It seems like some experiences on the MBTA are so traumatic that people don’t want to talk about them. However, three brave souls had the courage to share their experiences and one will reap the benefits. Continue reading
May
10
May
08
Small Theatre Alliance of Boston: A Force for Good Theatre
IN THE DARKNESS
OF A SMALL THEATRE
CREATING NEW, CHALLENGING, AND EXCITING
PRODUCTIONS, WHERE RESOURCES AND INFORMATION WERE SCATTERED
A GROUP OF ARTISTS JOINED TOGETHER TO INCREASE COMMUNICATION BY FORMING
THE SMALL THEATRE ALLIANCE OF BOSTON
Interview with John Geoffrion by Becca Kidwell
Between 2009 and 2010, Meg Taintor, Daniel Morris, Nora Long, and other small theatre leaders joined together to form the Small Theatre Alliance of Boston share resources, information, ideas, and support each other. Continue reading
May
07
Horrific Comfort Food: LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS
l. to r. Bill Mootos, Ceit McCaleb Zweil, Lovely Hoffman, and Jennifer Fogarty in Little Shop of Horrors. Photo by Andrew Brilliant / Brilliant Pictures.
Little Shop of Horrors, book and lyrics by Howard Ashman, music by Alan Menken, New Repertory Theatre, Charles Mosesian Theater at the Arsenal Center for the Arts, 4/29/12-5/27/12, http://www.newrep.org/little_shop.php.
Reviewed by Kate Lonberg-Lew
(Watertown, MA) Sometimes you are having a bad day. Sometimes you are in such a bad mood that escapism is the only way to manage. It was in such a state that I entered the New Rep’s production of Little Shop of Horrors at the Arsenal Center for the Arts. I tell you this so that you will know exactly how steep a hill the cast had to climb in order for me to emerge smiling; which I did. Continue reading
May
07
Lunatics Running the Asylum: ASSASSINS
As the culminating event in the College's year-long examination of the theme of violence, Assassins brims with a particularly urgent energy. Photo by Kalman Zabarsky for Boston University Photography © 2012 Boston University all rights reserved
Assassins, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by John Weidman, Boston University Colllege of Fine Arts School of Theatre, Boston University Theatre, 4/4/12-4/10/12, http://www.bu.edu/cfa/2012/04/20/assassins/.
Reviewed by Craig Idlebrook
(Boston, MA) It’s nice for Stephen Sondheim and his partner John Weidman to clear up a few things for us about theater in their mishmash of a play, Assassins, playing at the Boston University Theatre.
They have proven a fundamental truth: You can populate your play with profoundly interesting characters, give them things to do that impact every theatergoer’s psyche and bestow wonderful music for them to sing as they do it, but if the script doesn’t allow them to interact in a meaningful way, it’s just an exercise in futility. The playwrights prove this point despite the best efforts of a talented cast, who creates full-fledged and compelling characters. In fact, the cast and stellar set give us such high expectations that it makes the mind want to rebel at this idle script all the more. Continue reading
May
07
Juventas New Music Ensemble-A Company to Watch
Juventas New Music Ensemble‘s upcoming events:
Illuminations Release Party, Saturday, May 12 at 8:00pm, Futura Productions – Roslindale, MA
Juventas performs music by Polina Nazaykinskaya, Florie Namir, Moshe Shulman and others. at Rachmaninoff Festival May 26-27
New Music on the Lake, June 9 at 3pm
AND WHY YOU SHOULD GO SEE THEIR PERFORMANCES:
Folklore Shapes and Splinters The Fiddler and the Old Woman of Rumelia
retrospective by Gillian Daniels
Deep in the Balkans, a wandering gypsy woman, Roma (Hilary Anne Walker), meets and agrees to share a week of travel with Hajduk (Kevin Kees), an outlaw. They are not characters, really, but character archetypes who have drifted from their respective stories. Now they seek an audience. Continue reading
May
03
Geeks Nerds and Artists Episode 5: Meg Taintor
Episode 5: Geeks, Nerds & Artists Podcast: Meg Taintor, Artistic Director of Whistler in the Dark Theatre
http://www.whistlerinthedark.com/
Trojan Women: May 18- June 2 at the Factory Theatre in Boston
Meg Taintor is the founding Artistic Director of Whistler in the Dark Theatre, for whom she has directed 13 productions. Also for Whistler, Meg produced three years of FeverFest, a new works festival dedicated to connecting adventurous audiences with young and vital theatre companies and artists in Boston. Meg has also directed for Mill6 Theatre and New Voices @ New Rep.
