Tag Archives: boston center for the arts

Sep 24

ADA Approved for the Mainstream: TRIBES

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photo

Photo: Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo; Erica Spyres and James Caverly conversating.

Presented by Speakeasy Stage Co.
by Nina Raine
directed by M. Bevin O’Gara

September 13 – October 12
Stanford Calderwood Pavilion
Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
SpeakEasy on Facebook

There will be two ASL-interpreted performances:  Sunday, October 6 at 7PM and Friday, October 11 at 8PM.

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Southie) It is always a relief to see minorities portrayed by the Arts as their community deserves; with dignity, love and respect. We, the disabled, weren’t/aren’t always seen this way. It was (and still is) a commonly held belief of the Christian persuasion that people were born disabled as a punishment from God for sinning. This is despite Jesus saying that the disabled were walking, talking acts of God (John Chapter 9 verses 1-3). In specific, Christians used to believe that, since a deaf person couldn’t hear the word of God, they then couldn’t know God. Fast forward to modern day, the stigmas still exist even with the ADA protecting us. This is why it was so humbling to watch Speakeasy’s intelligent production of Tribes last Saturday. My hope is that this production is a sign that society is ready to welcome the disabled into the mainstream. Continue reading →

Jul 26

It’s Like A Jungle . . . Sometimes: HOW WE GOT ON

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© Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo

Presented by Company One
by Idris Goodwin
Directed by Summer L. Williams

July 19-August 17
Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
Company One Facebook Page

Review by Noe Kamelamela

(Boston) Company One has spent over a decade in Boston bringing theater to bear on a list of problems, which is nearly as long as their list of awards.  Their latest is a vibrant production that lays down a phat beat for diversity.  The audience I sat in was the most visibly excited and diverse audience I’ve experienced all year, possibly due to one of its key topics:  hip-hop. Continue reading →

Apr 15

Whistle It, Just A Little Bit***: Ryan Landry’s “M”

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David Drake, Samantha Richert, Ellen Adair, Larry Coen, and Laura Latreille in the Huntington Theatre Company's production of RYAN LANDRY'S "M". March 30 - April 27, 2013 at the South End / Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. huntingtontheatre.org. Photo: T. Charles Erickson

David Drake, Samantha Richert, Ellen Adair, Larry Coen, and Laura Latreille in the Huntington Theatre Company’s production of RYAN LANDRY’S “M”. March 30 – April 27, 2013 at the South End / Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA. huntingtontheatre.org. Photo: T. Charles Erickson

Presented by Huntington Theatre Company
Ryan Landry’s “M”
Directed by Caitlin Towland 

March 28-April 28
Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA
Boston, MA
Huntington Theatre Co Facebook Page
Gold Dust Orphans Facebook Page

 Review by Noelani Kamelamela 

(Boston) Fritz Lang’s masterpiece M, released in 1931, revealed much of his hatred and compassion regarding German society at the time.  Ryan Landry’s M likewise breaks new ground while being observant of society’s duality. The Huntington’s production is ambitious with explosively funny results. Spoiler alert:  nothing written here can be a genuine spoiler, trust me.  A real spoiler would be able to point you towards a reasonable expectation of what will actually happen on stage.  Ha ha ha! Continue reading →

Apr 15

Child-Like Wonder & Awe: LITTLE GIANTS

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Photo Credit: Imaginary Beasts

Photo Credit: Imaginary Beasts

Presented by Imaginary Beasts
written by Thornton Wilder
Directed by Matthew Woods

BCA Blackbox Theater
Boston, MA
April 5 – 27, 2013
90+ minutes, no intermission.
Imaginary Beasts Facebook Page

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston) Little Giants has puppets, masque work, gender reversal, religious metaphor, interpretive dance, song, tumbling, Greek mythos, Bible references, and mime work. It’s influences range from the Commedia dell’Arte to the modern circus. That is where the similarity ends. The production is a lot to process in one sitting but the cast and director, Matthew Woods, weave it into an enjoyable albeit sometimes overwhelming evening. Continue reading →

Jan 21

Good, Right, True: “Legend of Sleepy Hollow: An American Pantomime”

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Imaginary Beasts 2013

Imaginary Beasts 2013; no horses were used in this production. They gave full consent.

presented by Imaginary Beasts: Winter Panto 2013
Part of the Emerging Theatre Company program

Conceived and written by Matthew Woods and the Ensemble

Directed by Matthew Woods
Choreography by Joey Pelletier and Kiki Samko

January 11 – February 2, 2013
Plaza Black Box Theatre
Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
Imaginary Beasts Facebook Page

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston) The pantomime (panto) began its troubled youth as British entertainment based on the Elizabethan masque. It touched on classical subjects, included music and often borrowed from the Commedia dell’Arte style. These days, if one travels to jolly olde England during the Christmas and New Year’s season, one is confronted with vaudeville debauchery, bedazzled drag queens, slapstick and heaps of audience participation. It’s amazing that the US hasn’t already adopted the Panto and claimed it as our own invention. Enter Legend of Sleepy Hollow: An American Pantomime.

