Jennifer Ellis and George Olesky Lead Cast For New England Premiere
From January 12 to February 10, 2018, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the New England premiere of the hit London comedy SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE.
Based on the Academy Award-winning film, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE tells the story of young Will Shakespeare, who is suffering a severe case of writer’s block as the deadline fast approaches to deliver his new play, Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate’s Daughter. Enter Viola, a headstrong noblewoman and admirer of Will’s, who disguises herself as a boy so she can skirt the law and appear (as a girl) in his play. But when the playwright and his muse fall in love, the plot undergoes some surprising rewrites. Mistaken identities, courtly intrigue, and backstage bickering are all part of the fun in this raucous romantic comedy of errors that reminds us that all the world’s a stage and love is unrehearsed.
Norton & IRNE Award-winner Scott Edmiston will direct the SpeakEasy Stage production of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE. Mr. Edmiston’s previous SpeakEasy credits include Casa Valentina (2016 Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Director), The History Boys, The Light in the Piazza, and Five by Tenn.
George Olesky and Jennifer Ellis
Newton native George Olesky and Norton Award-winner Jennifer Ellis headline a truly all-star Boston cast for the production, which includes Remo Airaldi, Ken Baltin, Nancy E. Carroll, Jesse Hinson, Omar Robinson, Carolyn Saxon, Eddie Shields, and Lewis D. Wheeler. Also in the cast are Paul Alperin, Steve Auger, Cameron Beaty Gosselin, Jade Guerra, Jeff Marcus, Zaven Ovian, Edward Rubenacker, and Damon Singletary.
SHAKESPEAERE IN LOVE will run for five weeks, from January 12 through February 10, 2018, in the Virginia Wimberly Theatre in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street in Boston’s South End.
Seaglass Chorale
“A Joyous Celtic Celebration”
December 2, South Congregational Church, Kennebunkport
December 3, Holy Family Church, Sanford, Maine
Reviewed by Bobby Franklin
It was a lovely two days of Celtic music and dance in Kennebunkport and Sanford, Maine as the Seaglass Chorale welcomed the Christmas Season with a beautiful program of music and dance.
Led by Artistic Director Jean Strazdes, the group has shown they are able to continue raising the bar with the passing of each year. This past summer the chorale visited Ireland where they performed and it appears they brought some Celtic magic back with them.
The lovely voices were accompanied by Kim Karchenes on piano, Mary Carol Kennedy on flute, Dianne Smallidge and Stephanie Sanders on percussion, and Robert Daigle on bass.
The program which opened with “Riversong: A Celtic Celebration” was lively and touching and continued with a number of beautiful Celtic songs. These included “Gartan Mother’s Lullaby”, sung a cappella, a tune that touches on fairies in Irish mythology, “Oikan Ayns Bethlehem” from the Isle of Man, and the lively and fun “The Little Beggarman” about Johnny Dhu who worked hard at not working at all.
The first part of the program also had the beautiful “In The Bleak Midwinter” with words by Christina Rossetti. This has always been one of my favorites and I was not disappointed by this performance.
Alex Pratt recited the Kenneth Patchen poem “The Snow Is Deep On The Ground”. Written during WW II it is a moving piece that reminds us to have hope at all times. Mr. Pratt’s rich voice made this recitation simply wonderful to hear.
Stillson School Step Dancers
After intermission, there was a special surprise. The Seaglass Chorale was joined by step dancers from the Stillson School of Irish Dance. The Stillson School is the only accredited Irish Dance school in the state of Maine. This was truly a treat and the young ladies who performed were simply outstanding. Under the direction of Carlene Moran Stillson these world class dancers who have won numerous competitions thrilled the audience. Having them join with the chorale was a lovely touch.
The program closed out with the ancient Celtic carol “Stars of Glory”, followed by “Shule Aroon”, Ola Gjeilo’s “The Ground”, and a “Celtic Silent Night”. All beautiful music but made that much lovelier by the voices of Seaglass. A friend described the evening as “Fine threads on a woven tapestry.” That is a perfect description.
Of course, what would a Seaglass Christmas concert be without a sing-a-long? Ms Strazdes finished the evening by turning to and directing the audience in a medley of Christmas Carols. It was the perfect finish to a wonderful evening.
If you have not yet attended a Seaglass Performing Arts concert I would strongly urge you to do so.
“A Joyous Celtic Celebration” certainly left all who experienced it with enough Christmas Spirit to last them until next year. Just wonderful!