In 2009, Meg joined with other artists working in the small and fringe theatre scene to form the Small Theatre Alliance of Boston, where served for two years as President of the Board. She is now Chair of the Alliance Events Committee and a member of the Board for StageSource. Meg believes passionately in the necessity for a strong community of local artists supporting and challenging itself to do better and more exciting work.
Her regional theatre credits include the National Players, Rorschach Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, the Potomac Theatre Project and Washington Shakespeare Company. She holds a B.A. in Theatre and Women & Gender Studies from Middlebury College. (profile from website)
May
01
WIN TICKETS TO T: AN MBTA MUSICAL!
Performance dates: June 8, 15, 29 and July 6 at Club Oberon in Cambridge, MA
Part of why T: An MBTA Musical reaches such a wide audience is because anyone who has ridden the T, even once, know the craziness that is the MBTA.
To win tickets to this show (that will sell out again), tell us your strangest, most humorous, or horrific story by filling the comment form below (click on title or “read more” for the full post) by May 8th. You must enter your full name and a valid email address to win. Winner will be announced on May 10th. Continue reading
May
01
Life Lessons in a Lull: TROILUS AND CRESSIDA
photo credit: Stratton McCrady
Troilus and Cressida by William Shakespeare, Actors’ Shakespeare Project, The Modern Theatre, 4/25/12-5/20/12, http://www.actorsshakespeareproject.org/events/troilus-and-cressida-0.
Reviewed by Craig Idlebrook
(Boston, MA) There are two major ways to connect audiences to Shakespeare, despite the tricky language: you can glitz up the production so theatergoers don’t realize their brains are doing heavy-lifting (a la Baz Luhrmann’s seizure-inducing Romeo and Juliet) or make sure you serve up quality and let the script speak for itself. Tina Packer consistently has chosen the second option in her body of work. Continue reading
May
01
Familiar Territory Retread in A PICASSO
Photo credit: Salem Theatre Company
A Picasso by Jeffrey Hatcher, Salem Theatre Company, 4/26/12-5/19/12, http://www.salemtheatre.com/on_stage.htm.
Reviewed by Gillian Daniels
(Salem, MA) With nowhere to go, two characters bounce off each other, alternating between affection and violence. Their relationship follows a familiar trajectory. The World War II bunker where both are trapped is a well-mined setting, too. Still, it’s satisfying to watch Pablo Picasso (Stephen Cooper) and his German interrogator, Ms. Fischer (Linda Goetz), scrape each other raw in The Salem Theatre Company’s production of A Picasso.
Apr
29
Joyful Absurdity in Trog and Clay: An Imagined History of the Electric Chair
Trog (Cameron Beaty Gosselin) and Clay (Louise Hamill) dream of their elusive next meal. Photo by Sunny M. Rissland
Trog and Clay: An Imagined History of the Electric Chair by Michael Vukadinovich, Fresh Ink Theatre, The Factory Theatre, 4/27/12-5/12/12, http://www.freshinktheatre.com/on-stage.html.
Reviewed by Gillian Daniels
(Boston, MA) Fresh Ink Theatre Company’s Trog and Clay crackles with manic energy from its first moments. Actors throw themselves into their roles with performances that range from amusingly campy to blindly sincere. Continue reading