Directing

Reviews

Where the Words Are the Thing, And Trippingly, Ben Brantley, The New York Times

“THE COMEDY OF ERRORS” has always been the cheap date of the Shakespearean canon: a play directors could take where they wanted and use as they would… Now this giddy trollop of a play is getting a little respect. The astonishment of the outdoor production of “Comedy” from Shakespeare and Company...based at the Mount, the former Berkshires estate of Edith Wharton, is that the spoken lines get more laughs than the sight gags... John Hadden has provided the verbal and aural equivalents of funny costumes and pratfalls... that force us to listen. As a consequence, the play shimmers with a deeper humor and startling glimpses of melancholy that anticipate later, richly textured works... And you can understand every word…”

A Spacious, Leafy New Setting For Ambitious Shakespeareans, Iris Fanger, The New York Times

“Mr. Brantley went on to say that... ”you can understand every word” because language ”is the unyielding cornerstone for theatrical interpretation here.””

“Between Pretty Places: a Musical Ghost Story” at 13th Street Playhouse, by Roger Gonzalez, Local Theatre, NY

“…you will like this play, maybe love it... dynamic and risky directing… can only be described as theatre magic... Kudos... works so perfectly!”

Molière’s ‘Tartuffe,’ at Hubbard Hall, Is a Pure Delight, J. Peter Bergman, The Berkshire Edge

John Hadden has delivered a perfectly delectable version... has given a wildly sly edge to the sexy play... Hadden obviously had a wonderful time working on this show... an evening of pure delight .

‘King Fool’ presented by We Players, Charles Kruger, TheatreStorm, San Francisco

“[Hadden’s] adaptation of Shakespeare’s “King Lear” for two actors... a perfectly modern story of a daughter trying to care for a dying father whom she is losing to old age and dementia.…some of the most exciting theatre you are likely to see. Ever. Anywhere.”

Macabre Masterpiece: Macbeth at Fort Point is Truly an Epic of Shakespearean Proportions, Juan De Anda, SF Weekly

“As the fog, wind, and waves pound the walls of the brick fortress beneath the Golden Gate Bridge, a struggle of power to ascend the throne plays out... the results are simply breathtaking and fantastic... you forget that you are directly under the the biggest tourist attraction of San Francisco... [but are] in the world of medieval Scotland…a fluid and cathartic transcendence through complete sensory and intellectual immersion.”

Macbeth at Fort Point, Charles Kruger, TheatreStorm

“Some theatre experiences are remembered for a lifetime: “Macbeth At Fort Point” is likely to be one of those… I thought, “Oh my God, I’m walking into Dunsinane” and my shivers of horror were real... every nook and cranny of the old fort is utilized by director and star, John Hadden... The sense of reality and sheer size could not be matched in any theatre and it is dazzling.

Comedic Twists Free Taming of the Shrew [Shakespeare & Co], Kevin Kelly, Boston Globe

“Hadden gives the play the whacked-out freedom of vaudeville…[and] keeps the comedy rollicking until the end, when silence—a long pervasive stillness—shows it for what it is: cruel torment equaling terrible denigration. The last few moments of Shrew are a masterstroke.”

Taming of the Shrew, S&Co, Deborah Jowitt, Village Voice

“There’s a great deal of buffoonery and wordplay where you don’t expect it and less where you do. No space now to praise the actors; they deserve it. So does director John Hadden, who fools the audience into thinking we’ve a real drunk in our midst and almost succeeds in giving the play a feminist edge… Golden days… “

Kiss of Life—Spider Woman Deserves a Hug, Boston Phoenix

“… With such polish…this Kiss [of the Spider Woman, Boston Theater Workshop] leaves much more than lipstick on the stage…. The story’s emotional and ideological claustrophobia come across much more subtly and more powerfully than on screen; we are virtually thrown into the cell with the two inmates…. Hadden stages the drama as a balletic boxing match…tender, almost lyrical.”

