Coriolanus presented by The Hypocrites at Chopin Theatre

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...This "Coriolanus" works best in parts rather than as a unified whole. But then again - that could also be said about its wholly reactive protagonist, whose notions of honor are tainted by his Nixonian struggle toward power and respect."

Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended

"...The Hypocrites' gripping modern-dress staging of Shakespeare's tragedy-about an ancient Roman war hero and political leader who joins forces with his nation's enemies after his own people denounce him as a tyrant-is everything Shakespeare should be. The muscular verse is spoken eloquently and urgently; the combat scenes are exciting and tightly choreographed; the performances are full-blooded, detailed, and psychologically complex; and the visual design (which places the audience in the middle of the action) inventively supports the story's jacknife mood changes."

Windy City Times - Highly Recommended

"...Purists may reject this motif as overly broad, but knowing immediately who's who and what's what makes for identification rendered all the more intense by the close proximity of actor and audience. Steve O'Connell and Jude Roche emerge a noble pair of comrades-in-arms, Robert McLean acquits himself bravely as the conciliatory Menenius, while Donna McGough nearly steals the show as the emasculating Volumnia, the most manipulating mom since The Manchurian Candidate. Whatever theme you may ascribe to Shakespeare's tale of a veteran adrift in an exploitive society, you'll find it addressed downstairs at the Chopin."

Centerstage - Recommended

"...In finding the heart buried deep within Coriolanus’s blood-stained, battle-scarred chest, The Hypocrites have done Shakespeare and his fans a great, much needed service."

Time Out Chicago - Highly Recommended

"...In Geoff Button’s staging, Rome is a powder keg threatening to blow at any moment, thanks to the charlatans in charge and the hooligans both within and without. Coriolanus has no reliable guide through this minefield—not even his honor-obsessed mother (a tough-as-nails Donna McGough). In fact, his strongest connection is with his chief rival in combat, Aufidius (Jude Roche), perhaps because he too is more comfortable with taking action than managing his image. As in the 2011 movie adaptation, it’s a decidedly homoerotic connection, intensified by O’Connell and Roche’s palpable chemistry and the downright steamy hand-to-hand combat designed by fight choreographer Ryan Bourque."

Chicago Theatre Review - Recommended

"...Coriolanus is sadly not performed that often for audiences, and any lover of Shakespeare should make an effort to go and see it. While one should enter the space bravely and ready to take obscene pleasure in broken bones and supplanted teeth, the Hypocrites treat their audiences well, as they always do, and only require attention and perhaps a pinch of pity for a world at war and a good man gone wrong."