Chicago Sun Times
- Recommended
"...While not the equal of last year’s giddy “Oh, the Places You’ll Glow” on this stage, “Best Kept Secret” does offer some mighty laughs — eventually. The first act is made up of fairly routine duo and group sketches, about sisters reconnecting on a cruise, a family game night gone awry, a woman introducing her boyfriend to co-workers and losing control of her lies. Perhaps the intention is establish the cast as an ensemble, but the sequence of events doesn’t do much to build excitement."
Chicago Reader
- Recommended
"...To my taste, though the occasional political commentary sprinkled throughout has bite, it's the relationship-based work that carries the show (which is usually how I feel about Second City revues). Jenelle Cheyne, who is from Canada, does deliver a very funny bit as a Canadian immigration officer letting us know just how our neighbors to the north see us. Claudia Martinez, who is genderfluid, neatly encapsulates what that means in a one-person performance of a mini-musical melodrama, where they're dressed half as a man, half as a woman."
Let's Play Theatrical Reviews
- Recommended
"...This comedic experience is precisely what the doctor-better yet, your therapist-prescribed to lift your spirits and bring a light-hearted touch to the electoral chaos. The talented ensemble members Meghan Babbe, Terrence Carey, Jenelle Cheyne, Javid Iqbal, Claudia Martinez, and Tim Metzler skillfully weave the central themes of secrets throughout the show's diverse sketches with the heist, immigration, politics, and other current events."
Around The Town Chicago
- Recommended
"...Tonight, they opened their 48th revue in the ETC theater. It is called " Best Kept Secret: Tell Everyone", a delightful two hours ( with a 10 minute intermission) that takes us on several levels of comedy. The initial contact with the cast is that each audience member will find a slip of paper and a small pencil at their seat. It says "TELL US A SECRET""
Third Coast Review
- Highly Recommended
"...The Second City e.t.c.'s 48th revue-Best Kept Secret: Tell Everyone- is intelligent, wacky, and roll-on-the-floor hilarious. Director Carisa Barreca designed a sharp, energetic, and wildly creative comedy show. It is the perfect balance of zany and satirical, using whimsy and light-heartedness to touch on a wide range of topics from immigration to menopause to saying goodbye to your good pal, spider. In the current polarized political climate, the troupe is able to use this platform to share their thoughts and opinions in a good-natured and comical way. My personal favorite is a bit called "sexual secrets.""
Chicago Culture Authority
- Recommended
"...This revue is a slow build that kicks into high gear at the climax of the first act, a hilarious set piece involving multiple audience members, noisy misdirection and comedic sleight-of-hand. No more on that as you’ll need to come into it cold to fully appreciate it."
BroadwayWorld
- Highly Recommended
"...BEST KEPT SECRET is solidly funny and well paced and the central themes of secrets and illusions are logical and woven throughout the sketches. As with any Second City revue, some sketches hit more than others. But this show cleared the bar of making me laugh out loud and freely. Highlights include an act one sketch in Cheyne invites audiences to rise and sing the National Anthem...only to learn that the sketch is, in fact, a test for Canadian citizenship. The device allows Cheyne to brutally skewer the state of American politics (as with most Second City shows, the politics are wholly liberal.)"
