The Scarlet Letter presented by GreyZelda Theatre Group at Second Stage Theatre

Chicago Tribune - Not Recommended

"...Elizabeth Styles is a striking and dignified Hester, but in a town long spoiled by vibrant re-imaginings of classic texts by directors such as Sean Graney and Mary Zimmerman, this production misses the mark."

Daily Herald - Somewhat Recommended

"...The production also benefits from solid acting from its principals, especially Elizabeth Styles as an appropriately stoic Hester, who bears a child out of wedlock, is convicted of adultery and is forced to wear a scarlet "A" as punishment. Hester emerges as a woman of commanding will, who from shame and humiliation forges an identity independent of the one her puritanical society imposes."

Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended

"...The acting is strong and many of the scenes are spare and pointed. But the nuances of Hawthorne's brilliant writing and spiritually complex message get lost amid the play's romance and melodrama."

Windy City Times - Somewhat Recommended

"...Zellar’s direction matches her production’s tone to the operatic proportions engendered by this gothic climax. Ron Kuzava renders Dr. Chillingworth as grotesquely menacing as his name, while Elizabeth Styles and Meredith Rae Lyons deliver heroic portrayals of gentlewomen Hester and Pearl Prynne. But the dramatic scope inspired by their performances inadvertently diminishes Toby Minor’s no-larger-than-life Rev. Dimmesdale, making us question, at times, if he is truly worth all the trouble taken by the others in precipitating his downfall."

Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...This staging of Hawthorne’s novel of sin and redemption opens promisingly enough with a striking image: a tangle of actors entwined in a sort of living sculpture, groping hopelessly to move apart while staying connected....Unfortunately, the rest of GreyZelda’s adaptation fails to fulfill this early promise."

ChicagoCritic - Somewhat Recommended

"...the show did have some dramatic moments from Toby Minor as the tormented Dimmesdale. If there is a reason to see The Scarlet Letter, it would be to witness Elizabeth Styles’ commandingly powerful performance as Hester Prynne. Meredith Rae Lyons added several effective scenes as the impish child Pearl."