door has provided opportunities for underserved audiences to enjoy live theater. Tickets are $15 and all seats are assigned. For tickets and show details visit www.opendoortheater.org.
Written and Directed by Christian Sterling Hegg.
Starring: Colin Carlton, Kristopher Moreau, Tristyn Sepersky, Matthew Phillion, Jennifer Bean, Kitty Drexel, Shawn Fitzmaurice, Mary C Ferrara, Susan Muller and Christian Hegg.
Sound engineering by Gauntlet Creative.
All sound effects provided by Freesound.org.
Boston, MA – Tales from the Dragon Eye Galaxy, a new series from writer and actor Christian Sterling Hegg, is now available to stream and download. Episodes 1 – 8 are ready to blast you off to an exciting listening experience at the Sterling Arts & Design website!
Evoking notes of Star Wars and Doctor Who, Tales from the Dragon Eye Galaxy introduces two unlikely partners, the tough as nails space patrol officer Blue Falcon and the quick-thinking meticulous engineer Dr. Bonnie Starr, as they work to stop the evil mad scientist, Dr. Destructo. Will Dr. Star stop Destructo before it’s too late? Listen to find out!
Season 1 (episodes 1 – 8) is now available. Each episode is roughly 15 minutes long, filled with action, adventure, humor and fun.Tales from the Dragon Eye Galaxy, Season 1 can also be found on iTunes, Google Play Music, Spotify and Stitcher.
Season 2 is in the pre-production stages. More information can be found at the Sterling Arts & Design website.
Sterling Arts and Design was launched in 2015 to house the portfolio, ideas and ongoing creative musings of Christian Sterling Hegg. The new audio series is another addition to the projects in process. Hegg can be contacted via his the Sterling Arts & Design webpage for more information about the series and his work.
Theme music: “Mars, the Bringer of War” by Gustav Holst performed by the USAF Heritage America Band, provided by Musopen.com. Additional music: “Avant Jazz” by Kevin McLeod, provided by Incompetech
(Cambridge, MA) Luminarium Dance Company triumphantly ends its 2019 Season with its feature production LUMINARIUM IN CONCERT—a melding of contemporary, Odissi, and unique lighting that catapults live performance to a whole new level. Venture into Luminarium’s world of movement and light where fanciful animals are brought to life through shadow-play; witness the exhilaration of combat sport beyond the ring; sink into the luscious imagery of a new screendance film; and delight in an amusing and provocative examination of “self,” all in a night’s work.
LUMINARIUM IN CONCERT features Company Members Jessica Chang, Devon Colton, Melenie Diarbekirian, Merli V. Guerra, Amy Mastrangelo, Katie McGrail, and Jennifer Roberts, and Satellite Company Members Victoria Kreutzer and Karina McKenna.
About the Play: Kurt, a vlogger in the early days of YouTube who used to scream about video games, is married to Patty, a struggling vampire romance author. While Kurt has left that life behind him, anger and all, their relationship will be put to the test when one night he is visited by a shadow person…who won’t stop tickling his feet.
This play is not recommended for children under 14 because of profanity and disturbing situations.
Featuring Charles Amaral, Noah Dawson, Amy DeMar-DuBois, Brittany Messuri, Leeann Monat, Austin Swallow, and Cheyenne Winley. Lighting design by Phillip T. Smith.
Chasing the Ghost is made possible by a generous donation from show sponsor Justin Nelson.
Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019
Doors at 7:30 p.m., Show at 8 p.m. Tickets are $22
Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA
527 Tremont Street
South End
Boston, MA 02116
Featuring the talents of Geeks Diana Lu and Shiyanbade Animashaun!
They’re back again! Mark your calendars for the return of The Intersection. Come to the South End on Saturday, September 7 for a night of comedy!
Come witness the baddest comedians, poets, sketch artists, and improvisers create community on stage while making you laugh! The Intersection is produced by creatives of color from across the Boston area.
Doors open at 7:30 pm. Show at 8:00 pm.
#FUNinBOS
F.U.N. – Fierce Urgency of Now: Energizing Young Professionals of Color to Unlock Boston’s Promise
What is the Fierce Urgency of Now Festival?
A five-day series of events hosted by local businesses and organizations geared at highlighting the experiences, challenges, and opportunities for young professionals of color in our city with the ultimate goal of creating community. With more than 30 events scheduled, you can plan to learn, connect, and have fun all week long, while also lending your voice to change. Join us September 4-8 to help make Boston more inclusive for all.Why are we involved in F.U.N.?
With half of the workforce in Boston being classified as millennials, and nearly half of millennials in Greater Boston being people of color, we know that the business community must play a key role in improving the city’s image and increasing access and opportunities to attract and retain talent. Retention of young people of color is of critical importance to our future as a region.
F.U.N. is for you: young professionals and young professional of color looking to build community and gain allies.
On occasion, the New England Theatre Geek will review recently published plays. The Antipodes is the latest release from Annie Baker. In it, Baker takes on corporate culture from a storyteller’s perspective. The Prisoner by Peter Brook and Marie-Helene Estienne is not well written. The Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek discusses apartheid via an artist’s life work. A Doll’s House, Part 2 played on Boston’s Huntington Theatre’s stage in early 2019. Hnath’s script is deserving of several reads. Please read on below.
The Antipodes By Annie Baker TCG New York, 2018 Paperback, 120pp $14.95
The Antipodes takes place in a static, windowless room with office chairs behind which are stacked many boxes of seltzer. This could be a soulless writers room, a marketing research discussion room, or even one of those rent-an-office conference spaces available in communal office complexes. The location is specifically nondescript to allow the strange goings on of Baker’s play shine. Strange goings on of both the occult and Office Space varieties bleed through the mundane to unsettle the lives of everyone involved. Continue reading →
(Plymouth, MA) Access is more than ramps and bathrooms. Communication access is an obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If you are a patron of the arts, have you simply stopped going to events? If you are a producer of theater, what do you know about captioning? This community conversation is for all of us on both sides of the experience.
Captioning can engage new audiences as well as re-engage old audiences. Our discussion will address institutional obligations, effective messaging, captioning software, and funding resources; as well as the BIG aspirational principles of “access” when striving for robust audience engagement.
Join us for a Community Conversation on effective accessible communication practices in theatre and live performance!
This event is sponsored by the Hearing Loss Association of America, Plymouth Chapter (HLAA), and the Mass Cultural Council’s Universal Participation (UP) Initiative. This event will be captioned in Real Time (CART). The library is physically accessible.
Join the 