Chekhov’s Wild Humor is Alive at College, Bennington Banner

“… Hilarious… Hadden’s direction makes a ballet of chaos…boils with activity…a graceful exercise indeed. [He] has his actors playing at a fever pitch, as if every word is a matter of life and death…. The energy is tremendous, and the actors’ ability to bring wild and bald sarcasm to the stage, in the manner in which I believe Chekhov intended, is a pleasure to see…a wonderful night out at the theater.”

Tragedy Marches Inexorably On, Michael Miller (editor), The Berkshire Review for the Arts

“…shining things in John Hadden’s and Ava Roy’s production of King Lear at Hubbard Hall.”

What a ‘Lear!’ Shakespeare at Hubbard Hall, Cathy DeDe, The Chronicle

“If last year’s Macbeth was a tangled forest of ensemble acting, this year’s “heavy” offering of Shakespeare’s King Lear by the very same company at Hubbard Hall is spare and singular. I loved both... this is no one-trick-pony company... as different as night and day, even with many of the same actors involved in both. This is a Lear that tickles more than most… bare-staged, the words, words, words, do it all…somehow spotlights the play’s unshakable human goodness too… But some brutalities are unforgettable…”

King Lear Rises at Hubbard Hall, Erik C. Barnum Manchester Journal

“CAMBRIDGE, N.Y. – The Theater Company at Hubbard Hall is nothing if not ambitious. King Lear is a daunting play... I needn’t have worried. This is a theater company that always seems to rise to the occasion…

John Hadden’s performance arc as the title character is a wonder... realistic and nuanced... Hadden’s transition from early bemusement to rage and madness is authentic and chilling. The moment that Lear recognizes the truth of Cordelia is an emotionally charged frisson that grabs the audience by the lapels…”

“We shall express our darker purpose.”, J. Peter Bergman, Berkshire Bright Focus

“John Hadden... [and] co-director, Ava Roy... are among the finest risk-takers in show business today… I have seen six production of King Lear in my lifetime and this time is the best time for this worst time of a man’s life."

MacBeth’ Gets a Modern Makeover, Bonnie J. Ross, Post-Star

An electric guitar sends tangible vibrations through the audience. Primitive drums throb with murderous intent. The performers don outfits reminiscent of the Armageddon. This is no rock concert. This is Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” ... subconscious layers in its characters – some disturbing, others delightful…Gino Costabile plays Macbeth with a perfectly embattled conscience that gleams through in his monologues… Lady Macbeth (played with a terrifying veiled menace by Betsy Holt) unravels as the play develops… Few characters are as morbidly spellbinding as the three weird sisters… Reilly Hadden's Banquo from beyond the grave is frozen in bloody light, like a hell-hound in the headlights.

“A fine and fanciful Twelfth Night [Counterpoint Theater] whose directorial brainstorms shed new light on a familiar play.” Arthur Friedman, Boston Herald

Hubbard Hall’s ‘Macbeth’ – Wicked Good, Erik C. Barnum, Manchester Journal

Hubbard Hall Troupe Makes ‘Macbeth’ New, Michael Eck, Albany Times Union

A Word Where a Word Cannot Be Spoken. J. Peter Bergman, Berkshire Bright Focus

Prescience that Delights: ‘Ondine’ at Hubbard Hall, Claire Longton North, The Journal

Hubbard Hall presents magical ‘Ondine’, Doug Gruse, Post-Star

‘Ondine’ weaves magic, Mary Jane Leach, Times Union

At Least a Nine on the Richter Scale, J. Peter Bergman, Berkshire Bright Focus

‘Valentine’ Mixes Adult Drama, Comedy, Bonnie J. Ross, Post Star

Magical Maritime ‘Twelfth Night', Jean Schiffman, The Examiner

We Players and Shakespeare on Hyde Street Pier, Susan Cohen, The Daily Journal

Local Actor Brings Talent, Humor to Life’s Stage, K.D. Norris, Bennington Banner

The Night of the Iguana @ Hubbard Hall, Michael Eck, Albany Times Union