When the lights first illuminate the stage for the opening act of We Hold These Truths now playing at the Lyric Stage, Michael Hisamoto in the role of Gordon Hirabayashi is sitting in a chair facing the audience. There is a very long pause before he begins to speak. This creates an expectation that what we are about to hear from Mr. Hirabayashi is going to be very important. In fact, not only what develops on the stage is important, it is also deeply moving.
Michael Hisamoto with Kurogos Photo By Mark S.Howard
The story based on the real life Hirabayashi is about an American citizen of Japanese ancestry who had the courage to stand up to his government during the onset of WWII when citizens were being rounded up and placed into internment camps while being denied the due process afforded them by the Constitution. That they were denied their rights solely because of their ancestry is a frightening tale. Most of these citizens, and it must be remembered that these people were American citizens, also lost their homes, furnishings, and businesses. Some had relatives who at the same time were in the military defending the nation, and yes, its Constitution.
Michael Hisamoto commands the stage for a little over 100 minutes portraying a man who is both charming and steadfastly determined. Playwright Jeanne Sakata has included much humor in her work which makes this tragic story bearable. Using this humor, Mr. Hisamoto, with his infectious smile, is able to break the tension when it begins to overwhelm while at the same time using his eyes to covey the steely determination of his character. Make no mistake, Gordon Hirabayashi, though good natured, is tough as nails. And, as he points out using a Japanese proverb his mother taught him, “The nail that sticks out is the one that gets hit.”
Mr. Hisamoto plays all the characters with the exception of those that are voiced from off stage. He is accompanied by three kurogos, characters from Japanese theatre whose faces are fully covered and do not speak on their own. The kurogos move about while Hisamoto voices their lines. The use of lighting cast onto a minimally furnished stage along with some projections on the back wall and subtle mood music is all wonderfully effective. Director Benny Sato Ambush has done a masterful job.
As I watched We Hold These Truths I thought about the temptation to slip into feelings of self-righteousness as I felt a bond with Mr. Hirabayashi, but would I have felt the same way if I were there in 1942 after the attack on Pearl Harbor? I would like to think I would have been, but it is easier looking back at this dreadful period with the emotions of the time removed.
What I did conclude was how important it is for our Constitution to be upheld by judges who will not be ruled by emotion or the temptation to legislate from the bench. In the Hirabayashi case, which he fought all the way to the Supreme Court where the justices ruled unanimously against him even though this was certainly a clear case of his due process being denied. The fact that there was little public support for these Americans who were being deprived of their rights should never have played into the judge’s decision, but it certainly did.
Michael Hisamoto Photo by Mark S.Howard
Michael Hisamoto’s stirring performance not only honors Mr. Hirabayashi, but is also a reminder that while we may look back and like to believe we would have stood up for this courageous man, we should test ourselves as to whether or not we would do the same today in different situations. In this age where so many look to the courts to create laws we have to ask ourselves if we are able to respect the process, and if we can support decisions we are not happy with but are what is dictated by the Constitution. If that process had been followed in 1942 we would not have seen so many of our fellow Americans treated in such a shameful way.
I urge you to see We Hold These Truths and watch it with your eyes wide open. It is an important work, and one that should cause you to reflect no matter where on the political spectrum you fall.
POWERFUL PERSONAL DRAMA MALA WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY MELINDA LOPEZ, DIRECTED BY DAVID DOWER BEGINS SATURDAY, JANUARY 6
The Huntington Theatre Company is pleased to present the ArtsEmerson production of Mala. This moving drama is written and performed by Huntington Playwright-in-Residence Melinda Lopez (Sonia Flew, Becoming Cuba) and directed by David Dower (Mala and Mr. Joy, Breath & Imagination at ArtsEmerson). Performances run from January 6 through January 28, 2018 at the South End / Calderwood Pavilion.
Melinda Lopez Photo Credit: Paul Marotta
Set during the epic winter of 2015, Mala is inspired by text messages frantically typed on an iPhone by Lopez, while she cared for her increasingly frail and consistently fierce mother. These short missives ultimately create a moving and generous portrait of the way taking care of family tests, deepens, and changes our bonds to the ones we love. Lopez, a regular on Boston stages, also performs the play.
Mala won the 2016 Elliot Norton Award for Best New Script, and it was named one of the best plays of 2016 by The Boston Globe, WBUR’s ARTery, and DigBoston. This return engagement of Mala, back by popular demand, is funny, brutally honest, and ultimately cathartic. Mala puts a sharp focus on what it means to put our loved ones first, right to the very end, and what happens when we strive to be good but don’t always succeed.
