Every week, WGBH Arts Editor Jared Bowen sums up the exhibitions, theater, movies and music you should check out in and around Boston.
Notes from the Field: Doing Time in Education, playing through September 17th at the American Repertory Theater
A.R.T.’s Synopsis: “Notes from the Field: Doing Time in Education” outlines the civil rights crisis currently erupting at the intersection between America’s education system and its mass incarceration epidemic. In act one, Anna Deavere Smith introduces the students, parents, teachers, and administrators caught in America’s school-to-prison “pipeline” through her trademark portrait performances. A leader in national conversations on race and justice, Smith ... now asks audiences to talk back. In the tradition of call and response, a second act before a final coda performance invites audiences to reflect on how we might begin to collectively move forward from difficult histories and devastating social policies.“
Jared Says: ”You simply cannot attend and not leave this theater experience a different person. It is that transformative.“
Megan Hilty, performing at the ”Voices for the Voiceless“ concert on September 12 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in New York City
Synopsis: Megan Hilty is a Broadway actress and singer. Performances include Wicked (Glinda the Good Witch), 9 to 5: The Musical (Doralee Rhodes), and Noises Off (Brooke Ashton). Last month, Hilty sat down with Jared Bowen to discuss her Broadway career, Marilyn Monroe comparisons, and the one actress she simply can’t keep her cool around. Her latest album, “Megan Hilty, Live at the Cafe Carlyle” is out now.
Jared Says: “She’s just got this over-the-top personality, stage presence, and a voice to die for.”
The Light Between Oceans, in theaters now
Synopsis: Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander star in this drama about a lighthouse keeper and his wife living in Australia after World War I. When a baby in a rowboat drifts to shore, the couple informally adopts her. But as the girl grows up, new obstacles threaten to break up the happy family.
Jared Says: “This film works because you have two stunning actors who, in the most subtle ways, take us very deep into their souls.”
Arts season is picking up again! What are you looking forward to this fall? » Tell Jared about it on Facebook or Twitter
This post has been updated.
