Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...But Vinkler's wacky sherry-sipping guy always is fun in director Stuart Carden's fast-moving and wry-toned Northlight production, and he's well matched with Morohunfola, playing a realist who actually has to lead his man by the nose to come up with his own salvation — and, well, change the course of history."
Daily Herald - Recommended
"...Skokie's Northlight Theatre makes a strong case for "Butler," a contained Civil War drama now featuring fine performances in its local premiere. Yet for a play that hinges so heavily on semantics and interpretations of words and laws, the generic title isn't the best fit -- especially since it suggests a figure more likely found in a British murder mystery."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...Under the direction of Stuart Carden, the four-person cast work at the top of their game-Greg Vinkler, in particular, turns in a subtle, nuanced performance as Major General Benjamin Butler, the cranky commanding officer who refuses to return three fugitive slaves to the Confederacy. He's well matched by Tosin Morohunfola as the wily, desperate runaway Shepard Mallory."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Butler is an idea play that uses strong characters that humanize the theoretical concepts. The performances by the entire cast, especially Vinkler’s Butler, make this play stage worthy. Don’t miss it!"
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...First of all, when you see the title of the new production at Northlight, “Butler”, know that this is not anything to do with the film of a similar name. That was “The Butler” while this is “Butler” , plain and simple and in reality is based on a real person, General Benjamin Franklin Butler ( played to perfection by Chicago favorite Greg Vinkler), who during the Civil War became a General in the Union Army in charge of Fort Monroe, Virginia. This was at the very onset of the war when many lawyers and judges as well as politicians were asked to help with the war efforts."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...Often historical dramas suffer because they’re ponderous and pretentious. Not so with Richard Strand’s entertaining play about a little-known Civil War and human rights hero. With excellent biographical program information, provided by dramaturgs Lauren Shouse and Jacob Hoover, audiences will discover even more about the man, the event and the times. Under Stuart Carden’s talented direction this piece of history springs to life and will resonate with smart theatergoers long after the final curtain."
Chicago Theater Beat - Highly Recommended
"...he play proceeds in a lively manner as director, Stuart Carden, maintains a quickened pace, the three main characters constantly involved in sharp give and take. Then a fourth player appears on stage in the person of a Confederate officer, Major Cary (played by Tim Monsion in a delightfully unctuous and pompous manner) who has come to reclaim his “property”. Now the dialogue becomes thrust and parry, as he and General Butler argue the case at hand, the law involved and finally, the etiquette required in a meeting of this kind. The matter, at length, is resolved and Major Cary is sent packing, pompousness deflated. The play ends as the three, General, Lieutenant and slave, offer a triumphant toast to the satisfying results."
NewCity Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...But before that finale, we enjoy the spectacle of Butler and Mallory-and later Butler and his Confederate counterpart-firing playwright Richard Strand's incendiary dialogue at one another. It often hits its target. As Butler, Vinkler acts touchingly confounded by this "war"; it's as if his character is only now gingerly confronting the moral implications of his one-time support of Confederate leader Jefferson Davis as Democratic nominee for president."
