The South End in particular and Boston in general stood out much of `the best and near-best theater of 2018. The childhood, college experience and adult insights of novelist Alison Bechdel came to vivid life in SpeakEasy Stage Company's spirited staging of the Tony Award-winning musical "Fun Home," while the inner sparring of sexually conflicted middleweight boxing champion Emile Griffith proved as eye-catching as his championship bouts in Huntington Theatre Company's visceral and very moving production of the Michael Cristofer drama "Man in the Ring." Star Trek regular George Takei actually attended the press opening of SpeakEasy Stage Company's earnest area premiere of his autobiographical musical dealing with the internment of thousands of patriotic Japanese-Americans during World War II. Lyric Stage Company of Boston's revival of "The Wiz" proved as special as Dorothy's shoes. Alan Cumming combined activist passion about immigrants with dynamic singing of Broadway and other standards in an electric appearance at Symphony Hall. New York multiple talent Seth Rudetsky— pianist, writer and radio personality, among others—returned to the Boston Center for the Arts, this time with luminous legend Chita Rivera.
Area companies have produced so much fine work that once again this critic has put together separate small stage and large stage best lists. Here they are in alphabetical order:
Best of 2018 Small Stage Theater
Between Riverside and Crazy, SpeakEasy Stage Company.
Cabaret, Moonbox Productions. A chillingly fresh take on the landmark Kander and Ebb musical.
Dancing at Lughnasa, loucester Stage Company—a cast including Lindsay Crouse and Jenny Israel—caught the music of Brian Friel's masterwork.
Fun Home, SpeakEasy Stage Company. A rite of passage and family tension—especially between a closeted father and his lesbian daughter—hauntingly evoked.
Hype Man, Company One. This undaunted troupe forcefully captured the insight of Idris Goodwin's striking play about music, friendship and diverse
Liaisons Dangereuses, Nora Theatre Company. A stellar gender-bending ensemble—including Greg Maraio and Eddie Shields—examined this Laclos-based drama with new immediacy.
Love!Valour!Compassion!, eitgeist Stage Company. A poignant revival of the Terrence McNally modern classic. Area theater goers and stage-supporting corporations need to rescue this financially strapped company from closing despite terrific work here and throughout its Boston Center residency
Ripe Frenzy, New Repertory Theatre. A timely and trenchant staging of "Our Town" offspring.
The Last Act, Israeli Stage. Emerson alumnus Guy Ben-Aharon's taut staging of this provocative Joshua Sobol drama.
The Wiz, Lyric Stage Company of Boston. A superb ensemble eased on down the road of this snappy Tony Award musical with high energy.
Honorable mentions
A Dead Man's Diary, Arlekin Players; Allegiance, SpeakEasy Stage; uards at the Taj, Underground Railway Theater; NSFW, Theatre on Fire & Charlestown Working Theatre; Peter and the Starcatcher, Hub Theatre Company of Boston; Red Velvet, OWI (Bureau of Theatre); Shakespeare in Love, SpeakEasy Stage.
Best of 2018 Large Stage Theatre
An American in Paris, Ogunquit Playhouse. Arguably the most exciting musical revival of the year.
Anything Goes, Reagle Music Theatre. Vibrant vocals from Leigh Barrett and especially Jared Troilo.
The Niceties, Huntington Theatre Company. Possibly the year's best verbal fireworks.
Lost Laughs: The Slapstick Tragedy of Fatty Arbuckle, Merrimack Repertory Theatre. A needed new look at the underrated title silent film talent.
Mame, North Shore Music Theatre. The Jerry Herman banquet beautifully served.
Man in the Ring, Huntington Theatre Company. The standout play production of the year and arguably the best effort of 2018.
Moulin Rouge, Emerson Colonial Theatre (opening fall, 2019 at Broadway's Hirschfeld Theatre). This splashy new musical gave the beautifully renovated Emerson Colonial Theatre an auspicious re-opening.
Ragtime, Trinity Repertory Theatre. An arrestingly no-frills but superbly sung revival.
Richard III, Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. Stunning look at a British monarch's fake news and heart-wrenching subtext about concurrent damage to women and children.
The White Card, American Repertory Theatre and Arts Emerson. Strong exchanges about white and black perceptions as well as prejudice and political correctness.
Honorable mention
Barbershop Chronicles, A.R.T.; Jagged Little Pill, A.R.T.; Murder for Two, Merrimack Repertory Theatre.
Best of 2018 Visiting Theatre
Bedlam's Hamlet, Arts Emerson
Born for This, Arts Emerson
Hamilton, Broadway in Boston
The Humans, Boch Center for the Arts
The Play That Goes Wrong, Emerson Colonial Theatre
Special Theatrical Events
Alan Cumming Legal Immigrant, Celebrity Series of Boston
Chita Rivera with Seth Rudetsky, Huntington Theatre Company.