Assistance presented by LiveWire Chicago at Storefront Theater

Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended

"...What's missing, really, is a sense of where this is all going. Without it the play feels slightly disposable, like a TV show that was fun to watch but you forget the moment it's over. Something bigger needs to evolve from all this turmoil, but that dangling what's-the-point thematic ending might just be an emulation of the job itself."

Chicago Reader - Recommended

"...But nobody here seems to care that much about money. The unseen boss is more interested in tormenting his four assistants, dispensing orders through the multiline phones as if from the burning bush. They in turn scramble for his approval and recognition. Bracing and delightful as the office new girl, Lauren Fisher anchors a crackerjack lineup of witty performances. Director Joshua Aaron Weinstein's punchy, intriguing staging for LiveWire raises all the right questions, even if Headland's script can't always answer them."

Centerstage - Somewhat Recommended

"...The only problem with the play comes back to Beckett. By setting his plays outside a realistic realm, Beckett could create circular go-nowhere plots that held the audience’s attention. “Assistance” on the other hand is set in the real world and so is somewhat hamstrung by its own philosophical underpinnings. If nothing ever changes, after a while you start to feel like Daniel Weissinger himself: always unsatisfied."

Time Out Chicago - Recommended

"...Headland has a way with barbed dialogue, and her characters speak largely in quip; it’s not for nothing her main couple’s names are Nick and Nora. This makes the play’s first scene a little tough to penetrate in Joshua Aaron Weinstein’s production, as Nick and Vince seem to be speaking a kind of alien Entourage foreign language, made up entirely of inside jokes and jargon. But then that’s the point: Headland is showing us just how completely consumed they are by their all-out service to the industry of Daniel."

ChicagoCritic - Somewhat Recommended

"...Assistance has its moments; the actors were strong, especially Brian Crawford and Lauren Fisher. But they work moves toward a conclusion that never seems to evolve. Young corporate types may find this play relevant."

Splash Magazine - Recommended

"...Hillary Williams' brilliant handling of the play's ending and Krista D'Agostino's touching monologue are worth the price of admission in and of themselves. But more importantly, as work becomes more intense, it starts to invade our lives until it actually becomes our life. This play raises several important questions such as: why stay in a job that crushes your soul? Does the work we do really matter in the end? And what are we really working for if we're not happy? It's about motivation and what is really driving us. It gives a lot to ponder even if only for a brief moment."