Category: Newton Beacon

  • Newton North scribes take to the stage for the 18th Annual Playwrights’ Festival

    Theatre Ink ‘s 17th Annual Playwrights’ Festival, Newton North High School, June 7th, 2025 – Photo by Elizabeth Plese

    The ambient lighting dims, and a spotlight shines on three distinct characters in front of a dystopian backdrop, as a night of world-molding drama and comedy begins. 

    Newton North High School’s 18th Annual Playwrights’ Festival, presented at the school Thursday through Saturday, showcased eight plays created entirely by the students.

    Each play was a 10-minute, one-scene act covering concepts ranging from grappling with queer identity to finding existential purpose, with sets spanning from a Louisiana hair salon to a spaceship floating about the cosmos.

    “This is one of the most unique productions in terms of being student-written and student-directed,” said Michael Barrington-Haber, a theater teacher at Newton North and the technical director for Theater Ink, the school’s teaching working theater that prizes inclusion and cooperation.

    “We have student designers who do the lights, the set, the sound, the costumes, the hair, the makeup, the props,” Barrington-Haber said. “It’s all student-run.” He has been a part of Theater Ink for 21 years and has contributed to the playwrights’ festival since its inception 18 years ago.

    “It all started when one student said, ‘Hey, I got this play and I’ve never written a play before,” said Adam Brown, the director of Theater Ink. “And so I read it and I’m like, ‘Hey, we should do this play.’ We reached out to other kids, and they wrote about five or six plays, and that’s how the festival was born.”

    Brown, who has been an active participant in the theater department for 24 years, helps the student playwrights develop their ideas and organize the page-to-stage process.

    At first, Theater Ink had around five students get together and workshop their plays. Now, the school receives anywhere from 10 to 30 submissions a year. It tries to accept between eight and 10 shows. The student writers submit their works to a blind panel of judges made up of their peers, faculty and alumni.

    The students begin their process in September, and throughout the year they get together in groups to edit. This is all before auditions and set design. The festival has its own part-time student tech crew.

    “It’s basically a year-long process,” said Maya Macomber, a graduating senior from Newton North who has written for the festival all four years of her high school education. She is a co-coordinator of the festival and the writer and director of the play “Milkyway,” a situational comedy in which three friends accidentally explode Earth and must search the cosmos for another planet to inhabit.

    “It’s amazing to see something I started thinking about in September, at the beginning of the year, actually happen on stage now in June,” Macomber said. “It’s a really cool process to get to see my play go through all the steps of it.” Macomber plans to major in film and television production at Chapman University in the fall.

    Julia Bartow Fuchs, a junior at Newton North and a co-coordinator of the festival, wrote and directed “The Screen Door to the Sea,” a deeply personal story of unrequited love, friendship, and letting go. This is her third year writing for the festival.

    “It’s a nine-month process,” Bartow Fuchs said. “You’re just sort of in it for this whole time, and then it’s like you’re coming up for air at the end… Everyone comes together at the end, and it’s so surreal.”

    With 18 years under its belt, Theater Ink aims to amplify young voices regardless of experiences and backgrounds.

    “What’s really special about this is the voices of students,” Brown said. “It’s their voice…The plays that you’re seeing are coming from them. Their experiences, their ideas, their thoughts, their creativity, and that’s what makes it really special.”

  • Newton Goes Berserk: Scandinavian Cultural Center festival celebrates Nordic heritage

    Stephanie Conroy in traditional iking clothing. Photo by Muayad Al-Barwani

    Clashing shields and roaring Vikings aren’t an everyday sight in Newton. But the Scandinavian Cultural Center transformed into a Nordic village Saturday for the Berserk festival.

    After a five-year hiatus, Kerry Lavin, executive director of the Scandinavian Cultural Center & Library, revived the annual daylong celebration, complete with live combat demonstrations, traditional food, and historical crafts. 

    “People just love Vikings,” Lavin said. “I think it’s a fun tradition. It’s holding onto something that existed 100 years ago, when there were more Scandinavians.”

    The festival drew hundreds of visitors to the Scandinavian Cultural Center in West Newton, where 15 vendors and performers immersed attendees in Nordic traditions. The Berserk festival launched in 2017 but went on pause when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Its return this year marks the first festival since 2019.