“When I saw the sold-out performances of Mala at ArtsEmerson last year, I knew we had to bring this homegrown hit to the Huntington,” says Artistic Director Peter DuBois. “Melinda Lopez has a frank and funny approach to writing about life and family that is a gift to audiences. In Mala, she’s captured something so honest about what it is to be a daughter. This is a show to share with someone you love.”
“I am thrilled to bring Mala back to Boston,” says Melinda Lopez. “The Huntington has provided me the time and space to continue to create new work as their playwright-in-residence, and I am grateful to them for remounting the original production, as this play is extremely close to my heart.”
“It was a true joy collaborating with Melinda on the premiere of her play Mala,” director David Dower says. “The humor, intelligence, and courage that Melinda brought to her writing immediately resonated and provided a great foundation to tell her important story, universal to so many.”
The New Rep Theatre’s current production of The Man of La Mancha directed by Antonio Ocampo-Guzman looked promising as the cast took the stage. It appeared it would be earthy and salty, but unfortunately, it did not turn out that way. I found this version to be disjointed and confusing. At times I wasn’t sure if it was reminiscent of a production done in Berlin in the 1920s or a Harvard Square coffee house in the 1960s. The transitions were choppy and it did not convey the edginess that it meant too.
Having the musicians playing instruments while acting their parts on a set that resembled backstage at a theater was a nice touch but the music was at many times tinny. Lead actor Maurice Emmanuel Parent who was superb in the Speakeasy Production’s Scottsboro Boys doesn’t seem able to quite settle into his role. I don’t think it is as much him as it is the material he is working with.
This is a production had a lot of potential, but it could be possible the director got too caught up in trying to send a message about the current state of politics today instead of letting the work be more subtle and allowing the audience to read into it their own interpretation.
Man of La Mancha
Through December 31st
New Rep Theatre
Watertown, MA
If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed by holiday shopping I would suggest you take a couple of hours away from the madness and stop by to see the Greater Boston Stage Company’s production of She Loves Me. This very warm musical, which had its first run in 1963, will be familiar to many of you who have seen the movie The Shop Around The Corner. The story about a romance that began through letters and involves mistaken identity is funny, touching, and warm. It is also quite enjoyable.
Jennifer Ellis
Of course, with Jennifer Ellis in one of the lead roles you could never be disappointed. Ms Ellis is a positively outstanding talent with a superb singing voice and amazing acting ability. I would pay just to see her read the phone book. Yes, she is that good.
Ellis, as Amalia Balash, an Sam Simark, who takes on the role of Georg Nowack, have an onstage chemistry that is magical. Having such a wonderful score to showcase their voices doesn’t hurt.
Sam Simahk
The play is set in Hungary as Christmas approaches and revolves around the romances both Amalia and Georg are having via mail (not email, but the ones you have to put a stamp on and deposit in a mailbox, remember those?), with people they have not yet met. It turns out the two have been writing to one another without realizing it, which becomes more complicated when Amalia gets a job at Maraczak’s, a perfumery, where Georg is already employed. The two do not hit it off well. The confusion draws in the other employees of the store as well as Mr. Maraczak (Tom Gleadow) who is also dealing with a case of mistaken identity.
Jared Troilo
Local favorite Jared Trolio plays the obnoxious Steven Kodaly who is pursuing fellow employee Ilona Ritter played by Aimee Doherty. Trolio is just wonderful in the number Ilona, which has a bit of a Mambo beat. Ms Doherty will have you smiling with A Trip To The Library.
A Romantic Atmosphere with Nick Sulfaro as the maitre d’ of a local restaurant is one of many stand out numbers that include Tonight At Eight (Georg), Vanilla Ice Cream (Amalia), and Where’s My Shoe (Amalia and Georg). Perspective sung by employee Ladislav Sipos (Robert Saoud) is filled with advice on how to keep your job. The delivery boy and aspiring clerk Arpad (Brendan Callahan) appeals for a promotion in Try Me. It would be very hard to refuse him after hearing this musical resume.
The story is not a complicated one, but it is so enjoyable to watch. The musical numbers are just wonderful and with Musical Director Matthew Stern at the helm the orchestration is tight. Choreography is by director Ilyse Robbins and is smooth and light.
While the entire cast and production are wonderful, Ms Ellis and Mr. Simahk are positively great. This is a play worth seeing. It will leave you with a big smile on your face.
