Tag Archives: The Treehouse Collective

Oct 19

As Mysterious As the Dark Side of the Moon: “The Ballad of Little Jo” 

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Presented by The Treehouse Collective
Music by Mike Reid
Lyrics by Sarah Schlesinger
Book by Sarah Schlesinger, Mike Reid, and John Dias
Directed by Katie Swimm
Music Directed by Jeff Kimball

Digital Playbill 

October 24 – November 2, 2025
The Plaza Theatre
The Boston Center for the Arts
Boston, MA

Critique by Kitty Drexel

Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes with one intermission

BOSTON — The curious story of cattle ranching and mining pioneer Little Joe Monahan was brought to light when the trailblazer passed away in 1904. Monahan had lived and died as a successful male business owner in Idaho, Oregon, and northern New York. After his death, an unprofessional undertaker preparing Monahan for burial leaked to the Buffalo, NY, press that Monahan was born AFAB. His legacy reminds us that trans people have always existed despite some cis folks’ intentions to erase them.   

There is a lot we don’t know about Little Joe Monahan. Much has been lost to time or otherwise sensationalized by early journalists. Monahan was first memorialized in the 1981 play Little Joe Monaghan by Barbara Lebow. A 1993 movie of the same name starring Heather Graham, Sir Ian McKellen, and Rene Auberjonois further romanticized Joe’s story (and borrowed heavily from Lebow’s play). The Treehouse Collective presents another romanticized adaptation, The Ballad of Little Jo, through Nov. 2 at the Boston Center for the Arts. Continue reading →

Jun 17

Queer pride through historical reimagining: “Bull in a China Shop”

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Karen Dervin as Dean Welsh and Linnea Lyerly as Woolley; Photo by Brian Higgins.

Presented by The Treehouse Collective
By Bryna Turner
Directed by Lisa Tierney
Lighting design by Dan Clawson
Set design by Britt Ambruson
Featuring: Linnea Lyerly, Heidi White, Karen Dervin, Anneke Salvadori, Hannah Young, Lena Vani

Abbott Memorial Theatre at Hovey Players
9 Spring Street
Waltham, MA 02451
June 13 – 29, 2025

Accessibility Note: There are a total of 13 steps to get downstairs to the theatre, with no elevator access.  

Review by Maegan Bergeron-Clearwood

WALTHAM – The most radical element of Bull in a China Shop is emblemized by its earliest visuals. Two women in early 20th century garb lounge on a bed together, tangled in each other’s arms. Everything is perfectly mundane: they discuss personal and professional dreams; they quarrel; they kiss. And they do explain their queerness to the audience. They simply exist in their historical moment, no excuses necessary.

Bull in a China Shop by Bryna Turner isn’t a perfect play, but it fits neatly into The Treehouse Collective’s ethos. Their seasons largely feature contemporary works that give voice to ahead-of-their-time trailblazers (particularly women and queer folks, although I hope their team will add some more racial diversity to their season selection in the future) whose stories have otherwise been silenced by the patriarchal, heteronormative archival machine. Continue reading →

Sep 30

A Love Song to Ephemerality: “February House”

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Shira Cahn Lipman, Matt Finn, Shai Wolf, Todd Sandstrom, Travis Karas, Em Sheeran, Todd Yard. Photo credit: Val Tracy

Presented by The Treehouse Collective
Music and lyrics by Gabriel Kahane
Story by Seth Bockley
Directed by Katie Swimm
Music direction by Jeff Kimball
Costume design by Marc Capizzi and Christina Petrillo
Set/props design by Britt Ambruson
Lighting design by Dan Clawson
Stage management and sound design by Dannie Smith

Featuring: Todd Sandstrom, Em Sheeran, Todd Yard, Shai Wolf, Travis Karas, Matty Finn, Sean Donnelly, Shira Cahn-Lipman, Devin Bean, Maggie Post

September 27 – October 13
Plaza Theatres at Boston Center for the Arts
539 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02131

Critique by Maegan Bergeron-Clearwood

BOSTON — I didn’t find myself humming snippets from February House on my rainy walk back to the train station last night, because Gabriel Kahane’s score isn’t particularly catchy. The music is memorable, to be sure, but not in the brash, ear-wormy way that one might expect from a musical.

Instead, my memories of February House felt quiet and fleeting, like the smell of an old house or the footsteps of a once-familiar companion. As George Davis (the titular house’s den mother and the musical’s narrator) explains, love is not about possession, but about letting go, and to that end, the Treehouse Collective’s quiet but piercing production of this musical is resoundingly successful. Continue reading →