    Inside the center’s Nordic Hall, William Short, a Viking scholar and author, gave a talk that explored how Norse beliefs shaped everyday life, from battle rituals to burial practices, while challenging misconceptions about Viking spirituality. 

    Visitors eager for a glimpse into their futures headed across the lawn to Melissa Scott’s Viking tarot and rune reading station. While tarot is often seen as mystical, Scott views her practice as a way to honor an ancient tradition rooted in Norse history.

    “What makes it so special is that you’re handling things that have been used on shields, in doorways and cups,” Scott said, referring to the runes she uses in her practice. “When you’re looking at them, you’re thinking of all the people who carved that sign.” 

    The festival’s main attraction was the Boston Viking Irish, a historical reenactment group specializing in Viking combat and blacksmithing demonstrations.

    “We’re all just a bunch of nerds that really love what we do,” said Emily Farrell, the group’s founder. “It’s a really great life – being able to love history, tell people about it and fight a little.”

    With backgrounds in martial arts, members use blunt weapons and wear traditional armor as they reenact Nordic battle scenes. Before their show, the group members mingled with visitors, offering demos of their gear and posing for photos.

    This year Berserk introduced a stone-lifting challenge led by New England Stone Lifting. The challenge gave visitors a chance to test their strength while learning about ancient Icelandic customs. 

    Jarrett McPhee, co-founder of New England Stone Lifting, is passionate about introducing the tradition of stone lifting to America. Across Scandinavia, stone lifters can find historic rocks to test their strength. However, there was no equivalent in the United States–until New England Stone Lifting.

    Aside from holding events, McPhee has started collecting and placing stones throughout New England, hoping to “build future history” and unite the stone lifting community in the United States.

    “These stones, though not historic today, can be in 40 to 50 years,” he said. 

    Among the vendors was Aili McKeen, owner of Aili’s Aerie, a fur-trapping and leather goods shop in Westport, Connecticut. Her display of fox, coyote and bear pelts offered a look into the practical skills of early Norse communities. 

    “Everybody trapped once upon a time,” McKeen said. “They didn’t just go about raiding and pillaging.”

    The fan favorite of the festival was Gunnar’s Icelandic Hot Dogs. Inspired by the famous hot dogs from Reykjavik, Gunnar’s hot dog stand is known for its unusual selection of toppings like crispy fried onions, sweet brown mustard and apple ketchup.

    Rachel Trahan and her fiancé drove from Revere just to get a taste. 

    “For me the biggest draw was these hot dogs,” Trahan said. “When we saw they had something similar, we wanted to come right away.” 

    Here are some photos from the festival.

    Bruce Conroy poses in traditional Viking attire as he sells pelts at the Scandinavian Cultural Center’s Viking Festival. Photo by Miu Tung Rong 

    A traditional Viking game, Viking Festival, May 31, 2025. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

    Stephanie Conroy in traditional Viking clothing. Photo by Muayad Al-Barwani

    Ed the Wizard poses for a photo at the Scandinavian Cultural Center’s Viking Festival. Photo by Muayad Al-Barwani

    Megan Cronin plays a traditional Viking game at the Scandinavian Cultural Center on May 31. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

    Boston University Newsroom reporter, Rayea Jain interviews Aili McKeen; fox, coyote and bear pelts are on display. Photo by Anny Zheng Wu

    Grace and Riley Holcomby are having lots of fun at the Viking festival. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

    Stephanie Carozza shows off her art and craft skills at the viking festival. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

  • Play it Forward: Newton’s Artful Pianos make music for all

    Ninn Davis photographs Tom Page while he plays a painted piano, titled “Koi Notes,” painted by Raquel Fornassaro, located in Newton Centre. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

    A symphony of sound and color takes over the streets of Newton as the Artful Pianos installation returns for the summer.

    Seven hand-painted pianos are scattered throughout the town, transforming parks and other public spaces into art galleries and stages for spontaneous performances.

