Boston Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 17

BWW Review: THE BERNSTEIN CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION at Tanglewood Music Center
by Marc Savitt - August 28, 2018

The BERNSTEIN CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION AT TANGLEWOOD concert was one of the largest and most significant performances taking place worldwide in recognition of what would have been Leonard Bernstein's 100th birthday. The unprecedented and unparalleled event marked the climax of Tanglewood's season-lon...

BWW Review: WELL INTENTIONED WHITE PEOPLE at Barrington Stage Company dares audiences to go beyond getting Woke.
by Marc Savitt - August 27, 2018

The entire ensemble cast (all newcomers to BSC) deliver unquestionably high-quality performances. Each displaying a range of emotion and dynamics as their characters navigate the windy and often choppy waters with such strength and dexterity that there is not even a moment we doubt them, nor the co...

BWW Review: HEISENBERG Intrigues at Shakespeare & Company
by Marc Savitt - August 21, 2018

If you are unnerved by dangling participles, musical compositions with un-resolved chords, or you like a play to flow logically along an expected rhythm or path and tie-up loose ends; HEISENBERG may leave you unfulfilled. Those who enjoy intrigue, the unconventional, and a few wait-what moments wil...

BWW Review: TRUE WEST: Sam Shepard's Classic Tale of Sibling Rivalry
by Nancy Grossman - August 21, 2018

TRUE WEST is a dark, yet humorous play by the late Sam Shepard, one of America's foremost playwrights. Joe Short directs a stellar cast of Nael Nacer, Alexander Platt, Mark Cohen, and Marya Lowry in a story of family dysfunction, dramatic conflict, and sibling rivalry, set in a Southern California s...

BWW Review: Peregrine Theatre Ensemble's Riveting HAIR Finds The Poignant Heart Of A Raucous, Sweeping Show
by Michele Clarke - August 22, 2018

With HAIR, Peregrine Theatre Ensemble cements its place among a new generation of young regional companies who are fearless in their ambition, limitless in their energy, and highly skilled in drawing audiences into powerful, poignant moments. It's no surprise that this show is breaking house records...

BWW Review: MOTHERS AND SONS at Shakespeare & Company Encourages Berkshire Audiences to Think Openly And Differently
by Marc Savitt - August 21, 2018

This funny, powerful, and poignant journey with its twists and turns offers catharsis and understanding for those wise and brave enough to take it.  I strongly encourage doing so....

BWW Review: FUN HOME at GhostLit Repertory Theatre Opens Minds and Touches Hearts
by Marc Savitt - August 16, 2018

The entire company delivered high quality performances.  Each cast member displayed deep insight into their character(s).  Particularly impressive for a group where nobody is a full-time professional. ...

BWW Review: DANGEROUS HOUSE at Williamstown Theatre Festival Shines an Intensely Bright Light Over The Berkshires!
by Marc Savitt - August 14, 2018

DANGEROUS HOUSE is a powerful and poignant piece that delivers an extremely important message that needs to be seen and heard. Comments overheard upon exiting the theatre suggest that many patrons felt it ranks among one of the festival's best....

BWW Review: THE MEMBER OF THE WEDDING at Williamstown Theatre Festival Takes Berkshire Audiences On An Unexpected Journey
by Marc Savitt - August 13, 2018

The journey takes us to a small southern town, 1945. More precisely, to the kitchen and adjacent back yard of the Addams family on the eve of a wedding. The action plays out over a few days in late August and tells the story of 12-year-old tomboy Frankie. Frankie's mother died when she was born, and...

BWW Review: WEST SIDE STORY at Barrington Stage Company
by Marc Savitt - August 10, 2018

The notably attractive, and extremely talented ensemble plays out every moment of this classic so well it will delight the eyes and the ears of those that have seen the piece before, as well as those who are experiencing it for the first time.  This is true of the acting, singing, and the dancing. ...

BWW Review: MAMMA MIA at North Shore Music Theatre
by David Tompkins - August 09, 2018

Feeling down in the dumps? A little worn out and tired from a long summer? Ready for the Kids to just get back in school already? I have just the cure for you....

BWW Review: Linehan and Ellis March in Step in Reagle Music Theatre's THE MUSIC MAN
by Nancy Grossman - August 09, 2018

Mark Linehan and Jennifer Ellis march in step in a glorious rendering of Meredith Willson's THE MUSIC MAN to close out Reagle Music Theatre's 50th Anniversary Summer Season with a bang. Director/choreographer Susan M. Chebookjian's staging is seamless, with one production number after another showin...

BWW REVIEW: MOULIN ROUGE Spins Wildly At Boston's Restored Emerson Colonial
by Jan Nargi - August 05, 2018

The opulent, newly restored Emerson Colonial, the historic crown jewel among Boston's glittering theatrical houses, is the perfect setting for the equally opulent but imperfect stage adaptation of Baz Luhrmann's anachronistic 2001 movie musical MOULIN ROUGE. Originally opened in 1900, the ornately a...

