As a theater critic, my aim is always to be fair, kind, and honest. I have been reviewing plays and musicals for the Theater Mirror since 2019. I also catalog my reviews on Instagram (@ReviewsByJulie). Below is a sample of my work.
fellow travelers (2019)
BOSTON LYRIC OPERA
“Confidently played by a 17-piece orchestra led by conductor Emily Senturia’s graceful, steady hands, Spears’ score reaches right for the heart. When the characters can’t speak for themselves, the music speaks for them...In the volcanic Act I duet, 'Bermuda,' the persistence of the pulsing piano and the urgency of the spinning strings elevates the scene, pushing the two men together in a way that feels destined and natural."
PARADE (2019)
MOONBOX PRODUCTIONS
“Steve Shack’s stimulating lighting design and Lindsay Fuori’s imaginative set design work beautifully together. Fuori’s multidimensional set serves not only as a factory and an office but also as a courtroom and a jail cell, complete with a tree at the center of a rocky mountaintop. Shack’s design plays with the emotional effects of light and dark, spreading shadows of branches and staircases and cell bars throughout the space, emphasizing the mystery and suspense at the core of the play.”
VANITY FAIR (2019)
CENTRAL SQUARE THEATRE
“Vanity Fair tells the story of two young women who are thrown into a mad, unforgiving world full of scoundrels, villains, and thieves; people who are selfish, jealous, money-grubbing, and power-hungry– a world not so different from our own. When the Manager asks, ‘Aren’t we always in want? If nothing is ever enough, then why fight it?’ the characters simply keep moving forward– as we all must do– with or without our morals intact.”
THE CHILDREN (2019)
SPEAKEASY STAGE COMPANY
“Cristina Todesco’s set design of a decaying cottage by the sea is deceptively simple. The slightly slanted tile floor suggests a world that is off balance with a foundation that is literally cracking beneath it. The modest kitchen fulfills only the most basic needs: a few mismatched chairs, an old table, a small sink, a few dirty cabinets, a bowl of fruit, a bread box, some bottled water, etc. The space looks both lived in and neglected – a metaphor, perhaps, for the current state of the world.”
FROM HERE TO WHERE (2025)
WILBURY THEATRE GROUP
“Crenca’s narrator-like character (aka The Jester) is a wonderfully tangled amalgamation of modern-day troubadour, rocker hippie, and poetic preacher. As he stands behind a fringe-trimmed lectern, grieving and raging against a world teeming with corruption, ignorance, hatred, and war, he asks us to consider “the overwhelming nature of it all.” …These complex reflections are Crenca’s way of responding to the impossible expectations, pressures, and pains of being alive.”
LAST CATASTROPHIST (2019)
FRESH INK THEATRE
“The setting of Last Catastrophist is particularly dire: small islands and entire countries are underwater, Africa has become an uninhabitable “deathtrap” for migrating animals because, as one character states, “extinction is the new black.” And America’s two remaining climatologists – Marina, a Cuban-American from Florida (played by Evelyn Holley), and Lucia, an African-American from Oklahoma (played by Shanelle Chloe Villegas) – are fighting to stay alive so that science and truth don’t die with them.”
THE CAKE (2019)
LYRIC STAGE COMPANY
“It takes an actor of Karen MacDonald’s caliber to add complexity and depth to an often insufferable protagonist. MacDonald’s performance is filled with such warmth, humor, and tenderness that you cannot help but sympathize with Della’s internal struggle. Making her Lyric Stage debut, Chelsea Diehl brings brightness and sensitivity to the role of Jen, matching MacDonald’s glow and charm step for step.”
SWEAT (2019)
HUNTINGTON THEATRE
“While the characters in Sweat are fictional, the issues they face are real. When the local steel factory starts enforcing pay cuts and layoffs to push out the Union members, the factory employees experience immediate and long standing hardships. Friendships are tested, morals are questioned, relationships are broken, jobs and homes are lost. A close-knit group of friends starts to unravel, and a chain reaction of fear, mistrust, jealousy, and rage takes over the community.”
THE INHERITANCE (2019)
SPEAKEASY STAGE COMPANY
“The story is as much about the inheritance of love, culture, and resilience as it is about inheriting the weight of shame, trauma, and oppression. The Inheritance asks us to consider our responsibility to past and future generations. It pushes for deeper conversations about addiction and inequality. It reminds us of the importance of storytelling and the ever-present need for compassion in a world that grows colder and harsher by the minute.”
300 PAINTINGS (2025)
AMERICAN REPERTORY THEATRE
“In just half a year, having never painted before, Kissajukian created 300 paintings (an average of 50 works per month). Some might view this spontaneous surge of creativity as the mark of genius, but for him it was a hellish, frenzied odyssey through the hidden depths of his own mind. This arduous and illuminating six-month journey eventually led to the creation of his show, 300 Paintings, a thoughtful, comedic examination of the challenges of mental health and the healing found in making art.”
THE SEAGULL (2019)
Arlekin Players
“Golyak himself casts Chekhov’s play right in front of you, with each actor stepping forward to accept the roles they were seemingly destined to take on. And so The Seagull (or something like it), begins with the mounting of Konstantin’s new work, starring Nina in a bewildering performance art piece that leaves everyone speechless. Afterward, Trigorin rightly says, “I didn’t understand a thing. Although, I did enjoy watching it.” What follows for the next two hours is a brave, experimental re-imagining of one of Anton Chekhov’s greatest works.”
BRIGHT HALF LIFE (2019)
ACTORS’ SHAKESPEARE PROJECT
“Director Megan Sandberg-Zakian manages the lightning-fast scene changes with the finesse of a world-class choreographer. Her dance-like staging is beautiful to watch; every turn into another time and every step into another place is done with intention, emotion, and clarity…Cristina Todesco’s intriguing set design rounds out this dream-like world with tiered platforms filled with dozens of house lamps of various size, style, and shape that flicker, pulse, dim, and brighten right along with the ups and downs of Erica and Vicky’s fluctuating relationship.”
THE FISHERMAN AND THE FISH (2019)
ARLEKIN PLAYERS
“Director Evgeny Ibragimov’s extraordinary vision takes this story – usually interpreted as a lesson about greed – and turns it into an imaginative and moving tale about a man who loves his wife so much he would do anything to make her happy, even if it means losing her. Ibragimov’s staging is inventive, lively, and joyful. He makes the puppets fly, he makes them dance, he makes them cry, he makes them real.”
COMMON GROUND, REVISITED (2019)
HUNTINGTON THEATRE
“Greenidge’s play offers a sharp, clear-eyed perspective of a challenging part of Boston’s history and in doing so gives insight into the city’s present problems. It suggests that the way toward a better future is through inclusion, conversation, and change– work that needs to happen in the classroom and the courtroom, and everywhere in between.”