The Swellesley Report

Since 2005: More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

Arts roundup for August 2026: Boston Summer Opera; Wellesley Symphony Orchestra; and more

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Wellesley is fortunate to have a lively arts scene, with various opportunities to engage with or make art at any given time. Check out a concert, theater performance, or art reception this month. Here are just a few events happening around town.

Boston Summer Opera to perform at Wellesley Hills Congregational Church

Boston Summer OperaEVENT: Performance, Barber of Seville, by Gioachino Rossini
DATE/TIME: Saturday August 22, 7:30pm
LOCATION: Wellesley Hills Congregational Church, 207 Washington St, Wellesley, MA 02481

EXTRA SPECIAL: You are invited sing in Barber of Seville! Adult singers from across MetroWest are invited to rehearse and perform alongside the company’s cast of emerging professional artists in the new Wellesley Community Chorus. The Wellesley Community Chorus requires no audition, no prior opera experience, and no participation fee.

DESCRIPTION: The Barber of Seville is one of the most popular operas—if not pieces—of classical music, ever written, and you probably already know it! This music shows up everywhere, from Looney Tunes to Mrs. Doubtfire to opera houses around the world. The production will be performed in Italian with English supertitles. The run time will be approximately two hours, with one 15-minute intermission.

TICKETS: Tickets are affordable, vibes are welcoming, and Boston Summer Opera guarantee sthat this show will make you fall in love with opera.

This production is kindly supported in part by the Community Fund for Wellesley, a Fund of the Community Foundation for MetroWest.

Polly in the Colony, theatre productionBeyond Wellesley, theater production, Polly In The Colony

DATES: Saturday, August 8 and Sunday, August 9, 2026 — 7pm, 2pm.
LOCATION: Boston College High School, Bulger Performing Arts Center, 150 Morrissey Blvd, Boston, MA 02125
AGES: Recommended for grades 3–6, teachers and families
Tickets $10 kids, $15 adults, teachers get in free. https://friendsofpolly.com/tickets

DESCRIPTION: A 250-YEAR-OLD DOLL WHO WITNESSED THE BOSTON TEA PARTY TAKES THE STAGE. “Polly in the Colony: A True Revolutionary Tale” — a new play for young audiences — makes its world premiere at Boston College High School Aug. 8 and 9, timed to America’s 250th anniversary.

She arrived in Boston on a tea ship in 1773 and was purchased off a shop counter on the very day colonists dumped the tea into the harbor. For more than a century since, she has sat behind glass at Boston’s Old State House, receiving handwritten fan mail from generations of children. Now Polly Sumner — a real, 250-year-old fashion doll — is stepping into the spotlight to tell her own story.

Wellesley Symphony Orchestra, Wellesley Choral Group, and the Wellesley Town Band—have all announced their 2026-27 line-up. Here’s a preview.

Wellesley Symphony Orchestra in action

WSO will open its season on Sept. 27  with “Musical Tales,” an afternoon of great stories, which will include  Pinar Toprak’s powerful composition of the theme music for the 2019 film Captain Marvel. The program will end with one of the most evocative classical stories, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade. Rimsky-Korsakov’s dazzling, colorful orchestration and melodies are based on the tales of One Thousand and One Nights.

Wellesley Symphony Orchestra
Photo by Andres Levia

Tickets and entire 2026-27 schedule here.

Wellesley Choral Society

If you love to sing, Wellesley Choral Society would love to meet you. The group is a non-audition chorus, and will hold Open Rehearsals on Sept. 14, 21, and 28, at 7pm, at UU Wellesley Hills, 309 Washington St.

The first concert of the season will take place on Nov. 22. “Music for Chorus and Brass” will feature works by Cruger, Purcell, Pachelbel, Pinkham, Whalen, and Gilbert & Sullivan.

Wellesley Town Band

If you have ever played a brass, woodwind, or percussion instrument, there’s a chair, music, a music stand, and a warm welcome waiting for you in the Wellesley Town Band. Players of all ages (grade 8 upwards) are welcome, no auditions are required.
Rehearsals are held at Wellesley High School starting Monday, September 14. The Band is conducted and directed by Pam Choinski.

The season opener will be the Winter Concert on Dec. 6, ant Wellesley High School.