BWW Review: DARK ROOM: World Premiere in Development at Bridge Repertory Theater
by Nancy Grossman - July 29, 2018

Olivia D'Ambrosio's vision for DARK ROOM is an artistic blend of spoken dialogue, choreographed movement, evocative sounds and music, and the best use of the architectural features of the space at the Multicultural Arts Center in East Cambridge. George Brant's play is inspired by the life, death, an...

BWW Review: Elements Theatre Company's BLITHE SPIRIT Is A Visual Feast of Noël Coward's Comedic Core
by Michele Clarke - July 27, 2018

Elements Theatre Company's Blithe Spirit is a visual feast of a production that updates it female leads to heroines and strips the piece to its comedic core. It's a thought-provoking interpretation, and this show deserves a longer run than the two weekends it will see....

BWW REVIEW: ALADDIN Is a Manic Ride on Disney's Magic Carpet
by Jan Nargi - July 21, 2018

The mania with which the late Robin Williams brilliantly voiced the Genie in the 1992 Disney animated film ALADDIN infuses every inch of Casey Nicholaw's high-octane Broadway musical production. Now on tour at the Boston Opera House through August 5, ALADDIN is a gilt-edged treasure chest of sensory...

BWW Review: Gloucester Stage Presents N.E. Premiere of CYRANO
by Nancy Grossman - July 17, 2018

Timeless tale re-imagined with contemporary spin by Jason O'Connell and Brenda Withers. Jeremiah Kissel makes GSC debut in title role opposite Andrea Goldman, under the direction of Artistic Director Robert Walsh....

BWW Review: Reagle Music Theatre's ANYTHING GOES: Seaworthy and 'See-worthy'
by Nancy Grossman - July 10, 2018

An energetic cast of nearly 40 performers and a 16-piece orchestra give the incomparable Cole Porter score of ANYTHING GOES its due. Leigh Barrett headlines as Reno Sweeney, and multiple IRNE Award-winners Elaine Grace and Dan Rodriguez direct/choreograph and music direct/conduct, respectively. The ...

BWW Review: Cape Cod Theatre Company's Triumphant BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Is A Fable For Our Time
by Michele Clarke - July 07, 2018

Director Jane Staab's Beauty & the Beast is a fable for our time, emphasizing the humanity of its enchanted castle's 'objects' (and even its titular beast) through costume and demeanor, while stressing the power of kindness and the promise of change. The themes run throughout this show - from its wi...

BWW Review: SHE DID ALL THAT - BETTY FORD: SPEAKING OUT, SAVING LIVES Premieres at Boston Playwrights' Theatre
by Nancy Grossman - June 29, 2018

Premiere of documentary play about the former First Lady takes us back to those saner days of yesteryear, when a Republican forced from office in ignominy was replaced by a decent man who tried to heal the nation. Betty Ford may have been her husband's greatest asset in the two short years they resi...

BWW Review: BORN FOR THIS - A NEW MUSICAL: Awake and Sing!
by Nancy Grossman - June 27, 2018

ArtsEmerson presents the New England premiere of BORN FOR THIS - A NEW MUSICAL, based on the life story of Bebe Winans and his sister Cece Winans, offspring of a spiritual, musical Detroit family, who made a huge splash as teenagers on the Praise the Lord network of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker in the ...

BWW Review: THE ROYAL FAMILY OF BROADWAY at Barrington Stage Company
by David Tompkins - June 14, 2018

Barrington Theatre Company's (BSC) 2018 Season opening production 'The Royal Family of Broadway', is a wacky, wonderful, and highly entertaining 1920's era madcap musical romp....

BWW Review: The Boston Pops Orchestra Celebrates Bernstein and HAMILTON
by Nancy Grossman - June 14, 2018

The 133rd spring season of The Boston Pops Orchestra at Symphony Hall is winding down, but the final week is a whirlwind of activity, culminating in three performances of WEST SIDE STORY: In Concert, and an appearance by two of the stars of the groundbreaking HAMILTON: AN AMERICAN MUSICAL. Tony Awar...

BWW Review: CALENDAR GIRLS: Make a Date With Some of Boston's Best
by Nancy Grossman - June 11, 2018

Greater Boston Stage Company has lined up a dream ensemble for their season finale, CALENDAR GIRLS, based on the 2003 Miramax motion picture. Under the direction of Nancy E. Carroll, a formidable actor in her own right, Maureen Brennan, Sarah deLima, Mary Potts Dennis, Kerry A. Dowling, Karen MacDo...

BWW Review: A CHORUS LINE High Kicks Reagle Music Theatre's 50th Season
by Nancy Grossman - June 10, 2018

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston, celebrating its 50th Anniversary Summer Season, was still in its first decade when A CHORUS LINE opened on Broadway in 1975, kicking off its run of 6,137 performances. The groundbreaking musical was nominated for twelve Tony Awards, winning nine, and took home...