Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...The standout is Pigtails (Missy Wise), the play's substitute for Piggy, a meek and humble boy in Golding's book. Whereas Piggy has his brains splattered onto a rock, Pigtails assures us in an early aside that no one will die here. The lowered stakes only ensure a more hilarious disproportion between act and feeling, light comedy's formulaic stock and trade. This entire cast's singing is remarkable, they have such marvelous comedic timing all around that you wish their jokes had been a little less obviously written."
Windy City Times - Highly Recommended
"...In Flies! The Musical!, the song remains the same: The kids of Lovely Valley Magnet High School are on a retreat while rehearsing for an unauthorized version of Lord of the Flies written by their drama teacher/volleyball coach. One's a hardcore vegan. Two are jocks used to pulling rank. At least half are in and out of the closet. The goth girl doesn't even talk, and the bespectacled, nerdy student in the Dear Evan Hansen hoodie is determined to pull them all together. Effortlessly blending slapstick and dark comedy, with some truly catchy songs, this world premiere is catnip for the misunderstood theater kid in us all."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...But, no question, Michael Driscoll’s staging, Sawyer Smith’s choreography, and JD Caudill’s musical direction combine with eight well-cast, convincing performers to turn a travesty into contagious fun. The unpleasantness here is that it really doesn’t matter if you read the novel or saw the films. For better or worse, Flies! The Musical! holds its own on its own."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...This pricelessly playful parody of “Lord of the…” is as exhilaratingly entertaining as a copy of Cliff’s Notes set the music of Weird Al Yankovic. Directed, musically guided and choreographed with brilliance, and featuring a talented cast of triple-threats, there’s no better way to end the school year and begin Summer vacation than with Pride Films & Plays’ wonderfully funny, tuneful titillation."
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Somewhat Recommended
"...Quit mucking about. Flies! is far too reliant on repeatedly mining the same handful of jokes for increasingly diminishing returns. Yet Flies! does have some smashing music, wonderfully talented actors and a handful of legitimately funny moments that perhaps warrant the writers putting on their stage-glasses, praying to the stage gods, and taking a crack at a second-draft."
- Sheri and Josh Flanders
Chicago On Stage - Highly Recommended
"...The word "fun" has rarely, if ever, been used in the same sentence as William Golding's The Lord of the Flies. Neither has the word "funny." Both, however, aptly apply to Flies! The Musical, an unauthorized parody of the award-winning novel now playing in its world premiere presentation at the Pride Arts Center. Written by Chicagoan Larry Todd Cousineau and Cindy O'Connor, Flies! is a wonderful, hilarious conflation of the Golding novel, "Glee" and and every "let's put on a show" production you've ever seen. It is clever to the point of being brilliant, propelled by writing that is pure genius. You don't often hear a pre-show announcement to "come again and bring your friends" that you can take seriously, but in this case I firmly believe the musical will have repeat customers; it's that good."
Picture This Post - Somewhat Recommended
"...Perhaps the most obvious facet of this production is it's metatheatrical nature.. For the entirety of the show, the characters are quite aware of being in a musical, and make jabs at the genre. Missy Wise's character, Pigtails, even stops singing in the middle of her song upon realizing that the melody is too high for her, and she promptly requests that the pianist lower the key to a more comfortable place. The show leans into camp extremely hard, and stands firmly in that identity, which is an impressive feat. This is unapologetically theatre about theatre, and fans of Title of Show, Merrily We Roll Along, Noises Off, and Off-Broadway musical parodies will feel right at home with this production."
BroadwayWorld - Recommended
"...You were probably forced to read the book Lord of the Flies in high school, but you'll want to see FLIES! THE MUSICAL!, a witty musical parody of it. You'll have more laughs than you did reading the book, trust me."