Jon Savage News

What does God want, and who truly knows? Who gets to decide what is right? These are just a couple of the questions raised in Hansol Jung's wrenching new play, CARDBOARD PIANO, in its New England premiere at New Repertory Theatre. Set in Northern Uganda at the turn of the millennium, a forbidden love story unfolds with the backdrop of rising civil unrest, setting in motion a series of events that spans fifteen years in the lives of the principals who survive the violence and hostility that is endemic to the African nation. Directed by Benny Sato Ambush with a quartet of outstanding performances from Marge Dunn, Rachel Cognata, Michael Ofori, and Marc Pierre.

In Saturday Night's performance of Macbeth at The United Parish Church, Brookline, MA, Nael Nacer as Macbeth, (and in an inspired bit of casting as Macduff's son), was truly outstanding, backed by a strong company of actors. This production of Macbeth is the world premiere of a new verse translation by playwright Migdalia Cruz, courtesy of Oregon Shakespeare Festival's Play on! Project. The result was a truly enjoyable evening of classical theatre, that enhanced the meaning and understanding of the 'Scottish Play', and embraced diversity and non-traditional casting. Other stand-outs in the cast were Maurice Parent as Banquo, Paige Clark, as Lady Macbeth, Ed Hooperman as Macduff, and Kai Tshikosi as Malcom.

Actors' Shakespeare Project kicks off their 15th Season with Macbeth and Equivocation in rotating repertory at the United Parish in Brookline. Performances September 26 - November 11 (Press Performance for Macbeth: Saturday, September 28, 8:00 PM; Press Performance for Equivocation: Friday, October 12, 7:30 PM), The Sanctuary, United Parish, 210 Harvard Street, Brookline. For more information visit actorsshakespeareproject.org.

Actors' Shakespeare Project kicks off their 15th Season with Macbeth and Equivocation in rotating repertory at the United Parish in Brookline. Performances September 26 - November 11 (Press Performance for Macbeth: Saturday, September 28, 8:00 PM; Press Performance for Equivocation: Friday, October 12, 7:30 PM), The Sanctuary, United Parish, 210 Harvard Street, Brookline. For more information visit actorsshakespeareproject.org.

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 suburb where Hollywood and the Mojave Desert compete to influence the lives of a pair of brothers.

Actors' Shakespeare Project (ASP) brings William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing to the Multicultural Arts Center,  41 Second Street in Cambridge, April 11 through May 6. (Opening/Press Performance Saturday, April 14, 2018, at 8 PM). Directed by Christopher V. Edwards***, this wittiest and most enchanting of Shakespeare's comedies lights up the giddiness of the game of love, tempered by conspiracy. For more information, visit actorsshakespeareproject.org.

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC) announces the second staged production of its 2017-18 Winter/Spring Season, Wendy Wasserstein's satire Old Money directed by Karen MacDonald at the Sorenson Center for the Arts, Babson College, 231 Forest Street in Wellesley, MA.

Gloucester Stage Company concludes its 38th season with a thoughtful and thought-provoking production of Harper Lee's American classic, adapted for the stage by Christopher Sergel. Directed by Judy Braha, this affecting production is buoyed by guileless child actors and strong performances from a bevy of adult stage veterans.

Gloucester Stage Company opens it 38th season with the New England premiere of John Kolvenbach's play about a pair of brothers who decide to try robbing a bank in an unwise career move. Taking the money turns out to be much easier than finding a way out of the executive washroom. A sympathetic bank teller, a cooperative cop, and a hostage who harbors some secrets all play a part in determining a convoluted outcome.

New Repertory Theatre takes us for a ride in the wayback machine for the Boston-area premiere of one of Lydia Diamond's earliest plays. THE GIFT HORSE is a somewhat autobiographical, witty play that is heavy on character, rife with serious themes, and about fifteen to twenty minutes longer than what we are accustomed to two decades later. Obehi Janice, Alejandro Simoes, and Maurice Emmanuel Parent make the ride worthwhile.

