Winter is not kind to our skin. Between the cold, biting air outside, the dehydrating heat inside, and the weeks-long spiral into (and out of) holiday indulgences of way too much food and liquor, the interminable stretch of winter months requires some additional care. It’s okay to expect a lot from a mask, […]
LIFE TO THE EVERLASTING CAT: THE BOLD REVOLUTION—AND WELCOME RETURN—OF CATS
★★★★☆ Hi, my name is Chris, and I’m a Cats fan. Ever since Cats premiered almost 40 years ago, it’s been the musical that people have loved to hate. But for me, it was my gateway drug to the theater, and I have been bowing my head in reverent thanks for, well, […]
THE BEST PRODUCTIONS OF 2019
They had style, they had grace. Alice Ripley gave good face. As we come to the close of another theatrical year, it’s time to not only name the best productions of the year, but to reflect on the year’s theatrical offerings as a whole. Some years there are trends; some years there aren’t. […]
ALL THE MILLION HOURS: PARADE AT MOONBOX PRODUCTIONS
★★★★☆ Moonbox Productions continues its impressive run of presenting complicated, adult musicals with more polish, professionalism, and nuance than most other companies in the Boston area, even those with more cash and more clout. Parade tells the story of the arrest, conviction, and lynching of an innocent man, Leo Frank, for the […]
ALTERING THE COURSE: MOBY-DICK AT THE AMERICAN REPERTORY THEATER
★★★★★ Moby-Dick is either a long, elaborate funeral for the American musical as we know it or the birth of a new kind of theatrical language. Which side you come down on will depend on your reaction to this world premiere musical, which runs at the American Repertory Theater through Jan 12. […]
GIFT GUIDE: ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOUTH
Buying skin care for other people is hard. Whether you’re looking for a few more ideas for yourself or that perfect slam-dunk for the hard-to-please in your life—and we’ve all got at least one—these beauty covetables will win every time, regardless of age, gender, or skin type.
ON STAGE NOW: MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, DOLLY PARTON’S SMOKY MOUNTAIN CHRISTMAS CAROL, CHRISTMAS ON URANUS, AND OLIVER!
AGATHA CHRISTIE’S MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS AT THE LYRIC STAGE ★★☆☆☆ Forget “whodunnit,” the bigger question is “who cares.” An ensemble cast of beloved local actors doing their best is what Murder on the Orient Express boils down to. Ken Ludwig’s adaptation of the classic Agatha Christie murder mystery […]
JAGGED LITTLE PILL STILL SAYS TOO LITTLE ABOUT TOO MUCH
★★☆☆☆ “I recommend biting off more than you can chew” is one Alanis Morissette lyric that the team behind Jagged Little Pill appears to have taken far too literally. When the musical—clobbered together from Morissette’s catalogue of hits—premiered at Cambridge’s American Repertory Theater last spring, I wrote in my review that it […]
‘NATURE IS KIND, YOU KNOW?’ APRIL GARGIULO AND THE MAGIC OF VINTNER’S DAUGHTER
Your skin and my skin require the same nutrients to be its most healthy, its most balanced. That is fact, okay? … All skin requires the same nutrients to be its most healthy.
PEAK ARTISTIC EXPERIENCE: BOSTON’S LARGER STAGES DON’T NEED TO BE MORE LIKE THE MOVIES. THEY NEED TO BE MORE LIKE THE SMALL STAGES.
Boston’s larger stages don’t need to be more like the movies. They need to be more like the small stages. Theater critic Ed Siegel incensed some—and drew applause from others—when he published a divisive, bold essay last week bemoaning the current state of Boston theater. In his piece, which was published by WBUR’s […]