    “When you walk through the villages of Newton and you see these pianos out, there are all kinds of people playing them,” said Lisa Rucinski, program manager of the Newton Cultural Development Center, which organizes Artful Pianos. Coming from a musical family, Rucinski said she understands that music can bring people together, and she takes pride in maintaining this Newton tradition. 

    The seven pianos, each painted by a different artist and given a name, are all across town through Labor Day:

    • “Embrace Everything,” by Ashley Jin, is along the Upper Falls Greenway.
    • “The Harvest,” by Columba Kenner, sits outside the Auburndale Library.
    • “In Full Bloom,” by Jenn Dua, is in Farlow Park.
    • “Somebody Come & Play,” by DaNice Marshall, is in Austin Street Plaza. 
    • “Find Zen Within,” by Gary “Zen” Chen, sits outside City Hall.
    • “Koi Notes,” by Raquel Fornasaro, livens up Newton Centre Green.
    • “Forget-Me-Not,” by Michael Talbot in Officer English Park, Newton Highlands. 

    Now in its eighth year, the Artful Pianos 2025 installation invites residents to sit down, play and take part in interactive art.

    Luca Dalzell and Ethan Lan play a painted piano, titled “Koi Notes” by Raquel Fornasaro, located in Newton Centre, while a passerby stops to listen. Photo by Miu Tung Rong

    But these pianos aren’t just for music lovers or aspiring performers.

    “People who give their pianos away for this project love to see their old pianos put to use,” Rucinski said. “Meeting the artists, seeing the focus, painstaking detail, and how much they love and get attached to their pianos–it’s just a win-win.” 

    Raquel Fornasaro, a longtime Newton resident and artist, painted the only grand piano in this year’s collection–the rest are uprights. Her piano, titled “Koi Notes,” is adorned with lily pads and koi fish, paying tribute to Crystal Lake, a picturesque 33-acre natural pond in the heart of Newton.

    Fornasaro said her vision was to bring “calmness to the busyness” of Newton Centre with her serene depiction of the lake near her house. Crystal Lake, she said, is “the place where my kids usually go whenever it gets warm. For me, it [has] extra memories of having young kids there.”

    The process of creating the piano installation begins months in advance with help from a team of movers, artists and volunteers.

    It begins with donors looking to part with their old pianos. Greg Livingston, who tunes all of the pianos, evaluates the instruments before they are selected to be in the exhibit.  

    In Farlow Park, Michael Lonzana plays a painted piano titled “In Full Bloom,” painted by Jenn Duan. Photo by Anny Zheng Wu

    Once enough pianos are identified, Griffin Piano Moving transports them to the Newton Bath House at Crystal Lake, a makeshift art studio where the painters work.

    Piano Pals, a group of local volunteers, care for the pianos all summer. They monitor the weather and rush in with tarps whenever rain threatens. Every morning, volunteers like Garrett Van Siclen head to their designated locations to unveil the pianos and return every evening to protect them from the morning dew.

    “If they aren’t getting wrapped and they aren’t being protected from the moisture of the rain, they’re quickly not going to be able to be played anymore,” Van Siclen said. 

    Van Siclen said he enjoys hearing melodies drift through Newton’s neighborhoods–whether it’s a child playing his first notes, an artist bringing her vision to life, or people pausing from their commutes home to listen.

    Van Siclen has witnessed the magic this installation has brought to Newton over the past three summers.

    “Last year,” he said, “there was a couple, and they would come up here every night and play the piano.”

  • Pumped for Pickleball: That click-clack sound you hear is Newton’s newest fanatical sport

    Sharé Kenya and Zhong Zhang enjoy playing pickle ball at the Wells Avenue YMCA. Photo by Wen Qi

    Pickleball has won the hearts of Newton’s 50-and-older crowd over the past two years–as a leisurely hobby for some and a high-stakes competition for others.

    As early as 7 a.m. year-round, Newton residents hear the click-clacking of red pickleballs hitting the courts, interrupted by spats over game calls and paddle tapping to show good sportsmanship. The players, many of them retired, defy all assumptions about their age group as they march onto the court.

    “It’s been kind of crazy to see how big it is here for sure,” said Michael Cornish, assistant director of sports at the Wells Avenue YMCA in Newton. 

