Excerpt from a review of Revels
by Scott Alarik
The Boston Globe
The star is charismatic storyteller Jay O'Callahan, and star he is indeed.
Portraying a mysterious Gypsy named "Old Rom," his charisma alone knit the production together as it pranced from Indian folk dance to Romanian carol, Flamenco dance to English round.
His tales were funny and wise, his explanations of Rom culture and history tantalizing. His deep, whispery voice seemed always to be sharing secrets - and his face, full of wonder, told everything the words could not. His body had the nimble articulation of a natural clown.
All critical distance melted before his charms, and his voice so cleanly handled quick-changing characters that he was able to draw laughs doing double-takes with himself.
When it comes to traditional storytelling, O'Callahan is as good as they come.
an excerpt from "Gypsy Revels Wanders From Christmas Spirit"
The Boston Globe
December 15, 1997