Exiles presented by Theatre Y at Lacuna Lofts

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...Smith can't completely overcome some of the emotional lassitude of Joyce's "tell, not show" approach to dramaturgy. But though it doesn't coalesce as a whole, there are plenty of arresting images that lift this play above its usual status as minor literary curiosity."

Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended

"... Director Kevin Smith spotlights the play's oppressive sexual politics: The female characters are done up like drag queens, their suppressed emotions bursting out in spasms, shouting fits, and--at the end of each act--explosive lip-sync numbers. Joyce's script has some plodding passages, but the ensemble's commitment, vision, and precision fire up many startling, haunting moments."

Chicago Stage Review - Recommended

"...I wish that Kevin V. Smith had followed his gut more strongly. He could have cut another two hours of exposition out of the original script, added a dozen more lip-synch numbers, and had a dragstravaganza that would have made RuPaul’s Drag Race look like amateur hour (well, season three, anyway). Still, this is a solid and creative effort by a company on the rise. There is no doubt that Theatre Y is on the way to becoming another TUTA or Trap Door. Although Exiles is not the production that will launch Theatre Y to prominence, it is an innovative start towards greatness."

ChicagoCritic - Recommended

"...No, it is not theatre for everyone; those slaves to realism should not go – they would not understand. But this theatre, like both works playing next door, is asking you to expand your theatrical tastes and knowledge, and does so kindly yet unapologetically, eagerly yet well. It is, on the whole, a good trip."

Chicago Theater Beat - Somewhat Recommended

"...The performances are impeccably rehearsed, almost to the point where any hint of spontaneity has been erased. Franco’s Rowan hits the anger but he rattles through the monologues lacking the ability to take the audience through the language. Hawkins is a powerhouse as a female-to-female drag queen. In some ways this is a separate point from her performance as Bertha, since when she breaks into lip-synched performances of songs such as Adele’s “Rolling In the Deep", it’s an entirely different show. While the lyrics connect to the story, the departure from the world of the play provides little more than welcome entertainment. In the end, I would’ve rather watched three hours of the impassioned drag,than try to make head-and-tails of what Joyce’s play is truly about in Theatre-Y’s brave yet frustrating telling."