Before Senator Elizabeth Warren, another Elizabeth spoke out, despite being warned and threatened with commitment to an insane asylum. Bridge Repertory Theater, in a co-production with Playhouse Creatures, presents Emily Mann's MRS. PACKARD, a drama inspired by true events, chronicling one woman's fight for the right to freely express her opinion, even if it differed from that of her husband. Under the direction of Emily Ranii, a cast of eighteen actors, lead by Olivia D'Ambrosio, Joseph Rodriguez, and Steven Barkhimer, stages a vivid and compelling interpretation of Mann's play.

In The Beatles: Eight Days A Week The Touring Years, Oscar -winning director Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, Apollo 13) explores the history of The Beatles through the lens of the group's concert performances

Stoneham Theatre has a lively hit on its hands with the Lynn Ahrens/Stephen Flaherty 1980s musical murder mystery farce, LUCKY STIFF. The rom-com romp stars young company alum Andrew Barbato, with direction by Caitlin Lowans, choreography by Ilyse Robbins, and music direction by Bethany Aiken. It's a madcap journey to Monte Carlo with a rich, dead uncle, mistaken identity, slamming doors, romance, and great songs.

Stoneham Theatre opens its 17th Season with Lucky Stiff, a musical murder mystery farce about love, dogs, diamonds, and death. From the creators of Ragtime and Seussical, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, Directed by Caitlin Lowans and Choreographed by Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Ilyse Robbins, Lucky Stiff hilariously tells the story of an unassuming shoe salesman who stands to inherit six million dollars from a recently deceased uncle he never met. There's only one catch: he has to bring his embalmed uncle on a vacation to Monte Carlo. Should he succeed in passing his uncle off as alive, he'll get the inheritance. If not, the money goes to the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn, or else his uncle's gun-toting ex! Performances run from September 8 - 25, 2016. Press Opening is Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 3:00pm.

Let's hope that THE LAST SCHWARTZ is not the last we'll see of the combined works of Deborah Zoe Laufer and Paula Plum. Following the success of the pairing of playwright and director in last summer's hilarious hit OUT OF STERNO, Gloucester Stage Company reunites the talented tandem for a pleasure ride to the dilapidated country home of the dysfunctional Schwartz family in Lake Huntington, New York. The witty, insightful New England premiere is given its due by a crackerjack cast who look like they've been performing together for months, not days.

This week, we go around our Broadway World to feature stories in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Portland and more. Check out our top 10 stories around our Broadway World below, which include THE 39 STEPS at Pittsburgh CLO, a 'must-see' STEEL MAGNOLIAS in Cleveland, and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE at Portland Center Stage, just to name a few.

Gloucester Stage Company opens its 37th season with LETTICE AND LOVAGE as a star vehicle for Academy Award-nominated Gloucester resident Lindsay Crouse. Written by Peter Shaffer (EQUUS, AMADEUS) for beloved British actress Dame Maggie Smith, Crouse takes on the title role of tour guide Lettice Douffet and makes it her own with panache and good humor. Marya Lowry is her incredulous employer Lotte Schoen and together they raise the bar for the art of verbal sparring. The esteemed scene partners feast on Shaffer's rich language and throw themselves into the theatrical shenanigans of the play, with supporting silliness well-represented by Janelle Mills and Mark Cohen.

Director/choreographer Ilyse Robbins pays homage to Bob Fosse, but puts her artistic stamp on the 1966 Tony Award-winning musical. You will love Vanessa Dunleavy as the hopeful dance-hall hostess looking for love in all the wrong places. Stoneham Theatre veterans and newcomers comprise a stellar ensemble that delivers the songs and dances with panache.

Stoneham Theatre continues Season 16 with the toe-tapping, Broadway musical hit SWEET CHARITY. Performances run now through April 24, 2016. Press Opening is today, April 2, 2016 at 3:00pm.

Stoneham Theatre continues Season 16 with the toe-tapping, Broadway musical hit SWEET CHARITY. Performances run from March 31 - April 24, 2016. Press Opening is Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 3:00pm.