WHAT'S NEW
AT A GLANCE . . .
 
An auspicious twist of fate brought Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis,
Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley together for
one electric night in 1956. That evening is brought to life in "Million
Dollar Quartet," set to kick off its national tour at
The Colonial Theatre on October 8.
If you believe there's “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’
On,” click here
for more.
The 10th anniversary Revels RiverSing, a free,
open-air celebration of the Autumnal Equinox, will take place September
22 along the banks of The Charles in Cambridge. Entertainment
will feature Noel Paul Stookey (of Peter, Paul
& Mary), the Revels Singers, sax great
Stan Strickland, Actors' Shakespeare Project,
Cambridge Poet Populist Lo Galluccio, acrobats and
street performers from Moonship Productions, Sara Peatie's Puppeteers
Cooperative, and the magical, larger-than-life butterflies
of Gabriel Q. To find out more, click here.
Imaginary Beasts' 2013-2014 season will explore the
dark side of your favorite fairy tale characters from Hansel
& Gretel to Sleeping Beauty and
Little Red Riding Hood. The season unfolds October
4 with "Hairy Tales." Once Upon
A Time begins here.
Say hello to ArtWeek, a collection of curated events
and experiences throughout the city that highlights the quality and
diversity of arts, culture, and entertainment in Boston. Created and
presented by The Citi Performing Arts Center, ArtWeek
is designed to become a biannual tradition. Participants in the events
scheduled from September 27 - October 6 include Boston
Lyric Opera, Zoo New England, Handel & Haydn Society, Fiddlehead
Theatre and the Celebrity Series of Boston.
Read more here.
Elements Theatre Company will host a panel discussion,
“The Importance of Live Theater in Our Culture: The Art
of Making Humans More Human” at Back Bay Events
Center on September 17. Participants are scheduled
to include: Jared Bowen, WGBH Executive Arts Editor;
Joyce Kulhawik (left), President of the Boston Theater
Critics Association; Julie Hennrikus, Executive Director
of StageSource; award-winning actress Georgia Lyman;
and Fr. Thomas Kane, Professor at Boston College. The
event is free and open to the public. Click here
for details.
For its seventh season, Guerilla Opera will present
productions of Andy Vores’s "No Exit" from
September 19 - 22 and the world premiere of the evening-length
chamber opera, "Gallo," next May. Get all
the details here.
Trinity Repertory Theatre in Providence will kick off
its 50th Anniversary season with John Steinbeck's
"The Grapes of Wrath." Written in the wake of the
Great Depression, the story of natural disasters, rampant foreclosures
and corporate greed is as timely today as it was then. Performances
run through October 6 in Trinity's Dowling
Theater. Read more here.
"Wicked" is back at The Opera House
and R. J. Donovan was there for Opening Night. He says
the production remains as entertaining as ever, "with all the fun
and dazzle intact." The musical will be in town through September
15. Read his full review here.
Cavalia's "Odysseo" marries majestic equestrian
arts with high-tech theatrical staging to take audiences on a spectacular
journey that salutes man and beast. R. J. Donovan agrees
that it's "a show like no other" and shouldn't be missed.
The production has been extended through September 22.
Read his review here.
Stand-up comedian and "Saturday Night Live"
vet Colin Quinn is traveling to the 13 original colonies
to present "Colin Quinn Unconstitutional ."
Tackling 226 years of American Constitutional calamities in 70 minutes,
he'll be at Trinity Rep in Providence for one night
only, on September 28. If you'd like to join Quinn
in forming a more perfect union, click here.
Don't tell Dobby, but the hit off-Broadway show "Potted
Potter: The Unauthorized Harry Experience – A Parody by Dan and
Jeff" is coming to town for a limited run at The Paramount
from September 17 - October 6. Wave your magic wand
or click here
for details.
New Repertory Theatre opens its 30th season with Bernard
Pomerance's "The Elephant Man,"
playing through September 29. The Tony Award-winning
drama offers an intense look at John Merrick, an intelligent and sensitive
but physically deformed Londoner of the late 1880s who worked to be
normal, even as he was viewed as a carnival freak. Read more here.
