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Get to know Sam Brewer, GBH’s newly appointed General Manager of Music

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Music is the foundation for so many amazing aspects of life.

As GBH’s newly appointed Head of Music, Sam Brewer discusses music’s remarkable impact and how he started in the industry.  He also shares where to listen to live concerts around Boston after work for free, insight into GBH’s extraordinary studios, and the revolutionary ways GBH is connecting artists to viewers and listeners.

Sleepless Critic:  Just to clarify, GBH’s Head of Music primarily covers classical and jazz music?

Sam Brewer: Yes, it is the jazz and classical team.  GBH Music is a multi-platform production team housed inside GBH with twelve full time and almost as many part time employees.  Our biggest commitment and what everyone knows us for is CRB Classical 99.5 Boston.  CRB produces over 50 broadcasts a year and we have a live concert every single week from Symphony Hall or Tanglewood.  That includes concerts from the Boston Pops too.

General Manager of GBH Music Sam Brewer Photo by Meredith Nierman/GBH

We also program Jazz on 89.7 FM on the weekends and weekend overnights.  For the past five years, we’ve had a series of about eight GBH Music Presents concerts at the Fraser Performance Studio or Calderwood Studio here at GBH.  In person, streaming, and recorded performances are used on other platforms.  Obviously they stream and may end up as an In Concert production. 

Classical.org is the website for the radio station and a rich source of multimedia content about classical music, social media channels, and two newsletters which is one on jazz and one on classical and so much more.

From the GBH music perspective, we recently launched GBH Jazz Nights which are once a month performances at the GBH Studio at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square.  We’ve teamed up with JazzBoston to present jazz music the second Thursday of every month from 5:30 to 6:30 pm.  It’s a free event and we want to capture people after work to stop by for an hour or two and get a beer and listen to music.  It’s really to raise the profile of everything that we are doing in jazz.  For the past few years we have done these studio jazz shows about four a year and we are looking have four again in the spring.  We’ll have four in the spring to help us build up an audience, the excitement, and the anticipation for that and we feature a great lineup of performers.

Beyond December, we will be looking at a series of jazz performances at Fraser Performance Studio.  Fraser is gorgeous and really the jewel of the production facilities at GBH.  Antonio Oliart is our recording engineer on the GBH Music Team and he had a hand in designing the space and it’s his home along with Téa Mottolese who is our other recording engineer. 

Antonio recorded an album at Fraser with violinist Hilary Hahn which was just named the Gramophone record of the year.  It’s a huge honor and I think he’s won three or four Grammys from records he’s produced in that space.  We host a lot of these GBH jazz and classical music events at Fraser and you’re really sitting with maybe 90 or 100 people in a multi-camera shoot in an acoustically perfect music space. 

Ulysses Quartet perform at an event celebrating the leadership of Tony Rudel, General Manager GBH Music on October 1, 2024 at GBH Headquarters in Brighton, Mass. Photo by Meredith Nierman/GBH

The Boston Symphony Chamber Players came and recorded this beautiful video show in Fraser and then we streamed.  It was in person and it will also become a radio broadcast in a week or two.  Somebody came up to me after the performance and told me they have known this musician their whole life and have never seen this person up close playing like this. 

SC:  Oh, I love those experiences. 

SB: That’s the real benefit of this space.  You get a sort of intimacy with the music that you don’t really get in any other venue in Boston because of the size and how it is structured.  It’s also how we host shows.  Brian McCreath, the host of the BSO broadcasts, hosted this program.  He’s a proxy for the audience and brings the audience into the stories behind the music in such a unique way. 

SC:  We know each other from the Boston Pops.   What piqued your interest from the Boston Pops to make the transition over to GBH?   I know it all starts with classical music. 

SB: That’s a great question.  I was a publicist at the BSO for about 10 years and started at the box office selling tickets.  I was just looking for the next step in my career and there’s such a crossover between the GBH audience and the Boston Symphony audience and in an effort to sort of promote other types of content and other stories, I was drawn to the work in public media and found a happy home for the last six years working quite closely with the newsroom here.  Of course the GBH Music team was my other main client here and pulled it back into the beauty, power and the rich, artistic life of classical music and jazz.  That’s how I found myself working even more closely with the GBH Music Team. 

SC:  You must also find yourself working with some famous musicians.  Which particular person stands out for you that you couldn’t believe you were working with them?

SB: There are countless people, but recently opera bass-baritone Davóne Tines.  We had someone scheduled for the Getting into Opera program and it was a wonderful event open to the public.  We are eventually going to turn it into a series for YouTube.  We’ve done two of these before and we have another one coming up.  We unfortunately lost the soprano who was scheduled to host this master class.  The concept here is people get into opera by seeing how great vocal performances are shaped.  So it’s a master class between a master teacher and a student. 

