Falling: A Wake at Rivendell Theatre

Chicago Tribune - Not Recommended

"..."Falling: A Wake" (boy, what a title to open a new space) is a rambling and pretentious piece of nonsense. Perhaps you will be better able than me to take its desired metaphoric journey; I'm just looking forward to the next show at the new Rivendell Theatre."

Windy City Times - Recommended

"...The primary value of this Rivendell Theatre Ensemble production does not lie in its choice of an obviously workshop-generated script, however, but in its inauguration of a performance space linking the playhouses along Edgewater's East Bryn Mawr Avenue with the burgeoning Rogers Park arts district. Doesn't every recently relocated theater company need adjustment time to realize the extent of possibilities offered by its new home?"

Time Out Chicago - Recommended

"...Much of the play consists of Elsie sharing her story with the dead boy (Will Crouse), while Miller smoothly navigates exposition-heavy monologues. Elsie hides her grief under humor; her banter with her spouse prevents the play from getting maudlin. The strength of their relationships with each other and their absent son keeps the story grounded in reality, even as it heads to its overly convenient conclusion."

ChicagoCritic - Recommended

"...The rewards eventually outweigh the costs as Falling is genuinely moving and bittersweetly humorous despite its contrivances. Inspired by Kirkham’s coping with the loss of a friend in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie Scotland in 1988, it’s his attempt at theatrical catharsis. It doesn’t take a side on the debate of a caring versus indifferent universe that could twice afflict an innocent couple. Instead, it seems to acknowledge an endless debate where the answer lies in embracing the contradictions at the core of the two truths. Only then can a certain amount of peace be found for those left behind by those for whom the answers are no longer important."

Chicago Stage and Screen - Somewhat Recommended

"...There were some long silent moments that kept me wondering where it was going yet it was. It also kept me wondering what if Matthew (the dead guy) ever had to sneeze? That would blow the entire show because he is motionless and dead on stage the entire time. This is just my curiosity running away during the "dead" moments of the show. I thought all three actors did a great job and it was a Thursday night getaway, but I am not sure it would appeal to all."

Huffington Post - Somewhat Recommended

"...Unfortunately, Rivendell's inaugural production in their new space doesn't quite match the excitement of the event at hand. Falling: A Wake by Gary Kirkham is an admirable, but ultimately underwhelming, two-hander about a married couple whose lives get turned upside-down when a jet crash-lands near their property in the middle of the night. Among the debris lies the body of a young man, still peacefully seated in his airplane chair, who plays a silent, yet pivotal, third character."