Lifeline Theatre’s adaptation of Michael Shaara’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel reminds one of an overzealous history teacher’s attempt to teach the Battle of Gettysburg, the only battle of the Civil War to be fought on Union ground. Viewed by many historians as the turning point in the Civil War, Gettysburg marked the end of the South’s one major attempt at an offensive.

Director Ned Mochel makes use of one major device to help the audience understand the developing battle to great effect. A large map, placed upstage, shows the developing positions of the opposing armies. A red circle indicates the location of particular scenes, which frees Mochel and the ensemble to move quickly from scene to scene without worrying much about transitions or losing the audience. Simple changes of jackets and hats allow the cast of nine to easily portray 25 different characters and Mochel’s ensemble does, on the whole, an excellent job of fleshing out these various men in the numerous short scenes. Perhaps the only significant weakness in Lifeline’s production lies in converting an historical event into a gripping dramatic one when everyone knows the ending. While many moments of the play are interesting, they are hardly engrossing. But The Killer Angels is not just for Civil War buffs; Mochel’s staging and several fine performances make it a worthy dramatic event. If only history class had been so engaging.

The Killer Angels—Lifeline Theatre

Chris Jones, Tribune—“The skill of this show—an intensely impressive piece of work in all areas—lies in its exquisite sense of balance. Despite the obvious physical limitations, it’s sufficiently epic to excite from time to time. But it’s also unafraid to turn its back on its audience when necessary. And it’s quiet enough to reveal Shaara’s deeper points in three dimensions…Thoughtful performances also abound in Ned Mochel’s dignified and endlessly imaginative production—a show that avoids the ooze of familiar sentiment in favor of smart, clear-eyed storytelling.”

Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times—“The Lifeline production deploys just nine actors, most enacting multiple roles on both the Union and Confederate sides as they bring the entire Battle of Gettysburg to vivid life. It’s all there: The strangely reversed alignment of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, dressed in gray, and the Union’s Army of the Potomac, in blue; the deeply thoughtful arguments about what each side was fighting for; the complex personalities of the generals and their attitudes toward sending their soldiers into the most futile situations; the mutinies and food shortages and inconclusive battle outcomes and spies; the carefully mapped and sometimes highly unconventional battlefield tactics; the horrors of face-to-face combat; the piercing reality of life one moment, death the next.”

Kelly Kleiman, Reader—“Karen Tarjan’s faithful adaptation of Michael Shaara’s Pulitzer-winning novel is as dull as the book despite some strong performances, particularly from Brian Amidei as tortured Confederate general James Longstreet. In this version of the battle of Gettysburg, there’s a lot of standing around asking “Where is the enemy? Is that the enemy? Should we engage the enemy?”…Director Ned Mochel seems stumped even by the basics: a map used to illustrate the battle’s progress is more confusing than helpful, so if you don’t already know how things unfolded at Gettysburg you’re in trouble.

Tim Sauers, Gay Chicago—“The telling of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg by a nine-member, testosterone-driven male ensemble in a little over two hours is quite an impressive feat of theatre. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Michael Shaara, Lifeline Theatre’s staging, adapted by Karen Tarjan and directed by Ned Mochel, has all the right aesthetic elements needed for historical drama. Although the first half borders on becoming a somewhat dry social studies lesson, the second half fires an forceful cannonball that drives the action to its inevitable conclusion.”

American Dead—American Theatre Company

Michael Phillips, Tribune—“But American Dead, the latest as well as one of the best from Chicago playwright Brett Neveu, works its forlorn territory with a stealthy sense of purpose. The play has its puzzling aspects and narrative lurches. Yet its hermetic, small-town atmosphere feels like an extension of its characters rather than an authorial imposition…Only occasionally does the writer, who has a deadpan sense of humor, condescend to the provincial stasis he depicts.”

Hedy Weiss, Sun-Times—“Neveu has an ear for dialogue spoken by those who tend to be dulled by life, and preferably even nonverbal. And under Edward Sobel’s sober and sobering direction, the actors…have found precisely the right tempo and body language for their depressive characters. Sobel (who should have dispensed with an intermission) also sustains the touch of Twin Peaks menace that Neveu has injected into his story, though mostly it is the grim, sometimes brutal reality of ordinary existence that holds sway here—all underscored by the design work of Keith Pitts, Rachel Anne Healy, Michelle Habeck and Ray Nardelli.”

Tony Adler, Reader—“The production, directed by Edward Sobel, is as good as it can possibly be. Understated, sure-footed, gritty and sweet. Marty Higginbotham’s Alan is a bully with a heart of gold, pained equally by the inevitability of his situation as sheriff of a dead town and by the fantasy that he can somehow do something about it. John Mohrlein’s Bill is a strange comic masterpiece: old man as old biddy, the mother hen at the last bar on earth. Danny McCarthy’s Doug is wonderful to watch in his interactions with the increasingly unstable Lewie—by turns guarded and generous, pitying and possessed of a genuine affection for his crazy brother-in-law. But in the end it’s James Leaming’s show. Leaming’s Lewie is astounding in its portrayal of a handyman, as doomed as Oedipus.”

