Aug 21

Fan Service Omitted: WAITRESS, A NEW MUSICAL

Keala Settle, Jessie Mueller, and Jeanna de Waal in Waitress. Photo: Evgenia Eliseeva

Keala Settle, Jessie Mueller, and Jeanna de Waal in Waitress. Photo: Evgenia Eliseeva

Presented by American Repertory Theater
Book by Jessie Nelson
Music & lyrics by Sara Bareilles
Based on the motion picture by Adrienne Shelly
Directed by Diane Paulus
Music direction by Nadia DiGiallonardo
Choreography by Chase Brock

Production is partnered with Harvard University’s Office of Sexual Assault Prevention & Response.

August 2, 2015 – September 27, 2015
Loeb Drama Center
Cambridge, MA
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Review by Kitty Drexel

(Cambridge, MA) Waitress the musical is an interpretation of the 2007 movie written and directed by Adrienne Shelly. It is beloved by a devoted fan base. Appeasing this fan base is a tall order. The A.R.T. does a good job of remaining true to Shelly’s masterwork. There are many hits and only one notable miss.  Continue reading

Jul 15

A Sinking Feeling: DISNEY’S A LITTLE MERMAID

Adrienne Eller as Ariel in North Shore Music Theatre's Production of Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID running July 8 - 27, 2014. Photo©Paul Lyden

Adrienne Eller as Ariel in North Shore Music Theatre’s Production of Disney’s THE LITTLE MERMAID running July 8 – 27, 2014. Photo©Paul Lyden

Presented by North Shore Music Theatre
Music by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater
Book by Doug Wright
Based on the Hans Christian Andersen Story and the Disney Film produced by Howard Ashman & John Musker and written & directed by John Musker and Ron Clements
Direction by Michael Heitzman
Music directed by Bruce Barnes
Choreography by AC Ciulla

July 8th – July 27th, 2014
62 Dunham Road
Beverly, MA
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Review by Craig Idlebrook

(Beverly) Whenever you are suspending disbelief, there are rules that must be followed to create a new reality. It doesn’t matter if you are writing Game of Thrones or playing make-believe with a 2-year-old, the ground rules, once established, have to be enforced or the whole thing falls apart.

That is perhaps the main reason why the musical version of Disney’s A Little Mermaid, playing at the North Shore Music Theatre, couldn’t hook either me or for my 8-year-old daughter. This show is largely aquatic, but director Michael Heitzman fails to create a sea for our imagination. Sometimes, the merpeople and fish hobble awkwardly in tight fin-like gear; other times, they use the same wires and pulleys to occupy the same air as the seagull. Merpeople aren’t allowed on land, until they are at the end of the play. Too often, they crossed the streams. Continue reading

Jun 17

OperaHub Announces: DER VAMPYR

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OperaHub Announces June 2014 Show:

Heinrich Marschner’s

DER VAMPYR

in a new English-language adaptation
Boston’s “opera punks” say, “Bite me!”

Librettist: John J King
Stage Director: Christie Lee Gibson
Music Director: Lina Gonzalez

June 19 – June 26, 2014

FREE ADMISSION!
In the spirit of accessible opera for all, tickets are absolutely free, and may be reserved in advance online here!

 

BOSTON, MA – OperaHub broadens their ambitions with their June 2014 production: a new adaptation of Heinrich Marschner’s 1828 gothic opera DER VAMPYR. Though the work had its American premiere at the Boston Conservatory in 1980, it has not been seen in Boston since. Several companies around the world have produced it in recent years, including the American Symphony in Spring 2013 and the New Orleans Opera last fall. Hailed by the New York Times as a “gem of an opera,” it falls stylistically between Weber’s DER FREISCHUTZ and Wagner’s FLYING DUTCHMAN, with a thematic debt owed to Mozart’s DON GIOVANNI.

In the original version of DER VAMPYR, Lord Ruthven, the blood-sucker in question, has not been sucking his fair share of blood. The other vampires in his coven gather at the witches’ dance to charge him with taking three virgins by the end of the third day, or he will perish as a mortal. Tragedy ensues in the local village until the vampire is vanquished. Continue reading

Sep 13

Boston Babydolls “Cavalcade of Curiosities” Combines Striptease and Carnival

(Boston) Award-winning burlesque troupe, The Boston Babydolls, are known for their classic burlesque, but their upcoming show, The W. R. Athskellar Cavalcade of Curiosities, adds some big top to their trademark burlesque. The show runs Thursdays through Sundays from October 3 to November 2 at The Uniun (11 Sanborn Court, Somerville MA, at Union Square). All shows begin at 8:00 p.m.

The well-established troupe has been running a Halloween-themed show since their founding in 2007,
and this will be the fifth show with some variant of The Wrathskellar name. Previous incarnations of The
Wrathskellar were set in an underworld tavern and have been produced at The Davis Square Theater,
The Cambridge YMCA, and a vacant storefront in East Cambridge.

“We wanted to change things up this year,” says author and director, Scratch. “While keeping it true to
the shows that have attracted so many people to our past Halloween shows.” The W. R. Athskellar
Cavalcade of Curiosities is an immersive and interactive show, set at a traveling sideshow. As the
evening unfolds, the audience realizes that they are the prize in a confrontation between good and evil.
Highlights of the evening include a sparking tap dance, an aerial performance by Kirby Russell, and
burlesque backed by a seven-piece band.

Primary Babydolls dancer and choreographer, Brigitte Bisoux, says she is thrilled to choreograph two new
solo numbers. Teases Bisoux, “I won’t give too much away, but one involves tap dancing and a grinding
wheel!”

Co-founder of the Boston Babydolls and Headmistress of The Boston Academy of Burlesque
Education, Miss Mina Murray, promises that they’ve shaken things up this season, saying, “Every year we do something a little different with the show, but this year is wildly different and I’m really excited about the direction we’re taking.”

The W. R. Athskellar Cavalcade of Curiosities is no conventional theatre experience. This is a
promenade production. Comfortable footwear is essential. The performance lasts for up to two and a half
hours and most of the audience is standing throughout. Guests can try their luck in The Shooting Alley,
test their strength on The High-Striker, or learn what their futures hold in The Fortune-Teller’s Tent.
The W. R. Athskellar Cavalcade of Curiosities stars The Boston Babydolls, Zach Eisenstat, and Regie
Gibson, with Ava Henry and Kirby Russell. Music Direction by Alissa Coates. Written and directed by
Scratch. Technical Direction by Hunter Heinlein.

Tickets are $25.00 and $45.00 and available at www.BrownPaperTickets.com or (800) 838-3006.

 

Aug 09

Trip the Light Fantastic: Cavalia’s “ODYSSEO”

http://cavalia.net/files/cavalia/odysseo_fb_0478.jpg

Photo Credit: François Bergeron; the show is excruciatingly beautiful.

Presented by Cavalia, Inc.
Directed by Wayne Fowkes
Equestrian Direction and Choreography by Benjamin Aillaud
Choreography by Darren Charles & Alain Gauthier

August 7 – 25, 2013 (extended by demand)
Under the Big Top
Assembly Row
Somerville, MA 02145
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Review by Kitty Drexel

(Somerville) If there were a special Heaven divined for equines and the humans who love them to commune in the afterlife, it would look like Cavalia’s Odysseo. These horses are intelligent and strong. They call to mind the unicorn myths handed down through generations. Although, their human companions are equally as gifted, the show is not about Man. It’s about the sinuous beauty of the horse. This spectacle trades on Man’s obsession with these majestic beasts and provides a glimpse into where the obsession comes from. Continue reading