“Book of Mountains and Seas” — Composer and Librettist –Ruo Huang. Director and Production Designer – Basil Twist. Presented by Arts Emerson at the Emerson Paramount Center, 559 Washington St., Boston, through April 21.
By Shelley A. Sackett
“Book of Mountains and Seas” is an artistically adventurous new work by award-winning composer Ruo Huang and MacArthur Fellow puppeteer/artist Basil Twist. Their collaboration is an inventive twist on ancient Chinese myths about creation and destruction that, in this perilous era of climate change, are especially relevant 2,500 years later.
J.Antonio-Rodriguez and Amaya Braganza in ‘Hadestown’ Photos by T Charles Erickson
Next week, the national touring company of Hadestown, winner of eight 2019 Tony Awards (including Best Musical) and the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, rolls into Boston for a limited run at the Boch Center Wang Theater, April 23-28. Theater Mirror’s Mike Hoban caught up with Amaya Braganza, ‘Hadestown’s’Eurydice to talk about her transition from child performer to Broadway lead.
By Mike Hoban
Theater Mirror: I know that you did Annie on Broadway when you were 10, and obviously, they didn’t just pick you out of a crowd, so how did your career start?
Amaya: I grew up in California and started doing musical theater in community shows when I was about five. My first show was Annie, as one of the orphans – and I still have a picture from that show. When I was eight, I was part of a musical theater program where we took dance classes and did competitions and shows. That’s where I met my best childhood friend, Mia. She told me about this open call in New York for Annie on Broadway and we decided to go. Her mom had airplane and hotel points, and they took me to New York. It was an open call, and I think there were almost 1000 people there, with a bunch of kids lined up outside of a New York high school. I did the open call, and then I kept getting callbacks throughout the week, and then I ended up booking the show and found I had a real love for theater.
TM: What kind of job did your mom have that allowed you to stay in New York?
Amaya: She was a teacher but quit her teaching job and became a stay-at-home mom. She had time for all of our extracurricular activities, and I chose theater and the arts. So, it was easier for her to make that move to New York, but it was difficult because my dad and older sister were back home in California. We were separated for a few months when I was working, but they would try to visit New York cause as often as they could.
TM: What about school?
Amaya: My mom was a teacher, so she homeschooled me. Later, when I did The King and I (in 2015), where you’re doing rehearsals all day, the company provided tutors.
TM: Tell me about the Braganza Sisters (a singing trio she formed with her sisters). Are they really your sisters and do they perform in theater too?
Amaya: Yes, they really are my sisters. My younger sister and I actually did The King and I on Broadway and on tour together. I grew up performing with them ever since I could speak. My older sister was the first one to get into acting and performing, but as I say a lot, being Filipino, I feel like it’s ingrained in our culture. The karaoke machines are always out at my grandma’s house. Every time we go over to her house, she forces us all to sing, even my mom and my dad; everybody has to perform, so it’s always been a big part of my life.
I grew up singing with my sisters, and they also perform in touring shows as well. So we said, ‘We all sing and are interested in this, so why don’t we create music together?’ And I think what’s so special about creating our own music is that we’re often in shows, telling someone else’s story, and it’s nice to create our own stories and have autonomy over the art we want to create. It feels more personal to us and to who we are as artists. And working with your sisters, we have that connection like no other because we get each other.
TM: I know that a Filipino actor originated the role of Eurydice in Hadestown, and you said in a previous interview that “Eurydice was my dream role because she embodies qualities that are present within Filipino culture,” Can you expand on that for me?
Amaya: I don’t know if it necessarily follows Filipino culture specifically, but I do think that, in many ways, Eurydice’s experience is mirrored by a person of color’s experience. I think growing up in the industry, especially from a young age, you didn’t really see characters like me. I would audition and often see characters that fell into the hegemonic view of what an Asian woman should be, and I feel like Eurydice really defies the odds in terms of the strength that she has and that resiliency and, in many ways, the way she navigates the world – especially a world that’s not built for her and that consistently like marginalizes her. It’s very similar to a woman of color’s experience in terms of doing whatever you can to survive and that strength that we have to hold in terms of living in a world in a system that oppresses us.
TM: I actually saw a touring production at the Hanover Theatre last year, and Lana Gordon was in that show and was added to this tour (as Persephone). What’s it like working with a Broadway veteran like Lana, and what has the experience been like from a learning perspective?
Amaya: I feel so blessed to be sharing the stage with her. She’s just so talented, and to see that fire on stage… I grew up working around other Broadway and Tony award-winning legends like Kelly O’Hara, and you learn a lot from them in terms of their work ethic. Working with Lana, I feel so lucky to be sharing the stage with her, especially seeing such a strong woman of color on stage. It’s very inspiring and empowering and I learned from her in terms of advocating for myself. And she’s also a wonderful person off-stage.