    Cornish has worked as the assistant sports director there for two years and became the head of pickleball last summer. When he first joined the Y, the sport hadn’t yet made its way to the mainstream in Massachusetts. But he noticed an uptick on the indoor courts in the winter of 2023-24.

    “I know I talk to a lot of people who are retiring, and they’re here every day because this is their post-retirement thing,” Cornish said.

    The indoor courts at the Wells Ave YMCA can hold up to 24 players, and Cornish says they fill up when the gym opens at 7 a.m., with an additional 20 to 30 picklers standing in line to play. This is the case until around 10 p.m. (earlier on weekend nights) when the gym closes.

    “It’s gotten to the point where it’s more popular than tennis,” Cornish said.

    With only three indoor courts available, the Church Street YMCA gym in Newton is not a primary destination for local picklers, but the courts still fill up when they’re available, said Paige Willis, the sports and recreation director at Church Street.

    “They’re always asking for more, but we have other programming,” Willis said.

    Joel Pritchard, a congressman from Washington state, created the sport out of an old badminton court in his backyard to remedy a boring weekend with his family and friends in 1965. Twenty-five years later, in 1990, the game spread to all 50 states, and it continues to grow today.

    Pickleball gained even more popularity during the pandemic as an easy way to exercise; it doesn’t involve close contact or extreme physical exertion. Influential celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney helped popularize the craze when clips of them playing went viral on social media.

    “It gives you an objective,” said Agi Sardi, a computer engineer in Newton who plays at the Y up to three times per week.

    Sardi says pilates and yoga are just as good of a workout as pickleball, but working with a group motivates her more to get active.

    Rich Bryden keeps his focus on the pickleball at the Wells Ave YMCA, Newton. Photo by Wen Qi

    Paul Antonellis, who is retired, started playing three years ago, practices an average of five days a week, and participates in tournaments with friends around the area. He said the game does come with risks.

    “There’s a lot of injuries,” he said. “I tore two tendons last year. I was out for four months because I gotta let it heal. A lot of people have leg injuries, they fall, yeah, there’s a lot. The orthopedic people love pickleball.”

    Toward the beginning of the craze, Cornish says, some players took the game too seriously, which led to fights.

    “They’ve gotten better with it as of lately in terms of being able to turn it down a little bit,” Cornish said, “but definitely in the beginning people were getting very competitive to the point where like, you know, me or my supervisor would pretty much have to go on there and warn them that they have to relax a little bit or they can’t play.” 

    He recalled an instance when a player let his passion get the better of him.

    “I remember these two grown men in their 40s or 50s,” he said. “One of them was going to put away the pickleball net, the other one wanted to keep playing, and they got into an argument that led to a push, led to a couple shoves, and we had to step in and break it up.”

    While there have been several instances pushing the boundaries of good sportsmanship, Cornish concedes most players do not resort to violence and stick with trash talk.

    Michael Sseksi, 25, a certified nursing assistant in Waltham, plays five times a week with a patient in Newton he cares for. His patient has cognitive issues that affect his personal life, but when he gets on the court, Sseksi says, he knows exactly what to do.

    “So that, I think, helps him to keep his mind together, like something that he can hold onto,” said Sseksi, who is originally from Uganda.

    After Sseksi began to take his patient to pickleball, he realized that he should join the game and get some exercise instead of watching from the sidelines.

    “Whenever I would come in in the morning,” Sseksi said, “they would say, ‘Hi, Michael,’ and I felt like I was home.”

  • Newton’s Maggie Chaviano of Newton Community Pride will run her first Boston Marathon in honor of her dad

    Maggie Smith Chaviano is running the 2025 Boston Marathon in support of Newton Community Pride. Courtesy Photo

    For years, Maggie Chaviano watched the Boston Marathon runners from her porch at the 18.5-mile mark in Newton.

    On Monday, she’ll be rushing by her friends and family cheering her on as she takes it on herself.

    “I’ve been in awe of this race in particular and the history around it,” said Chaviano, 43, a self-employed marketing professional. “Watching any marathon makes me want to cry, because it’s such an amazing display of what people can do.”

