Best of Boston

As the Hasty Pudding’s 2025 Woman of the Year, Cynthia Erivo literally stopped traffic in the annual Harvard Square parade. But the Wicked lead truly dazzled three months later at the Boston Pops’ opening night, where a sold-out crowd packed Symphony Hall, and even Keith Lockhart seemed slightly starstruck. In fact, not since the Beatles landed in Boston in 1964 have Bostonians displayed such hysterics offering multiple standing ovations to the multi-hyphenate talent, who performed songs by Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack, and Prince, including “Nothing Compares 2 U." Indeed, nothing does compare to her.