Dan Rodriguez News

Something's coming at Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston! From July 8-16, 2022, West Side Story takes to the main stage, opening Reagle's 53rd summer season (Robinson Theatre, 617 Lexington St. Waltham, MA, 02452).

After a two-year hiatus, Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston returns for its 53rd summer season on the main stage at the Robinson Theatre (617 Lexington St. Waltham, MA, 02452). Under the direction of new Artistic Director Rachel Bertone, the curtain will rise on two iconic American musicals: West Side Story, the powerful tale of young lovers caught between prejudice and warring street gangs (July 8-16, 2022) and Pippin, Stephen Schwartz's unforgettable musical masterpiece of a young prince searching for passion, adventure, and the true meaning of life. (August 5-13, 2022).

The Lyric Stage Company of Boston has created a season of plays that will inspire audiences to share in one-of-a-kind experiences that only live theater can create.  It’s a season to gather together and connect with the friends we come with and the ones we make in the seat next to us.

The Lyric Stage Company of Boston presents its first musical since Little Shop of Horrors in October 2019 with Jason Robert Brown’s intimate portrait of young romance in The Last Five Years. Performances begin Friday, November 12 and run through Sunday, December 12.  Press Performance is Sunday, November 14 at 3pm.

Ahead of the release of The Grief We Gave Our Mother, American Songwriter premiered “Been A Lover,” saying that it “sounds as honest and fervent as the song’s origin story,” adding, “the track hums along with a vibe similar to that of balladeer Ben Howard.”

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston has announced that its first ever virtual fund-raising event, ENTR'ACTE: A Musical Journey from Our Past to a New Future, will remain online indefinitely.

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston invites friends, family, patrons, and guests to pull up a virtual front row seat for ENTR'ACTE, A Musical Journey from Our Past to a New Future, on Sunday, June 28 at 7:00 p.m. ENTR'ACTE, brought to viewers in part through the generous sponsorships of Waltham Tourism Council and Stanton Insurance Agency of Waltham, will stream across multiple Reagle Music Theatre digital platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, and its website, ReagleMusicTheatre.org.

Two dozen nominations of outstanding actors, directors, designers and ensembles were announced today by The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) for the 38th Annual Elliot Norton Awards.

New Repertory Theatre presents Hair, with MacDermot's groundbreaking music and the show's progressive themes, Hair revolutionized musical theatre as Broadway's first rock musical in 1968. The production runs January 25 through February 23, 2020 in the MainStage Theater at the Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA. Tickets start at $25 and may be purchased by calling the New Rep Box Office at 617-923-8487 or visiting newrep.org. Student, senior, and group discounts are available, as well as free tickets for WIC/EBT cardholders.

City Winery Chicago, 1200 W. Randolph Street, announces two-time Grammy Award-winning country artist Rodney Crowell, funk-soul group Robert Randolph & the Family Band and more. The following shows go on sale to the public on Friday, December 13 at noon. Tickets will be available at citywinery.com/chicago.

New Repertory Theatre will present Hair this winter. With MacDermot's groundbreaking music and the show's progressive themes, Hair revolutionized musical theatre as Broadway's first rock musical in 1968. The production runs January 25 through February 23, 2020 in the MainStage Theater at the Mosesian Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA. Tickets start at $25 and may be purchased by calling the New Rep Box Office at 617-923-8487 or visiting newrep.org. Student, senior, and group discounts are available, as well as free tickets for WIC/EBT cardholders.

City Winery Chicago, 1200 W. Randolph Street, announces world-renowned violinist Damien Escobar, American Idol runner-up David Archuleta, three-time Grammy winner Taj Mahal, and more. The following shows go on sale to the public on Friday, December 6 at noon. Tickets will be available at citywinery.com/chicago.

City Winery Chicago, 1200 W. Randolph Street, announces 25-year-old rock group Pat McGee Band and chart-topping singer-songwriter Josh Kelley. The following shows go on sale to the public on Friday, November 29 at noon. Tickets will be available at citywinery.com/chicago.

The following acts are performing at City Winery Chicago (1200 W. Randolph St) throughout the month. All City Winery Chicago events are open to all ages and start at 8:00 p.m., unless noted.  Tickets can be purchased by calling 312-733-WINE (9463) or by visiting www.citywinery.com/chicago.

Rachel Bertone has set the bar high for the 45th anniversary season of the Lyric Stage Company with her pitch perfect production of LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Assuming the mantle of both director and choreographer, with the dependable Dan Rodriguez as music director by her side, Bertone and her design team capture the grit and the innocence of the story set in the early 1960s, while finding ways to punctuate it with flashes of contemporary pizzazz. Puppet designer Cameron McEachern has crafted an Audrey II without gender bias on its menu, and despite being voiced by a woman (Yewande Odetoyinbo), the plant is no shrinking violet.

In the summer of 1983, Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein put on a show that was light years ahead of the zeitgeist, vis-a-vis the awareness and acceptance of LGBTQ people in America, and about twenty years before the legalization of same-sex marriage. Yet, after a successful tryout at the Colonial Theatre in Boston, they boldly went where no Broadway musical had gone before when they opened LA CAGE AUX FOLLES at the Palace Theatre on August 21, 1983. Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston concludes its 51st Summer Season with LA CAGE, and I am pleased to report that the show continues to stand the test of time. The three most important components for a successful staging of this musical are the two actors who play the leading men, Georges (J.T. Turner) and Albin (James Darrah), and the dance troupe who comprise Les Cagelles, the drag performers at the Saint-Tropez title nightclub owned by the latter couple, and they collectively win the trifecta.

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston's 51st Summer Season concludes with La Cage Aux Folles from August 8-18, 2019.

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston's 51st Summer Season continues with The Sound of Music from July 11-21, 2019. This beloved family musical features Elliot Norton and IRNE Award winner Aimee Doherty as 'Maria' - a free spirit who is struggling in her commitment to become a nun; when she is sent to look after the seven children of a widowed Navy captain by the Mother Abbess, she brings joy and music into the family's home and changes all she comes in contact with. IRNE nominee Mark Linehan is featured as Captain Von Trapp. Directed and Choreographed by Daniel Forest Sullivan, Music Director Dan Rodriguez, Produced by Robert J. Eagle.

Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston opens its 51st summer season with Mame from June 13-23, 2019 starring IRNE and Norton Award winner Leigh Barrett as "Auntie Mame, " an irrepressible 1920's socialite whose New York life is changed forever when her orphaned nephew comes to live with her. Additional featured cast members include Maureen Keiller as 'Vera Charles,' Katie O'Reilly as 'Agnes Gooch', and Mark Linehan as 'Beauregard Burnside'. Directed and Choreographed by Eileen Grace, Music Director Dan Rodriguez, Produced by Robert J. Eagle. 

CAROLINE, OR CHANGE is Tony Kushner's (book and lyrics) semi-autobiographical, sung-through musical, with music by Jeanine Tesori (FUN HOME), that had its origins Off-Broadway in 2003, before transferring to Broadway in 2004 for 136 performances and receiving six Tony nominations. In the ensuing years, it had numerous productions in regional theaters and London, and it has long been on Moonbox Productions' short list, according to Producer and Artistic Director Sharman Altshuler. Under the direction of Allison Olivia Choat, the Moonbox staging is a solid effort with a cohesive ensemble, excellent musical direction and vocals, and vivid design elements. Yewande Odetoyinbo is a force in the title role.