Lazours at American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.)

The Lazours’ Night Side Songs, Commissioned by A.R.T.

By: A.R.T. - Feb 27, 2025

Cambridge, MA—American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University announced today the cast and creative team for the Lazours’ Night Side Songs, commissioned and developed by A.R.T. and directed by Taibi Magar.

Night Side Songs will run at two venues in the community:

• March 27 – April 6, 2025 at The Cambridge Masonic Temple (1950 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge)
• April 9 – 20, 2025 at Hibernian Hall (184 Dudley St., Roxbury)
• Limited press tickets are available March 28, 29, and 30 and upon request through the run.

Night Side Songs is a communal music-theater experience performed for—and with—an intimate audience that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit. Inspired by American writer, philosopher, and cultural critic Susan Sontag’s observation that “illness is the night side of life,” this genre-breaking theatrical kaleidoscope with by Richard Rodgers Award recipients Daniel Lazour and Patrick Lazour (We Live in Cairo, Flap My Wings) and directed by Taibi Magar (We Live in Cairo, Macbeth In Stride) gives voices to doctors, patients, researchers, and caregivers. A folk-inspired score and interconnected stories spanning time and perspective take us on a journey through illness that brings us closer to life. It is presented in association with Philadelphia Theater Company.

The Philadelphia Inquirer calls Night Side Songs, “riveting,” and says, “There is a naked honesty in the production that builds intimacy and trust. If the purpose of art is to comment on the human experience, it would be difficult to find a more human statement.”

The A.R.T. cast of Night Side Songs includes:

• Jordan Dobson (Hadestown and A Beautiful Noise on Broadway)
• Robi Hager (Spring Awakening and Bye Bye Birdie on Broadway, among others.)
• Brooke Ishibashi (Into the Woods on Broadway, Cambodian Rock Band at South Coast Rep)
• Jonathan Raviv (The Band’s Visit on Broadway, Here There Are Blueberries at NYTW, among others)
• Mary Testa (Oklahoma! and Wicked on Broadway, among others)

The Lazours and Magar are joined on the creative team by scenic designer Matt Saunders (Daddy Off-Broadway), costume designer Jason A. Goodwin (Back to the Future on Broadway), lighting designer Amith Chandrashaker (Prayer for the French Republic Off-Broadway), and sound designer Justin Stasiw (Lempicka on Broadway). Alex Bechtel is the music director and pianist. Elizabeth Emanuel is the production stage manager and Olivia McQuerry is the assistant stage manager. Casting is by Taylor Williams, CSA.

“We are thrilled to welcome beloved collaborators Daniel, Patrick, and Taibi back to A.R.T. for the world premiere of Night Side Songs, a piece that embodies A.R.T.’s commitment to produce work that advances public health,” said A.R.T. Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director Diane Paulus. “We commissioned the Lazours believing that their vision, curiosity, and heart-stirring music would combine to create something that holds the power to heal. Night Side Songs expands boundaries—not only of what theater can be, but what it can do. I am moved each time I’m in communal song with fellow audience members, and I can’t wait for our audiences to feel their own catharsis in community.”

We invite audiences to experience Night Side Songs at two special venues in our community,” said Associate Artistic Director Dayron J. Miles. “We’re grateful to our hosts at The Cambridge Masonic Temple in Porter Square, and we’re so excited to partner once again with the team at Hibernian Hall and to return to Nubian Square for performances at one of Boston’s beloved cultural icons.”  

The Lazours’ personal experiences and extensive interviews with patients, caregivers, and medical professionals inform the stories of Night Side Songs. “It is an absolute joy to be returning to Cambridge with our new musical,” said the Lazours. “We’ve always considered A.R.T. an artistic home, it is an honor and a privilege to share this piece with its audiences. We hope Night Side Songs gives voice to patients and caregivers on the illness journey—a journey too often travelled in the shadows and spoken of in whispers.”

“This piece is incredibly personal to me because I’ve lost both parents to cancer,” said Magar. “I know firsthand how painful that experience can be and how important community is in those moments, and I hope this beautiful new musical can provide comfort and connection.”

Following its run at Lincoln Center in the Under the Radar Festival January 14 – 19, Night Side Songs began its world-premiere run in Philadelphia with a two-week community tour at local hospitals and community centers, followed by performances at PTC’s Suzanne Roberts Theatre that began Friday, February 21 and run through Sunday, March 9.

Support for the development of Night Side Songs at A.R.T. was provided by The Bob and Alison Murchison New Work Development Fund.

NIGHT SIDE SONGS TICKETING INFORMATION

Tickets from $35 to both venues are available at AmericanRepertoryTheater.org/NightSideSongs. Discounts are available to students and ticket-buyers under age 25, Blue Star families, EBT cardholders, seniors, Harvard faculty and staff, and others.

All tickets are General Admission.

Please note the Cambridge Masonic Temple performance space is not accessible via an elevator. Learn more about venue locations and accessibility at AmericanRepertoryTheater.org/NightSideSongs.

ARTIST BIOS

THE LAZOURS (Words, Music): Daniel Lazour and Patrick Lazour are brothers and music theater writers. Their musical We Live in Cairo premiered at the American Repertory Theater in 2019, directed by Taibi Magar, and was produced at New York Theatre Workshop in the fall. Projects in development include a musical adaptation of Ritesh Batra’s film The Lunchbox (Lincoln Center Theater commission). Their movie musical Challenger: An American Dream is being developed with Bruce Cohen Productions and Spark Features. Original songs by the Lazours can be heard on their independently released albums: Freres, Flap My Wings (Songs from We Live in Cairo), Beth’s Homemade Cowboy Breakfast, and Lullabies. They are Jonathan Larson Grant and Richard Rodgers Award recipients, MacDowell and Yaddo Fellows, and New York Theater Workshop Usual Suspects. Patrick holds a B.A. from Boston College and Daniel holds a B.A. from Columbia University.

TAIBI MAGAR (Director): Taibi Magar is an Artistic Director of Philadelphia Theatre Company. As a freelance director, her most recent credits are We Live in Cairo (A.R.T. world premiere, New York Theatre Workshop), The Half-God of Rainfall (New York Theatre Workshop and A.R.T.), Macbeth In Stride (co-direction with Tyler Dobrowsky), Help (The Shed), and Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (Signature Theatre and A.R.T., Lortel Award Best Revival). Other New York credits include Capsule by Whitney White and Peter Mark Kendall (Under the Radar Festival/The Public Theater, co-directed with Tyler Dobrowsky), Blue Ridge starring Marin Ireland and The Great Leap starring BD Wong (Atlantic Theater Company); Is God Is (Soho Rep, 2018 Obie Award;) Master (The Foundry); and Underground Railroad Game (Ars Nova, Obie Award). Regional: CTG, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre, Alley Theatre, The Guthrie Theater, and Seattle Repertory Theatre, among others. International: Hamburg Festival, Edinburgh Festival, Malthouse Theatre (Melbourne), and Soho Theatre (London). MFA, Brown University.