    The 2025 Boston Marathon will be Chaviano’s second marathon—her first being in Chicago in the early 2000s. She took on the challenge to support Newton Community Pride, a local nonprofit organization that presents free arts programming in the city.

    Her husband, Damien Chaviano, has been on Newton Community Pride’s board of directors for five years. He grew up sharing a love of the arts with his brother — performing alongside him in productions of “Bye-Bye Birdie” and the like in his native Chicago.

    “For me to have an impact on my community and bring arts to Newton, I thought would be a tremendous way to volunteer my time,” said Chaviano, 44, who works in real estate development.

    Chaviano planned to run the marathon to raise money and awareness for the organization this year but quickly realized that he wouldn’t be able to train properly. Smith stepped up to run instead.

    “The marathon is a staple, and has been for a really long time, and we’re super excited that we have somebody local who’s running for us, representing us and getting our organization noticed in our community,” said Newton Community Pride’s executive director, Blair Lesser Sullivan.

    But this run holds more weight for Chaviano than she could have anticipated. She unexpectedly lost her father about a month ago. When she was growing up, the two shared a love for running. “They were magical together,” Chaviano said.

    “[My dad] was very excited,” she continued. “I wish he were going to be here, but I know he will be. He’ll be the wind on my back.”

    Chaviano’s parents live about five blocks away from the marathon’s finish line near Copley Square. As she pushes toward the end of the race, she knows she will have her family’s love waiting for her.

    “This has gone from a fundraiser to a personal challenge that, on behalf of her father, she’s just gonna have this complete, overwhelming, experience when she crosses that line,” Chaviano said. 

    Having not run consistently since before she had her first child a decade ago, Chaviano had to ramp up her mileage from zero to 26.2—and fast. She started training in late December, giving her only three and a half months to prepare. 

    One of her friends will run alongside her, and suggested she get a coach. That coach told Smith that she would recommend six to eight months of training for someone with Smith’s background. They developed a “don’t get hurt” plan—but Chaviano has surprised herself with just how far she’s been able to push herself. 

    “I think external motivators are really powerful,” she said. “Knowing that I was running for this organization that I think does wonderful work and has done in New England for 35 years, that’s been the biggest like, ‘OK, not a choice to get off the couch.’ I’m getting off the couch.” 

    This story is part of a partnership between the Newton Beacon and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Bordeaux-No! Newton businesses confront Trump’s 200% EU wine tariff

    President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 200% tariff on alcohol from the European Union starting Wednesday. It is unclear exactly which “alcoholic products” will be impacted, but Trump wrote that “this will be great for the Wine and Champagne businesses in the U.S.” in a March 13 post on his Truth Social platform.

    Trump plans to place reciprocal tariffs on goods from nations that most contribute to the U.S. trade deficit—and particularly punish the EU for its 50% tariff on American whisky. Because importers pay tariffs, the costs typically are passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices of goods.

    According to The Washington Post, roughly 20% of European wine exports went to the U.S. last year, totaling $14 billion in sales. The tariffs are likely to increase trade hostility between the U.S. and Europe. 

    Newton business owners say they’ll likely be forced to buy exclusively American products if the tariffs do take effect come Wednesday. Arpit Patel, owner of liquor store Oak n’ Barrel in Newton Center, said that may not be sustainable for American winemakers.  

    “I don’t think it’s a simple answer as, ‘Oh, European wines have become too expensive. We’ll just drink Californian reds or something, and our economy will boom,’” he said. “There just wouldn’t be enough supply.”

    Patel said he may see a decrease in sales if the tariffs take effect. Oak n’ Barrel focuses on European wines, and he doesn’t think the average consumer “is going to be willing to drink a wine that’s going to cost double or triple” what it used to.

    Andrew Li, co-owner of Flora’s wine bar, said he is concerned about the impact the tariff will have on European vineyards, breweries and distilleries. He worries small producers across the pond will crumble and cause a larger industry collapse. 

    “If there’s a tariff on car parts, cars are more expensive and people assume that it’s part of inflation, and they’re still going to buy cars,” Li said. “As far as French or Italian wine goes, it’s not a necessity, it’s a luxury, so people just aren’t going to buy it anymore. The businesses will fail, and there won’t be any tax revenue for the U.S. at the end of the day.” 