She Loves Me
Through December 23rd
The Greater Boston Stage Company
Stoneham, Ma
Greaterbostonstage.org
I recently had the chance to take in a preview of the The Christmas Revels: A Venetian Celebration of the Winter Solstice. It was a very enjoyable evening. The Revels have been a tradition for five decades and this year’s version takes us to Renaissance Venice. The preview attended was just marvelous and only small taste of what all be presented on the stage at Sanders Theater in Cambridge. Music, dancing, and audience participation make for a great evening for celebration to welcome Christmas. It is an event where the Italian in all of us comes out.
WHO LET THE DOGE OUT?
2017 Christmas Revels Synopsis: The Doge of Venice has had it. It is time for the solstice and the Feast of the Seven Fishes and everyone wants his opinion – merchants, lawyers, politicians, artists, even the fishwives want him to rule on who makes the best spaghetti Bolognese. So he is going to take a little unauthorized vacation and meet some of his more lowly subjects. The wild adventures ahead involve reckless actors, jailbreaks, itinerant musicians, English Morris men and maybe even the Spanish Armada! A beloved holiday tradition since 1971, The Christmas Revels features luscious music, tricky sets and gorgeous costumes, superb musical guests, a tuneful, dancing chorus, some familiar Revels touchstones, and street kids who sing like angels.
Our 100-member ensemble includes musician and song leader David Coffin, The Revels Chorus of adults and children, a brilliant group of vocalists and musicians from the Early Music community (Sophie Michaux, Gideon Crevoshay, Lysander Jaffe, Daniel Meyers, Simon Martyn-Ellis, Nathaniel Cox, and Fabio Pirozzolo), The Serenissima Dancers, our acting troupe, Commedia Buffo (old friends Noni Lewis, Billy Meleady, Mark Jaster and Sabrina Selma Mandell), and Richard Snee as the Doge. The Cambridge Symphonic Brass Ensemble and The Pinewoods Morris Men also join us onstage at Sanders this year. Besides the carols and rounds we’ll ask you to sing, performance highlights include the Bal do Sabre, an Italian Sword Dance, plus familiar Revels touchstones like the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance, Susan Cooper’s classic poem, The Shortest Day, and our signature piece, Lord of the Dance, which will literally have you dancing in the aisles!
The Christmas Revels design team includes Jeremy Barnett, set design; Heidi A. Hermiller, costume design; Jeff Adelberg, lighting design; William Winn, sound design and Kelli Edwards, choreographer.
For more information and to buy tickets go to www.revels.org. Phone 617-496-2222 (Tue-Sun 12-6pm) or IN-PERSON at the Harvard Box Office at Farkus Hall, 10 Holyoke Street, near Harvard Square (Tue-Sun 12-6pm).
Seaglass Performing Arts, under the direction of Jean Strazdes, is pleased to announce its 2017 Holiday Concert: A Joyous Celtic Celebration.
The Chorale had the honor of participating in an exciting Choral Festival in Dublin, Ireland this summer. Choruses from around the United States joined together in song and raised money for the Hospice of Ireland. In “A Joyous Celtic Celebration,” the Chorale will continue the musical flavor of Ireland. The chorus will be joined by dancers from the Stilton School of Irish Dance in Gorham and the concert will include a sing-a-long of familiar holiday songs.
The concert will be part of Kennebunkport’s Prelude Week on December 2nd with a second performance at Holy Family Parish Church in Sanford the afternoon of December 3rd. Saturday, December 2, 2017 South Congregational Church Kennebunkport 7:00 pm Sunday, December 3, 2017 Holy Family Parish 66 North Avenue Sanford 3:00 pm.
Tickets are available through seaglass [at] gwi [dot] net or via phone at 207.985.8747; and at Morse Hardware on Post Road in Wells. Tickets are also available at the door. Prices: $15/adult; $12/senior and student In support of the local area food banks, Seaglass is requesting your kind donation of non-perishable food items. Thank you for your generosity during this holiday season.
seaglassperformingarts.org
You could sit through the current production of Moliere’s Tartuffe now playing at the Huntington Theater with your eyes closed and have a wonderful evening. Open your eyes and the experience is sublime.
…a fast paced feast of words that never lags, not for even moment.
Director Peter DuBois chose to use a new translation by Ranjit Bolt which is all in verse, done in octameter (eight syllables per line), with rhymed couplets. The result is a fast paced feast of words that never lags, not for even moment.
