Chicago Reader - Recommended
"...At heart, Emma's Child isn't about the ethics of adoption (though those questions are implicit). It's about opening up to love even when you can see mortality standing in the road ahead. Though City Lit's production has some first-act hiccups, when it settles into the groove, it's a bittersweet journey."
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"..."Emma's Child", written by Kristine Thatcher and directed by Terry McCabe, is a heartfelt drama about what it means to want to adopt an infant with severe physical disabilities. After Jean Farrell (Kat Evans) could not get pregnant for sixteen years, she and her husband Henry (James Sparling) decide to adopt a child, but the couple has very different expectations for the infant. Each has a distinct idea of what family means, what parenthood means, and what having a child with a disability means-and their opinions don't necessarily mesh with each other. And each of them has differing needs for fulfilment when it comes to family life."
Buzznews.net - Recommended
"...Thatcher's play unsparingly examines both the familial and societal toll of caring for children, wanted or not, who require more care than most people can give, while also introducing the audience to the difficulties of placing children whose birth parents want to provide good homes but cannot do so. Thatcher avoids judgment, though the audience may not, recognizing that people have expectations and even prejudices that color their decisions (as evidenced in the pre-adoption interviews and Emma's casual assessment of Laurence). There are a few subplots in Thatcher's play that may occupy a bit too much time and distract from the central theme of parenting, especially the examination of the Stornants' marriage as juxtaposed with the Farrells' marriage, but McCabe's straightforward direction, and the clear-eyed performances by the ensemble provide plenty of material for discussions of what responsibility parents, we as a society, and the medical community have to provide care for the most vulnerable among us. While not a cheerful play, Emma's Child offers compassion and hope along with the hard questions it raises, and City Lit's new production powerfully portrays the challenges and joys of parenthood."
Picture This Post - Recommended
"...It's the ability of a severely disabled newborn to summon deep bonds, or not, that is the driver of this story. For 16 years Jean and Henry had been on a path to become parents, and the severely disabled titular Emma's Child is not what they had in mind. Jean, along with the intensive care nursing staff, relishes even the smallest steps the baby takes to survive. Henry, on the other hand, is repelled. For him, the enormity of their legal and financial difficulties in taking on the child is paramount-and perhaps even more, his appreciation of the emotional costs doing so entails."
NewCity Chicago - Not Recommended
"..."Emma's Child" suffers from ambivalent direction trickling into an ambivalent text, leaving a play with an uncertain purpose beyond grabbing easy sympathy with a story about a dying child. This cast deserves better, and this text, even with its flaws, could be served better. Based on how uncommitted the direction feels, plus the amount of fluff that could be cut, perhaps the director could be assisted by a collaborator to help dig into the script, like a dramaturg."
