Tag Archives: April

May 06

Struggling with Genius: AMADEUS

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Photo: Andrew Brilliant / Brilliant Pictures

Presented by New Repertory Theatre
A play with music by Peter Shaffer
Directed by Jim Petosa

Arsenal Center for the Arts
Watertown, MA
April 28th – May 19th, 2013
New Rep Facebook Page

Review by Craig Idlebrook

(Watertown) The story goes that an earnest young monk once asked a Zen master to describe the immaculate nature of the Buddha.  The Zen Master, most likely with an insufferable grin on his face, pointed to a pile of dung.

This sums up the life of Antonio Salieri (Benjamin Evett) in the spirited production of Amadeus being staged at the Arsenal Center for the Arts.  Salieri, an accomplished composer who writes operas for Hapsburg monarchs, dedicates his life to capture the music of God.  Instead, he discovers his own private dung heap in the form of a foul-mouthed former child prodigy named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Tim Spears).  Salieri is crushed to learn that Mozart, a drunk, womanizing jerk, has a much clearer channel to God’s radio station and can compose the most beautiful music the world has ever known, even while playing billiards.  It drives the devout Italian composer to lose both his faith and his scruples. Continue reading →

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Apr 29

Spunk without Charm: PIPPI LONGSTOCKING

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Photo by Gary Ng. Sirena Abalian as Pippi Longstocking.

Presented by Wheelock Family Theatre
Story by Astrid Lindgren
Adapted for the stage by Thomas W. Olson
Music by Roberta Carlson
Directed by Wendy Lement

Boston, Massachusetts
April 12th – May 12th, 2013
Autism Friendly Modified Performance: Saturday April 27 at 10:00am
ASL/AD: Friday May 10 at 7:30 & Sunday May 12 at 3:00
All performances offer Open Captioning
Wheelock Family Theatre Facebook Page

Review by Craig Idlebrook

(Boston) Why is everyone in such a hurry to update our iconic and innocent redheads?  A cover for a new edition of Anne of Green Gables ditches her red hair and makes her uncomfortably shapely.  The pigtailed girl in the Wendy’s logo seems to have grown up and has nothing more to do than disparage other peoples’ lunches.  And now we have Pippi Longstocking to add to the list. Continue reading →

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Apr 29

Universal Humiliation: GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS

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Todd Licea, Charlie Kevin and Will LeBow. Photo by Meghan Moore.

Presented by Merrimack Repertory Theatre
By David Mamet
Directed by Charles Towers

50 East Merrimack Street
Lowell, MA
April 25th – May 19th, 2013
MRT Facebook Page

Review by Craig Idlebrook

(Lowell) If you want to see inside the male workplace psyche, you must see the new Merrimack Repertory Theatre production of Glengarry Glen Ross, but I warn you: it’s not a pretty picture.  It’s every man for himself and there is no mercy in David Mamet’s brutal examination of greed. Continue reading →

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Apr 29

The Love That Spawned A Million Campaigns: “She Kills Monsters”

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2013 Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo — with Meredith Saran, Stewart Evan Smith Jr, Noam Ash, Dobs Ebiama and Jordan Clark.
White hot nerdity and geekery abound!

Presented by Company One
by Qui Nguyen
Directed by Shira Milikowsky

April 12-May 11
Plaza Theatre at the BCA
Boston, MA
Company One Facebook Page

Review by Noelani Kamelamela

(Boston) The Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company at Center Stage, NY has been centered around making theatre that engages an audience of like-minded people.  Mainly popular entertainment, most productions incorporate a large amount of stage combat as well as clever use of props and costumes.   Company One brings indie sensibilities to a production that fans the heart flames of con-going die-hard gamers (both LARP and video) as well as n00bs for an overall shiny audience experience. Continue reading →

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Apr 26

Perils, Pirates, Prostitutes, and the Peculiarity of “Pericles”

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Omar Robinson, Johnny Lee Davenport*, and Johnnie McQuarley in the foreground, with Jesse Hinson* (Pericles) and the cast in the background.
Photo: Stratton McCrady Photography

Presented by Actor’s Shakespeare Project
by William Shakespeare
directed by Allyn Burrows

