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    ArtsEmerson


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    ArtsEmerson: The World on Stage presents first-class performances from all over the world, providing new opportunities for the Boston community to experience culturally enriching theatre, film, and music. Thanks to Emerson College, ArtsEmerson's home is in Boston’s historic theatre district at the newly opened Paramount Center and the Cutler Majestic Theatre. The Paramount Center includes: 1. The Paramount Theatre 2. The new Black Box Theatre 3. The Bright Family Screening Room These venues will showcase artists in two programming streams: LEGENDS: Established, highly regarded institutions and artists whose work is seen and celebrated around the world PIONEERS: A new generation of acclaimed artists whose ideas are redefining the theatre and pointing to the future. Both of these groups include works that will engage the imaginations of the whole family – young and old alike.

     

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        ArtsEmerson

        120 Boylston St.
        Boston, MA 02116

        Phone: 617-824-8000   |   Email   |   Official Website

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      Reviews

      • Media Reviews

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: Hershey Felder Brings Leonard Bernstein Back To Life
          WBUR - May 09, 2012
          By Meghna Chakrabarti

          Massachusetts native Leonard Bernstein was one of America’s most influential composers. Bernstein’s carreer is widley recognized as one of the most important in the history of American music.

          Born in Lawrence, Mass. in 1918, Bernstein is… Expand

          Massachusetts native Leonard Bernstein was one of America’s most influential composers. Bernstein’s carreer is widley recognized as one of the most important in the history of American music.

          Born in Lawrence, Mass. in 1918, Bernstein is the composer who brough us the ballet “Fancy Free,” the choral “Chichester Psalms,” and of course, the musical “West Side Story.”

          Now, acclaimed playwright and pianist Hershey Felder has brought Bernstein back to life on stage in ArtsEmerson’s production of “Maestro: Leonard Bernstein.”

          “He wanted to be American Mozart, he wanted to be Beethoven, or a new Copeland,” Felder said. “And that eluded him.”

          The action is said to take place on Sunday, October 14, 1990 – the day Bernstein died. But the set, a single grand piano with a massive sheet of music draping the background, is reminiscent of CBS’s television studios, where, in the 1950s, Bernstein made several legendary appearances on the show “Omnibus”.

          Felder’s Bernstein character appears on stage, beneath a projection of the “Omnibus” appearances. The Maestro watches himself. The rest of the show is a journey into the profound struggle and torment that powered a spectacularly creative career.

          The Los Angeles Times notes that “trying to uncover what made Bernstein Bernstein is, of course, an impossible task.”

          Felder is undaunted. Impossible tasks seem to be his forte. He’s done similar one man shows featuring the lives of George Gershwin and Frederic Chopin. As for Bernstein, Felder does not “sand the rough edges,” he said. “Leonard Bernstein is unique…and that is thrilling.” Collapse

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: Felder’s Maestro
          The Boston Phoenix - May 07, 2012
          By Carolyn Clay

          Hershey Felder's Maestro: Leonard Bernstein (presented by ArtsEmerson on the Paramount Mainstage through May 20) begins with black-and-white footage of its subject lecturing vigorously on Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. Whereupon Felder takes the stage a… Expand

          Hershey Felder's Maestro: Leonard Bernstein (presented by ArtsEmerson on the Paramount Mainstage through May 20) begins with black-and-white footage of its subject lecturing vigorously on Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. Whereupon Felder takes the stage and for a while just watches. He is bathed in the glow, not trying to be the man — which is key to the success of a musical portrait that is less about mimicry than understanding. Felder's Bernstein is a man who, for all his celebrity, feels oddly unfulfilled both by his musical gifts and in love. And when, sporting the familiar black turtleneck and shock of silver hair, he rails against his failure to secure immortality as a serious classical composer, then sits down at the piano to reprise "Somewhere" from West Side Story as if it were not worth being remembered for, you want to cry — both because the song is so lovely and because its composer deems it second rate.

          Maestro, which follows Felder portraits of Beethoven, Chopin, and George Gershwin, is a layered treat in which Felder teaches us about Bernstein while Bernstein teaches us about music. It's as if Rob Kapilow were also the composer of Candide. Felder, the Montreal-born son of Jewish immigrants, relates particularly to the young Bernstein endlessly trying to impress a Talmudic dad who equates success with making money. (When a 25-year-old Lenny wows critics as a last-minute replacement for Bruno Walter with the New York Philharmonic, his father, tears streaming, pronounces, "You'll be rich.")

