Lights, Camera, Nostalgia!
Today, Jennifer shares some great local theatres where you can get your musical fix on a budget:
The first time my parents took me to a musical, I was blown away. My dad surprised us with season tickets to a local theatre and we saw everything from Annie to South Pacific that year. I was in elementary school at the time and boy, nothing I'd seen up to that point compared to the glorious lights, music, costumes, and magic that is live theatre!
My kids are still a bit young for most shows, but I have started to scout out some great local theatres for the years ahead. Broadway shows are amazing, but not all of us have the time or budget to head into Boston for a high-priced show, especially with young kids who may or may not be able to sit through a nearly 3-hour performance. But with so many wonderful community theatres nearby, there's a way to get your musical fix on a budget. Here are a few that I've found so far:
The Reagle Music Theatre in Waltham offers a Christmas show (my kids loved it) that is a fantastic local version of the Radio City Music Hall show. And their version of Annie last year was stellar (Sally Struthers makes for one fab Mrs. Hannigan!).
We've also visited the very cool North Shore Music Theatre. It's got a great "theatre in the round" set up that gives even more life to the wonderful lighting, costumes, acting, and singing. This year you can catch My Fair Lady, Tarzan, The King and I, Footloose, and Legally Blonde.
I saw a lovely version of Singing in the Rain last spring (tough to pull off at a community theatre!) at Emerson Umbrella Theatre in Concord; last month they put on a production of Ragtime.
In this day and age of over scheduling and way too much digital stuff, it's wonderful to take a step back in time and enjoy the live theatre, whether for the kids or just the grown-ups!
Comments
You should also check out The Stoneham Theatre which is about 20 minutes north of Boston. A great professional theatre at affordable prices!
Posted by: Laura | May 14, 2011 12:55 PM | Reply to this comment
The Wheelock Family Theater also puts on great high quality shows. Not always musical but they are doing Wizard of Oz next season. They have done great classic versions of the classics like Little Mermaid and Aladdin that are based on the original stories. (and full disclosure my daughter has been in some of their shows)
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Posted by: AmyB | May 14, 2011 1:41 PM | Reply to this comment
Good tips, thank you! My family enjoys Riverside Theatre Works, http://www.riversidetheatreworks.org/
They did a great production of A Christmas Carol last year.
(My wife built their website several years ago, but otherwise no affiliation.)
Posted by: Derek Slater | May 14, 2011 3:00 PM | Reply to this comment
Some of the local high schools have wonderful performances. For example, I took my daughter to see Burlington High's production of Beauty and the Beast and it was a great show. There are some great youth theatre productions during the summer months also. I know Lexington Youth Theatre is performing Bye Bye Birdie in July.
Posted by: Hillary | May 15, 2011 5:28 PM | Reply to this comment
We have seen several performances through the Concord Youth Theatre-http://concordyouththeatre.org/. Their shows are perfect for little ones that aren't ready for the real deal.
Posted by: Lori Popkewitz Alper | May 15, 2011 5:39 PM | Reply to this comment
Thanks for the additional fantastic recommendations!
Posted by: Christine Koh - Editor | May 17, 2011 8:40 AM | Reply to this comment
The Performing Arts Center of MetroWest (pacmetrowest.org) above the Danforth Museum in Downtown Framingham has fabulous classes and shows for kids. The PAC Family Players (ages 3rd - 8th grade) perform 4 shows a year, both musicals and non-musicals. They are doing Seussical Jr in August (no audition necessary to get into the show). PAC also offers classes for ages 3 and up throughout the year. This summer, there are morning programs for K-2nd graders and full-day, show-oriented weekly programs for 3rd-9th graders. Spaces are still available. There are also opportunities for teens and adults through Framingham Community Theater (they do an original mystery dinner theater production every spring that is amazing!). FCT's next auditions for their fall musical "Curtains" are in July.
Posted by: Betsy | July 8, 2011 1:54 PM | Reply to this comment