musical theatre 2019 Archives - Capital Critics' Circle / Le cercle des critiques de la capitale

Oliver at the New Repertory Directed by Michael J. Bobbitt.

By Jane Baldwin | December 8, 2019

Ben Choi-Harris as Oliver Photo Andrew Brilliant / Brilliant productions

The winter holiday season generally brings a Charles Dickens’ play to theatres. At the New Repertory “A Christmas Carol,” the usual piece has been replaced with Lionel Bart’s musical “Oliver” adapted from Dickens’ “Oliver Twist” first produced in London in 1960 and regarded as Great Britain’s first modern musical. Michael J. Bobbitt, the company’s new artistic director has a long career of writing for and working with children. Before coming to the Boston area in 2019, he had been the Artistic Director of Adventure Theatre for twelve years. In this capacity, he directed and choreographed as well as writing new works for the company which is located in Glen Echo outside of Washington DC. He also brought his talents to a number of theatres in Washington DC and taught at several colleges. …

A Space Divided: GCTC’s Cottagers and Indians, an evocative disavowal of white privilege

By Aisling Murphy | December 5, 2019

Photo Andrew Alexander, Herbie Barnes and Phillippa Domville,

The split is clear upon first glance.

He wears muddy jeans and rain boots, while she dons pristine khakis and purple Crocs. His space boasts shoots of wild rice, while hers stands testament to an outdoor grill. Between our two figures lies a shoreline, a dock, and a bright green Astroturf divide.

Drew Hayden Taylor’s Cottagers and Indians, directed by Richard Rose (Artistic Director of Tarragon Theatre), is an empathetically-sharp look into the strident echoes of Canadian colonisation. Over the course of eighty minutes, we as an audience become acquainted with the Indigenous communities fighting to take up space in the ways they deem urgent, while also listening to those whose purchased, lakefront property has become implicated in this attempt at cultural reclaim. Taylor’s artistic voice is refreshing in its generosity to its audience; it does not take sides, and does not favour one character over the other in its navigation of difficult social issues. Taylor guides his listeners without preaching to them; as such, his points speak for themselves in a way that is oh-so-powerful. …