DINNER AND A SHOW: FIVE NEIGHBORHOODS. FIVE SHOWS. FIVE RESTAURANTS.
Fall in the Hub can be the best time to get a lineup of killer new theatrical productions and the new or fresh-off-a-summer-renovations spots to eat at before or after a show on one’s radar. Here are five ways to to do just that this season. Get out there.
Harvard Square
Show: Kansas City Choir Boy, ART @ OBERON
When: 10.1-10.10
What: Courtney Love and Todd Almond star in Almond’s rock opera about an electric love affair between two musicians. When she leaves Kansas City for New York with bigger things in mind, she breaks his heart. Watching the news one night, he finds out that she has died. What results is a unique, unforgettable meditation on love and pain. americanrepertorytheater.org
Restaurant: Parsnip
Pairing because: Seeing Love’s debut in the long-gestating revamp to the old Upstairs on the Square space involving one of the best mixologists from New Orleans, kitchen talent from an ex-Boston Chops chef, and a homey, mid-century modern decor design just seems right for some reason. Opening early fall. facebook.com/parsniprestaurant
South End
Show: appropriate, Speakeasy Stage @ The BCA
When: 9.12-10.10
What: An Obie Award-winning modern classic making its Boston premiere, appropriate is a blistering drama in the tradition of Tennessee Williams, Sam Shepard, and Horton Foote about legacy, secrets, and race. speakeasystage.com/appropriate
Restaurant: Banyan Bar + Refuge
Pairing because: The second coming of the old Hamersley’s Bistro iconic space by the Gallows Group and ex-East by NorthEast chef and owner Philip Tang is poised to be an easy go-to after seeing any show at the BCA. It’s next door. banyanboston.com
Central Square
Show: Copenhagen, Central Square Theater
When: 10.1-11.15
What: Winner of three Tony Awards, including Best Play, Copenhagen is a masterful psychological mystery about Heisenberg and Bohr’s reunion in the afterlife, in which they attempt to unravel the events of the fateful night when they famously confronted each other during WWII. centralsquaretheater.org
Restaurant: Thelonious Monkfish
Pairing because: A Tony Award-winning show about two people reconnecting in the afterlife seems somewhat fitting to pair with a beloved Central Square house of live music and great sushi now that the place is having its own second life after a major interior overhaul and expansion. theloniousmonkfish.com
Theater District
Show: An Audience with Meow Meow, ArtsEmerson @ The Cutler Majestic
When: 10.8-10.24
What: Post-postmodern international sensation Meow Meow comes to Boston (so close to Broadway, she says) in a brand new musical. Whatever may happen, she cautions, she always promises her audience a big finish. artsemerson.org
Restaurant: Doretta Taverna
Pairing because: Top Chef Masters alumnus Michael Schlow’s new Greek-inspired nod to his wife’s roots will be bringing the kind of clean, fresh mediterranean flavors and libations one would look for after post-postmodernism. Imminent opening. facebook.com/dorettaboston
Back Bay
Show: A Confederacy of Dunces, Huntington Theatre @ The BU Theater
When: 11.11-12.13
What: The long-awaited world premiere of the play based on John Kennedy Toole’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, starring Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation). It will be the hottest ticket in town, so get them while you can. huntingtontheatre.org
Restaurant: Strip by Strega
Pairing because: The posh retro-ish steakhouse is experiencing its first fall, and since Nick Offerman will be forever linked to Ron Swanson, it feels like pairing the hottest ticket in town with a decadent meal at the Plaza is an all-around layup. stripbystregaboston.com
DAN MCCARTHY
Editor
Dan McCarthy is a Boston-based journalist and and former editor in chief of DigBoston, whose work has appeared in The Boston Institute for Non-Profit Journalism (BINJ), VICE, The Boston Globe, Esquire, The Daily Beast, Thrillist, Fast Company, Pacific Standard, Leafly News, and more.
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CHRISTOPHER EHLERS
Chris is a theater critic for TheaterMania, WBUR's TheArtery, and is the Theater Editor for DigBoston. He is the treasurer of the Boston Theater Critics Association and reviews film and music for EDGE Media Network.
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