Will McGarrahan News

Eighty years after the Broadway premiere of Lillian Hellman's THE LITTLE FOXES, the Lyric Stage Company production, under the direction of Scott Edmiston, demonstrates that the classic American drama has lost none of its punch. A titanic team of actors portrays the dynamic within the rapacious Hubbard family and the collateral damage they impose on all who have the misfortune of being in their path. Without exception, the characters are three-dimensional, fully realized, and thoroughly alive, compelling the audience to engage with them on an intensely emotional level.

What happens when you take an Oscar Wilde classic play from the Naughty Nineties, add about a dozen original musical numbers, and update the story and setting to London's swinging Carnaby Street in the sixties? Well, if you put it in the hands of Director/Choreographer Ilyse Robbins and Music Director Steve Bass, you get a rom-com that is heavy on both the romance and the comedy, a ride in the wayback machine, and an afternoon (or evening) delight at the Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham.

The Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) celebrated more than two dozen outstanding actors, directors, designers, and ensembles at The 36th Annual Elliot Norton Awards ceremony at the Huntington Avenue Theatre last night. The coveted Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence was presented to Leigh Barrett, Robert J. Eagle received a Special Citation in honor of his 50 years at Reagle Music Theatre, and the Guest of Honor Award went to internet sensation Randy Rainbow.

Awards were presented to more than two dozen outstanding actors, directors, designers, and ensembles last night, May 21, by The BostonTheater CriticsAssociation (BTCA), at The 36th Annual Elliot Norton Awards ceremony, held at the Huntington Avenue Theatre.

Two dozen nominations of outstanding actors, directors, designers and ensembles were announced today by The Boston Theater Critics Association for the 36th Annual Elliot Norton Awards, celebrating achievement in Boston theatre.

The Lyric Stage Company continues to meander through the works of Stephen Sondheim with ROAD SHOW, his most recent collaboration with librettist John Weidman. While not in the upper echelon of Sondheim's works, the score and the Lyric production make it worthwhile. This musical travelogue about the Mizner Brothers, a pair of entrepreneurs and con men who sought their fortunes in escapades from Alaska to New York to Florida in the early 20th century, is the story of their successes, failures, and the art of the deal, fitting right in with our American zeitgeist.

On his continuing journey through the works of Stephen Sondheim, director Spiro Veloudos brings us Sondheim's latest work, Road Show, the true boom-and-bust story of two of the most colorful and outrageous fortune-seekers in American history. From the Alaskan Gold Rush to the Florida real estate boom in the 1930s, entrepreneur Addison Mizner and his fast-talking brother Wilson were proof positive that the road to the American Dream is often a seductive, treacherous tightrope walk.

On his continuing journey through the works of Stephen Sondheim, director Spiro Veloudos brings us Sondheim's latest work,Road Show, the true boom-and-bust story of two of the most colorful and outrageous fortune-seekers in American history. From the Alaskan Gold Rush to the Florida real estate boom in the 1930s, entrepreneur Addison Mizner and his fast-talking brother Wilson were proof positive that the road to the American Dream is often a seductive, treacherous tightrope walk.

What matters most is the music you hear in your head, according to Florence Foster Jenkins, a passionate music lover who never met a tune she could actually carry. Lyric Stage Company Producing Artistic Director Spiro Veloudos celebrates his 20th season in his post by revisiting one of his favorite productions from a decade ago. Leigh Barrett and Will McGarrahan reprise their roles as the diva and her accompanist, bringing warmth and intimacy to their relationship, while capturing all of the humor and joyful noise as written by playwright Stephen Temperley.

Spiro Veloudos remounts one of his favorite productions in celebration of his 20 years as Producing Artistic Director.

Spiro Veloudos remounts one of his favorite productions in celebration of his 20 years as Producing Artistic Director.

SpeakEasy Stage Company's Boston premiere of Marsha Norman's (Book) and Jason Robert Brown's (Music and Lyrics) adaptation of Robert James Waller's novel is elevated by the luminescent Jennifer Ellis and hunky Christiaan Smith. The libretto wobbles, but the leads and ensemble warble Brown's soaring score beautifully. Bring tissues.

The Lyric Stage Company of Boston announces the final two plays to complete the 2017-18 Season, Spiro Veloudos' 20th Season as Producing Artistic Director.

From May 6 - June 3, 2017, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the Boston Premiere of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, a lush, lyrical musical by Tony Award-winners Marsha Norman (book) and Jason Robert Brown (music & lyrics), based on the best-selling novel by Robert James Waller.

The Lyric Stage Company of Boston announces 5 of 7 plays for its 2017-18 Season, Spiro Veloudos's 20th Season as Producing Artistic Director.   

Playwright Sarah Ruhl's STAGE KISS is a rom-com that turns the world on with its smiles, laughs, and an abundance of kisses. Director Courtney O'Connor helps an ensemble cast of seven slide easily in and out of the world of the play and the play-within-a-play, and the chemistry between Celeste Oliva and Alexander Platt makes sparks fly.

Stage Kiss by Sarah Ruhl, winner of the 2016 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award and a MacArthur 'genius' grant, will be directed by Courtney O'Connor at the Lyric Stage Company of Boston, opening February 26 and running through March 26, 2017. Previews begin February 24. 

Stage Kiss by Sarah Ruhl, winner of the 2016 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award and a MacArthur 'genius' grant, will be directed by Courtney O'Connor at the Lyric Stage Company of Boston, opening February 26 and running through March 26, 2017. Previews begin February 24. 

Kathy St. George may be diminutive in stature, but she is a feisty force of nature as the title character in MAME at Stoneham Theatre. Mary Callanan returns from Broadway and national tours to play her sidekick Vera, and ten-year-old triple threat Cameron Levesque plays her precocious nephew Patrick. One of Jerry Herman's great works, MAME is a joyous celebration of living life with brio and without apologies.

Stoneham Theatre celebrates the holidays with the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Mame, Directed and Choreographed by Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Ilyse Robbins. Featuring song favorites Bosom Buddies and If He Walked Into My Life, this unforgettable classic centers on the eccentric Mame Dennis, who lives a carefree life in 1920s New York until she unexpectedly becomes the guardian to her 10-year-old nephew, Patrick. Rather than change her ways, Mame introduces Patrick to all the wonder of her wild bohemian world while discovering the joy of having a family of her own. Performances run from November 25-December 23, 2016. Press Opening is Saturday, November 26, 2016 at 7:00pm.