In a London pub, ‘The Wife of Willesden’ isn’t holding back

There’s a feeling that British actress Clare Perkins gets when she reads an intriguing role, a “fire” of sorts that makes her want to take part. So when she learned of the character Alvita, the leading lady of author and essayist Zadie Smith’s book and first play, “The Wife of Willesden,” which the American Repertory Theater is presenting Feb. 25-March 17, Perkins knew it would be “a good character to bring to the stage.”

Alvita, a Jamaican woman in her mid-50s, is Smith’s adaptation of Alison, the “Wife of Bath” in Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales.” And though Chaucer’s Alison, a European woman who talked of her desires and multiple husbands, and Smith’s Alvita appear to be quite different at first glance, “the spirit is the same,” Smith writes in the book’s introduction. Read more

ART’s ‘The Arboretum Experience’ is the balm

Park-goers at the Arnold Arboretum sat cross-legged on the grass, hovered over the seats of bikes, and rested beneath the trees across from the arch of the Bradley Rosaceous Collection rose garden on a recent Saturday. The crowd and curious passersby stopped to hear the multicultural musical group Walter Sickert and the Army of Broken Toys, whose dark lyrics outlining pain and dreams of death seem to belie their cheerful presence.

The concert was part of “The Arboretum Experience,” a months-long venture between the American Repertory Theater and the Arnold Arboretum that aims to activate the park with audio plays, meditation and movement, and pop-up performances. The work aspires to center wellness, healing, and resilience. What resonated most with me is that the availability of the plays and meditation maps allowed me to explore, wander, and discover the park in ways I hadn’t before. Read more.