Jun 14

Something Elegant and Threatening: “Gatsby: An American Myth”

Presented by American Repertory Theater
Based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Music by Florence Welch and Thomas Bartlett
Lyrics by Florence Welch
Book by Martyna Majok
Music Directed by Wiley DeWeese
Choreographed by Sonya Tayeh
Directed by Rachel Chavkin
Dramaturgy by Nissy Aya
Fight and Intimacy Direction by Rocío Mendez

July 23 – August 3, 2024
Loeb Drama Center
64 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

This production contains depictions of suicide, violence, loud noises, gunshot sounds, bright and flashing lights, fog, and haze. Recommended for ninth grade and up.

Critique by Kitty Drexel

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Chavkin, Majok, and Welch’s Gatsby: An American Myth uplifts the plight of America’s laboring proletariat in ways F Scott Fitzgerald could never, would never imagine. It is a work of striking work of intersectional feminism that denudes the superficial morality of ultra-privileged one-percenters. It is sexy; it is rock n roll hot Jazz; it is a cautionary tale about the depravity of feral capitalism wrapped with a white bow.  

F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby was first published in 1926. This critique discusses important plot points of the ART’s musical inspired by the novel. Anyone wishing to avoid spoilers is 98 years too late. 

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Apr 29

Fate’s Meat Puppets: “Hadestown” at The Wang Theater

Hadestown North American Tour. Photo by T Charles Erickson.

Presented by the Boch Center
Developed With/Directed by Rachel Chavkin
Music and lyrics by Anaïs Mitchell
Featuring Amaya Braganza, Lana Gordon, Will Mann, J. Antonio Rodriguez, Marla Louissant, Lizzie Markson, Hannah Schreer, Sevon Askew, Jamal Lee Harris, Cate Hayman, Quiana Onrae’l Holmes, and Daniel Tracht
Music Supervisor and Vocal Arrangements by Liam Robinson
Choreography by David Neumann
Lighting by Bradley King
Scenic Design by Rachel Hauck

April 23-28, 2024
Boch Center, Wang Theatre
270 Tremont St.
Boston, MA 02116

HADESTOWN runs approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes, including a 20-minute intermission.

Review by Craig Idlebrook

BOSTON, Mass. — It can be said that mainstream American storytelling often takes its tone from modern Christianity, centering stories on a struggle between good and evil. Through this individualistic lens, if our hero is good enough and smart enough, they can decide their fate and overcome all challenges.

The ancient Greeks? They were not so optimistic about the chances of the individual in their stories. In Greek mythology, there are a bewildering number of gods, and they are just as likely to mess with humans as they are with each other. Mere mortals often get caught in the crossfire of inter-god rivalries, and there is little they can do to escape their fates, as The Fates have almost all the action on pre-determined lockdown.

This is the backdrop for Hadestown, the popular musical currently touring New England. It re-tells the tragedy of Eurydice (Amaya Braganza) and Orpheus (J. Antonio Rodriguez), a pair of lovers who almost go to hell and back to try and find their happily ever after. Orpheus has some godly parentage and is working on a song to sing-oh when Eurydice blows into his life without two coins to put over her eyes. He is immediately smitten with her and soon wins her over. Continue reading

Dec 18

Depth of Understanding: “Moby Dick”


Presented by American Repertory Theater
Music, Lyrics, Book, and Orchestrations by Dave Malloy
Based on Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
Music Direction and Supervision by Or Matias
Choreography by Chanel DaSilva
Developed with and Directed by Rachel Chavkin

December 3, 2019 – January 12, 2020
Loeb Drama Center
64 Brattle Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
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Review by Shiyanbade Animashaun

(Cambridge, MA) Moby-Dick, as director Rachel Chavkin said when talking about multihyphenate writer Dave Malloy, attempts to formally “capture Melville’s eclecticism”. The novel Moby-Dick has a chapter as a play, another as a poem, and wraps the tale of an ill-fated drive for vengeance alongside descriptions of whale types, and the many ways one can prepare and eat a whale. Continue reading