Tag Archives: Tasia A. Jones

Apr 09

Being Polite is the American Way of Lying: “Her Portmanteau”

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In Photo: Lorraine Victoria Kanyike, Patrice Jean-Baptiste Photo by: Maggie Hall Photography

Presented by Central Square Theater with the Front Porch Arts Collective
By Mfoniso Udofia
Directed by Tasia A. Jones
Dramaturgy by Elijah Estolano Punzal
Original music and sound design by Eduardo M Ramirez
Dialect coaching by Bibi Mama
Featuring Patrice Jean-Baptiste, Jade A Guerra, Lorraine Victoria Kanyike

March 27 – April 20, 2025
Central Square Theater
450 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139

Online playbill

Critique by Kitty Drexel

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Central Square Theater and The Front Porch Arts Collective present the fourth play in Boston’s Ufot Family Cycle, Her Portmanteau by Mfoniso Udofia. Many elements recommend this play, including great acting and moving storytelling. Additionally, while it is part of the Ufot Cycle, it stands alone as a tribute to a Massachusetts family trying to love each other despite intergenerational trauma, betrayal, and culture shock. 

In Her Portmanteau, the American Ufot family reconnects with the Nigerian Ekpoyong family. Adiaha Ufot (Lorraine Victoria Kanyike) welcomes half-sister Iniabasi Ekpeyong (Jade A Guerra) to her New York apartment. It is winter, and Iniabasi has neither the coat nor footwear for the frigid weather. Adiaga offers Iniabasi a sweater and woollen socks, but Iniabasi refuses them. Iniabasi had to wait over an hour at JFK Airport. She was supposed to land in Boston. Their mother, Abasiama (Patrice Jean-Baptiste), was supposed to pick Iniabasi up so they could stay at the family house in Worcester. No one looks like their photos. Iniabasi doesn’t know why things have changed or who to trust.  Continue reading →

Jan 15

Survival, Sisterhood, and Small Triumphs: “Crumbs from the Table of Joy”

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Thomika Marie Bridwell, Madison Margaret Clark and Dominic Carter. Photo by Mark S. Howard.

Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston
By Lynn Nottage
Directed by Tasia A. Jones
Scenic Design by Cristina Todesco
Costume Design by Mikayla Reid
Lighting Design by Eduardo Ramirez
Sound Design by Aubrey Dube
Props Design by Lauren Corcuera
Stage Managed by Nerys Powell
Assistant Stage Managed by Ally MacLean
Voice & Dialect Coached by Allison Beauregard

January 10 – February 2, 2025
The Lyric Stage Company of Boston
Boston, MA 02116
Online playbill

Critique by Helen Ganley

BOSTON — The syncopated groove of Ms. Lauryn Hill’s “Everything is Everything” sweeps over the audience, settling like gossamer smoke over the sepia toned Victorian archway of a Brooklyn apartment. A young Black girl in a simple yellow dress and worn saddle shoes stands at the center of this accommodation, guiding us through the memories of her time there. In this way, the Lyric Stage Company of Boston’s production of Crumbs from the Table of Joy intertwines grief, divinity, expectations, and family, unfolding like a silver screen storyboard that leaves us feeling changed. Continue reading →

Dec 08

Hold Onto Your Shawarma, Here Comes Crazypants: “The Embryos”

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Photo credit: Fresh Ink Theatre
Mommy and Daddy don’t like fast food.

presented by Fresh Ink Theatre Company

Written by Ginger Lazarus
Directored by Dawn M. Simmons
Dramaturg: Tyler J. Monroe

The Factory Theatre
November 30-December 15, 2012
Fresh Ink Theatre Blog, Facebook Page

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston) There are many valid reasons to become a parent. Some “adults” feel that it is their life’s mission to procreate; some couples want to share their love organically; and others accidentally drop a cheeto into their partner’s lap, live in the moment and welcome a baby 9 months later. To each their own. Ginger Lazarus’ nugget of hilarity, The Embryos, offers a surrealist viewpoint on parenting that investigates topical politics as well as the extent of delusion only unconditional love enables. Her characters begin their journey hoping for a larger family. They end it on the wrong sides of the law and the greater Shawarma community. Continue reading →