Concert Reviews

Aaron Tveit, a Broadway veteran with more than 20 years of experience, took to the Emerson Colonial Theatre Sunday with a rundown of hits.

Aaron Tveit, at Emerson Colonial Theatre, Boston, Nov. 1, 2026.

If you’re a musical theater fan in the modern age, it’s hard not to know Aaron Tveit. At just 43 years old, his Broadway credits already span over two decades, leading shows like Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, and most recently, the Broadway revival of Chess. You may even know him from television shows like Schmigadoon! or films such as the 2012 movie musical Les Misérables.

I personally remember discovering his performance as Gabe in Next to Normal from the 2009 Tony Awards a few years after the fact and falling down a deep musical theater rabbit hole. As a pre-teen, I was probably too young to fully grasp the themes of grief, psychiatric treatment, and child loss, but that’s beside the point.

All of this is to say, Aaron Tveit is not the same performer he was when he was 22 years old. With over 20 years in theater under his belt, he brought a whole new level of depth and vulnerability to his career highlights and personal favorites at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in a sold-out performance Sunday night.

An Evening with Aaron Tveit was exactly that. Not just a setlist of songs, but an insightful journey into his experience in the theater, along with a sprinkling of Boston touchpoints. The actor has a surprising amount of history with the city, starting with a rejection from Boston University’s music program. But don’t worry — he assured the audience numerous times that “there are no hard feelings.”

Coming fresh off the Rent 30th Anniversary Concert at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City last week, he graced the audience with renditions of “One Song Glory” and “Without You.” In his intro, he shared that Boston was a particularly special place to him, as he made his debut as Roger in Rent at the Wang Theatre just up the street. He couldn’t help but get emotional, saying, “Rent comes back into your life and this is what happens.”

It was abundantly clear that being back at the Emerson Colonial was especially meaningful for Tveit, as he spent the summer of 2018 here in previews for what would become the Tony Award-winning Moulin Rouge! The Musical. 

Before his encore of Jason Isbell’s “Cover Me Up,” Tveit performed the iconic “El Tango de Roxanne” from the show — a take on The Police’s song “Roxanne.” His high-flying vocals reminded the audience why his performance of the piece went viral on social media in the first place. (Boston.com does not promote bootlegs, but if they find their way to our algorithms, we aren’t mad about it.)

It’s probably no shock to hear that Tveit’s vocals absolutely soared throughout the show. Not to mention the accompaniment by an incredible band of musicians under the music direction of Bryan Perri. While each musician was clearly a master of their craft, shifting seamlessly from rock musicals to ballads, it was an absolute joy to watch drummer Jared Schonig (the original drummer for Moulin Rouge! The Musical) having an absolute blast alongside Tveit. His expressions reflected the exact energy the audience felt inside the Emerson Colonial throughout the performance.

But what stood out most was how clearly you could see that Tveit’s latest roles as a husband and father bring a new perspective and understanding to each piece. In the anecdotes he shared, songs like “Not While I’m Around” from Sweeney Todd, “I’ve Been” from Next to Normal, and “Bring Him Home” from Les Misérables now take on a whole new meaning for him. 

Tveit’s effortless transitions from storytelling to the characterization of each song were transportative and incredibly intimate, taking the audience on an incredible journey through iconic pieces of both musical theater history and Tveit’s own personal story. Although it’s a limited engagement at the Emerson Colonial, if Tveit returns to Boston again some day, you don’t want to miss it.

Setlist for Aaron Tveit at Emerson Colonial Theatre, Boston, Nov. 1:

Act I:

• One Night in Bangkok (Chess)
• Your Song (Elton John)
• I’m Alive / There’s a World / I’ve Been (Next to Normal)
• What Kind of Fool Am I? (Sammy Davis Jr.)
• Thunder Road (Bruce Springsteen)
• What Is It About Her (The Wild Party)

Act 2:

• Chess Medley
• The Barber and His Wife (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
• Johanna (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
• Not While I’m Around (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street)
• Drink With Me (Les Misérables)
• Bring Him Home (Les Misérables)
• One Song Glory (Rent)
• Without You (Rent)
• Roxanne (Moulin Rouge! The Musical)

Encore: 

• Cover Me Up (Jason Isbell)

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