TM: Hadestown is one of the most original Broadway shows I’ve seen in recent years, and the score is amazing, but it also has a much deeper message, specifically about income inequality and the divide between the haves and the have-nots; I mean, Hell is literally a sweatshop factory, so I don’t think it’s really a stretch…
Amaya: Absolutely.Even though it’s Greek mythology, it contains many important themes that relate to today’s world, especially immigration and capitalism. Climate change is also a really big part of it.
TM: Well, it is Hell.
Amaya: I love this story because it’s both a present and a timeless piece, and it presents that material in a poetic and nuanced way.
Daniel Boudreau, Sharon Mason and Keving Paquette in Praxis Stage’s ‘Birthday Party’ Photos by Alex Aroyan
The Birthday Party – Written by Harold Pinter; Directed by James Wilkinson; Costumes by E. Rosser; Lighting by Michaela P. Purvis. Presented by Praxis Stage at the Chelsea Theatre Works, 189 Winnisimmet Street, Chelsea, through April 28th
by Mike Hoban
As the lights dimmed for intermission at the opening of Praxis Stage’s superbly acted, well-directed The Birthday Party, the patron in front of me not-so-quietly whispered to his companion, “What the F*#k was that?”
It’s a question that won’t get answered by the end of the play, but for some, the joy may be in the journey. The Birthday Party was Harold Pinter’s first full length play. It opened in London in 1958 and closed after only eight performances due to disastrous reviews before being successfully revived in later years. The play is a prime example of the Theatre of the Absurd, a movement popularized from 1940 to 1960 by playwrights like Pinter, Samuel Beckett, and Ionesco which advanced the notion that life is illogical, without purpose and devoid of meaning.
Joy Clark and the cast of “The Drowsy Chaperone” at Lyric Stage
“The Drowsy Chaperone” – Music and Lyrics by Lisa Lampert and Greg Morrison. Book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. Directed and Choreographed by Larry Sousa. Musical Direction by Matthew Stern. Presented by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, 140 Clarendon Street, Boston, through May 12.
By Michele Markarian
From the moment the Man in Chair (an engaging Paul Melendy) puts on a record of his favorite musical from the 1920s to shake himself out of a gloomy mood, we know we are in for a fun ride. Melendy’s sincerity, wry delivery, and easy charm set the tone for the rest of the show, where the acting is impeccable, the vocals are terrific, the songs are catchy, and the script is funny.
“Lennox Mutual,” created by Evan Neiden, Olivia Behr, and Joel Meyers.
Directed by Jacob Leaf and Evan Neiden. Presented by Candle House Collective.
By Michele Markarian
I don’t even know where to begin about my three phone call experiences with “Lennox Mutual,” the latest remote immersive theatre experience from Candle House Collective. According to Candle House Collective’s website, Lennox Mutual is “an alternate reality experience by phone.” Very true. The alternate reality was such that I found myself believing it was real. Which, for a theatrical experience that took place in my office and on my cell phone, is pretty impressive. And creative. As well as the most intriguing and unique theatrical experience I’ve had in a while.
According to its recorded message, Lennox Mutual is the #1 Life Insurance Company in the world today. Like any company worth its corporate weight, Lennox Mutual consists of a labyrinth of recorded messaging that each participant must circle through before the twenty to twenty-three minute phone session ends. Finding the keys to the castle is impossible, but nonetheless entertaining. The automated system has a solid wall of defense in place to keep you from getting to a real person in a frustrating parody of real life, only more personalized.
I say automated system because it is hard to believe that the voice on the other end of the phone is actually an actor, and an excellent one at that. As it’s an interactive experience, you are a big part of it, and you’re working without a script, which is thrilling and dangerous – in a good way – and surprising. It’s a wonderful way to express one’s pent-up frustration from years of dealing with machinery over the phone instead of people. At one point, when the automated voice asked how I was feeling, I, in a moment of startling vulnerability, told her I was frustrated and that I felt like she didn’t care about me. What followed was an apology that actually sounded caring and remorseful, almost human, before the automation once again became impenetrable.
The opposite happened in my third session. In a word association exercise with the automated gatekeeper, my strong and positive association with a certain word was rejected, and the exercise stalled. I swore the automated voice sounded spiteful – indeed, almost human – when he told me my feelings for the subject weren’t deep enough. I had no recourse, the voice being automated, but he made up for it with another exercise, a successful one, that restored my feelings of self-worth.
