Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...Mary Zimmerman — that most legitimate of theatrical artists — certainly hasn't gone Hollywood with her all-new, typically smart, fresh, endlessly imaginative and thoroughly enjoyable "Argonautika," which for my money is her most important and potentially most lucrative new show since 1998's Metamorphoses."
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...Director Mary Zimmerman hears the siren call of the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece in much the same way outsider artists seem to hear the call of the Old Testament prophets. She seems to have a special pipeline to the spirits of those Mount Olympus deities."
SouthtownStar - Highly Recommended
"...This is a stunning jewel of a production. To enhance the awesome experience, though, read up on your classical mythology before coming to see the show."
Pioneer Press - Highly Recommended
"...The swashbuckling cast is excellent throughout, and Atley Loughridge offers an outstanding depiction of a troubled Medea. Under Zimmerman's fine direction, the mood changes in Act II, moving from the voyage to the final island and the agonizing story of Medea. Her struggles with conscience and her romance with Jason are sensitively and beautifully handled. All is not sweetness and light as new deceptions unfold."
Windy City Times - Highly Recommended
"...Mary Zimmerman and the Lookingglass ensemble are back in top form after lying fallow for too long. Argonautika has them once again engaged in the patented blend of innovative spectacle grounded in solid literary values that first earned them their reputation. Their foundation is the picaresque sea voyage of Jason and the Argonauts, a narrative filled with fantasy adventures exceeded only by Odysseus’ homecoming trip."
Chicago Free Press - Highly Recommended
"...In 150 minutes Zimmerman, famed for “The Arabian Nights” and “Metamorphoses,” employs ingenious props and the daunting athleticism of a 14-member cast to transform a legend about heroes embarking on Greece’s first great voyage into a lesson on glory’s transience and fame’s bitter fruit. We’re moved from Colchis to Iraq quicker than we can resist."
Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...Imaginative flashes do shine through: A puppet-child dies simply by having its strings cut (Michael Montenegro’s puppets are the most interesting element here). But mostly, the low-grade visuals (tinsel as water, billowing fabric with eyeballs to signify a sea monster) suggest not so much an ingenious remaking of common objects as just cheesiness."
ChicagoCritic - Recommended
"...Fans of Greek mythology (I’m not one of them) will cherish this bold and enchanting epic. I found it a tad hard to follow but basically interesting, especially the production values. The puppets, the costumes (designed by Ana Kuzmanic), the set depicting the hull of a ship (designed by Dan Ostling) gave the show the ancient flavor that worked nicely."
