Tag Archives: May

Nov 25

Riverside Theatre Works is Looking for a Few Good Men… And ONE Lady: CABARET

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ATTENTION BOSTON PERFORMERS::
Riverside Theatre Works is currently seeking actors/singers/dancers for their Spring production of “Cabaret.” RTW on Facebook.

“Cabaret” will be directed by Kevin Mark Kline, choreographed by Matt Romero and will include musical direction by Danielle Clougher. This fully immersive and engaging new “take” on the classic musical begins rehearsals in mid-February 2014 and performs May 9-18, 2014 at Riverside Theatre Works in Hyde Park, MA.

Auditions will be held on Saturday November 30 at 7:30pm and Thursday December 5 at 8:30pm.
Those interested in auditioning should email Director Kevin Mark Kline at kevin.mark.kline@gmail.com to set up their audition appointment.

Singers should prepare two 16-32 bar selections from the musical theatre repertoire.
There will be a dance call for Emcee and Kit Kat Klub Boy-types. Please bring appropriate clothing. An accompanist will be provided. You may be asked to read sides from the musical.

Seeking the following roles :: Continue reading →

Jun 10

And the Green Grass Grows All Around: RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN

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photo: T. Charles Erickson

presented by Huntington Theatre Company
by Gina Gionfriddo
directed by Peter DuBois

South End Calderwood Pavilion
Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA
May 24th – June 22nd, 2013
Huntington Theatre Facebook Page

Review by Craig Idlebrook

A bunch of middle-aged folks had an academic argument about feminism and a great play broke out! Rapture, Blister, Burn, an insightful and barbed comedy about post-feminist uncertainty, is the rare play that immerses itself in theory and still makes us care. Continue reading →

Jun 07

“The Magic Mirror”: Window Into Another World

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Photo Credit: Scott Bump, Not a photo of a brunette Khaleesi’s wedding. But it could be.

Presented by Juventas New Music Ensemble
Music by Polina Nazaykinskaya
Music direction  by Lidiya Yankovskaya
Stage direction by Erin Huelskamp

BCA Plaza Theatre
539 Tremont Street
Boston, MA
Juventas New Music Ensemble Facebook Page

Review by Gillian Daniels

(Boston) The Magic Mirror succeeds, most of all, in elegance.  Characters move through a sumptuous world, wandering along whirls of purple and blue on the floor, moving through dark woods and bright cottages. Varvara Sosedova, a visual artist from Moscow, brings personality and charm to the scenes, costumes, and props she designs. The contemporary songs and music also do their part to bring a hard edge to the story.  Even when characters aren’t as distinguishable as they could be or when the story begins to drag, the Juventas New Music Ensemble and composer Polina Nazaykinskaya create a fully realized world for Alexander Pushkin’s Snow White. Continue reading →

Jun 02

It’s Been Real: REAL REALISM

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presented by Sleeping Weazel
written by Charlotte Meehan directed by Vanessa Gilbert
May 31–June 1 and June 6–June 8, 2013
Boston, MA
Sleeping Weasel Facebook Page
Review by Nicola McEldowney
(Boston) Seeing a new or unfamiliar play always gets your imagination rolling in new ways. That’s the beauty of the experience, almost regardless of the play. But Charlotte Meehan’s Real Realism – playing at the Factory Theatre this weekend and next – is so rich in its unpredictability that it takes your imagination on a joyride. Continue reading →
May 30

Promo: The Magic Mirror

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Promo by Gillian Daniels

Juventas New Music Ensemble will be presenting an interpretation of Snow White this weekend, Polina Nazaykinskaya’s The Magic Mirror.  Based on the version of the fairytale by Alexander Pushkin, the story is a classic that has been adapted for contemporary audiences. In this version of the tale, the seven dwarfs have been replaced with seven brothers and the Evil Queen’s perspective promises to be explored. Continue reading →

May 29

“Faerie Tales” Double Feature

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presented by Blue Spruce Theatre

Act 1: “Goblin Market”
by Polly Pen and Peggy Harmon
Music by Polly Pen
Based on the poem by Christina Rossetti

Act 2: World Premiere of “The Rag Doll”
Music and Lyrics by David Reiffel
Book by Silvia Graziano

Directed by Jesse Strachman
Music Direction by Dan Rodriguez
Choreography by Kira Cowan

May 23-26, 2013
321 Arsenal Street
Watertown, MA 02472
Blue Spruce Theatre Facebook Page

Review by Gillian Daniels

(Watertown) Blue Spruce Theatre’s Faerie Tales has a bit of charm, some nice music, and an engaging visual style. None of these things, however, manage to carry the show on their own. This is very sad as there are elements in the play, like fairies and the importance of family, that I adore when utilized in other media.

