Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...In "Boojum! Nonsense, Truth, and Lewis Carroll," snippets of Carroll's biography — namely, his possibly questionable relationship with Alice Liddell, the young girl who inspired his most famous creation — engage in verbal combat with his nonsense verse, particularly 1874's mock-epic "The Hunting of the Snark (An Agony in 8 Fits)," in which a motley collection of people and animals whose names all begin with "B" (Baker, Bellman, Beaver) board a ship of fools to track the mysterious title creature. Those looking for family-friendly whimsy along the lines of "Lookingglass Alice" will probably be disappointed, but if you're up for a mind-bending journey through a darker mirror, "Boojum!" should fill the bill nicely."
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...“Boojum! Nonsense, Truth, and Lewis Carroll,” the haunting and imaginative U.S. premiere, now in a joint production by Caffeine Theatre and Chicago Opera Vanguard at the Storefront Theatre, is one of the more intriguing takes on the subject. A zesty hybrid of cabaret theater and contemporary opera — with a book and score by Martin and Peter Wesley-Smith, two immensely talented brothers based in Australia — it begins a bit opaquely. But before long, director Jimmy McDermott’s superbly polished and ingenious production — which features superb musical direction by Andrea Velis Simon (who also supplies the brilliant, tremendously difficult onstage piano accompaniment) and Martin Silberstein — draws you into its dark, brainy, eccentric world. And as Carroll’s desperate need for “nonsense” and an imaginary language become increasingly apparent, the realization about the reasons for such masking techniques delivers a genuinely gripping emotional punch."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...Composer Martin Wesley-Smith and his twin brother, lyricist Peter Wesley-Smith, probe themes of duality in Dodgson's work, especially youthful innocence versus age, death, and sexuality. Under the guidance of director Jimmy McDermott and music director/keyboardist Andra Velis Simon, tenor Alex Balestrieri and baritone Jeremy Trager deliver remarkable performances as the repressed Dodgson as his darkly flamboyant alter ego."
Windy City Times - Recommended
"...Boojum! is almost entirely sung, and the music is quite wonderful, a richly melodic tapestry of solo and ensemble pieces encompassing opera, doo-wop, ragtime, Gilbert & Sullivan and close-harmony vocals among other styles. The lyrics frequently are Lewis Carroll's own words, but where they are not you cannot tell, so skillfully has lyricist Peter Wesley-Smith mirrored his source in what is, in effect, a musical Rorschach test of Snark and its author."
Chicago Stage Review - Highly Recommended
"...Caffeine Theatre and Chicago Opera Vanguard’s latest endeavor is the American premiere of Boojum! Nonsense, Truth and Lewis Carroll, an ambitious piece of Australian musical theater that made its debut on the Sydney stage in 1986. Penned by twin brothers Martin and Peter Wesley-Smith, Boojum! takes its name from Lewis Carroll’s epic nonsense poem “The Hunting of the Snark”, which concludes with the line “For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.” Martin Wesley-Smith, for whom the works of Carroll have been a lifelong theme, uses this phrase and others from Carroll’s work as metaphors for the English author’s life, which appears to have been as eccentric as the imaginary worlds he created."
Time Out Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...The deceptively complex score ranges from operatic trills to inverted nursery rhymes to suggestions of doo-wop and blues, impeccably realized by music directors Andra Velis Simon and Myron Silberstein and a terrific ensemble (led by Michael Reyes’s rich baritone). The brothers’ book smartly lifts themes from Carroll’s work, such as Through the Looking-Glass’s chess motif, in its compelling examination of Dodgson’s fractured and recurring motives. Boojum! makes Carroll’s unimaginable nonsense unimaginably human."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Recommended
"...In Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Patience,” the title milkmaid pooh-poohs the poetry of the Oscar Wilde caricature by saying, “Well, it seems to me to be nonsense.” To which one of his adoring acolytes replies, “Nonsense, perhaps—but oh, what precious nonsense!” That adjective certainly fits this bravura 1986 Australian confection. This charming divertissement with captivating tunes and memorable lyrics by Martin and Peter Wesley-Smith deconstructs both Lewis Carroll’s mock epic poem from 1876, “The Hunting of Snark: An Agony in Eight Fits,” and the life and obsessions of his creator, the not so Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...“Boojum” takes us on a ride into the mind of Dodgson/Carroll following the poem “The Hunting of a Snark” and introduces us to all types of characters, some of which you will recall fro the “Alice in Wonderland stories”. What we also learn is more about Alice and their relationship. Dodgsdon befriended the Liddell family and found himself telling stories to their three daughters, one of which was Alice. Rumor has it that despite his sad and lonely life, there was a period of happiness, the years that he spent with young Alice. Further rumors suggest that they had a love affair for a period of five years ( his diary is missing all of the pages during this period, so who can tell)."
Reviews You Can Iews - Highly Recommended
"...A rather simple reviewing assignment has lead to a remarkably elaborate and completely mystifying series of communiqués from this publication’s dutiful associate, John Taflan. While normally a steadfast employee of this institution, Mr. Taflan seems to have taken decidedly odd turn in the wake of his most recent charge: A critique of the elusive, thought-provoking Boojum! (a co-production of Caffeine Theatre and Chicago Opera Vanguard) presented until December 19th at the Chicago DCA Theater."
Chicago Theater Beat - Recommended
"...BOOJUM! Nonsense, Truth and Lewis Carroll is all about looking at two sides of the same thing: Dodgson/Carroll, Past/Present, Reality/Fantasy. Following this splitting trend, I’ll break it into two too. The first act, Boojum: Nonsense is a schizophrenic’s group therapy session. The second act, Boojum: Truth is more like a lobotomy."
