Animals Commit Suicide presented by First Floor Theater at Flat Iron Arts Building

Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended

"...Despite the explicit sex and drug use depicted in Christopher's play, there is a whiff of discomfiting moralizing that gets in the way of really telling us more about Chance's motivations, despite revelations about his childhood. Reyes' Sebastian, who admits he wanted to change his HIV status to qualify for housing and medical benefits, feels like the disposable bad boy in this narrative, while by contrast, Keys' baker seems positioned to represent the "good" gay man who was accidentally infected early on and has dutifully avoided unsafe sex ever since."

Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended

"...Hutch Pimentel's thought-provoking and confident production for First Floor Theater is directed and acted with the sort of brute force that can make the most jaded viewer squeamish, viscerally and intellectually. Enrapturing performances and production style help offset Christopher's blunt and motif-heavy writing (the bug chaser's name is Chance, for goodness's sake), which curiously errs on the side of tidy answers."

Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...The rest of the production would have benefited from Boles's minimalist take. A disproportionate amount of the short run time is spent watching Kourtis change his entire costume, down to his shoes; the pace of the play generally seems to drag. For a show about chasing a thrill, there's not much here that's thrilling."

Theatre By Numbers - Highly Recommended

"...I left the theatre feeling like I'd been punched in the gut... in a good way. This was a powerful and meaningful piece that leaves you more than a little shaken in the end. It looks at a phenomenon within modern gay culture. It looks at humanity's darker side. It looks at one man's struggle with guilt and acceptance. And when it comes down to it, it tells a tale that makes the audience think and feel. It does everything a play should, and it does it really well."

Chicago Theatre Review - Somewhat Recommended

"...Chance, played by Nik Kourtis, feels more like a statistic with a name, unlike Ethan, who’s beautifully realized by Brian Keys. Ethan is complex and caring and his betrayal is the moment when audiences finally feel some compassion for anyone in this drama. Both Sebastian, played with ferocious feral intensity by Michael Reyes, and Ashley J. Hicks, as a determined Clinic Worker, exhibit more variety and layers of humanity. Without exhibiting so much as an ounce of mercy or goodwill, Chance’s story is simply a barren expedition toward doom."