For the latest installment of his weekly arts rundown on Boston Public Radio, GBH News Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen talks us through his recent spin through New York City, where he took in the biggest and best shows on Broadway.
"A Doll's House"
Playing through June 10 at the Hudson Theatre, 141 W. 44th St., New York
A dramatic staple for national, regional and community theaters, this iteration of the 1879 play by Henrik Ibsen has been nominated for six Tony Awards, including best actress for star Jessica Chastain. As Bowen describes, this production “really strips down Ibsen’s story of ‘A Doll’s House’ into its barest forms, both literally on the stage and in the script.”
The story follows protagonist Nora, who is attempting to build a life of her own, despite being a woman in the 19th century and despite the fact that “her husband controls how life is to be lived, controls who does what.” Nora’s inability to control her own life is visually depicted through her placement on stage. As Bowen explains, “we never see Nora get off her chair. She’s stuck in her chair in this doll’s house that has been created for her.”
"Shucked"
Playing through July 2 at the Nederlander Theatre, 208 W. 41st St., New York
Bowen described this corn-themed as “one of the most delightful, funniest, enjoyable shows I have seen in a really, really, really long time.” With nine Tony Award nominations, including best musical, “Shucked” is among the year’s top-nominated productions.
Main character Maizy lives in quiet Cobb County, where the corn crop is dying. Maizy ventures out to Tampa in search of help, where she encounters a podiatrist — that is, a corn doctor. Bowen says that the show works because “we’re laughing, and the jokes really are pretty funny and clever, more so than you’d expect and more consistently. This is also a really tight cast with great chemistry, but it also has a lot of heart to it,” with overarching themes of community and working together.
"Parade"
Playing through Aug. 6 at the Bernard B Jacobs Theatre, 242 W. 45th St., New York
Nominated for best revival of a musical, “Parade” dramatizes the 1913 trial of a Jewish factory superintendent blamed for the murder of a 13-year-old in his factory. The evidence makes clear that “he had nothing to do with this [and that] his arrest had everything to do with him being Jewish.”
Leo Frank, the real-life factory superintendent on which the story is based, was pardoned posthumously in 1986. A few years ago, investigators launched a new effort that could exonerate Frank.
Bowen says that “it’s a very important time to see this show, [with] very strong performances from Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond.” Diamond has recently been lauded for her performances, with Bowen expecting that “she will probably go on to be one of the greats, and I think has a lock on the Tony for best actress in a musical.”
"Georgia O'Keeffe: To See Takes Time"
On view through Aug. 12 at the Museum of Modern Art, New York
This exhibit explores the entirety of acclaimed artist Georgia O’Keeffe’s life between 1915 and 1964. Though famed for her minimalist painting style, O’Keeffe also worked in this era with other mediums, namely, charcoal, watercolor and drawing. Featured examples from her work include one piece wherein O’Keeffe depicted “the interior of her head during a headache [with] this storm that she’s creating in charcoal,” another work inspired by “a tent in West Virginia, and she takes those triangular forms and she just kind of works through them successively.” Throughout the exhibit, visitors can see how the artist elaborated on and altered themes she presented within her art.
