Shana Dirik News

Directed by Ben Delatizky, an award nominated director in the New England area, it highlights Theater UnCorked's 5th season in Boston and their 2nd back-to-back productions at the BCA Plaza Theatre since their launch in 2018 with their sold-out performance of “Sweeney Todd in Concert”. 

SIDE MAN is the Tony Award winning play about a fractured family and the men who played to the left and right of the big band spotlight amid the declining era of New York City’s Jazz scene.  The show marks Theater UnCorked’s closing production of Season 4 and their debut at the BCA Plaza Theatre in Boston.

What do you get when you mix aspects of GYPSY, THE BAD SEED, and ALL ABOUT EVE with a heavy dose of camp and a soupçon of soap opera? RUTHLESS! THE MUSICAL, an all-female homage to overly-ambitious child actors, sleazy agents, poison pen critics, and jealous understudies that is a star vehicle for a little girl with stars in her eyes. In its second season on the Boston theater scene, Theater UnCorked takes a first crack at musical comedy and, even as it hits a few bumps along the way, it hits the funny bone again and again.

The Umbrella Stage Company is pleased to announce its 2019/2020 season, including an expanded six-show lineup staged in two newly constructed theaters at 40 Stow Street, as well as a variety of flexible new ticketing and subscription offerings.

Things are about to get a little 'RUTHLESS' at Theater UnCorked with their production of Joel Paley and Marvin Laird's RUTHLESS! The Musical!

Theater UnCorked drains the bottle of its inaugural season this weekend with a fully-staged production of SYLVIA, prolific playwright A.R. Gurney's homage to man's best friend. Hilarious and heartwarming in equal measure, the play is a welcome respite from the spate of heftier, more serious dramatic works meant to resonate with our times and make us think. The only thing that Gurney wants us to think about is the inescapable joy shared between a man and his dog, and how their connection changes three lives and one marriage for the better. Supported by strong performances by Allan Mayo, Kimberly McClure, and David Anderson, Theater UnCorked's Artistic Director Shana Dirik is the top dog.

Things are about to get a little 'ruff' at Theater UnCorked with their production of A.R. Gurney's Sylvia. Sylvia, directed by Michelle M. Aguillon, is the final production of Theater UnCorked's inaugural season.

Theater Uncorked returned to the First Church Cambridge this past weekend for two performances of a staged reading of ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST, a 1963 play by Dale Wasserman, based on the novel of the same name by Ken Kesey. Lest the inmates run the asylum, the strong directorial hand of Bobbi Steinbach kept the chaos under control, presumably in a kinder, gentler way than Nurse Ratched's managerial style. Her staging made it feel like so much more than a reading, especially in the group scenes, where the bonding and banter among the patients rang true. There was nary a weak link in the ensemble, and the leading players were so strong in their characterizations that my mind drew a blank when trying to imagine anyone else as Ratched (Kerry A. Dowling), Randle P. McMurphy (Gene Dante), or Chief Bromden (Pedro Figueroa).

Shana Dirik, Producing Artistic Director of Theater UnCorked - Boston's newest small theater company - announces the cast for One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, an enhanced staged reading on Saturday, October 13th at 3:30 and 7:30 pm at Margaret Jewett Hall, 11 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.

Shana Dirik, Producing Artistic Director of Theater UnCorked - Boston's newest small theater company - announces the second production in the company's debut season, a benefit staged reading of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest for two performances only on Saturday, October 13th at 3:30 and 7:30 pm at Margaret Jewitt Hall, 11 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.

Boston's newest small theater company christened its inaugural season with a one-night only, pop-up musical benefit performance of SWEENEY TODD, THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET IN CONCERT on Saturday, June 2nd, at First Church Cambridge. The brain-child and labor of love of Producing Artistic Director Shana Dirik, Theater UnCorked may be new and may be small, but its arrival is worthy of a champagne toast.

Theater UnCorked - Boston's newest small theater company - will present its debut production of Sweeney Todd in Concert - A Pop-Up Musical on Saturday, June 2nd, 2018 at First Church in Cambridge (11 Garden St, Cambridge, MA) at 7:30 pm. Attend the dark tale of love, murder and revenge for one performance only! Tickets for Sweeney Todd in Concert - A Pop-Up Musical are $30 and $40 per person. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.ticketstage.com/THEATERUNCORKED.

Shana Dirik, Producing Artistic Director of Theater UnCorked - Boston's newest small theater company - today announced the full cast for the company's debut performance: Sweeney Todd in Concert - A Pop-Up Musical. This one-time-only benefit performance will take place on Saturday, June 2nd, 2018 at First Church in Cambridge (11 Garden St, Cambridge, MA 02138) at 7:30 pm.

Shana Dirik, Producing Artistic Director of Theater UnCorked - Boston's newest small theater company - announces their debut event:  Sweeney Todd in Concert - A Pop-Up Musical.  This one-time-only benefit performance will take place on Saturday, June 2nd, 2018 at First Church in Cambridge (11 Garden St, Cambridge, MA 02138) at 7:30 pm. 

DAMES AT SEA is a welcome escape from the upheaval of the moment, if only for a couple of hours. The six-member cast shines with an abundance of smiles, vocal belts, and tap routines that they make look easy. Ephie Aardema, who has previously made a few splashes on this stage (HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS, THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE, 42ND STREET), is back after a stint on Broadway to play Ruby, that starstruck girl based on the lead character in 42ND STREET. Wearing both the director's hat and the choreographer's character shoes, Associate Artistic Director Ilyse Robbins puts her traditional feel-good imprint on the show. Book your passage now!

Greater Boston Stage Company opens its 18th Season with the tap-happy Broadway musical Dames at Sea. Directed and choreographed by Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Ilyse Robbins, performances run September 7 - 24, 2017.

Greater Boston Stage Company opens its 18th Season with the tap-happy Broadway musical Dames at Sea. Directed and choreographed by Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Ilyse Robbins, performances run September 7 - 24, 2017.

The Gold Dust Orphans' 2016 Christmas show features "The World's Foremost Drag Detective" Shirley Holmes and her sidekick Dr. Jody Watley attempting to solve a series of mysterious deaths in Ryan Landry's MURDER ON THE POLAR EXPRESS. Directed by Larry Coen, it has an impressive roster of veterans and newcomers playing all of your favorite fictional Christmas characters, and a cameo appearance by Rhoda, the dog. Scott Martino's costumes are to-die-for, and Meredith Langton and the GlitterPuss Dancers kick up a (snow)storm.

THE WILD PARTY is exactly what it says it is, and Moonbox Productions invites you to be a voyeur for the Michael John Lachiusa version of Joseph Moncure March's 1928 risque narrative poem, directed and choreographed by Rachel Bertone. Katie Anne Clark and Todd Yard anchor a crazy-good, talented ensemble and you will be immersed in the Roaring Twenties zeitgeist. It's a wild ride that you won't want to miss.

The 20th Annual Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Awards were held on April 11 at the Holiday Inn Boston/Brookline. Founded by Beverly Creasey of the Journal Newspapers and Larry Stark of the TheaterMirror in 1997, the IRNE Awards recognize the extraordinary wealth of talent in the Boston theatre community.