The star soprano who was supposed to lead the performance had to cancel about 36 hours before.  Davóne Tines came in and I had the opportunity to pick him up in a car and drive him over quickly before the performance was about to begin. 

I was blown away how even at the last minute, he wanted to reshape what we were doing to put the artists in the center and focus on them as humans and people before he got to hear them sing or work with them as a coach.  So, there are countless examples of artists I have met and been star struck or really moved by, but this one recently is just one of the benefits everyone on this team has which are these really close encounters with musicians as people and then get to share their stories with broader audiences.  It’s of interest to any type of consumer of any media, but I think music in particular because it can be abstract and one of things we specialize in is sharing an artist’s story behind the music. 

SC:  How do you think your prior experience has prepared you for what you are doing now?

SB: Two of the trends in my career have been music and communications and I think they will be thoroughly employed in this role.  Being so new to it, I can already tell one of the real joys of this role is working with all the people on this team.  I think anyone in a leadership position is responsible for supporting the team’s work. It is really exciting to come to work every day with people who are ready to pitch new and creative ideas and try to find ways for those little seeds of ideas to grow to support the work of a lot of creative professionals.  So, I suppose having a lot of experience as a communicator, in public relations, and then in public media has put me in a good position to help the team bring all this creativity to the forefront and to find things that resonate with audiences.  I’m excited to see how we can keep growing this incredible foundation here. 

SC:  Music is the connection to everything. 

SB: I agree with you.

SC:  Speaking of which, what is your favorite music and kinds of artists you like to listen to for GBH?

SB: I think from a very early age, I’ve always loved orchestral music.  I will just say broadly classical music encompassing classical, romantic, and baroque.  We play on CRB Classical 99.5 over 500 years of this incredible compendium of artistic styles.  It’s just so easy to get deeply lost in it and imagine your own stories. 

It’s funny because I have certainly listened to all sorts of music.  My wife and I went to the Weezer concert in Boston.  It was great fun, but I also had this experience where we were all the way up in the nosebleed section.  I don’t know what the capacity of TD Garden about 20,000 and it was a wonderful performance and I was thinking if I can just get one percent of these people to turn on CRB and find this intentional listening experience in the genres we promote, I think everyone would grow so tremendously.  A lot of what we program on this station is intentional to capture people who find a familiar sound in what we do and discover that they like classical music.  For example, Renaissance pieces that would be four minutes long and to someone who is just tuning in, it could sound like a folk song.  There could be an energy to Telemann perfect for driving down the road.  I’ve always loved orchestral music. The challenges and the fun of this role is to just to find people in this vast swath of people and find out who might want to come and join us and be part of this tribe. 

SC:  Classical is the foundation of so many other genres of music.  The epic Clair de Lune is a famous classical piece you know that you don’t know that you know.

SB: I agree with you and I think there is also a willingness that there wasn’t ten or fifteen years ago to cross between genres and like what they hear without knowing what the label is.  I just find there is a tremendous opportunity to turn more people into classical music and such growth potential there.   I’m glad we’re focused on that central part of it and our goal is just to spread that out and make people fall in love with it.

One of CRB’s next events will be the GBH Music Holiday Spectacular taking place at Calderwood Studio.  Be the first to learn about GBH’s upcoming music events through classical newsletter The Note and GBH’s Jazz newsletter. 

REVIEW:  The Huntington’s intensely funny and revealing ‘John Proctor is the Villain’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

In a small southern town, everyone seems to know everyone else’s business and in high school, rumors run amok.  However, which ones are actually true and which ones are just talk? 

With meticulous direction by Margot Bordelon, The Huntington presents Kimberly Belflower’s dark comedy John Proctor is the Villain live and in person at the Calderwood Theatre in Massachusetts through Sunday, March 10 as well as a virtual program option through Sunday, March 24.  This show is not appropriate for children and is 100 minutes with no intermission.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

Left to right: Brianna Martinez, Jules Talbot, Victoria Omoregie, Haley Wong in John Proctor is the Villain; directed by Margot Bordelon; photo by T. Charles Erickson

Set in a rural Georgia high school in 2019, girls are coming into their own and through The Crucible, are discovering their own power.  When Jules Talbot as studious, serious, anxious and outspoken Beth Powell wishes to start a feminist club, the faculty is somewhat hesitant.  With Brianna Martinez as Ivy, Victoria Omoregie as Nell, Haley Wong as Raelynn Nix, and Japhet Balaban as cool teacher Mr. Smith to back Beth and tie the club into the curriculum, the club is underway.  Feminism fosters power and ignites change and this ambitious and likable group thinks that is just what this small town needs.