The Modern Theatre at Suffolk University
525 Washington St., Boston
April 17 – May 12, 2013
ASP Facebook Page

Review by Gillian Daniels

(Boston) It’s easy to see why Pericles, Prince of Tyre isn’t one of Shakespeare’s best loved plays.  The plot is often as lost at sea as the titular character, who drifts from one melodramatic episode to the next on an unending voyage.  Pericles’ journey begins with villainous incest and the threat of death and, after abandoning this thread, continues on to tragic storms, kidnappings, and brothels.  Taking on this play means a potential mess. Continue reading →

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Apr 25

Help Make The Theatre Geek’s Dream Come True!

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season-teasersmallSwiftly Tilting Theatre Project, Inc.
Swiftly Tilting Theatre’s Facebook Page

Kickstarter Page
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
January 9-19, 2014, at The Chain Theatre, 21-28 45th Rd, Long Island City, NY
Iphigenia at Aulis by Euripides
March 31-April 13, 2014, at The Secret Theatre’s Poco Theatre, 44-02 33rd St, Long Island City, NY

I passed on my blog to Kitty Drexel when I realized that I could no longer deny my desire to create a theatre company.  Long Island City, one of the major residences of New York based theatre people, is becoming an economical alternative for theatrical productions.  I was born in New Jersey, so it was only a matter of time before I inched my way back to the area.  I want to give artists and audiences the opportunity to be a part of quality theatre, regardless of income.  I am trying to do what Whistler in the Dark has done for Boston to the Queens area.

Swiftly Tilting Theatre Project is an artist community that will work towards bringing artists and audiences together while allowing us all to not be crushed by hard economic times.

Please watch the video and even the smallest pledge to the Kickstarter will help my dream become a reality.

Becca Kidwell, Chief Geek. Emerita

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Apr 21

We Are The Casualties of War: “Trojan Women”

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PHOTO CREDIT - Richard Termine

Rich scene painting, solid theatre. Bravi tutti! PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine

 

My sincere apologies to the cast and crew of Siti Company and ArtsEmerson. This review is late because of the traumatic events of Friday, April 19. In my own personal turmoil, I was unable to write your review. I humbly beg your pardon!

presented by ArtsEmerson
adapted by Jocelyn Clarke from Trojan Women (After Euripides)
directed by Anne Bogart
created and performed by Siti Company
Original music composed and performed by the insanely talented Christian Frederickson

The Paramount Center
Paramount Mainstage
559 Washington Street
Boston, MA
April 17 – 21
ArtsEmerson Facebook Page
Siti Company Facebook Page
90 minutes with no intermission because the subject matter is so heavy that people might leave.

(Boston) The bodies of women are the casualties of wars. Even today in places such as The (Republic of) Congo, Uganda, Afghanistan, Syria, Steubenville and even late night in Harvard Square, women are held responsible for the violent decisions of men eager to wield their entitlement in public arenas. There is a political war in The Congo and every Spring there is a war against women on the streets. In any situation, women are blamed for the violence. Excuses range from acting in ways unbefitting a lady or luring men with our bodies. In reality, it is the perpetrators who are to blame. Rape, like other acts of violence, is never about sexuality; it is always about power. In Siti Company’s production of Trojan Women, this is still true. Continue reading →

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Apr 19

“Beowulf”: A Badass, Raucous Production

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Kickin'it olde school. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

Kickin’it olde school. Photo by Evgenia Eliseeva

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Presented by American Repertory Theatre
A songplay by Banana Bag and Bodice
Text and lyrics by Jason Craig
Music by Dave Malloy
Directed by Rod Hipskind, Mallory Catlett

Oberon
Cambridge, MA
April 16 – May 5
A.R.T. Facebook Page

Review by Gillian Daniels

(Cambridge) An aggressively weird audio feast, this Beowulf is a musical take on the millennia-old epic-poem. The dialogue performs the syntax gymnastics of Seamus Heaney’s translation while the songs are guttural and set to a frantic, pleasing percussion. Banana Bag and Bodice’s production, though, both honors the source material while dissecting it. Continue reading →

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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 →

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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 →

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