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

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.

REVIEW:  Hub Theatre Company of Boston’s zany and immersive dinner comedy ‘Slow Food’ survival of the hangriest

Having to wait for food isn’t easy, but the crazy antics that result are quite extraordinary in Slow Food, a wild comedy that focuses on a long time married couple on their anniversary vacation who finds themselves in pursuit of their meal.  It’s a good thing that Hub Theatre Company of Boston cleverly sets this production in a dinner theatre setting because not only does the show address love, marriage, manipulative food service and more, but most importantly, the very art of being frustratingly hangry.

With witty direction by Daniel Bourque, Hub Theatre Company of Boston presents Slow Food through Saturday, July 30 live and in person at Club Café Boston at 209 Columbus Ave in Boston, MA.  This show is 90 minutes with no intermission and tickets are on a pay-what-you can-basis.  Club Café offers a discount on the menu when attending Slow Food.   Click here for more information and for tickets.

Jyoti Daniere as Irene, Victor L. Shopov as Waiter Stephen, and Steve Auger as Peter Photo courtesy of Lauren Elias/Hub Theatre Company of Boston

Club Café’s backroom was once artfully transformed into a hair salon setting for Steel Magnolias, one of Hub Theatre Company of Boston’s lighthearted past productions held at Club Café Boston.  Though a Palm Springs Greek restaurant setting is less of a stretch, set designer Justin Lahue’s subtle candlelit setting, vine adorned walls and framed photos onstage flow with the candlelight and Ukraine flags that frame Club Café while sound designer Ted Kearnan’s inviting Greek soundtrack sets the mood. 

Slow Food’s immersive and interactive vibe continues as Jyoti Daniere as Irene, Steve Auger as Peter and Victor J. Shopov as Stephen the Waiter wander through Club Café at various times, making it easy to engage in the frustrating hilarity of this pair as they attempt to navigate a stubborn, preoccupied waiter and each other through it all. 

Jyoti Daniere as Irene, Victor L. Shopov as Waiter Stephen, and Steve Auger as Peter Photo courtesy of Lauren Elias/Hub Theatre Company of Boston

Slow Food features a small and strong cast with dialogue that is pretty snappy at times.  Shopov pushes all the right buttons and stealthily builds tension as a nosy, savvy and neurotic waiter that doesn’t know his boundaries. With a dry sense of humor, natural chemistry, and a gift for pushing each other’s buttons, Daniere and Auger make a likeable and relatable couple. Daniere as perceptive, exasperated, and sympathetic Auger as business minded, occasionally distracted and blunt Peter know they must rally to negotiate a good meal if they can get past their personal grievances as secrets gradually unfold along the way.

Jyoti Daniere as Irene, Victor L. Shopov as Waiter Stephen, and Steve Auger as Peter Photo courtesy of Lauren Elias/Hub Theatre Company of Boston

Slow Food is only the name of the show and Club Café delivered quick and attentive service.  Try the delicious Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake for dessert.

Hub Theatre Company of Boston presents Slow Food through Saturday, July 30 live and in person at Club Café Boston at 209 Columbus Ave in Boston, MA.  This show is 90 minutes with no intermission and tickets are on a pay-what-you can-basis.  Club Café offers a discount on the menu when attending Slow Food.   Click here for more information, tickets, and for more about Hub Theatre Company of Boston.

REVIEW:  True Repertory Theatre’s ‘Ellen’s Boys’ a heartwarming and heartrending family tale

Family life can get complicated and for the large Irish Catholic Flaherty family, complicated is an understatement.   Though Ellen’s Boys are a big part of this dramedy, the real center of this production lies in Ellen, the stubborn, pushy, and interfering Flaherty matriarch in a powerful performance by Victoria Bond.  Emotions run high with some typical family arguments and some not so typical, but the show shines a light on the hypocrisies (even the innocent ones) set by family that almost anyone can relate to.   

True Repertory Theatre’s ‘Ellen’s Boys’ logo Logo courtesy of Jim Sullivan/True Repertory Theatre

Partnering in part by GLSEN and directed insightfully by Donald Sheehan, True Repertory Theatre presented Jim Sullivan’s original dramedy, Ellen’s Boys, live and in person at the Beal House, 222 Main Street in Kingston, Massachusetts through March 27.  The show is approximately 2 hours with one intermission.  Click here for more information, upcoming auditions, and more. 

The ‘Ellen’s Boys’ set Photo courtesy of Jim Sullivan/True Repertory Theatre

The Ellen Boys’ set takes up a significant space at the Beal House so there’s not a bad seat for the audience.  As a photo of John F. Kennedy hangs on the wall, a tube television and vintage radio stand in the living room, and Andes mints sit in a crystal bowl on a doily, Ellen’s Boys successfully rewinds the clock back to December of 1965.  Based on playwright Jim Sullivan’s own vision of his grandmother’s house, the Beal House is home to a functional space with full kitchen off a retro-furnished living room as sacramental Catholic objects hang on the walls with framed portraits of family memories on a piano.  The show also sets a prominent Irish tone whether through the Celtic music between scenes, the Irish teapot on the dining room table, or through Flaherty sisters Ellen and Bridget’s rich Irish accents. 

Each character longs to break free in one’s own unique way and Ellen’s Boys has its share of heartwarming and heartrending moments within this animated family dynamic.  It seems the only one against evolution is Ellen Flaherty.   Victoria Bond could have easily depicted Ellen as a caricature of the classic pushy Irish mother in a house dress and apron who manipulates her way through grief and guilt, but as Bond breathes life into the character with finesse and humor, it is difficult to stay frustrated with Ellen for long. 

Lisa Caron Driscoll’s remarkable portrayal as Ellen’s fun loving, spontaneous and equally quick-tempered sister Bridget makes for some high drama between sisters displaying some tempestuous sibling rivalry.  They are alike in the ways that matter, though neither will admit it.

Donald Sheehan took both the director’s seat and a role as Ellen’s lonely and devoted son Gil.  Noonan strikes a delicate balance between sweet and exasperated as he holds onto the past in fear of the ramifications of his future.  Seemingly the opposite is Cammerron Baits as spontaneous and hard-partying Nathan.  In a multi-layered performance, Baits emotes fragility and earnestness under that impulsive façade.

Paul Noonan has a palpably eerie way of portraying the seemingly peaceful, helpful, yet enigmatic John Flaherty, Ellen’s son, while Oliver Henry Bellman is sweet and sympathetic as Patrick Walsh.  Noonan’s scenes with Julie Butler, in a bittersweet performance as dutiful and sensible sister Kathleen Doherty, made for some tough realizations as Kathleen pushes to break past John’s stoic nature.

Ellen’s Boys’ more lighthearted moments come in part from Sara McNulty as young and beautiful Tina Toccio whose self consciousness in front of Ellen and their various exchanges make for some dynamic comedy and also tense moments as they butt heads in their mutual stubbornness. With Cody Savoy as Ellen’s son, Michael, McNulty and Savoy also deliver some lighter moments and heartwarming chemistry together.

Though Ellen’s Boys runs a little long, through all of the drama, the complications, the heartache, and family outbursts because you simply can’t hold your tongue another second longer at the dinner table, what a relief to finally be understood.