Left to right: Olivia Hebert, Japhet Balaban in John Proctor is the Villain; directed by Margot Bordelon; photo by T. Charles Erickson

Kristen Robinson’s detailed and edgy scenic design unveils a colorful classroom complete with academic notes, green chalkboard, raised stadium-style classroom seating, and transfiguring walls enriched by Aja M. Jackson’s flashy, rhythmic and radiant lighting.  Jackson’s lighting seamlessly aligns with Sinan Refik Zafar’s lively sound design that weaves in pop tunes from the darker sides of Pink, Lorde, Britney Spears and Taylor Swift. 

Left to right: Japhet Balaban, Isabel Van Natta, Victoria Omoregie, Brianna Martinez, Benjamin Izaak, Jules Talbot, Maanav Aryan Goyal, Haley Wong in John Proctor is the Villain; directed by Margot Bordelon; photo by T. Charles Erickson

John Proctor is the Villain presents a different and intriguing perspective to The Crucible that plays out in various ways within this Georgia High school.  The stiff raised hands, the quick paced teen dialogue, frenetic excitement and nervous energy of this group of teens solidly depicts the atmosphere and nature of high school while Zoe Sundra’s distinct costume design enriches each character’s individuality.  The production has plenty of giddy and playful moments that cement some close knit friendships and yet it never loses sight of tackling its serious topics.

Left to right: Isabel Van Natta, Jules Talbot, Victoria Omoregie, Haley Wong in John Proctor is the Villain; directed by Margot Bordelon; photo by T. Charles Erickson

Kimberly Belflower’s juicy script holds many stunning revelations and the tables turn many times over as the tale intensifies, but  John Proctor is the Villain also notably dives into broken relationships, reputation, and discovering one’s authentic self.  Some of the characters have an air of superficiality and mystery perhaps because they are gradually learning who they truly are.  Benjamin Izaak as cocky Lee Turner and Maanav Aryan Goyal as earnest Mason Adams seem more emotional than these focused teen girls. 

Left to right: Victoria Omoregie, Jules Talbot, Haley Wong in John Proctor is the Villain; directed by Margot Bordelon; photo by T. Charles Erickson

Isabel Van Natta is memorable as complicated and unpredictable Shelby who has returned to school under mysterious circumstances.  Van Natta and Haley Wong as unconventional and courageous Raelynn share some dynamic and fascinating scenes together.  In black star stockings with a matching purple and black dress, Victoria Omeregie charismatically portrays frank, stylish, and sometimes tough Nell Shaw.  Japhet Balaban cleverly portrays engaging, charismatic, and popular teacher Carter Smith who seems the most transparent and shares a charming camaraderie with his students. 

With meticulous direction by Margot Bordelon, The Huntington presents Kimberly Belflower’s dark comedy John Proctor is the Villain live and in person at the Calderwood Theatre in Massachusetts as well as a virtual program option through Sunday, March 10.  This show is not appropriate for children and is 100 minutes with no intermission.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

REVIEW: Chain Theatre’s Winter One Act Festival presents Sarah Hoogenraad’s dark comedy ‘Celebrity Crush’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Who’s on the celebrity list?

Some couples have a ‘pass’ from their partners when fantasying about celebrities.  One person might get a pass from the other if by some possibility one gets a chance to meet or even date a famous celebrity and Lizzie Nguyen as Shannon never dreamed that this might actually happen.  Self absorbed, giddy, and giggly, Shannon and her roommate Amy, depicted by Sarah Hoogenraad who is also the playwright, will find out dreams might not live up to reality and that over sharing can be more than dangerous.

Photo credit to Chain Theatre

With careful direction by Rebecca Wilson and co-produced by Chandler Holloway, Sarah Hoogenraad’s dark comedy Celebrity Crush (#15) was part of Chain Theatre’s Winter ’24 One Act Festival took place from February 8 through March 3 virtually as well as live and in person at The Chain Theatre, 312 West 36th Street in New York, New York.  Click here for more information.

Set in Los Angeles, Celebrity Crush’s dark humor and zippy storytelling keeps things light even when Shannon and Amy realize that the celebrity scene can be less than glamorous. With a fitting music soundtrack which includes perfectly appropriate Crush by Jennifer Paige, Celebrity Crush has a modestly colorful set and humorous props to add lightness to the progressive intensity of the production.  Hoogenraad and Nguyen share some wild moments and they have a natural rapport together.  Miciah Wallace, in a dual role, is especially engaging as Kyle boasting that snappy catchphrase, ‘Smile because you’re with Kyle.’