          For most of its hour and 45 minutes, Maestro presents a Bernstein who is droll, intense, but unsentimental — though some sappiness creeps in as Bernstein's wife, whom he briefly left for a man, lies dying of cancer. The show (which is presented by permission of the Leonard Bernstein Office, Inc.) also tiptoes when it comes to its subject's homosexuality — which is not to say it does not put that foot forward. Mostly, though, Maestro is about the man and his music, which is expertly deployed (along with some Beethoven, Mahler, and Wagner) to illustrate a point or underline the emotion that, for Bernstein, was the beating heart of melody.

          Read more: http://thephoenix.com/boston/arts/138168-felders-maestro-orphans-mary-poppers/#ixzz1uTnuQF8T
          Collapse

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Edge Boston - May 06, 2012
          By Robert Nesti

          Before a recent performance of "Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein," a college student sitting nearby me leaned to his friend and said, "Look around. It’s an Old People’s Concert!"

          And he was right. The audiences w… Expand

          Before a recent performance of "Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein," a college student sitting nearby me leaned to his friend and said, "Look around. It’s an Old People’s Concert!"

          And he was right. The audiences was nearly all Baby Boomers, which shouldn’t be that surprising; they’re the generation that grew up with Leonard Bernstein. For many of them, his face was as familiar as those of Bozo the Clown and Howdy Doody.

          Such references aren’t meant to dis Bernstein. On the contrary, no one has ever made classical music more accessible to a nation’s generation than he, and he did so with the novel idea of televised lectures, called "Young People’s Concerts." These nationally televised programs made Bernstein the face of classical music in an nation where classical music was long thought stuffy and consigned to the category of "What Old People Listen To." He did so with such enthusiasm that his young audience understood what Beethoven was up to when he wrote the "Fifth Symphony" (breaking the rules), or how opera evolved from Mozart to Verdi. He mentored a generation to enjoy classical music, which may be his greatest legacy.

          There’s a television camera on the stage of Hershey Felder’s slickly produced biographical piece, and, on occasion, Bernstein’s image is projected onto the large screen that sits on the rear of the set at the Paramount, where his show continues through May 20 (when it will be succeeded by Felder’s Gershwin show).

          That Gershwin show is what introduced Boston audiences to Felder a decade ago at the American Repertory Theater. In it Felder, at that time in his 30s and not unlike the visage of Gershwin from photos and filmed performances, offered a credible impersonation. He played Gershwin beautifully, and the show condensed the iconic composer’s life in under two hours with respect and chutzpah - something that Gershwin would have reveled in.

          With his mane now grey to emulate his subject, Felder suggests a man - not unlike Gershwin - at once ambitious, brilliant, and conflicted. At one point he even expresses how he wants to be the next Gershwin, and on some levels he succeeded.

          Bernstein became a classical music’s greatest populist, equally at home on Broadway as he was advocating the works of Gustav Mahler on concert stages throughout the world. His loquacious manner was addictive, as were the cigarettes that were always present when he was off-stage. (Oddly, no cigarettes are smoked during "Maestro: Leonard Bernstein.")

          The Bernstein that emerges in Felder’s show is an embittered man facing death knowing that he will be remembered for many great things - such as his musical scores and recordings - but not for his serious music. At the end of the show Bernstein lists his composition catalogue - asking if anyone in the audience can hum something from the "Chichester Psalms."

          The irony is that most anyone can hum "Maria" or "Tonight," two of the standards Bernstein wrote for "West Side Story." This conflict between the "pop" and the "serious" artist is a standard Hollywood plot. (Even Liberace attempted it in "Sincerely Yours," his semi-autobiographical star vehicle.) But Felder falls upon one that’s even creakier: The cantankerous father who hems and haws about his son’s musical ambitions, but secretly supports him.

          The other component - Bernstein’s homosexuality - is handled as the deep, dark secret that haunts and, it is inferred, ruined his life. I’m surprised Felder didn’t sit at the piano and play a few bars of the "Pathetique."

          That is what he would have done if this entertainment were a 1940s Hollywood musical composer biography - a genre that Felder is single-handedly bringing to the stage, and more power to him.

          Those of us who love classical music welcome these classy show-and-tells; and Felder makes a very amiable guide, here pointing out the high points of Bernstein’s career. (I was half-expecting him to say, "To our left, is ’Candide.’ ")

          When "Candide" is mentioned, Felder relates a story of Bernstein’s wife Felicia Cohn Montealegre’s involvement with the writing of some of the show’s lyrics, citing "Glitter and Be Gay." Except Felicia’s contribution was stanzas for "I Am Easily Assimilated." Every "Candide" queen knows that. Didn’t Felder read Ethan Mordden?

