Join your neighbors tonight at the first evening of Shakespeare in the Park. The New Rep’s Classic Repertory Company will be performing A Midsummer Night’s Dream from the Hyde Playground Bandstand. The performance starts at 8:00 PM. While the forecast predicts the weather will be fine for tonight’s outdoor event there is a plan in case of rain so don’t let today’s clouds dissuade you from stopping by.
I am personally looking forward to tonight to see how the play will be choreographed on the bandstand stage.
Very cool that NewRep, which began in the Highlands, is returning to do this.
This is really weird, but very timely…I just came to blog on Village 14 with the thought that I would rant about the lack of live theatre in Newton. Last night I saw a very amusing and entertaining melodrama called Her Aching Heart, in Cambridge at the Central Square Theatre, that involved swords, riding crops, nuns, lesbians, romance novels and romance. It was simply hilarious! I know that the Village 14 blog has only one caveat, that the articles must be about Newton, but there is a serious void of live theatre in Newton and that, after all, is definitely about Newton! While I am truly heartened that there will be a midsummer night’s performance of a Midsummer Night’s Dream tonight and I will certainly attempt to attend with my 4 year old grandson in tow, when I can once again get a yearly subscription to amusing, enlightening and entertaining theatre events on an indoor stage within Newton’s boundaries, I will be deeply overjoyed. How would that be as a suggestion for Austin Street or St. Philip Neri or some other as yet unidentified site? We could certainly use and support a large and legitimate theatre experience in our fair city.
Sallee: I think that’s what mr. Vona wants to do with the old Turtle Lane property in Auburndale, if the neighborhood let’s him.
@Sallee: How can you say we don’t have live theater here in Newton? Have you never been to an aldermen meeting?
Also, in addition to tonight’s performance, the Hyde bandstand will host “Much Ado About Nothing” in a few weeks and a performance by the 50-piece New Philharmonia Orchestra next week. Pretty amazing endeavor by the folks at the Hyde Community Center.
Just got back from the performance, and it was fantastic! Kudos to everyone involved!
@Greg. I’ve become so depressed by the national and international news that, in comparison, the Board of Aldermen meetings come off as being the epitome of sane reasoning and discourse. Last week’s debate about sanctioning homeowners whose property is laden with trash and debris was a classic. I thought both sides acquitted themselves well.
My problem with the Aldermen meetings, in theatrical terms, is their pacing. Too many plot diversions. And what’s up with that intermission between first call and second? It comes too soon in the program, destroys the pacing. Plus the acoustics and sight lines leave a lot to be desired. I wish they had super titles like they do at the opera. It would greatly improve the odds of following along. And do we really need 24 actors? I think not!
Meanwhile, I agree with JenAK, last night was fantastic. A really clever and energetic production. The actors were first rate. As one attendee said, it really was of the quality you’d expect to see outdoors on the Boston Common, only you could sit a lot closer and didn’t need to spend an hour on the T getting home.
Thanks to the folks at the Hyde Community Center for making this happen and to NewRep for such an imagnative production.
Greg — The best part is the audience participation. Sometimes it feels like the cast is actually listening! Would be nice though if they sold Goobers and Jr Mints…
Since you already did the hijack — can I pls ask Sallee where her “rail chomping” video is??
@Hoss…will send stills (they are not videos) as soon as someone tells me how!
Last night was so incredible. The New Rep played the Bard on the Hyde Green/Bandstand as a Midsummer’s Night’s Dream for all of us. My four and a half year old grandson was mesmerized, and totally amused by his interactions with Puck during the performance and wants to go to theatre again really soon! Hubby and I were also delighted as were the 150 or more members of the audience, especially with the dramatic and profoundly amusing demise(s) of Pyramus! The anachronism of cellphone communication was well beyond clever in this 2014 adaption of the Dream.
Cheers to Ald. John Rice for being the moving force in this outstanding community event!
And please come on back to the Hyde Bandstand next Sunday night for a Pops Concert by Newton’s own New Phil!! What fun it will be, with loads of talented musicians. There is a lot of great arts & culture happening in Newton despite the lack of quality performance venues. Take a look at http://www.newtonculture.org !!
Andrea, Turtle Lane is in a residential neighborhood on the very outskirts of the village center. The majority of the abutting properties are single and two family homes, so to come in and propose doubling the size of the existing theater building adding a 100 seat restaurant and a further 26 residential units onto a 1 acre lot currently zoned MR1 on already congested narrow streets with limited parking seems inappropriate to put it mildly.