Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...Hosner is an imposing actor with a gentle intelligence about him, and his Lincoln really is very moving, beard and all; you believe his affection for Trumbly's Derickson and Speed (having the same actor play both these roles is a savvy authorial trick). Also excellent is Fisher, who plays both Mary Todd Lincoln and Cal's mom, and who was starring on Broadway in "Once," not very long ago. Now she's in a tiny studio with a capacity of about 60. It's the actor's life, and it is good to see Fisher come home."
Time Out Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Elliot sets the present-day action in early 2008, against the background of the primary season that offered the promise of the nation’s first black or female president, as well as the news of Lawrence King, the gay California teen whose murder over allegedly asking out a straight classmate provides a channel for Susan’s fears for her son. The actor doubling, carried out fluidly in director Andrew Volkoff’s production, deepens both story lines."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...At 145 minutes Elliot takes too long to prosecute Cal's case. Despite the earnest performances and informative projections, some of the time jumps can't carry their weight. Inevitably, Elliot spins so many plates that a few are bound to crash. But the core value of this necessary show plays out well in both eras-the need for emotional authenticity. Oddly undermining the drama's content and intent is the hope it holds out-that one day sexual orientation will matter much less than, as M.L.K. put it, the "content of your character." This play practically lives to be superseded."
ChicagoCritic - Somewhat Recommended
"...Abraham Lincoln Was A F*GG*T is a mixed entertaining work that needs a judicious cut and a re-focus to pack a deeper wallop. As it plays now, it wears out its welcome with too much theatricality thus needlessly over complicating its story. I'm guessing that many will find this work funny and engaging."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Highly Recommended
"...About Face Theatre's Abraham Lincoln Was A F*gg*t, a play that is far less controversial than its unprintable title suggests, imagines one of the most important leaders in our nation's history as a repressed homosexual. The play is an admirably executed work of historical revisionism that has depth, beauty and heaps of laughs. It does what even a major Hollywood biopic cannot: get in bed with the great Emancipator himself."
Around The Town Chicago - Recommended
"...I had no idea what to expect, what with the rather quirky title, but About Face Theatre’s well-written, well-acted production of “Abraham Lincoln Was A F*gg*t” turned out to be a campy, coming-of-age comedy. “Abraham Lincoln Was A F*gg*t” made me laugh out loud!"
Chicago Theatre Review - Recommended
"...This exceptional production, a perfect offering during Gay Pride month, examines one teenager's search for himself. Cal travels from being an insecure kid to becoming a strong young man, secure in the knowledge that each and every person is a work in progress. Cal learns that labels are arbitrary and meaningless, except to unfairly pigeonhole individuals. He not only comes to terms with his own life style, but learns to understand both his mother and uncle, as well. Through the words of his hero Abraham Lincoln this young man discovers that, like all of us, his quest for understanding is universal."