          "Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein" May 20, 2012 by ArtsEmerson at the Paramount Center Mainstage, 559 Washington Street, Boston, MA; Box Office 617-824-8400 or www.artsemerson.org Collapse

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: ‘Maestro’ taps into sadness of Leonard Bernstein
          The Boston globe - May 01, 2012
          By Don Aucoin

          There are some giant figures — Norman Mailer and Marlon Brando come to mind – who forged spectacular, game-changing careers to which those nagging words “but’’ and “what if?’’ nonetheless cling.

          Leonard Bernstein was another such figure. Expand

          There are some giant figures — Norman Mailer and Marlon Brando come to mind – who forged spectacular, game-changing careers to which those nagging words “but’’ and “what if?’’ nonetheless cling.

          Leonard Bernstein was another such figure. Collapse

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: Fuse Theater Review: Bravo! Hershey Felder in “Maestro: Leonard Bernstein (A Play With Music)”
          The Arts Fuse - May 01, 2012
          By Helen Epstein

          As you enter the colorful and beautifully-restored auditorium of the 596-seat Paramount Theater, you’re struck by the stark, drab, black-and-white set, which suggests a 1950s TV studio. A gleaming concert grand and bench are positioned at center stag… Expand

          As you enter the colorful and beautifully-restored auditorium of the 596-seat Paramount Theater, you’re struck by the stark, drab, black-and-white set, which suggests a 1950s TV studio. A gleaming concert grand and bench are positioned at center stage with two old, clunky lights, a camera, and two office chairs around it. The backdrop is a screen in the shape of an old, crumbling manuscript page of Beethoven’s Fifth on which black-and-white TV footage displays a handsome, 40ish Leonard Bernstein, who is dissecting the core of the symphony. As the lights dim, playwright/performer Hershey Felder appears on stage to gaze along with audience at the intelligent, familiar face. Then, dressed in Bernstein’s signature black turtleneck, Felder becomes the man people all over the world in the mid-twentieth century came to know as Lenny. Collapse

        • Event Name: Hershey Felder in Maestro: Leonard Bernstein
          Article: Felder Bares Bernstein
          Harrumph! - Apr 30, 2012
          By Harrumpher

          Loath as I am to stand in applause (seemingly the norm at every performance from kindergarten through Broadway), Hershey Felder as Leonard Bernstein had me up and flapping. Last evening’s nearly two-hour, one-man show also deserved the overused and u… Expand

          Loath as I am to stand in applause (seemingly the norm at every performance from kindergarten through Broadway), Hershey Felder as Leonard Bernstein had me up and flapping. Last evening’s nearly two-hour, one-man show also deserved the overused and usually hyperbolic tour de force.

          Note that this is an ArtsEmerson show at the Paramount and runs through May 20th. Hie thee. Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein is far better done and more memorable than any play you’re likely to see this year or any musical with women wearing spangles and rhinestones. Collapse

        • Event Name: Café Variations
          Article: Pairing and unpairing in Anne Bogart’s ‘Café Variations’
          The Boston Globe - Apr 18, 2012
          By Patti Hartigan

          She’s willing to wait 15 minutes or five years for that certain someone to walk into the cafe and change her life. He falls for her instantly — and literally, tray flying and table toppling.

          Girl meets boy, over and over and over again i… Expand

          She’s willing to wait 15 minutes or five years for that certain someone to walk into the cafe and change her life. He falls for her instantly — and literally, tray flying and table toppling.

          Girl meets boy, over and over and over again in “Café Variations,” director Anne Bogart’s highly stylized, sometimes beguiling, and sometimes jarring musical theater piece that is making its world premiere at the Cutler Majestic Theatre. The book is a pastiche of fragments from the plays of Charles L. Mee Jr., Bogart’s longtime collaborator. The subject, of course, is love, with all its trite sweet nothings and ferocious partings. Thirty actors inhabit the stage, coupling and uncoupling to a score of reinvented old standards from the Gershwin canon. There is a constant sense of longing in the air, but there is also an undercurrent of violence. One moment, a bouquet of flowers is a token of affection; the next moment, it’s a weapon. Collapse

        • Event Name: Café Variations
          Article: Café Variations Presented by ArtsEmerson
          Boston Area Small Press and Poetry Scene - Apr 18, 2012
          By Amy R. Tighe

          Have you ever wondered what music looks like? You’ve seen movies with and without scores, and probably listened to concerts. And you know how music makes you feel. Triumphant when you hear Chariots of Fire, or beleaguered after any blues song BB… Expand

          Have you ever wondered what music looks like? You’ve seen movies with and without scores, and probably listened to concerts. And you know how music makes you feel. Triumphant when you hear Chariots of Fire, or beleaguered after any blues song BB ever sang.

