Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...Subtlety isn't the point, and "The Mother" would never be mistaken for Brecht's far more nuanced "Mother Courage." But Truax's taut production and fine, full-throated cast give urgent voice to issues of economic injustice that are just as present in the age of the 99 percent."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...The fired-up cast enact the tale of Palagea, the impoverished mother who's awakening to the promise of Bolshevism. While Truax's broad strokes muddy the storytelling and diminish most characters to featureless types, they infuse Brecht's didacticism with harrowing urgency. The cast attack Jonathan Guillen's mournful, anthemic score with blistering precision."
Centerstage - Recommended
"...Actress Katherine Keberlein is wonderful as Pelegea Vlassova, the stories titular mother. As Vlassova moves from meek widow worrying for the safety of her son, Pavel (Rick Foresee) to strident union organizer and major figure in the Bolshevik movement, Keberlein takes her grasp and guides it safely home. Additionally, original music by Jonathan Guillen (arranged by Nicholas Tunozzi) adds a nice, rousing touch to the evening and sang beautifully by the cast."
ShowBizChicago - Highly Recommended
"...Whatever your feelings on the relevancy of Brecht, or if you have been unmoved by his work in the past, The Mother will surely give you a new perspective on his gritty prospective of the human condition."
Stage and Cinema - Highly Recommended
"...While this production might have been even more timely a few months back when the Occupy Movement was in full swing, Oracle manages to commandeer on the economic and political frustration leftover from the recent Great Recession (which can now be called the Not As Great But Possibly Perpetual Recession). Oracle has been less successful to this end in the past, with its viscerally bad production of Accidental Death of an Anarchist earlier this season. What The Mother portends is that the little-theater-that-could really can, and often does, but that its success is wildly bolstered by Truax's involvement in any given production. With The Mother, this little Public Access theater is at its best, and can easily contend with the best of Chicago. No, scratch that; The Mother is the best that Chicago theater has to offer right now."
Let's Play at ChicagoNow - Highly Recommended
"...THE MOTHER is its own revolution. The Oracle has birthed a musical and it's a beauty. If you've been waiting to experience Oracle for the first time, this is it. If you've been here before, THE MOTHER is calling you home again."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Directed by Max Truax, we have actors go under tables, walk from table to table and come as close to audience members as one could ever expect. The lighting ( Erik Van Tassell) is dim for the most part , but there are several kep oints in the production that they become blazing and if you are short, there may be times that you will have problems seeing the screen without craning your neck. Needless to say, the action is so powerful, you can follow the story without knowing what scene we are in, asthe actors convey it all to us, in words, songs and actions."
Sheridan Road - Highly Recommended
"...The cast pops out from beneath your feet and on carefully placed risers, singing with delightfully layered harmonies. Led by the radiant Katherine Keberlein, who shades Palagea with humility and gritty determination, they truly fuse together with theatrical integrity and force. Rick Foresee brings the proper wearied resignation to his Pavel while Stephanie Plot and Havalah Grace ignite with determined fear as his closest companions. DeChantel Kosmatka's biting superiority as The Commissioner is a joyous pleasure, as well."