The Cast of ‘Celebrity Crush’ Lizzie Nguyan, Sarah Hoogenraad, Miciah Wallace, and Matthew Sheaffer Photo credit to Sarah Hoogenraad

It would have been nice to have known what led to Shannon’s date and to get to know the cast better to be more invested in its outcome, but perhaps Celebrity Crush could expand its storyline or become a series in the future.

Sarah Hoogenraad’s dark comedy Celebrity Crush (#15) was part of Chain Theatre’s Winter ’24 One Act Festival took place from February 8 through March 3 virtually as well as live and in person at The Chain Theatre, 312 West 36th Street in New York, New York.  Click here for more information.

REVIEW: New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory’s ‘Here I Fall Up’ and ‘How I Disappeared’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

A girl is starting to wonder if she is fall apart or is she just falling up?

Gianna Milici, Sophia Drapeau, and Lauren-Quigley in ‘Here I Fall Up’ Photo credit to Natalie Powers

Featuring chiming melodies, a girl is somehow tethered to her family’s seaside home in a way that makes her question her own sanity.  Surrounded by her sisters who narrate the story, Here I Fall Up is thoughtfully directed and composed by Beth Golison and directed creatively by Annabel Heacock and Maiya Pascouche and is just under an hour.  It was featured at New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory in NYC and was streaming through August 12.  Click here for more information.

The girl, portrayed sympathetically and realistically by Sophia Drapeau, ventures into dark places that keeps the audience guessing whether the girl is actually experiencing something outside this world or is it all happening inside the girl’s head?  Drapeau’s suffering throughout this production makes a real case for either and watching the girl attempt to cope with anxiety and a severe degree of agoraphobia is heartfelt, earnest, and a bit distressing to witness. The bluish and haunting shadows by Chris Voegels combined with the simple, multifunctional set by Jessie Baldinger are as imaginative as it is symbolic of a girl longing to make a connection outside the girl’s fears and vulnerabilities.

Rose Tablizo and Sophia Drapeau in ‘Here I Fall Up’ Photo credit to Natalie Powers

Here I Fall Up’s inviting, folksy, and intermittently catchy acapella harmonies from sisters and narrators Samantha Medina Chachra, Lauren Rose Quigley, and Gianna Millici combined with Rose Tablizo’s mysterious presence keeps the production a bit lighter while tackling some darker issues. 

Here I Fall Up is thoughtfully directed and composed by Beth Golison and directed creatively by Annabel Heacock and Maiya Pascouche and is just under an hour.  It was featured at New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory and was streaming through August 12.  Click here for more information.

Courtesy of CHUANG Stage

Does it matter where I put my roots down?

Identity should be not what one is, but who one is.  Not the labels, but the person.  That is not such an easy journey living in NYC.

Told from the perspective of six immigrant Asian individuals living in NYC, How I Disappeared is a bilingual production about grasping for acceptance in the world without assumptions or grief, but with understanding.  Directed by Tianding He and produced by CHUANG Stage, it is done creatively, though not always clearly in this abstract and Avant Garde production.

Courtesy of CHUANG Stage

How I Disappeared is just under an hour and was featured at New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory and was streaming through August 12.  Click here for more information.

From an individual covered in overwhelming and all encompassing remnants of NYC including a liberty hat, Broadway sign, wearing a mask and carrying a suitcase subway map to the desolate and metaphorical marine characters on the NYC subway, How I Disappeared emphasizes the intimidating, overwhelming, noisy, and isolating city atmosphere.

The glassy reflections particularly stand out in this part projection by Brian Shin-Hua Ellis and part animated puppetry by Wilden Weihn production.  From a Puffer fish to a whale wandering on a subway, each distinctive marine creature delivers a combination of bittersweet and relatable humor as the narrator describes each creature’s authentic capabilities and defenses.  Steeped in soothing blue aquatic lighting by Will DeJianne, it seems absurd witnessing them on the subway, and yet it becomes a snapshot of humanity as the show progresses.

Courtesy of CHUANG Stage

The production does have lighter moments of dancing including catchy and original live music by John Tsung and Siyi Chen as well as its fair share of silliness with underlying messages of perseverance in the face of fears, doubt, and judgment.  Staying true to oneself and anything is possible.

How I Disappeared is just under an hour and was featured at New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory and was streaming through August 12.  Click here for more information.

REVIEW:  ‘Zebra 2.0’ at New Ohio’s ICE Factory boasts an unconventional meet cute with fascinating zip

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

One is nicknamed Zebra and another knows everything there is to know about Zebras….except how Zebras feel.