For more information, contact info@wellesleytownband.org.

wfl, august exhibits: https://www.wellesleyfreelibrary.org/discover-borrow/in-library/exhibits/

Beyond Wellesley, Lyric Stage in Boston announces season line-up

VENUE: Lyric Stage, 140 Clarendon Street, 2nd floor (accessible), Boston
PERFORMANCES: 
All My Sons—Sept. 18 – Oct 18
Peter Pan Goes Wrong— Nov. 13 – Dec. 31
Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d — Feb. 5 – Feb. 28, 2027
King James — March 19 – Apr. 11, 2027
Les Misérables— Apr. 30 – June 20, 2027

Not that we’re being dramatic, but we simply cannot survive without your help.

Filed Under: Art

     

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August library art exhibit—Local Color: In and Around Wellesley

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Sunrise Labrynth, & Clocktower, Elm Park, Wellesley
Sunrise, Labrynth, & Clocktower at Elm Park, Wellesley (photo by Dan Gee)

 

Local Color: In and Around Wellesley

Color Photographs by Dan Gee at Wellesley Free Library (530 Washington St.) from Aug. 1-31. Free & open to the public.

“If you want to be a better photographer, stand in front of more interesting stuff.” — Jim Richardson

That is just the beginning of the photographic process. The photographer needs to have the skill and a bit of luck to make a compelling image and not just take a snapshot.  They need to bridge the gaps through the eye-mind-camera-output pathway by sorting through the chaos and capture the image which tells the story.

About the Exhibit

Join photographer Dan Gee for a visual celebration of Massachusetts’ beauty. After relocating from California, Dan set out to explore and capture the rich, captivating local imagery. From glowing sunrises over lush green parks to local conservation land, this exhibition demonstrates that extraordinary imagery doesn’t require traveling far—you just need to get off the couch and go look, sometimes only as far as the backyard.

Each photograph was taken no more than about 15 miles from Wellesley.

 

Page Waterman, Natick
London Harness, Wellesley
Longfellow, Wellesley

Wellesley & other Boston Marathon route communities on display at New England Quilt Museum

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Go-the-Distance-quilt
Photo courtesy of Evelyn Dow

 
An elaborate quilt dubbed “Go the Distance” that features Wellesley and the rest of the communities on the Boston Marathon course is on display at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell until Sept. 26.

The Marathon Quilters Guild is behind the collaborative polyptych quilt project, which consists of eight 24″ x 60″panels.

At the start of 2025, the non-profit issued an open invite to quilt and textile guilds and artists across the state to participate in the project, which was completed this past January.

According to a companion guide about the Wellesley panel, the design involved a good amount of research and focuses on landmarks that marathon participants would see during their 4.25 miles in town.

The clocktower, Wellesley College, Town Hall, and the halfway mark are among highlights. The Scream Tunnel at Wellesley College is represented with a white bull horn with the school’s blue lettering and a few examples of signs created by spectators. The artists behind the quilt panel used specialized techniques, including thread painting, to recreate Wellesley College’s Galen Stone Tower.

Wellesley quilt panel
Photo courtesy of Evelyn Dow

 
Hat tip to AG for letting us know about the quilt and its Wellesley connection. 

 

See something? Send something: theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

Wellesley arts roundup, July

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Wellesley is fortunate to have a lively arts scene, with various opportunities to engage with or make art at any given time. Check out a concert, theater performance, or art reception this month. Here are just a few events happening around town.

Wellesley Theatre Project—3 classic shows

“SHREK”—Come visit the swamp this summer at Wellesley Theatre Project (WTP) as they bring a Dreamworks favorite to life in an exciting summer production of Shrek, The Musical KIDS! Performances will be held July 9, 10 and 11 at 5pm and July 11th at 2pm, at the Sorenson Center for the Arts at Babson College (219 Babson College Drive, Wellesley, MA 02481). Tickets are $18 for adults and $10 for students and seniors when purchased in advance at www.wellesleytheatreproject.org, or $20 for adults and $12 for students and seniors at the door.

“CINDERELLA” —On July 16th, and 17th at 5pm and July 18th at 2pm and 5pm, journey into the most iconic fairytale of all time at the Sorenson Center for the Arts at Babson College for WTP’s first session of Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Youth Edition! Tickets here.