The form has been simplified and adapted for the small stage by Imaginary Beasts and contains the same wacky charm as its British cousin and more of the brash sassiness expected from the fringe theatre scene. We’re treated to country line dancing, Rocky references, and an extra hairy Fairy Godfather (Mikey DiLoreto) who speaks in rhyme and verse but not to a multimedia spectacular. The charm is in the ensemble’s work and it is served with campy flair. Continue reading →

Jan 16

“Other Desert Cities”: Facades Collide With Reality

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Photo caption: Anne Gottlieb and Christopher M. Smith in a scene from SpeakEasy Stage's production of Other DesertCities, running January 11 through February 9 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts. Tickets at speakeasystage.com or 617.933.8600. Photo by Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo

Photo caption: Anne Gottlieb and Christopher M. Smith, Photo by Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo

By Jon Robin Baitz
Directed by Scott Edmiston

Presented by Speakeasy Stage Company
January 11 – February 9
Wimberly Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
Speakeasy Stage Co Facebook Page

Review by Becca Kidwell

(Boston) At a time when nostalgia for the eighties is heightening (neon, rubber bracelets, leg warmers,
cut off tees), Jon Robin Baitz reminds us that our recent past was neither as lavish or simple
as we would like to contain it. As the last of the Reaganite politicians cling desperately to
the “grand old party,” gen-xers (like myself) try to find meaning out of a part of seeming trivial
history. Baitz sends a thermobaric weapon to the Wyeth household in the form of Brooke Wyeth, played by Anne Gottlieb. Continue reading →

Nov 29

Tender to the Touch:”Burning Up the Dictionary”

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Photo credit: Vagabond Theatre Group; Meyer and Hoover are about to suck face. Awesome.

presented by Vagabond Theatre Group
written by Meron Langsner
directed by James Peter Sotis
incidental music by Santiago Cardenas

November 28 – December 1, 2012
Rehearsal Hall A
Calderwood Pavilion
Boston Center for the Arts

Vagabond Theatre Group Facebook Page

(Boston) George (Tim Hoover) and Suzie-Fay (Cassandra Meyer) are best buds attempting to reconcile their friendship after ending their intense love affair. To say that “it’s complicated” would be putting it mildly. In this 2 act play by Meron Langsner, George and Suzie navigate their break-up and learn that sometimes love isn’t enough. Continue reading →

Oct 23

Accidentally Sexy: “Bloody, Bloody, Andrew Jackson”

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Photo by Craig Bailey / Perspective Photo. The show is accidentally sexy; the cast is sexy on purpose.

Presented by SpeakEasy Stage Company

Written by Alex Timbers
Music & Lyrics by Michael Friedman
Directed by Paul Melone
Music directed by Nick Connell

SpeakEasy Stage Company
539 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02116
October 19 – November 17, 2012

SpeakEasy Facebook Page

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston) President Andrew Jackson (Gus Curry) invented the Democratic Party but was infamous for hating the English, the Spanish, American Aristocracy and Native American Indians. The book by Alex Timbers presents President Jackson as an angsty young man bristling with frenetic energy. He loves Populism, his wife Rachel and representing “The Voice of the People.” His hobbies include building the Trail of Tears, guns and erratic behavior. Even though there’s 100 years difference between his era and ours, not much has changed in politics: some political leaders just love a tantrum. Continue reading →

Sep 17

“No Room for Wishing” Makes Room for All

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No Room for Wishing
Performed and written by Danny Bryck.

Photo credit: “No Room for Wishing”

Directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian.

Co-produced by Company One and Central Square Theater, supported in part by a Boston Playwrights’ Theatre Black Box Fellowship.

Playing at the Boston Center for Arts, 9/13 – 9/22
Playing at Central Square Theater, 9/30 – 10/9

No Room for Wishing Facebook Page
No Room for Wishing Website

Review by Kitty Drexel

“But I hear the boys the boys and girls are coming up up up from the underground… You can find ‘em there, they’re all fired up in Dewey Square… you can call them what you want, you can call them what you need, you can call them what you want but there’s no room for wishing in revolution.”  – Ruby Rose Fox, “Dewey Square”

(Boston) No Room for Wishing is a compilation of interviews and live recordings from the Occupy Boston Movement. The production was written and performed by local actor, Danny Bryck. It is directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian.

Bryck’s tour de force performance is a must see for Occupy Movement supporters and sympathizers. It offers a personal perspective of Occupy Boston that was not captured by local media during 2011. It is also a must see for those who opposed the movement.  This bare bones production lionizes the individual reasons for protesting while disassembling the stereotypes associated with the majority of activists. Bryck’s characterizations personalize the movement and the many people that the media had neglected; the moderate and the revolutionized. Continue reading →