The play, set in a Manhattan style terraced apartment with Louis XVI furnishings, is about family patriarch Orgon (Frank Wood) who is conned by the religious charlatan Tartuffe (Brett Gelman). All around him are able to see through Tartuffe but none can convince him of what is happening. The opening scene sets the tone where Dorine (Jane Pfitsch), the outspoken servant and truth teller, is reporting to Orgon on what has happened at home while he was away. To Dorine’s frustration, all he wants to know about is Tartuffe. Ms Pfitsch is very strong in her role and never misses a beat.
Frank Wood (Orgon) and Brett Gelman (Tartuffe) (Photo Credit: T. Charles Erickson)
While Tartuffe is often described as a hypocrite, preaching fealty to God while trying to bed down his follower’s wife and steal his fortune, he is “a rare trickster” who has no convictions to be unfaithful to. He is fully aware of all he is doing and has carefully planned out his plot. Orgon’s weakness is his own hypocrisy. He has supposedly become a man of the Lord while now turning his back on his family, so much so that he is giveing his home over to Tartuffe and even promises his daughter’s hand in marriage to him. He also remains blind to the advances his idol is making towards his wife Elmire (Melissa Miller).
Brett Gelman’s Tartuffe is barely seen until late in Act I, but when he does arrive he is impressive. Wearing a black fez, long coat, and with religious symbols hanging from his neck, he is the picture of phony piety. Though obviously sleazy, he is also very funny as he manipulates Orgon while fending off being exposed by those around him. Frank Wood conveys just enough weakness to be vulnerable to a con man, but at the same time is someone who certainly should know better.
A scene where Orgon is hiding under a table while Tartuffe is attempting to seduce Elmire is sidesplittingly funny. Melissa Miller and Brett Gelman show off their wonderful comedic talent, while Mr. Wood is a positive riot as he is peaking out from under the table.
There is never a dull moment.
The words, the movements, the glances all make this just a joy to watch. The verse keeps them all so well connected and everything just flows. There is never a dull moment.
This play is very, very funny. It is also ironic that with all of the wonderful language, one of the funniest scenes is when Orgon and Elmire’s daughter Mariane (Sarak Oakes Muirhead) is caught in the middle of an argument about her future. Ms Oakes is positively hysterical without saying a word. Her movement about the stage and her facial expressions are simply hilarious.
Paula Plum swings a mean walking stick in the role of Madame Pernelle, Orgon’s mother. Matthew Bretschneider as Orgon and Elmire’s son Damis is a riot as he is recording the madness on his IPhone. Kate Elinoff is not on stage for long, but she manages to get a couple of the biggest laughs in the role of Madame Pernelle’s maid. Again, ironically, she does this without saying a word, but her facial expressions are priceless. Matthew J. Harris is solid as Cleante, a voice of reason and calm. Gabriel Brown brings a charm to his role as Valere, Mariane’s fiancee. And be sure to pay attention as Steven Barkhimer’s Laurent ascends the stairs in his religious garb. As Tratuffe’s servant he brings a touch of Marty Feldman’s Igor from Young Frankenstein to the play. The entire cast is just wonderful.
Melissa Miller (Elmire) and Brett Gelman (Tartuffe) (Photo Credit: T. Charles Erickson)
The Huntington’s Tartuffe is one not to be missed. While you will be tempted to make the comparisons with what is happening on stage with all of the madness going on the in world, just remember it is still okay to laugh. And, if this play does not have you laughing you have truly lost all sense of humor. It sparkles! I enjoyed every second of Tartuffe, and I am sure you will too. Don’t miss it.
Tartuffe
The Huntington Theatre
Through December 10
264 Huntington Ave., Boston
617.266.7900
huntingtontheatre.org
by Jeanne Sakata
Directed by Benny Sato Ambush
Choreography by Jubilith Moore
December 1-31, 2017
Hold These Truths is the true story of Gordon Hirabayashi, the American son of Japanese immigrants, who resisted internment during World War II, a policy which continues to be cited and debated today. Michael Hisamoto (Stage Kiss) plays Hirabayashi, a college student and a Quaker, whose hope and unquenchable patriotism over 50 years will leave audiences cheering. The theatricality of this production will be enhanced by the addition of three kurogos, stage assistants/dancers who make magic happen in the Kabuki tradition.
FEATURING: Michael Hisamoto with Khloe Alice Lin, Gary Thomas Ng, Samantha Richert