“SOUND OF MUSIC”—On July 16th-18th, 30th, 31st, and August 1st at 7:30pm, join WTP for The Sound of Music, our inagural Community Production! Tickets here.

Art exhibit at Beth Urdang Gallery

Beth Urdang Gallery, Wellesley
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GALLERY EXHIBIT: “Summer Selections:
DESCRIPTION: Paintings, Photographs and Sculpture
DATES: now through Sept. 12
LOCATIONS: 15 Central St. and 16 Grove St., Wellesley
HOURS: Tuesday – Saturday, 10:30am-5:30pm Central; Grove open by appointment
IMAGE (left): Joshua Jensen-Nagle, “Sunbathers at the Copacabana III”;
archival pigment print photograph; 41″ x 43″ 

Coming soon to the Davis Museum

The Davis Museum at Wellesley College has announced two special exhibits to run Sept. 25, 2026 – May 20, 2027.

“Excavating Antioch: The Archaeology of an Ancient City” follows Antioch-on-the-Orontes—now Ankara, Türkiye—will cross two periods: the ancient city, from the Hellenistic period through the twelfth century C.E., and its excavation in the 1930s. Through artifacts and archival materials, the exhibition will explore daily life in antiquity alongside the modern practices that unearthed and dispersed the city’s material culture.

“Shi: Stories in Stone” will offer cross-disciplinary perspectives on nature, science, art, and culture.

Not that we’re being dramatic, but we simply cannot survive without your help.

Beyond Wellesley

Beyond big names, Levitate Music & Arts Festival to feature rising songwriters & artists

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Six songwriters and 11 visual artists, selected from more than a thousand applicants, will be receiving a total of over $100k in grants, plus have an opportunity to showcase their talents at the Levitate Music & Arts Festival taking place July 18-19 in Marshfield.

The Levitate Foundation is recognizing these musicians and visual artists following an evaluation process that included industry experts from Levitate, Live Nation, Ineffable Music Group, Rhode Island School Of Design, and Artists For Humanity, as well as independent artists.

The six selected songwriters will perform at the Levitate festival on the Soul Stage, while the work of visual artists will be featured at a huge art gallery, where attendees can watch artists in action.

On Friday, July 17, during the Levitate Foundation’s fourth annual Backyard Ball fundraiser, one songwriter and one visual artist will be crowned the Songwriter of the Year and Artist of the Year, each receiving an additional $10k grant support.

levitate

We’ve covered the Levitate Music & Arts Festival in recent years , including last year:

Wellesley Cultural Council recruiting new members

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The Wellesley Cultural Council, a grassroots funding network supporting community-based projects in the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences, is recruiting new members.

This body is the local presence of the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Each fall, local organizations and individuals are invited to apply for grants (Swellesley was among 2026’s recipients, to fund a student reporter stipend).

If you’re interested in being considered as a member of the Wellesley Cultural Council, complete and submit the Town of Wellesley volunteer form. The deadline to apply is Friday, July 17. 

Arts roundup—Wellesley Society of Artists summer show; Art in the Park; call for artists to honor the Charles River; and more

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Wellesley is fortunate to have a lively arts scene, with various opportunities to engage with or make art at any given time. Check out a concert, theater performance, or art reception this month. Here are just a few events happening soon, here and beyond Wellesley.

Don’t see your arts event listed? Email us at theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

Wellesley Society of Artists has hot exhibit

Wellesley Society of ArtistsThe Wellesley Society of Artists (WSA) will present its summer show “Heatwave” at the Natick Morse Institute Library Upper Galleries, June 1-30. The show will feature over 25 paintings and includes both representational and non representational artwork by WSA members. Join the WSA for the awards reception June 10, 2026, 6:30-7:30pm. Sturdy Waterman, owner of the Page Waterman Gallery and Framing is the show judge.

EVENT CANCELED: Art in the Park, Natick

EVENT: Art in the Park at Shaw Park
DATE/TIME: Sunday, June 7th 10am – 3pm
LOCATION: Shaw Park, 53 Eliot St., (that nice green space across the street from the Bacon Free Library)

DESCRIPTION: The Natick Art Association hosts its twice annual art fair! Art in the Park is a collection of amazing artists with various wares for sale. Come enjoy live music and shop the wide variety of media Natick Art Association artists work in. Past years have included everything from pottery to painting, jewelry to books, and more! This is a family and pet friendly event.