Zebra 2.0 is technological ice breaker and a breakthrough unlike any other.  An interesting meet cute for the modern age, AnomalousCo, Wistaria Project, and Romanian Cultural Institute’s sci-fi rom com Zebra 2.0 was presented at New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory in NYC and is now streaming through August 12.  The show runs for 1 hour and 30 minutes.  Click here for more information and how to stream the film.

Alina Mihailevschi and Tim Craig in ‘Zebra 2.0’ Photographer: Jarrett Robertson

A computer and a woman meet in a lab.  She calls it Al and Al nicknames her Zebra 2.0.  As Al coordinates a line of numbers, inquisitive Zina, energetically depicted by Alina Mihailevschi, realizes that Al, portrayed with intellectual charm by Tim Craig, have much more in common than either of them realized.  Zebras are only the beginning.

Zebra 2.0 has an enchanting way of delving into various topics such as the environment, biology, science, books, music, immigration, standardized tests, employment, and the nature of being human in a clever and fascinating manner.  Though Zina only chance meets Al as she cleans up a laboratory, her friendly and candid conversations with Al spark some compelling results.  Written by Saviana Stanescu and directed by Jeremy Goren, Zebra 2.0 combines method and sentiment into a sweet, intense, and astute production with resounding messages about humanity.  Tim Craig is impressive, gradually molding Al into a charismatic and sympathetic character and Mihailevschi epitomizes lonely, zealous, friendly, rebellious, and imaginative Zina who longs for knowledge and dreams of a better life.

Tim Craig and Alina Mihailevschi in ‘Zebra 2.0’ Photographer: Jarrett Robertson

John Jannone, Michi Zaya,  and Amy Liou’s luminous projection and  video, Duncan Davies’s incredible multicolor lighting and Ras Badejo’s epic music and sound combine to make Al into a dazzling, fervent, and a powerful entity that blurs fantasy and reality inside a pristine, windowless, and futuristic space by Xinan Helen Ran.  These special effects display some of the most exciting scenes in the production only second to Craig and Mihailevschi’s humorous and engaging chemistry that just might deliver greater meaning than anything Al can calculate.

Alina Mihailevschi and Tim Craig in ‘Zebra 2.0’ Photographer: Jarrett Robertson

Written ambitiously by Saviana Stanescu with elevated direction by Jeremy Goren, AnomalousCo, Wisteria Project, and Romanian Cultural Institute’s sci-fi rom com Zebra 2.0 was presented at ICE Factory in NYC and is now streaming through August 12.  The show runs for 1 hour and 30 minutes.  Click here for more information and how to stream the film.

REVIEW: ‘Deadclass Ohio’ at New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory captures the past, loneliness, grief and disconnection with an unlikely witness

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Imagine seeing a relative’s picture for the first time.  Ever wonder what was happening when that moment was captured?   What is the significance behind it and what was going on through their mind?  Photos from the past bring up a great deal of curiosity and Deadclass Ohio imagines some of these possibilities as a woman attempts to pay tribute to long lost relatives who were Holocaust survivors in a Jewish cemetery.

Based on Tadeusz Kantor’s documentary Umarla Klaza and directed with experimental complexity by Mitchell Polonsky and Chloe Claudel, The Goat Exchange’s Deadclass Ohio offers various perspectives on a photo and situation with a mix of humor and poignancy as it tackles loneliness, grief, and disconnection while capturing a harrowing time in history.  It also explores the nature of the past.

Photo credit to Mitchell Polonsky

New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory continues streaming The Goat Exchange’s play Deadclass Ohio through August 12.  The production is approximately one hour.  Click here for more information and how to view this play. 

Paul Lazar Photo credit Hana Mendel
Chloe Claudel and Marcus Amaglo Photo credit Hana Mendel

A lone bench, an escalating pile of laundry, a dining room table, a scrambled TV set and a floral arrangement is the foundation of two unique and related scenes on a dark and minimal stage.  Two people enter a cemetery and commiserate about a photo of a woman’s grandmother as they contemplate what is behind the photograph and what happened when the photo was taken.  Featuring Paul Lazar, Marcus Amaglo, Chloe Claudel, and Juliana Sass with Jim Fletcher, Deadclass Ohio holds many revelations which should not be unveiled here except it invites a sense of déjà vu and reaching into history. 

Marcus Amaglo and Chloe Claudel Photo credit Hana Mendel
Paul-Lazar Photo credit Hana Mendel

Each skilled member of this intimate cast faces a challenging task of bringing emotional depth to each scene as well as presenting a new perspective to each scenario.  This is all while the plot progresses in unexpected ways.  Little nuances of each actor’s performance shift the perspective and the production becomes more personal while it simultaneously delves into the unusual.  Two memorable scenes metaphorically explore the nature of pigeons while the other echoes a haunting rendition of Too Young by Nat King Cole.

