Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended
"...Castillo is connected to the New York company known as Labyrinth, and I suspect the piece is headed there for a production. Good. "Between You, Me and the Lampshade" certainly is an entertaining piece already, with much humor flowing from Amparo's attempts to keep still and quiet enough not to be heard. It is smartly written, and though director Ricardo Gutierrez's modestly staged production could lose 15 minutes and raise the stakes a good few notches, it is generally well acted in Chicago. These are rich characters, suffused with credible life, and this is a most promising beginning for a new play."
Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended
"... It’s potentially volatile, consequential stuff, but Castillo spends as much energy developing an implausible, inconsequential affair between Jesse’s isolative teenage son, Woody, and privileged California gamer Kristen. With better prioritizing, not to mention a more consistent ear for dialogue, playwright Raúl Castillo might have something powerful, especially in the hands of Teatro Vista’s engaging cast. But he’s also got to develop and complicate his characters' problems, rather than reiterating them for 90 minutes."
Windy City Times - Recommended
"...According to Teatro Vista's publicity, the lesson we are to take home is that secrets make for complications seriously affecting people's lives. With fewer distractions arising from incomplete backstories and nebulous motivations, the irony of the ending-in which everybody, after coming clean and renouncing clandestine tactics, unite in concealing the circumstances of Amparo's entry into the United States-could transform this play into a bona fide comedy."
Gapers Block - Recommended
"...Between You, Me and the Lampshade is an entertaining and poignant story told by an excellent cast under the capable direction of artistic director Ricardo Gutierrez. Original music and sound design by Victoria Deiorio create an authentic sound landscape for the story. Jose Manuel Diaz-Soto's scene design is very much an aging trailer interior, including the turquoise kitchen."
Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...Muñoz is particularly compelling and conveys affecting vulnerability and determination; without a shared language to communicate, every nuance takes on a subtlety not seen elsewhere in the metaphor-packed show. Rivera-Vega is similarly charismatic, but Castillo's heavy-handed theater-speak dialogue robs the story of its authenticity. Rather than, say, observing two characters from disparate cultures bond over Xbox Live, Castillo bluntly shoehorns in an unnatural monologue about how amazing today's technology is. Similarly, allusions to "jackals" and repetitive bits of magical realism endorse a tell-don't-share style of storytelling that even the richest performances can't make seem natural."
ChicagoCritic - Recommended
"...Without giving away more, let me say that this drama has loads of humor with a strong suspenseful mystery attached. This play cleverly and searingly examines the consequences of secrets and lies. The resolution here is plausible as the best intentions and strong wills struggle to do the right thing. While the play could use a trimming, it is a well plotted and nicely written world premier. Sandra Marquez and Tommy Rivera-Vega lead a fine cast. This promising play is worth a look."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Somewhat Recommended
"...Between You, Me and the Lampshade is at its best when exploring personal truth versus imposing societal truths. The regrets and responsibilities of a single mother are mapped onto the terrain of our country’s messy, contradictory relationship to immigration. It suggests that the strict dictates of law are ancillary to the demands of conscience. It is a small play with big ideas. Yet it is difficult to avoid the feeling that the play’s Latino perspective has been reduced in service of advancing an idea of America rather than its reality."
Around The Town Chicago - Recommended
"...There is something discordant about what should be the sophisticated technical aspects of "Between, You, Me, and the Lampshade." While the set by (Jose Manuel Diaz) is detailed and convincing as a suburban Texan home, Raúl Castillo's script makes it clear that it is not suburban, that it is in the country, and implies that it is a trailer home rather than a comfortable ranch house-the ambience which Diaz's set produces. Similarly, the lighting (Erik S. Barry) produces some astounding affects in both the video game and nightmare sequences, but never gives the sense of the intense desert sun or light of Texas. Except for some sound design (Victoria Delorio), we never really get the sense that we are in a border-town; in fact, a window looks out into pitch-black nothing ever in scenes set during daytime."
The Fourth Walsh - Somewhat Recommended
"...There were parts and performances in this show I enjoyed. Other pieces weren't as cohesive. Conflict seemed easily avoidable. Secrets seemed contrived for dramatic effect. Between you, me and the lampshade, Castillo's play is a work in progress."