Call for artists from the Charles River Watershed Association

Charles River offshoot, Waban Arches, WellesleyNew England area artists are invited to a Call for Artists for the early 2027 exhibition, “A Charles River Journey: 80 Artists, 80 Miles.” Artists are invited to share their visual impressions of the Charles River—from its meandering natural landscapes to the diverse communities it connects, and its vital role as both a recreational and ecological resource.

In partnership with the Dedham Art Association and the Wellesley Society of Artists, this exhibition will celebrate New England artists, foster environmental awareness, and honor the Charles River. Eighty artworks will be juried into the exhibit and be eligible for over $2,500 in cash awards.

Enter your art.

Theatre Studies Program announces next round of Project Grants

Wellesley College Theatre (the Wellesley College Theatre Studies Program and Wellesley Repertory Theatre) has opened up its 2026-27 round of Wellesley Repertory Theatre Grants to fund theatre-related projects by Wellesley College graduates. Proposal deadline for aspiring theatre-makers 2+ years post-diploma is August 31, 2026.

Up to three grants will be awarded for the development and/or production of unpublished/unproduced work in the field. This unrestricted funding enables recent and working graduates to set aside time for creation, purchase materials, fund collaboration with other artists, rent rehearsal or performance space, and/or otherwise expand their work. Projects are expected to be completed during the 2026-27 academic year.  Grantees will commit to attending the Wellesley Rep Festival, capping off their creative processes on the Wellesley College campus in September 2027, where they will share their work with Theatre Studies students, the Wellesley community, and the general public.

Applicants should submit a CV and application form at www.wellesleyrepertorytheatre.org/wrt-grant

Learn about previous grant winners here.

Not that we’re being dramatic, but we simply cannot survive without your help.

 

Filed Under: Art

Arts Roundup—Giddyap, D-mac wins CMA award; Wellesley Symphony Orchestra, “Dance!”; WHS artists’ work on display in library; and more

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Wellesley is fortunate to have a lively arts scene, with various opportunities to engage with or make art at any given time. Check out a concert, theater performance, or art reception this month. Here are just a few events happening soon, here and beyond Wellesley.

Don’t see your arts event listed? Email us at theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

A standing ovation for Wellesley’s own D-mac

Kevin McDonaldThe Wellesley High School community has been puffed up with pride this week as Choral Director Dr. Kevin McDonald—affectionately known by his students as “D-mac”—was recognized out of thousands of music educators across the country. Dr. McDonald has been named one of only 30 recipients of the prestigious 2026 CMA Foundation Music Teachers of Excellence Award.

This recognition comes on the heels of an already stellar year; earlier this school term, he was also celebrated as a finalist for the GRAMMY Music Educators Award. His commitment to the arts has not only shaped the voices of his students but has now caught the attention of the highest levels of the music industry.

The celebration will culminate this autumn at The Pinnacle in Nashville, where Dr. McDonald will be honored among his peers and industry leaders during a milestone anniversary event. With a red-carpet moment on the horizon and a guest list featuring top artists and industry titans, it is a well-deserved moment in the spotlight for a teacher who gives so much to his community.

WHS artists’ work on display in library

Congratulations to the dozens of Wellesley students, and their teachers, who have been recognized as among the most artistic in Massachusetts through the annual National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Art awards come in categories such as photography, jewelry and drawing, and writing. On display in the Wellesley Free Library are winning artworks from WHS students.

Also on display is the work of WHS Intensive Drawing and Painting students. Mr. Reddy challenged the artists to synthesize multiple sketches from the summer into a new, cohesive piece, and to create a piece exploring the topic of Then vs. Now.

Interested in exhibiting art at the WFL? Exhibit policy here.

Arrais Ballet to perform Midsummer Night’s Dream

Arrais Ballet, a ballet studio in Needham, will be presenting 3 performances of a Midsummer Nights Dream on May 9th and 10th at the Wellesley High School auditorium.

Paulo Arrais, a renowned arts connoisseur, retired as a Principal Dancer from Boston Ballet in 2023 and founded Arrais Ballet shortly thereafter. After a short two years Arrais Ballet has already earned recognition for training dancers, including pre-professional dancers, who go on to perform and compete at top levels nationally and internationally. This upcoming event will showcase the talent and dedication of its current performers, which include dancers from Wellesley.