Photo credit to Mitchell Polonsky

Mitchell Polonsky’s vivid sound and media design and Abraham E.S. Rebello Trujillo’s quirky costume design lends to the production’s mysterious atmosphere.  Enhanced by a poignant violin score performed by Sasha Yakub, Deadclass Ohio contains some absurd and meaningful humor through some clever blocking, but it also keeps the viewer guessing at different points during the production.  The show does not always make its intentions clear, but it does deliver the stirring emotional weight of loneliness, loss, disconnection, and a longing to be understood which becomes more prevalent as the production continues.

   New Ohio Theatre’s ICE Factory continues streaming The Goat Exchange’s Deadclass Ohio through August 12.  The production is approximately one hour.  Click here for more information and how to view this play.   

REVIEW: Searching for answers in The Huntington’s ‘Joy and Pandemic’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Medicine and faith and faith versus fear as a pandemic is looming. 

These powerful topics should all be more than vaguely familiar in this day and age.  However, the most recent pandemic is not when Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic takes place though from its urgent dialogue, it all seems like yesterday.

Directed meditatively by Loretta Greco, The Huntington presents the World Premiere of Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic live and in person as well at Calderwood Pavilion in Boston, Massachusetts through Sunday, May 21.  It is also available digitally through June 4.  The show is two hours with one 15 minute intermission.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

Stacy Fischer, Breezy Leigh, and Ryan Winkles of The Huntington’s production of Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic; photo: T Charles Erickson. Running from April 21 to May 21, 2023 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, South End.

Joy and Pandemic delves into a number of topics and it is not surprising that this production is running through and beyond Mother’s Day.  It has an increasing intensity around the pandemic of 1918 in Philadelphia, but it also focuses on the shaping and influence mothers have on their daughters.  What about doubt?  What if a mother casts a shadow over what is right and wrong?

Though the show can meander and its formal dialogue is a bit muddled at times, Joy and Pandemic presents some important viewpoints that tip the scales on what is important in times of crisis.  It is not preachy and delves into extreme behavior of those who make decisions strictly based on faith who might benefit from a bit more common sense. 

Joy and Pandemic is about a passionate, independent and hardworking Christian Science mother and artist named Joy, her new husband Bradford and her excitable, impressionable and eccentric daughter Pilly.  They are running a fine arts school for children and plan to have an open house on the same day the town is holding a parade, even through whispers of the Spanish flu to the dismay of Joy’s mother in law Rosemary. 

Arnulfo Maldonado’s transformative, layered, and eye opening scenic design is strewn with paintbrushes, framed art work, shelves full of assorted pottery and art books as crown molding and retro wallpaper adorn the walls and brass, vintage chandeliers hang overhead.  Just as impressive is the astounding sound effects and presentation of the parade with booms and pops by Fan Zhang and lighting by Jen Schriver.   Zhang also effectively rewinds the clock with American Standards by Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra.

Stacy Fischer and Ryan Winkles of The Huntington’s production of Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic; photo: T Charles Erickson. Running from April 21 to May 21, 2023 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, South End.

Even while exploring themes like faith, illness, medicine, life, and death, the cast manages to bring some occasional and much needed relatable humor to the production.  Marceline Hugot brings gravitas and hardnosed practicality as Joy’s mother in law Rosemary and Ryan Winkles is formidable as Joy’s mysterious husband Bradford.  Due to a portion of the show’s clever casting, it is best not to say more except that Stacy Fischer, Ella Dershowitz, and Breezy Leigh fit smoothly into their perspective roles.  Joy and Pandemic is not so much about joy itself though it does touch upon it outside its moments of intensity, poignancy, and insightful dialogue.  Somewhere along the way lies hope. 

Stacy Fischer and Breezy Leigh of The Huntington’s production of Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic; photo: T Charles Erickson. Running from April 21 to May 21, 2023 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA, South End.

The Huntington presents the World Premiere of Taylor Mac’s Joy and Pandemic live and in person at Calderwood Pavilion in Boston, Massachusetts through Sunday, May 21 and will continue streaming through June 4. Click here for more information and for tickets.

REVIEW: New England Dance Ensemble presents evocative ‘A Child’s View of the Holocaust’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

New England Dance Ensemble founder Barbara Mullen knows that if people do not know history, they are doomed to repeat it.

