| Chicago Tribune - Recommended
"...It is a denouement that plays out at the Drury Lane Water Tower — a chandelier-lit venue well-suited to Felder’s intimate but inevitably portentous gestalt — without the signature flourish that Felder has brought to his earlier musical biographies of George Gershwin and Frederic Chopin. Of this acting-and-playing solo triptych, the Beethoven piece is the most serious, the most emotionally charged, the most powerfully played and the most interesting. Felder, whose previous shows have enjoyed several long runs among his many fans in Chicago, is maturing as an actor and sticking some pain into his agile fingers."
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Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended
"...Tricked out in frock coat and long gray wig to play a Viennese doctor impersonating a German composer, Felder intersperses biographical anecdotes with bits of musicological analysis, as well as renditions of piano works ranging from a charming set of variations Beethoven wrote when he was 11 to the brilliant Sonata Pathetique. The information is illuminating, the music sublime, but even as Felder recounts details of Beethoven's personal problems--an abusive father, ungrateful and ungenerous brothers, and deafness that left him emotionally isolated--the performance-within-a-performance conceit keeps the audience at an emotional distance."
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Windy City Times - Highly Recommended
"...You don't hear the music in Beethoven, As I Knew Him. You feel it. And if it that sounds like hyperbolic Cheez Whiz, so be it. It's also quite true. The music within Hershey Felder's one-man tribute to the German composer behind some of the world's most iconic music is something rare and wonderful. The plot of the thing—well, that's another, far lesser story. But Beethoven's legacy is his music, not his biography, and in capturing that glorious sound, Felder is a maestro."
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Talkin Broadway - Highly Recommended
"...Felder's device of using von Breuning as narrator is effective and appropriate, though. As Beethoven became more solitary and troubled during his later years, when von Breuning knew him, the composer—living in squalor and having the appearance of a pauper—would certainly have had limited self-awareness and little ability to tell an accurate story of his own life. Even with the disadvantages of memory and the distance of time, surely von Breuning provided a more accurate depiction than Beethoven would have been able to do."
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ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...Beethoven – As I Knew Him is a fantastic, mesmerizing and completely engaging theatrical experience that will be one that you’ll not ever forget. Hershey Felder is an amazing talent–as an actor, writer, teacher and pianists. He entertains, instructs, and gets us to experience some of the passion that all geniuses possess. When Felder plays Beethoven, it’s a show with two geniuses! Beethoven – As I Knew Him is the most moving and intelligent one person show I’ve ever experienced. See this show and you’ll appreciate the amazing world that geniuses exist in. What a wonderful theatrical experience. Hershey Felder is a treasure."
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Steadstyle Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Watching Felder at the piano is a treat all unto itself. His playing of "The Moonlight Sonata", "The Pathetique Sonata" and selections from Beethoven's Symphonies are magical moments and not a peep was heard in the theater except the notes he was playing. That's right, not a wrapper, a cough or even a text light was in evidence. Felder has the ability to grab the full attention of his audience with the style and grace that makes his character seem real. I found myself almost in a trance as I watched his every movement. Each gesture, although I am sure planned to perfection, seemed as if it was happening now for the first time. This is Felder at his best!"
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