Faerie Tales uses two different stories that overlap in theme. The first act is devoted to adapting Christina Rossetti’s poem, Goblin Market, to the stage. Laura (Teresa Winner Blume) and Lizzie (Abigail Clarke) are sisters who stumble on a magical fairy marketplace. Lizzie shies away from eating the market food and going near the animal-like creatures, but Laura is too taken with their strangeness and is immediately seduced into spending a night among the goblins. When her sister returns and begins to grow ill, Lizzie struggles to find a cure. Continue reading →

May 21

Troubled Flight for “Icarus”

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With Austin Auh and Corianna Moffatt. Photo courtesy of Liars & Believers Facebook Page.

Presented by Liars & Believers
Directed by Faye Dupras

May 17 & 18, 2013 (Grab tickets while you can!)
Cambridge YMCA Theater in Central Square
Cambridge, MA
Liars & Believers Facebook Group

Gillian Daniels

Liars and Believers’ Icarus is a wobbly production, a Depression Era circus fable that limps when it pushes hard to soar.  Like a small bird, the show is both endearing but weak.  Its flourishes are strong: puppets, bluegrass, and robots.  The result gives the audience a series of intriguing set pieces but nothing that really coalesces into a grand story.

Jason Slavick packs a lot into the show, the separate parts fluid and vibrant.  The lead-up to the play itself includes burlesque and music, giving the centerpiece, Minnie Minoseczeck’s Menagerie of Marvels, a vaudevillean glamour.  The trimmings for the circus are convincing, complete with posters promising a minotaur and a flying woman, Penny (Corianna Moffatt). Continue reading →

May 21

“Pirates of Penzance” Pillages Hearts

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Emily Casey, Sean Pfautsch, Matt Kahler, Ryan Bourque, Dana Omar. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

presented by American Repertory Theater
produced by The Hypocrites
by Gilbert & Sullivan
adapted by Sean Graney, Kevin O’Donnell
directed by Sean Graney

Loeb Drama Center
64 Brattle St.
Cambridge, MA 02138
The Hypocrites’ Facebook Page

Review by Gillian Daniels

(Cambridge) The Hypocrites’ production of Pirates of Penzance is an absolute confection.  Adapting the beloved Gilbert and Sullivan operetta to a quirkier, more contemporary stage, Sean Graney and Kevin O’Donnell infuse the original libretto and its score with banjos, bathing suits, beach balls, and a warmth that charms but never cloys.  It’s energetic and just plain fun.

Premiering in New York in 1879, the original show has a long history of making audiences titter at lyrics like, “I am the very model of a modern major general.”  The comic opera lampoons Victorian concepts of honor, piracy, politeness, the literary inconveniences of being a foundling, and, most importantly, duty. Continue reading →

May 16

Liars & Believers to Put on “Icarus”

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Presented by Liars & Believers
Directed by Faye Dupras

May 17 & 18, 2013 (Grab tickets while you can!)
Cambridge YMCA Theater in Central Square
Cambridge, MA
Liars & Believers Facebook Group

by Gillian Daniels

(Cambridge) This weekend, local Boston-area theater group Liars & Believers will be putting on its new show, Icarus.  It will be at the Cambridge YMCA Theater in Central Square this weekend only on May 17th and 18th.

Described as a show about poverty and transcendence, this American-bred tale uses the Great Depression as a backdrop as we follow Minnie Minoseczeck’s Menagerie of Marvels.  The play is written and directed by Jason Slavick with original music and lyrics by Nathan Leigh. Included in the production is puppetry, designed and directed by Faye Dupras.

The myth of Icarus is well known in the Western literary canon, a fable to illustrate the crippling nature of success.  A boy, given wings made from feathers and wax, is given the ability to fly.  Once airborne, Icarus flies so close to the sun, the wax that holds his wings together melts.  He plummets into the sea, a metaphor for the deadly foolishness of egotism and youth.

Liars & Believers is a mainly experimental troupe, one that prides itself on integrating different artistic pursuits into unique, chimera-like productions.  Their shows often include dance, song, aerial gymnastics, spoken text, and numerous interdisciplinary forms. Previous efforts this year include Lunar Labyrinth, a show loosely based on a short story by Neil Gaiman. Lunar Labyrinth combined and rejoiced in different storytelling methods, knotting its plot and themes into dreamy contortions.  Icarus promises to be a show in a similar mold.

May 14

“Mad Men” Set to Song and Dance: ON THE TOWN

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Photo by Mark S. Howard

Presented by Lyric Stage Company of Boston

Book and lyrics by Betty Comden & Adolph Green
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Based on an idea by Jerome Robbins
Directed by Spiro Veloudos
Music direction by Jonathan Goldberg
(kick-ass) Choreography & musical staging by Ilyse Robbins

May 10 – June 8, 2013
The Lyric Stage
Boston, MA
Lyric Stage Facebook Page

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston) On the Town is a sweet little musical about what happens when three horny US Navy men seeking adventure visit NYC for 24 hours. As the plot thickens, they meet their equally horny female counterparts, do some healthy snogging, see some sights and return to duty. It’s mostly romantic. The  Lyric Stage delicately wraps these adult themes in saccharine sweet nostalgia, excellent choreography and Bernstein’s music. Although this could be for mature audiences only, it is presented as tasteful family-friendly material. Continue reading →