Like just about everything nowadays, the word epic has been downsized, cut and packaged for the short-attention-span generation. Sure, there are ballyhooed mammoth projects, such as the recent films of James Cameron, but the director/producer pulled them off after years of preparation and with millions of dollars at his disposal. By Chantal Mendes. You want […]
Lyric stage company of boston
Coming Attractions in Theater: October 2010
October brings in epics from the classics (Shakespeare and Dickens), ghost stories from the classics (Poe, Henry James), a tragicomedy from a classic (O’Neill), and a comedy from a classic (Ben Jonson). Annie Baker, Ethan Coen, and the Rude Mechanicals provide some welcome respite from the tried-and-true. Given the state of the economy and the […]
Coming Attractions in Theater: September 2010
A whole lot of deconstruction of the classics going on this month, along with productions of scripts by familiar homegrown names, from William Inge and David Mamet to Sarah Ruhl. A visit from a master puppeteer and a show about race that’s “recommended for mature audiences” look intriguing. By Bill Marx The Real Inspector Hound […]
Theater Review: A Boffo ‘Blithe Spirit’
What makes a comedy a sure-fire hit? Blithe Spirit by Noël Coward. Directed by Spiro Veloudos. Staged by the Lyric Stage Company of Boston, Boston, MA, through June 5. Reviewed By Helen Epstein That was one of the few questions I was taking the trouble to ask myself while giving in to the sheer enjoyment […]
Theater Commentary: Isn’t It a Question of Relevance?
The reviews of the Huntington Theatre Company (HTC) production were generally ecstatic. And what could be timelier than an oft-produced American drama that focuses on the tragic costs of war profiteering?
Coming Attractions in Theater: November 2009
By Bill Marx Somewhere an enterprising graduate student is working on a trenchant study of the correlation between holiday stage entertainment and the American economy. When things were looking bright and profitable the shows became cynical and comic, with mischievous elves placing whoopee cushions under our delusions of good cheer. Now that unemployment is high […]
Coming Attractions: Culture Vulture’s October Picks
by Helen Epstein I’m looking forward to what looks to be the best fall foliage season in years in the Berkshires. American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell at the Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA through October 12. A very popular summer exhibit has been held over. It covers Rockwell’s entire 65-year career, interpreted and […]