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Written by Sam Shepard
Directed by Kyra Lewandowski
JEFF RECOMMENDED
"RECOMMENDED ... In Kyra Lewandowski's explosive production ... Michelle Lilly O'Brien's set perfectly suggests decay, while the cast deftly capture Shepard's mix of heightened realism, black comedy, and scenery-demolishing violence."
- Zac Thompson, Chicago Reader
"New Leaf, continuing its string of solid enactments of challenging plays ... navigates a powerful, cogent production ... Victoria Gilbert's feminine and bitter Ella is darkly entertaining, and a formidable John Gray shrewdly modulates the long windup and devastating pitch of Weston's alcoholic rage"
- Megan Powell, TimeOut Chicago
"... [the] charged performances and palpable pathos are riveting. Gruff, frightening, volatile, drunk and large enough to be dangerous, ... [John] Gray's performance is absolutely phenomenal ... this production really is excellent."
- Julienne Bilker, Chicagoist
"Michelle Lilly O'Brien's set [is] a marvelous mini-symphony of squalor"
- Kerry Reid, Chicago Tribune
"There is a lot of important information that is left unsaid in Curse, leaving the audience unsettled and probing in the dark. Lewandowski and her team understand this critical aspect - they know to close doors as they open windows."
- Barry Eitel, Chicago Theatre Blog
SEE THE PRODUCTION PHOTOS
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Written by Bilal Dardai
based on the novel by G. K. Chesterton
Directed by Jessica Hutchinson
2010 NON-EQUITY JEFF NOMINATIONS
BILAL DARDAI
BEST NEW ADAPTATION
JARED B. MOORE
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN
"TOP TEN PLAYS OF 2009 ... New Leaf’s new adaptation of G.K. Chesterton’s 1908 satire about a man who finds himself tapped by Scotland Yard to infiltrate a council of anarchists was blessed by playwright Bilal Dardai’s deft touch and the shrewd, apparently endless inventiveness of director Jessica Hutchinson and the company’s resident designers. New Leaf has often found innovative ways of looking at its unique space; here the troupe did it several times in the same night. Add an ensemble equally adroit with the urbane and the farcical, and this theater experience is one we’d like to revisit every day of the week."
- Kris Vire, TimeOut Chicago
"RECOMMENDED ... a whip-smart adaptation ... Jessica Hutchinson's inventive staging and an agile ensemble find the right balance between the ridiculous masquerades of the anarchists (one in full Cyrano regalia) and the chilling realization that, once unmasked by the world, none of us knows what our next step should be."
- Kerry Reid, Chicago Reader
"FOUR STARS ... a piece that flirts with the spectacular ... Dardai has structured his tale deftly ... the director and her designers ... compel us onto our toes"
- Christopher Shea, TimeOut Chicago
"HIGHLY RECOMMENDED ... a smorgasbord of theatrical delights: from intelligent, often hilarious acting from the entire ensemble to director Jessica Hutchinson's delightful, innovative staging and Nick Keenan's ingenious sound design ... Dan Granata's delivery and timing are a marvel ... a beautifully coordinated, versatile and very talented cast ... Bilal Dardai has wisely retained the complexity and richness of Chesterton's literary prose."
- Laura Kolb, Centerstage
"Unbelievably contemporary ... what an original way to approach a halloween production ... quite spooky and quite interesting"
- Kelly Kleiman, Dueling Critics, 848 on WBEZ Chicago Public Radio
"There’s no doubt about the determination of New Leaf’s promenade production. A lot of loving ardor went into every aspect of this disciplined deception... [Dan Granata as Syme] takes us through this warren of a plot with the same precision that Chesterton showed his readers 101 years ago. Let’s hear it for thinking theater!"
- Lawrence Bommer, Chicago Free Press
"RECOMMENDED ... Jessica Hutchinson’s directing is hip, astute and responsive, with a semi-promenade that makes brilliant use of space and has actors circulating amongst the audience without any sense of clumsy attempts at “interactivity.” Acting is deft across the board ... along with gorgeous technical theater"
- Monica Westin, New City
"I don’t think that I’ve seen a play as amusing, witty, clever, intelligent, engaging, moving and intense as New Leaf Theatre’s The Man Who Was Thursday."
- Monica Reida, Fragments [blog]
SEE THE PRODUCTION PHOTOS
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| | New Leaf Theatre | 2045 N. Lincoln Park West Chicago, IL 60614 | Box Office (773) 516-3546 | |
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