Rachel Padula-Shufelt News

From September 8 to October 7, 2017, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the Boston-area premiere of MEN ON BOATS, a comic adventure tale about an actual 1869 expedition to chart the Colorado River, brought thrillingly to life by a diverse non-male cast.

Two dozen nominations of outstanding actors, directors, designers and ensembles were announced today by The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA), with winners to be revealed at the 35th Annual Elliot Norton Awards on Monday, May 15, 2017 at 7 PM, at Huntington Theatre Company's BU Theatre.  

The American Repertory Theater reunites with Oregon Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Bill Rauch to present FINGERSMITH, Alexa Junge's adaptation of Sarah Waters' 2002 novel of the same name. The playwright's Herculean effort capsulizes the 582-page opus into a taut two-hour drama enhanced by exceptional performances and outstanding production design. Words are insufficient to praise the central trio of women - Tracee Chimo, Christina Bennett Lind, and Kristine Nielsen - who inhabit all the layers of the fascinating characters in this Victorian thriller.

Stoneham Theatre presents the New England premiere of playwright Thomas Gibbons' UNCANNY VALLEY, a view into the not too distant future when researchers have found a way to extend the human lifespan through artificial intelligence. While it raises more questions than it answers, its rich subtext and the fine work of Nancy E. Carroll and Lewis D. Wheeler combine to make this a compelling piece of theater.

Stoneham Theatre continues its 17th Season with Uncanny Valley by Thomas Gibbons, Directed by Weylin Symes. In the not too distant future, researchers have developed a means of extending the human lifespan through artificial intelligence (the 'uncanny valley' refers to the discomfort people feel when confronted by objects that look and move almost, but not quite like real humans).

Stoneham Theatre continues its 17th Season with Uncanny Valley by Thomas Gibbons, Directed by Weylin Symes. In the not too distant future, researchers have developed a means of extending the human lifespan through artificial intelligence (the 'uncanny valley' refers to the discomfort people feel when confronted by objects that look and move almost, but not quite like real humans).

Written and directed by Producing Artistic Director Weylin Symes, with original music and lyrics by local actor/director/writer/composer Steven Barkhimer, LOBSTER GIRL is set in Cape Ann, Massachusetts. The homegrown production features about a dozen songs of eclectic genres that serve as the tug boat to the laden book. The water hasn't reached a boil yet for this crustacean.

Stoneham Theatre closes its 16th Season with Lobster Girl, a World Premiere musical written and directed by Producing Artistic Director Weylin Symes with music and lyrics by Steven Barkhimer. Choreography is by IRNE and Elliot Norton Award-winner Ilyse Robbins. When Hank invites his girlfriend's 14-year-old daughter, Cora, out for the day on his lobster boat off of Cape Ann, things go swimmingly until his assistant lets it slip that wedding bells will soon chime. That's when the seas start to get a bit choppy. Performances run from June 9 - 26, 2016. Press Opening is Saturday, June 11, 2016 at 3:00pm.

More than 25 nominations of outstanding actors, directors, designers and ensembles were announced today by The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA), with winners to be revealed at the 34th Annual Elliot Norton Awards on Monday, May 23, 2016 at 7 PM, at Boston's Citi Performing Arts Center Shubert Theatre.

Among this year's nominees for Outstanding Musical Production by a Large Theater are WAITRESS and NATASHA, PIERRE, AND THE  GREAT COMET OF 1812, both at American Repertory Theatre. Tony winner Jessie Mueller and Denee Benton also each received nods for their respective performances. 

Boston Playwrights' Theatre mounts BACK THE NIGHT, Melinda Lopez's new play that explores violence against women on a college campus. When a feminist blogger is attacked, there are plenty of aspersions to go around as her enemies list is a long one. Her best friend, fraternity brothers, college officials, and even a U.S. Senator are caught up in the maelstrom when doubts surface as the investigation seeks truth.

If the thought of seeing a contemporary opera based on Tolstoy's War and Peace sends Siberian shivers down your spine, fear not. All that Russian angst and all those convoluted relationships between 'people with nine different names' are brought forth with ingenious musical clarity in NATASHA, PIERRE AND THE GREAT COMET OF 1812.

WAITRESS, the promising new musical adaptation of the 2007 indie rom-com that starred Kerri Russell and Nathan Fillion, may need a bit more shaking and baking before it's ready to contend for Broadway's Blue Ribbon. However, singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles, screenwriter-turned-librettist Jessie Nelson, director Diane Paulus and star Jessie Mueller have stirred enough tasty ingredients into their bittersweet concoction to whet the audience's appetite for a second serving.

Boston Playwright's Theatre alumna Monica Bauer turned her memoir into a memory play that tells her compelling personal story. CHOSEN CHILD travels between times and places, as well as across generations, but it is worth staying with it to get inside these characters and understand their motivations. A stellar cast under the direction of Megan Schy Gleeson gives nuanced performances, brimming with intensity and commitment.

IRNE Award-winning actress Celeste Oliva gives two riveting performances in Deirdre Girard's RECONSIDERING HANNA(H) to open the 2014-2015 season at Boston Playwrights' Theatre. With thoughtful direction by Bridget Kathleen O'Leary, RECONSIDERING HANNA(H) tells two good stories for the price of one, both of which will stay with you long after the curtain falls.

Karen MacDonald fuels Stoneham Theatre's gripping production of John Patrick Shanley's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning DOUBT: A PARABLE through September 28.

The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) has announced over 25 nominations of actors, directors, designers and ensembles to be presented at 32nd Annual Elliot Norton Awards on Monday May 19 at The Wheelock Family Theatre.

Boston Playwrights' Theatre season concludes with Peter M. Floyd's ABSENCE, a witty and poignant exploration of a 76-year old woman's decline and the impact on her family relationships. Understudy Kippy Goldfarb stepped in and stepped up on the opening weekend for ailing Joanna Merlin and knocked it out of the park.

Boston Playwrights' Theatre continues its season of new works with award-winning Boston playwright Steven Barkhimer's WINDOWMEN, a coming-of-age comedy set in Lower Manhattan's Fulton Fish Market. Brett Marks directs an ensemble of five Equity actors who bring to life the characters from Barkhimer's memory and imagination.

Boston Playwrights' Theatre (BPT) continues its 2013-14 season next week with Windowmen by award-winning playwright Steven Barkhimer.