The world premiere musical adaptation of "The Jungle Book"
comes to the Huntington Theatre through October
13. Based on Nobel Laureate Rudyard Kipling’s
1893 collection of stories set in the Indian jungle, this reimagined-for-the-
stage, music-and- movement-filled adventure tells the tale of young
Mowgli’s coming-of-age in the animal kingdom. For the "bare
necessities" and more, click here.
Broadway in Boston's 2013-2014 season
will offer a full range of productions from nostalgia and Broadway's latest
hits to a couple of past favorites. The schedule includes: "Once,"
the Tony Award-winning Best Musical of 2012; "A
Christmas Story, The Musical;" "Flashdance - The Musical;"
"We Will Rock You;" "I Love Lucy, Live On Stage;"
"American Idiot;"and a re-imagining of "The
Phantom of the Opera." Get the full season rundown here.
PAST REVIEWS
. . .
The Huntington closed out its season with a biting production
of "Rapture, Blister, Burn," Gina Gionfriddo's
look at three generations of women and the choices they've made.
R. J. Donovan said the evening was bright and accessible. Read
his review here.
SpeakEasy Stage finished off its season with a dynamic
production of "In The Heights," winner of the
Tony Award for Best Musical in 2008.
The story of family, home and community in the Washington Heights section
of New York City offered an infectious beat and a hardworking cast. Read
R. J. Donovan's review here.
"The Book of Mormon"arrived at Boston's Opera
House with a politically incorrect, nothing's-off-limits tale
of two young missionaries who travel to Uganda to spread the good word.
R. J. Donovan was there on Opening Night and said the Tony Award-winning
musical was everything expected, plus more. Read his review here.
Phil Tayler and Daniel Berger-Jones
(at left) brought to life an entire town of Irish characters in "Stones
In His Pockets" at Lyric Stage. R.
J. Donovan said the duo did a brilliant job in the bright and
ultimately very touching comedy. Read his review here.
In its New England premiere at SpeakEasy Stage, Jon
Robin Baitz's "Other Desert Cities" blended family,
politics and show business -- all in a Christmas Eve drama that threatened
to blow the roof off the tense gathering. Read R. J. Donovan's
review here.
The national tour of "Sister Act" arrived at
The Opera House straight from its Broadway run. Based
on the popular film of the same name, the musical told the tale of a wannabe
diva hiding out in a convent. R. J. Donovan said it was
fun with several bright spots but could have delivered more. Read his
review here.
In the Tony Award-winning "Memphis,"
Huey Calhoun is a man in love with rhythm and blues -- and a talented
singer society won't accept as his lady. R. J. Donovan
was at the newly reopened Colonial Theatre on Opening
Night. Read his review here
ArtsEmerson presented an intriguing multidisciplinary
production of Lemieux Pilon 4D Art’s "La Belle et la
Bête (Beauty and the Beast)" complete with eerie 3D
imagery. R. J. Donovan said the experience of spectors
and holograms summoned up a haunting world of danger and uncertainty.
Read his full review here.
As
the elections loomed, SpeakEasy Stage presented "Bloody
Bloody Andrew Jackson," a hipster rock show mash up of politics
in the making. R. J. Donovan said it was polished, imaginative
and fun. Read his review here.
Telling a tale of unique courage, loyalty and friendship, the Tony
Award-winning "War Horse" was a spectacular
experience filled with superb stagecraft. R. J. Donovan
said the story of a boy and his beloved horse was artfully presented and
thoroughly captivating. Read his review here.
When "Billy Elliot The Musical," winner of
ten 2009 Tony Awards, played Boston's Opera House
for a month-long run, R. J. Donovan said the story of
a boy from a gritty English mining town who yearns to become a ballet
dancer was exhilarating and passionate. Read his review here.
"Fela!" transported audiences at the Cutler
Majestic back to a 1978 farewell concert by Nigerian musician,
singer, political activist Fela Kuti. R. J. Donovan
said it was a vibrant, electrifying evening, anchored by a phenomenal
performance from Sahr Ngaujah (at left) as Fela. Read
his review here.
Plus There's Lots More . . .
To browse OnStage Boston's
full listing of news stories detailing what's happening everywhere from
The Huntington to Boston Playwrights Theatre,
New Rep, Lyric Stage Company, The Boston Conservatory, Trinity Rep and
others, just click here.
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