Author: Heather Darrow

Home for the Holidays: Bluegrass & Broadway

Lyric Stage Favorite Erica Spyres Singing & Fiddlin’

December 22, 2017 l 8pm Lyric Stage Company of Boston “Erica Spyres proves, yet again, she can do anything!” — Boston Metro “Performed with a shiver-down-your-spine delicacy by Spyres!” — The Boston Globe “Spyres is out of this world!” — WBUR Lyric Stage audiences have been dazzled by Erica Spyres in such productions as Company, Peter and the Starcatcher, Into the Woods, Avenue Q, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Big River,  and more! Now enjoy Erica and friends in an intimate cabaret about an actor’s life, auditioning, the joy of landing a role, and life on the road, with a bit of Holiday cheer thrown in!  Erica Spyres — from the LYRIC STAGE to the national tour of ONCE and the new Broadway revival of CAROUSEL — home again for one night only!

A sweet love letter of a play!” — NY Times “Devastating and devastatingly funny.” – The Village Voice

Souvenir

A FANTASIA ON THE LIFE OF FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS

by Stephen Temperley Directed by Spiro Veloudos Music Director, Will McGarrahan October 20 — November 19, 2017 Spiro Veloudos remounts one of his favorite productions in celebration of his 20 years as Producing Artistic Director.  Souvenir is an affectionate portrait of Florence Foster Jenkins, one of the finest coloratura sopranos in history — but, alas, only in her own mind!  Despite being called "majestically awful," her concerts in the 1930s and '40s, including a legendary appearance at Carnegie Hall, were not only sold-out but were attended by the crème de la crème of Manhattan society. Told affectionately through the eyes of her longtime accompanist  Cosmé McMoon, Souvenir is the sweet, inspiring, hilarious portrait of a passionate music lover who believed that "what matters most is the music you hear in your head."

“The greatest of all American musicals!”  — NY Times

Gypsy

A MUSICAL FABLE

Book and Lyrics by Arthur Laurents Music by Jule Styne Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim Directed and Choreographed by Rachel Bertone Music Director, Dan Rodriguez Suggested by memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee Original production by David Merrick & Leland Hayward Entire production originally directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins  September 1 — October 8, 2017  “Everything’s Coming up Roses” in this classic musical based on the memoirs of burlesque mega-star, Gypsy Rose Lee, and her stage-mother, the iconic Mama Rose.  In the tradition of My Fair Lady, Avenue Q, and Into the Woods, Gypsy will once again prove that the intimate Lyric Stage is the perfect place to experience the very best of the American musical theatre, especially the work of the brilliant Stephen Sondheim.

by Katharine Mayk, Artistic Assistant Amelia Broome* and Christopher Chew* in Lyric Stage’s production of Sweeney Todd. Photo: Mark S. Howard You don’t have to be an assassin, a witch, or a murderous barber to understand one. Stephen Sondheim revolutionized the the American musical by using rich characters with identifiable emotions as the driving force of the story in each of his

by A. Nora Long Barbra. Bette (and Bette). Bernadette. Beyoncé.Women of stage, screen, and song who live so large in popular imagination they are known by their first names alone (and I’ve just named the Bs). These women have achieved a rarified status with legions of fans world-wide, but their elevation to the divine is often owed to a

Lynn Nottage, playwright of Intimate Apparel, on stageat The Lyric Stage Company of Boston fromFeb. 13th - Mar. 14th.  When Intimate Apparel playwright Lynn Nottage was cleaning out her grandmother's house, she discovered an old photograph of her great-great grandmother. She started at the New York Public Library and what she uncovered about her family history was woven into her play Intimate Apparel. The photo was

PBS’s “News Hour with Jim Lehrer” paid tribute to Molly Ivins on her death by re-airing her survey of Texas Art – or “Ort,” as they say. The broadcast features Molly’s signature wit and Texan witticisms that lovingly jab at her home state. https://youtu.be/XKckRXKRmRg Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins runs from Jan. 2- Jan. 31st. Great seats

Molly writes about the 2006 Texas Gubernatorial debate, featuring Governor “Good Hair” Perry. “I sacrificed an hour Friday evening to watch the Texas gubernatorial debate on your behalf, since I knew none of you would do it,” she writes.  If only Molly would preview all of our debates for us. The Not-So-Great Texas Gubernatorial Debate, by Molly Ivins "AUSTIN, Texas —

You may remember in 2001, Senator Jim Jeffords abandoned the Republican party due to the “changing nature of the party,” giving Democrats a one seat majority. Molly tackles the implications for the change on the Bush/Rove White House and assumes readers will blame Texas. “It’s often hard to discern the difference between Texas Tough and Texas Stupid.” Shrub Flubs

Molly’s final column is a rallying cry to future generations to pick up the cause she must lay down: the fight for freedom and justice. "We are the people who run this country. We are the deciders. And every single day, every single one of us needs to step outside and take some action to help stop this war. Raise