On Sunday, April 16, the New England Dance Ensemble (NEDE) performed A Child’s View of the Holocaust at Temple Beth Abraham in Nashua, NH.  The show was free and a benefit for the nonprofit organization. The temple generously served lunch prior to the production.  This ballet was 40 minutes with no intermission followed by a brief Q and A session and the show is currently streaming online.   The audience was encouraged to pause in quiet reflection rather than applaud.  Click here for more information.

A Child’s View of the Holocaust presented by New England Dance Ensemble Photo credit to NEDE

Barbara Mullen, NEDE’s Artistic Director, first produced A Child’s View of the Holocaust in 1990 and it has become an educational tool for thousands of audiences in its over 30 year history.  Its purpose is to memorialize the youngest victims of the Holocaust to ensure society will never forget and these horrors will not ever be repeated.  Few survived to tell their story, but relatives of a few of the victims were present in the audience on April 16.

Set in 1939, A Child’s View of the Holocaust is a depiction of how insidiously and methodically the new Nazi regime darkened the world and lured millions of victims.  One million out of six million victims of the holocaust were children.  It shows the progression of once innocent school children in braids and plaids as they wave at their friends shortly before a new and harrowing reality unfolds.  The panic, the shame, the indignation, and the implied brutality are difficult to watch, but the discovery and final understanding is the most poignant piece in the production.

The Nazis, led by Anya Petravicz, snake like a menacing train.  Stiff, militaristic, and linear, the dancers invade with expressions vacant and unyielding.  Coordinated by ballet master Andrew Matte, the production has a wealth of physical engagement that implies violence, but is no less powerful. 

Students in ‘A Child’s View of the Holocaust’ Photo credit to NEDE

A Child’s View of the Holocaust is a collaborative and stirring production delivered with careful grace, skill, and sensitivity by these young performers.  However, Harrison Conellier as the Holocaust’s first victim and Ipeksu Yucel as a Jewish mother offer powerful performances in evocative surprise, anger, and anguish as they are forced into impossible decisions in this journey to find light in the depths of loss.

New England Dance Ensemble continues to offer this important production to different institutions for educational purposes.  NEDE will next present The Lorax followed by The Nutcracker in the fall.  Click here for more information.

REVIEW: Greater Boston Stage Company delivers a heartfelt ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Arthur and Dottie had big dreams beyond what 1939 could dream up.  Then Hattie McDaniel arrived.

During Hollywood’s Golden Age, 1939 was deemed one of the greatest years in motion picture history.  Gone with Wind was among a long list of acclaimed classic films that premiered that year including Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Wizard of Oz, Stagecoach, Wuthering Heights, Gunga Din, Ninotchka, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, and Dark Victory.  However, Gone with the Wind also marked an indelible moment in history.  At the 1940 Academy Awards, Hattie McDaniel was the first African American to win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.

Samantha Jane Williams and Stewart Evan Smith in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams’ Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

Directed warmly by Taavon Gamble, Greater Boston Stage Company delivers a perfectly timed, heartfelt tribute to one of the greats with the east coast premiere of Boulevard of Bold Dreams by LaDarrion Williams live and in person at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, Massachusetts and streaming through Sunday, March 19.  The show is 90 minutes with no intermission.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

This year’s 95th annual Academy Awards marked a revolutionary year as Everything Everywhere All at Once not only dominated the night winning Best Picture, Best Direction, and Best Screenplay but also delivered a historic win for Michelle Yeoh as the first Asian actress to win an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role.  One of the actresses that presented Yeoh’s Oscar was none other than Halle Berry who was the first African American to win an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role.  When Berry won in 2002 she declared, “This moment is so much bigger than me.”

Michelle Fenelon, Stewart Evan Smith and Samantha Jane Williams in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams’ Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

Hattie McDaniel’s groundbreaking Oscar win as Mammy in Gone with the Wind garnered acclaim and ongoing recognition for the barriers she broke as well as controversy while she paved the way for Halle and many other actresses including Viola Davis, Whoopi Goldberg, Diahann Carroll, Jennifer Hudson, Regina King, Octavia Spencer, Lupita Nyong’o, and Ariana DeBose.  Those actresses were able to write their own acceptance speeches, sit with their cast, and although some aspects of Boulevard of Bold Dreams is fictionalized, the show delivers some eye-opening facts about McDaniel within segregated Hollywood.  Facing a tough road, McDaniel had had the foresight and tenacity to make sure her name was on that Oscar ballot.