The hold music for Lennox Mutual is alternately elegant and jaunty. On all three calls, the automated voice – played by two different actors – sang and sang well. At times I burst out laughing, only because there’s clearly no way out of the phone maze, and it’s just funny. The illusion that any of your choices will lead anywhere is just that, yet Lennox Mutual reminds us that it’s the journey, not the destination. There’s a playfulness to the work that reminds me of Yoko Ono and the infamous exhibit at London’s Indica Gallery, where John Lennon climbed the ladder to one of her pieces, picked up a magnifying glass that was at the top, and read the word YES. Do it! Book your sessions today at https://candlehousecollective.com/
Merrimack Repertory Theatre presents THE PORCH ON WINDY HILL. Written by Sherry Stregack Lutken, Lisa Helmi Johanson, Morgan Morse, and David M. Lutken. Conceived and directed by Sherry Stregack Lutken. Scenic Design by Mara Ishihara Zinky. Costume Design by Gregory Graham. Lighting Design by Dawn Chiang. Sound Design by Sun Hee Kil. Music Direction by David M. Lutke. At Merrimack Repertory Theatre, Lowell, Massachusetts, through April 21, 2024.
By Linda Chin
Merrimack Rep’s production of The Porch on Windy Hill features a diverse and tremendously talented trio of professional actors who have appeared on Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional stages – David M. Lutken, Rob Morrison, and EJ Zimmerman. In this ‘new play with old music,’ the actors sing and actually play a diverse mix of instruments, including the banjo, dulcimer, guitar, harmonica, mandolin, violin, and erhu (Chinese fiddle), with a remarkably high level of proficiency. In their poignant performances, they demonstrate that music is indeed ‘the food of love’ – and has the power to heal hearts and nourish souls, connect cultures and cultivate relationships, and to even inspire families in longstanding feuds to communicate with each other and ‘play on.’
Emmy-winning actor Gordon Clapp (NYPD Blue) will bring his acclaimed portrayal of poet Robert Frost to Boston this Spring in the one-man show “Robert Frost: This Verse Business” by local playwright A.M. Dolan.The show portrays the great poet and platform legend whose public “talks” were hot tickets for nearly half a century. Theater Mirror spoke with Clapp as he prepared for the April 23-28 run at the Calderwood Pavilion in Boston.
by Mike Hoban
Theater Mirror: I understand that you’ve long had a love affair with Robert Frost’s work. How did you first discover him?
Gordon: It was the Kennedy inauguration (where Frost read “The Gift Outright”) – I’m that old – but I knew of him before that. Later in school, we were assigned “Out, Out,” which is a reference to “Out out brief candle!” (from Macbeth). It’s a very dark poem. In an idyllic setting, this horrific event happens. A boy gets his hand cut off by a buzzsaw in rural New England in the backyard of his home, and it really had an impact on me as a boy of that age in that setting, some fifty years later, and I just got addicted to Frost’s poetry. I would do little readings all through college, and a few years after college, I read his three-volume biography by Lawrence Thompson and said to myself, “I’ve got to bring this guy to the stage.” It took me thirty years to get around to it, but when I turned 60, I thought, “Now I can get away with playing the older Frost.”
Comedian Gabe Mollica brings his Off-Broadway comedy, “Solo: A Show About Friendship,” to the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA from April 16-21st. He dives deep into what it means to have friends in your 30s, his special relationship with Stephen Sondheim, working at a summer camp for children with chronic illnesses, and what happens when you break up with your best friend. Theater Mirror caught up with Gabe recently as he prepared for his Boston engagement.
Kiki Samko, Victor Shopov in Hub Theater’s ‘Burn This’
“Burn This” — Written by Lanford Wilson. Directed by Daniel Bourque. Presented by Hub Theatre Company of Boston at the BCA Plaza Black Box Theatre, 539 Tremont St., through April 21.
By Shelley A. Sackett
Since Burn This arrived on Broadway in 1987, critics have lamented the same thing – at its core, the play itself is not great. Despite luminary-filled casts (including John Malkovich, Adam Driver, and Edward Norton), the play never garnered the kind of accolades awarded to Wilson’s other works, such as Talley’s Folly (Pulitzer Prize), Hot L Baltimore (Obie), and Fifth of July.
MAKOM – Vertigo Dance Company. Choreographed by Noa Wertheim and Rina Wertheim-Koren. Music by Ran Bagno; Lighting Design by Dani Fishof-Magenta; Costume Design by Sasson Kedem; Stage Design by Zohar Shoef. Presented by Celebrity Series of Boston at the Boch Center Shubert Theatre. Run has ended.
By Shelley A. Sackett
Renown Jerusalem-based contemporary dance company Vertigo does much more than its modest claim of “exploring the creative process.” Artistic Director and Co-Founder Noa Wertheim’s newest work, MAKOM (Hebrew for “place”), breaks new ground with its exciting blend of storyline, emotion, sound, and movement. The result is an evening-length journey that takes us to a deep place within and without ourselves, where language is more than words and meaning is more than content.
