From outdoor Shakespeare and classic musical revivals to important contemporary plays, this summer is jammed with compelling, thrilling theater. This summer also marks your last chance to see the spectacular Off the Wall exhibition at the Gardner Museum and to study the works of Rodin at the Peabody Essex Museum. From Judy Garland and Anna Deavere Smith to Childe Hassam and Luca della Robbia, there is much to get excited about in Boston this summer.
PERFORMING ARTS
Get Happy: The Musical Biography of Judy Garland
Open-ended run through the summer
Club Café, Boston
A bittersweet, life-affirming evening of stories and songs performed by the sensational Peter Mac. Mickey Rooney himself presented Mac with the Southern California Motion Picture Council Golden Halo Award for this show, so catch it while you can. thejudygarlandshow.com
Bedlam’s Twelfth Night & What You Will
June 9-July 10
Central Square Theater, Cambridge
Bedlam is back at it again, presenting the same play two different ways with the same set of actors and the same director. After they earned raves in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, you should see one, or see them both. centralsquaretheater.org
If/Then
July 5-17
Boston Opera House
A fascinating contemporary musical by the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning creators of Next to Normal about what is and what might have been. Original Broadway cast member Anthony Rapp (Rent) reprises his role on tour.broadwayinboston.com
Thoroughly Modern Millie
July 7-17
Reagle Music Theatre, Waltham
The perfect summer musical. An infectious score and a side-splitting book make this a sure bet for all ages.reaglemusictheatre.com
Hamlet
July 13-31
Apollinaire Theatre Company @ PORT Park, Chelsea
The best play ever written being performed outside on the harbor. And it’s free. Bring blankets and food and make it an evening. The terrific Brooks Reeves stars as Hamlet. apollinairetheatre.com
The T Party
July 15-Aug 13
Company One @ Roberts Studio Theatre, Boston
Leave it to Company One to throw the party of the summer. Playwright Natsu Onoda Power directs this New England premiere of her play, which promises to take a one-of-a-kind look at gender expression in contemporary America. companyone.org
Love’s Labour’s Lost
July 20-Aug 7
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company @ The Boston Common
Free Shakespeare on the Common is undoubtedly one of the best parts about summer in the Hub. Feel free to bring food, but a variety of food trucks will also be on site. commshakes.org
Notes from the Field: Doing Time in Education
Aug 2016
American Repertory Theater, Cambridge
Created, written, and performed by the indispensable Anna Deavere Smith, ART kicks off its new season on a serious note, exploring the connections between America’s education system and its mass incarceration crisis. americanrepertorytheater.org
Crazy For You
Aug 4-14
Reagle Music Theatre, Waltham
I’m not a fan of shoehorning music catalogues (in this case, the Gershwin songbook) into a ridiculous plot and calling it a musical, but this one works. As far as musical comedies go, this one s’wonderful. reaglemusictheatre.com
Singin’ in the Rain
Aug 16-Sept 4
North Shore Music Theatre, Beverly
It will be hard to duplicate the magic of Gene Kelly and the original film, but I have a lot of faith in NSMT. And they’re promising real rain. nsmt.org
VISUAL ARTS
Drawings from the Age of Bruegel, Rubens, and Rembrandt
Through Aug 14
Harvard Art Museum, Cambridge
An exhibition containing about 40 of the Harvard Art Museum’s Netherlandish, Dutch, and Flemish drawings from the 15th-18th century. harvardartmuseums.org
Rodin: Transforming Sculpture
Through Sept 5
Peabody Essex Museum, Salem
Organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in collaboration with the Musée Rodin, Paris, this exhibition explores the work of Rodin and his impact on the art of sculpture. pem.org
Liz Deschenes
June 29-Oct 16
Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
In the first mid-career survey dedicated to Boston-born Deschenes, 20 years of her artwork will be on display. icaboston.org
American Impressionist: Childe Hassam and the Isles of Shoals
July 16-Nov 6
Peabody Essex Museum, Salem
The first exhibition in more than 25 years to focus on Hassam’s paintings of the Isles of Shoals, located off the coast of New Hampshire. More than 40 of his works will be on display. pem.org
Off the Wall: Gardner and her Masterpieces
Through Aug 28
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
An unprecedented look at some of Gardner’s finest treasures, featuring work by Rembrandt, Rubens, Fra Angelico, Botticelli, Raphael, and Michelangelo. gardnermuseum.org
Della Robbia: Sculpting with Color in Renaissance Florence
Aug 9-Dec 4
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
About 50 of Luca della Robbia’s 15th-century sculptures will be shown, including some never before seen in the United States. mfa.org
Theater critic for TheaterMania & WBUR’s TheArtery | Theater Editor for DigBoston | film and music critic for EDGE Media | Boston Theater Critics Association.