Nina Metz, New City—“The scenes between Lewie and Doug are almost dance-like, their dialogue skirting around the issue so doggedly—Lewie’s dependence on Doug, and Doug’s conflicted desire to get away—it is almost uncomfortable to watch. Director Edward Sobel and his design team (particularly Keith Pitts and his exposed-slat, crumbling-sheetrock set design) give the play a dilapidated, melancholic nobility that is very much alive indeed.”

Rick Reed, Windy City—“Edward Sobel deftly directs an outstanding ensemble here, which give uniformly inspired and credible performances. Keith Pitts’ set design perfectly mirrors the details of a town in decline, and uses American Theatre Company’s modest playing space to craft a very real, three-pronged world. Michelle Habeck’s lighting is appropriately moody, and Ray Nardelli’s sound design is simple and evocative. American Dead is one of the finest original works I’ve seen at ATC, and heralds the arrival of an important voice in American theatre. It’s not a perfect outing (it could use some script doctoring and tightening), but it’s much better than much of what passes for theatre downtown. Definitely recommended.”

Struggling Truths—Prop Thtr

Michael Phillips, Tribune—“For its inaugural mainstage run, alas, Prop has backed what charitably might be called 'the wrong pony.’…The Prop production, staged by Scott Vehill, does well enough by the careering text. Prop’s executive director, Jonathan Lavan, has fun as Sangsang, though his approach glibs up a role that’s plenty glib to begin with. The play, finally, never locates a provocative mixture of seriousness and funniness. Unruly, bloody recent Tibetan history deserves a more stimulatingly unruly play than this.”

Mary Houlihan, Sun-Times—“With the rich, tragic history of Tibet at its core, Peter Mellencamp’s Struggling Truths has the possibility of being a truly unique piece of theatre. The ambitious drama is rich with ideas, but it sometimes walks a precarious line between drama and comedy that makes for an uneasy partnership. The play’s reach is wildly ambitious, and that undermines its effectiveness. There are simply too many vignettes to be pulled together into a cohesive story...Too many angles crammed into two hours makes for scattered storytelling.”

Kelly Kleiman, Reader—“Scott Vehill’s production is most successful in its nods to Mother Courage and Her Children and The Good Woman of Setzuan, with a narrator who pops in and out of the action and a portrait of political conflict in which everyone suffers and no one wins. But the script’s weaknesses are exacerbated by Vehill’s decision to stage it on a central runway, forcing audience members to spend the evening turning their heads back and forth like judges at Wimbledon. Emphasizing dichotomy is all very well, but it might be done without inducing motion sickness. Jonathan Lavan’s fine performance as the narrator is complemented by Jason Llamas’s as the brother whose spiritual quest forms the play’s arc. Llamas turns lines suitable for Luke Skywalker into something genuine-and genuinely touching.”

Jennifer Vanasco, Free Press—“Struggling Truths is an accessible play and director Scott Vehill has staged it beautifully, turning Prop’s new, narrow space with the audience facing each other (the rest of the theatre is still under construction) into the plains and mountains of Tibet. Prop Thtr is the oldest non-equity company in Chicago and this production is one example of why it’s been able to hang around for 23 years. The production is riveting, managing to convey complex philosophical questions in a direct, engaging way.”

Venus Zarris, Gay Chicago—“Prop Thtr’s Chicago premiere of Struggling Truths isn’t bad, but it fails to deliver the full flavor of what it attempts to convey. It tells the story of the Communist Chinese takeover—or 'liberation,’ as they liked to spin it—of Tibet and the subsequent exile of the Dalai Lama. The story unravels through the lives of a brother and sister that follow different paths and find themselves on opposite sides of the violent conflict.”

Mary Shen Barnidge, Windy City—“Besides, this is a PLAY and if we are to pay attention for nearly three hours, we need to cheer for SOMEBODY. The absurdity (to our Western sensibilities, anyway) of koanic logic was the stuff of a thousand jokes during America’s craze for esoteric religions in the 1960s, its potential for humor or insight long since exhausted. And while the tragedy of families split asunder by Turbulent Times is a reliable premise for melodrama, the naive siblings’ dogged faith in the righteousness of their respective ideologies ultimately alienates us, but not in the manner prescribed by the verfremdungseffekt principle on which this dramatic genre is based.”

Critic’s Quote:

“Stick to the film.”—Lawrence Bommer reviewing The Graduate at the Shubert Theatre in the Reader.