As the summer comes to a close, I like to promote Boston Theater comanies and their fall productions. This fall, Boston area theater companies have a crop of interesting and engaging productions – something for everyone. For those who may not be familiar with the local theater scene, check it out and for those of you who haven’t seen a live performance in a few years, make plans to catch a show.
Tickets to shows from local theater companies are far more affordable than the national tours that come through Boston, and they make for an excellent date night or evening out with friends.
The Huntington || Sing Street
August 26 – October 2, 2022
It’s Dublin, 1982. Sixteen-year old Conor tries to impress a mysterious girl, Raphina, by asking her to star in a music video for his band. If only he had a band. Teaming up with a group of schoolmates, Conor and Raphina use music to bring them together, escape their troubles at home, and carve out a place in their struggling community. With a score that embraces the new wave sounds of the 80s, Sing Street is an ode to the thrill of young love and a celebration of the power of music to lift us up.
American Repertory Theater || Twighlight Los Angeles, 1992
August 28 – September 24, 2022
A searing examination of racial injustice, police brutality, and social tumult, “Twilight” was drawn from 320 interviews Smith conducted after the 1992 Los Angeles riots ignited by the acquittal of white police officers who were caught on videotape brutally beating a Black motorist named Rodney King.
SpeakEasy Stage Co. || Heroes of the Fourth Turning
September 9 – October 8, 2022
One week after the Charlottesville riots in 2017, four young conservatives gather in a Wyoming backyard to gossip and reminisce. They’ve assembled to honor Gina, their mentor and the newly inaugurated president of a far-right Catholic university. But as their celebration runs deep into the night, the reunion explodes into vicious insults, political accusations, and stunning revelations.
Lyric Stage Co. || Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine
September 16 – October 9, 2022
Undine has it all until her husband steals her hard-earned fortune, sending her tumbling down the social ladder. Pregnant and penniless, with life unraveling at every turn, she is forced to return home to Brooklyn and the family she left behind, in a complicated new reality. While her life unravels, Undine learns that hope can be found in small victories and in the discovery of finding happiness within.
North Shore Music Theater || Little Shop of Horrors
September 20 – October 2, 2022
Meek flower shop assistant Seymour pines for co-worker Audrey. During a total eclipse, he discovers an unusual plant he names Audrey II, which feeds only on human flesh and blood. The growing plant attracts a great deal of business for the previously struggling store. After Seymour feeds Audrey’s boyfriend, Orin, to the plant after Orin’s accidental death, he must come up with more bodies for the increasingly bloodthirsty plant.
Central Square Theater || Ada the Engine
September 22 – October 23, 2022
It’s 1830 and Britain’s Industrial Revolution has dawned. The fiery, brilliant Ada Byron Lovelace, is the author of the first computer program and daughter of Lord Byron, and at 17 she befriends Charles Babbage, salon host and inventor of the first mechanical computer. What follows is a tempestuous collaboration wherein they envision a future where a “thinking engine” completes complex calculations.