Michelle Fenelon and Stewart Evan Smith in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams’ Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

Boulevard of Bold Dreams also boasts a memorable and tenacious cast.  Bartender Arthur Brooks, an imaginative and aspiring director in a standout performance by Stewart Evan Smith, has big dreams well beyond his current occupation.  Smith’s candor, charisma, and enthusiasm brighten each scene and his unflappable vision for his future makes it easy to root for his success in the face of any obstacle.  Maid Dottie Hudson, a cynical, yet aspiring singer portrayed with wit and humor by Michelle Fenelon, has her feet planted closer to the ground.  Smith and Fenelon strike a delicate balance of resourcefulness, wishful thinking and persistence when they arrived in Hollywood with little money and big ambitions.  However, things are more complicated than they appear.   In a distinctive and glittery blue gown, Samantha Jane Williams gracefully captures Hattie McDaniel’s humble and frank demeanor with an underlying anxiousness as she faces a potentially life changing night.  Fenelon and Williams have quick and complex camaraderie as their strong vocals combine for a playful and impromptu duet.

Boulevard of Bold Dreams Samantha Jane Williams Michelle Fenelon and Stewart Evan Smith in Greater Boston Stage Company’s ‘Boulevard of Bold Dreams Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

Kiara Escalera’s meticulous costume design recreates McDaniel’s look with precision as well as the vintage sophistication of the 1940s.  Enhanced by red and gold jacquard curtains and distinguished black and gold doors, scenic designer Rachel Rose Burke elegantly recreates a section of the Ambassador’s Coconut Grove Night Club in Los Angeles.

Boulevard of Bold Dreams not only depicts life’s possibilities through McDaniel, but the extent of the segregation and racism of that time and the struggle to make their dreams come true.   Whether or not a fan of the Academy Awards or Hollywood, Boulevard of Bold Dreams tells an inspiring story for all the dreamers of how one person can create lasting change one step at a time.

Greater Boston Stage Company’s Boulevard of Bold Dreams by LaDarrion Williams live and in person at Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham, Massachusetts and streaming through Sunday, March 19.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

REVIEW:  Theatre Kapow’s ‘Breadcrumbs’ unveil an indelible and winding journey

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Alita suspects something has changed.

Full of Easter eggs and a time hopping storyline, this cleverly titled production lives up to its name many times over and reveals a family secret near impossible to see coming.  Sponsored in part by the Mass/NH Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, Breadcrumbs is a mysterious piece of theatre about the meeting of two individuals and how they fit into each other lives.

Jennifer Haley’s Breadcrumbs, Theatre Kapow’s most recent production, ran live and in person February 17 to 19 at the Bank of NH Stage in Concord NH before streaming live on February 24 and 25.  Directed intuitively by Catherine Stewart, Breadcrumbs is 80 minutes with no intermission and is part of Recent Remote Remember, the theme of Theatre Kapow’s 15th season.  Click here for more information and here for more on Theatre Kapow.

From L to R Rachel Chapin Longo and Katie Collins Photo credit to Matthew Lomanno Photography

Stark blue lighting evoked a haunting quality as Alita, a hardworking, unassuming, and reclusive writer depicted perceptively by Katie Collins, knows there is something is missing.  Collins, in a multilayered performance, portrays Alita with an increasingly brisk and suspicious manner as she struggles to connect with what is occurring around her.  Rachel Chapin Longo commands a challenging and multi faceted role as compassionate, talkative, impulsive, resourceful, but needy Beth who seemingly cannot get her life together to Alita’s rising frustration.   Beth admires Alita’s work which often focuses on metaphorical fantasy which is a surprising contrast to Alita’s practical sensibilities.

From L to R Rachel Chapin Longo and Katie Collins Photo credit to Matthew Lomanno Photography

What is fascinating about this meticulous production is each item, scene, and aspect including Alita’s writing plays an integral and significant role within a sometimes unreliable viewpoint.  Longo and Collins seamlessly navigate a number of vivid, stirring and mercurial scenes together and there isn’t a piece of dialogue that strays from this insightful look at these two individual’s lives.  The production also serves as an informative vehicle for an all too common life altering impairment.

From L to R Rachel Chapin Longo and Katie Collins Photo credit to Matthew Lomanno Photography

Tayva Young’s nostalgic and evocative lighting combined with Matt Cahoon’s vintage and eerie sound and projection design navigates each sudden flashback and time leap in an innovative and engrossing manner.  Barbara Holbrook’s distinctive costume design boosts each character’s personality with subtle hints on what they mean to each other.

Jennifer Haley’s Breadcrumbs cultivates a rich and unique path through trauma and struggle to reveal what is ultimately important.  Directed intuitively by Catherine Stewart, Breadcrumbs is 80 minutes with no intermission and is part of Recent Remote Remember, the theme of Theatre Kapow’s 15th season.  Click here for more information and here for more on Theatre Kapow.