Twelfth Night Reviews

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...One of the strongest casts I've yet seen in First Folio's annual outdoor Shakespeare productions largely renders the text with clarity, sensitivity and precision. Now, they just need to amp up the passion a few notches to capture both the loosey-goosey ethos of the play's subtitle ("or What You Will") and some of its darker moments."

Daily Herald - Recommended

"...Director Michael Goldberg locates First Folio Theatre's production of "Twelfth Night" in 19th century colonial India, lending an exotic touch to the sparkling comedy about identity and unrequited love. It's a pretty, pleasant production and the credit rests in part with Goldberg and First Folio's talented artistic team. That includes Jeff Award-winner Henry Marsh who composed the original score."

Pioneer Press - Recommended

"..."Twelfth Night" is, at its heart, all about Viola and her voyage from grieving shipwreck survivor to happily-ever-after. Minita Gandhi capably carries the demanding part. The other bereft sister in the story is Countess Olivia. In that prickly role, Melanie Keller is charged with turning on a dime from slavishly grief-stricken to slavishly in love. She dispatches that hair-pin emotional journey adequately. Which is to say: Goldberg's leading ladies have a solid grasp of the framework of Shakespeare's language. But they haven't mastered the endless nuances shimmering within almost every passage. The result is a "Twelfth Night" that is very good, but not spectacular."

Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended

"...Henry Marsh's original score weaves a subtle enchantment in the background while Goldberg's cast--heavy on Chicago acting veterans--work the stage with ease and dexterity. Nick Sandys plays marble-faced straight man Malvolio with killer comedic instinct, and coltish Minita Gandhi proves herself in her Shakespearean debut with a charming, earnest performance as romantic lead Viola."

Chicago Stage and Screen - Somewhat Recommended

"...The diverse multi-cultural cast is wonderful in principal, but something of a verbal muddle in execution.  Hearing Shakespeare's words spoken in clipped Indian dialects, or in the case of Nick Sandys' starched Malvolio a thick Northern England brogue, makes the verse frequently hard on the ear.  One can clearly see the potential in Goldberg's concept, and the lovely original score by Henry Marsh, exotic and colorful costumes by Elsa Hiltner, and the simple but suggestive multi-purpose set by Angela Miller, all of which create the flavor of the Middle East.  Those impressive elements alas don't quite compensate for the missing wit and romance of this popular "Night"."

Chicago Theater Beat - Somewhat Recommended

"...The Indian locale does bring an exotic flair to the proceedings, but aesthetics can only go so far. The strongest performances come from Sir Toby (Donald Brearley) and his gang, classic Shakespeare fools that drink and sing and comment on the inanities of the main plot line while relishing in their own silliness. Craig Spidle is a great co-star as the fool Festes, giving his scene’s partners plenty to work off of with his dry wit and perverted sense of humor, and Brearley is quite adept at playing drunk. Nick Sandys dominates the stage as Malvolio, Olivia’s manservant who meets a tragic fate after a prank goes awry. His Malvolio is pretentious, dowdy, and completely clueless, and he has a firmer handle of the language in dialect than his fellow castmates."