          But what does a note look like? Or a chord? Or a well-played and precise bar performed by masters of joy? Go see Café Variations. You’ll see. It’s like walking into a sheet of music that suddenly becomes alive and every note is a miniature Cupid personally inviting you to love again. Or at least to have coffee while trying. Collapse

        • Event Name: Café Variations
          Article: Bogart’s Abstract Exploration of the Human Variant
          Fenway News - Apr 17, 2012
          By Jonathan Kim

          Anne Bogart’s Café Variations plays much like a jazz jam session; you’re familiar with most of what you hear, but there are always a handful of unexpected gems.

          The frantic, strung-out performance by Ellen Lauren was among one of those w… Expand

          Anne Bogart’s Café Variations plays much like a jazz jam session; you’re familiar with most of what you hear, but there are always a handful of unexpected gems.

          The frantic, strung-out performance by Ellen Lauren was among one of those worthwhile pieces. The scene was everything you could want from a play: funny, raunchy, engaging and unsettlingly poignant. The high-heeled Lauren even waded into the crowd, batting a few audience members with her purse in an exacerbated escape from the theatre. Collapse

    • Member
      Reviews

      • Member Reviews

        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          5 out of 5 stars rating "awesome show"
          Review posted by: Shawna Hansen from Revere, MA, Sep 04, 2011

          Loved PSY. Hope the group comes back next year!

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          5 out of 5 stars rating "Awesome"
          Review posted by: AM from Boston from Boston, MA, Jul 28, 2011

          We loved it...not quite as refined a Cirque du Soleil, but definately a must see!

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          2.5 out of 5 stars rating "PSY"
          Review posted by: visitors from New Orleans, LA, Jul 27, 2011

          We were visiting Boston, and decided to get 1/2 price tickets after seeing the video clip online. I am glad we did not pay full price. We were disappointed that the show was not more like the video... Expand

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          4.5 out of 5 stars rating "Great Acrobats along with storytelling"
          Review posted by: Naomi from Boston, Jul 27, 2011

          My favorite part was when they dropped or slid down a pole twenty feet, especially when they did it in Tandem. It was part of a story about sleeping and it took place inside a house.

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          2 out of 5 stars rating "Not what we expected"
          Review posted by: J. Cook from Boston Ma., Jul 27, 2011

          We were disappointed in PSY. We did not see anything unusual or spectacular about the performance. We saw nothing that we couldn't have stayed home and watched on Americas Got Talent. We were... Expand

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          4.5 out of 5 stars rating "German Wheel and Hand Balancers exceptional"
          Review posted by: Benjy from Boston, MA USA, Jul 13, 2011

          I've always been skeptical of Cirque du Soleil type presentations because I don't usually appreciate the themes, story lines, and vignettes that accompany what I really like... the "tricks," or acts.... Expand

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        • Event Name: PSY - Mind Blowing Circus
          5 out of 5 stars rating "PSY brings a maturity to the role that our imagination plays"
          Review posted by: - Jen from Boston, MA, Jul 13, 2011

          As someone who has seen Cirque du Soleil every time it is in town, I was intrigued by PSY, and it did NOT disappoint. In fact, it's a fresh rendition of the acrobatic performance fueled by... Expand

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        • Event Name: The Merchant of Venice
          5 out of 5 stars rating "Compelling production"
          Review posted by: Bob Moss from Boston, MA, Mar 31, 2011

          This production is stellar, riveting and compelling all at once. The director brings a distinct 20th century flavor to the production, and we are transported not only to Venice, but to Nazi Germany,... Expand

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        • Event Name: PSY
          5 out of 5 stars rating "Breathtaking"
          Review posted by: Michael from Boston, MA, Jan 27, 2011

          PSY is a fabulous example of modern circus flavored with modern dance. Beautiful, funny, and frequently breaktaking. The show is far more focused and consistent than recent Cirque du Soleil touring... Expand

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        • Event Name: The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later
          "Fascinating information/flat production"
          Comment posted by: Kara MB from Somerville MA, Oct 03, 2010

          Sad to say the Laramie Project: 10 Years Later at ArtsEmerson left me a bit cold. Filled with deeply interesting observations and tid-bits of information on the bending and re-interpreting of the... Expand

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