Wellesley Symphony Orchestra, “Dance!”

Wellesley Symphony OrchestraDATE/TIME: Sunday, May 10, 2pm
LOCATION: The WSO is back at the beautifully renovated Mass Bay Auditorium, 5o Oakland St., Wellesley
TICKETS here
HIGHLIGHTS: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912) – Four Waltzes; Gabriel Pierné (1863-1937) – Concert Piece, Harp, Op. 39; Claude Debussy (1862-1918) – Dances Sacres et Profanes, Emily Richardson, Harp; Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) – Estancia: Four Dances; Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) – Petruchka

Ceramics show at Page Waterman Gallery & Framing

Page Waterman, NatickEVENT: Art exhibit by ceramic artist Amy Drury Sullivan
DATES/TIMES: Friday, May 15, 9am-3pm; Saturday, May 16, 9am-3pm
LOCATION: Page Waterman Gallery & Framing, 57 Eliot St (RT.16), South Natick
DESCRIPTION: Following the warm response to her first show last fall, Amy returns this spring with another beautiful collection of handcrafted ceramics — thoughtfully made pieces that balance artistry, texture, form, and everyday usefulness. Amy’s work reflects a lifelong connection to the arts and to craftsmanship rooted in home, family, and tradition.

Art Wellesley, Colossal Collage Maker Night

LOCATION: Wellesley Free Library, Wakelin Room 530 Washington Street
DESCRIPTION: Let’s create a colossal collage together. During community maker nights, participants use found papers to cut, glue, and assemble a botanical-themed collage. Think big, as in colossally big. Elizabeth Cohen and Jenny Schneider will expertly guide the process. The colossal collage will be hung at the Wellesley Free Library throughout June. This event is free and open to everyone. No art experience required.

Event is free, but space is limited—Registration required.

Wellesley Society of Artists

EVENT: Heatwave Awards Reception
DATE/TIME: June 10, 6:30pm-7:30pm
LOCATION: Natick Morse Institute Library, 14 E. Central St., Natick
DESCRIPTION: Please join the Wellesley Society of Artists for the awards reception and an opportunity to meet the exhibition artists.

End-0f-year Wellesley HS and MS arts performances

Wellesley HS arts

More information at https://www.wellesleypops.com/home

Beyond Wellesley—”Something Rotten” at Lyric Stage, Boston

Lyric Stage, BostonSomething Rotten, playing at the Lyric Stage in Boston through June 7, is a high-energy, madcap musical comedy, a well-executed romp through the Renaissance. As the saying goes, “Some are born great, some achieve greatness,”—and then there’s Nick and Nigel Bottom. The two brothers find themselves perpetually stuck in the shadow of the era’s undisputed rock star: William Shakespeare. Desperate to knock the Bard off his lofty perch, the brothers set out to create something entirely new. Their solution? Writing the world’s very first musical.

However, the path to innovation is rarely smooth. A lesson—think twice before you rely on a psychic to help you steal Shakespeare’s future bestseller. As the Bard himself  said, “It is not in the stars to to hold our destiny, but in ourselves.”

The 2.5-hour play (including one intermission) has it all. Intellectual property theft. A brewing clergy scandal that just might take down the Puritans. Love at first sight, of which the grownups disapproved. Tortured artists. And plenty of zany. Audiences not only receive a scholarly explanation of the genesis of the musical (um, sort of?), but are caught up in the kind of drama only thespians can create. Filled with double entendres, jealous playwrights, and a relentless quest to be the greatest wordsmith in London, no matter the cost, Something Rottten is fresh as can be.

Under the direction of Ilana Ransom Toeplitz, the production moves with a frantic, infectious pace. Shout-out to the live (but behind-the-scenes) orchestra, which breathed life into the clever music and lyrics by Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick. 

Family heads-up—mild profanity and innuendo. Perfect for teens and up.

The Lyric Stage has  announced its 2026-27 line-up: All My Sons; Peter Pan Goes Wrong; Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d; King James; A Big, Beloved Musical.

Not that we’re being dramatic, but we simply cannot survive without your help.