    David Punch, owner of Sycamore, a bistro featuring American fare, wines, and craft cocktails in Newton Center, said importing wine from Europe after tariffs go into effect wouldn’t make economic sense for businesses. That said, he isn’t especially concerned; he “can’t see” the tariffs actually happening. 

    “We just would have to not buy it anymore, which would be sad, because we have a pretty old worldwide list,” Punch said. While he believes in wine from the U.S. and thinks his selection from the Pacific Northwest, especially, is strong, he loves French wine. “That’s what I drink, so it would be a real bummer to lose that.” 

    Punch’s main concern is that the tariffs coupled with Trump’s larger economic policies will cause a major economic downturn. 

    “We’re already in a correction phase in the markets and such, but hopefully we don’t see a big recession come along or anything like that, because that’ll affect consumer spending,” Punch said. “Money that people spend on dining out would have to be applied to other areas of their lives.” 

    This story is part of a partnership between the Newton Beacon and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Newton Theatre Company’s production of “Doubt: A Parable” opens Friday

    The church just so happens to be the new home of Newton Theatre Company, a professional nonprofit theater troupe. Its production of “Doubt: A Parable” opens Friday and runs through
    April 5.

    “Doubt is almost inherent to faith in religion, in a way you can’t have one without the other,” said Alex Taylor, the theater’s director of audience outreach and sound designer for “Doubt.” “That’s what this play tackles really well. The fact that we’re doing it in a church that is such an immersive setting, it really transports you there, as if you’re watching these people like you’re a fly on the wall.” 

    The play follows two nuns, Sister Aloysius and Sister James, as they try to uncover whether a charismatic priest has abused a young student. It won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play, and a film adaptation starring Meryl Streep received Academy Awards nominations for best adapted screenplay, best actress (for Streep), and best supporting actor (for Philip Seymour Hoffman as Father Brendan Flynn). Taylor said it’s the kind of story that leaves you with more questions than answers when it ends, and thrusts you full force into the story.  

    “The writer said something like the last act, the last scene of doubt is when you leave and you discuss it with your friends,” said Elena Toppo, who plays Sister James. “It’s almost murder mystery-esque in the way it’s like a whodunit, but you never find the answer.”

    According to director Melissa Bernstein, Sister James serves as a “stand in” for the audience. She learns new things about the drama as the audience does, which forces them to consider what they would do if they were in Sister James’ shoes. 

    “It truly feels like a parable, in the sense that you’re a little removed from it,” Bernstein said. “It’s less a feeling play and more of a thinking play.” 

    To Bernstein and Taylor, what sets Newton Theatre Company’s production apart from others is its intimacy. Audiences are “2 feet” from the actors—they can see actors’ micro expressions and “feel like they are in the room with the characters,” Bernstein said. She opted for a minimal set and few props, putting the focus fully on the actors and the story they’re unraveling. 

    “The most exciting thing about directing is the story and the people who are telling it,” Bernstein said. She chose “Doubt” in part because it aligns with Newton Theatre Company’s mission of highlighting women’s voices—the play has three strong roles for women. Beyond that, she was drawn to how it examines truth. 

    “There’s so much divisiveness in this country, and we’re following our own news story … I felt like we’re so sure that our ‘truth’ is right,” Bernstein said. “What I love about this play is, as much as you want to walk out knowing what really did happen, you can’t. It’s very uncomfortable, and it really challenges you to see that sometimes a lot more has to be learned before you can decide what you think the truth really is.

    Ultimately, Taylor hopes the play sparks conversation in the audience and “make people doubt their own preconceptions.” 

    “At the end of the day, that’s what art is really for—to spark conversation and keep progress moving in the right direction,” Taylor said. “My big goal is that people come and have a good time, but talk about it afterwards as well and let it impact your real life.”

    Tickets to “Doubt: A Parable” will run from March 28 to 30 and April 4 and 5 at Saint John’s Episcopal Church, 96 Otis St. Tickets are $30. For more information, visit newtontheatrecompany.com/ 

    This story is part of a partnership between the Newton Beacon and the Boston University Department of Journalism.