Chicago Tribune
- Somewhat Recommended
"...Even though this show has been performed several times, it still strikes me as a work in progress from a gifted performance artist who is not quite confident enough to do the show she really wants to do. I say go for the approach that is most singular; there are many other Kahlo explorations and this one, clearly enjoyed by the Writers Theatre audience at the performance I attended, should not fear being a full-on portrait of two formidable Latina women from different times and places."
Chicago Sun Times
- Recommended
"..."Frida ... A Self Portrait," which opened Friday at Glencoe's Writers Theatre, digs deep into her life. In the 75-minute, one-woman show written and performed by Vanessa Severo, Kahlo sits firmly at the center, with Severo playing both the artist and a constellation of those in Frida's orbit, her parents, doctors and sometime husband and fellowartist Diego Rivera among them."
Chicago Reader
- Somewhat Recommended
"...But as a fellow Kahlo enthusiast, I wanted more. I walked out knowing why Severo felt compelled to create a show about Kahlo. What remained a little out of view was insight into why she thought Frida was compelled to invent herself the way she did."
Talkin Broadway
- Highly Recommended
"...The enigmatic face is emblematic, of course-not of vanity, or pride, but of fierce artistic honesty. And Frida Kahlo, the Mexican painter, becomes a figure of titanic heroism in the one-woman show Frida ... A Self Portrait. She battles polio and chauvinism as well as terrible injuries from a bus crash in a ferocious new staging at Writers Theatre in Glencoe, Illinois. The 80-minute show stars the playwright Vanessa Severo as Frida (and as all the other characters too) in a perfectly passionate performance, with hypnotic direction by Joanie Schultz and lighting by Rachael Cady, with an excellent set by Jacqueline Penrod."
Stage and Cinema
- Recommended
"...You’d have to go a long way to find someone with as potent a life force as Frida Kahlo’s. She left this branch of existence just over 70 years ago, in 1954, and still, there’s something about her spirit that continues to enthrall the imagination of her fans and admirers of her idiosyncratic art. Writer and performer Vanessa Severo is one of those fans who developed a special affinity for Kahlo. Her fascination with this cultural icon, along with a comment from a friend stating that Severo reminded her of Kahlo, sparked a flame in the Brazilian born creative. From this, Frida…A Self Portrait was born."
Let's Play Theatrical Reviews
- Somewhat Recommended
"... Still, incorporating more of Frida's political dialogue would have added another layer of depth. The chemistry Severo created between Frida and Diego Rivera within a suit of stage was enchanting. Looking throughout the performance, you can see a silhouette of her performance, which was truly mesmerizing. I found it challenging to engage entirely with her performance during the play."
Around The Town Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"...Many people are familiar with the extraordinary work of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, but few know her story. Vanessa Severo has written a play that digs deep into the inner sole of this creative artists and under the smooth direction of Joanie Schultz, takes on the role herself in a terrific one-woman show entitled "Frida...A Self Portrait". This is an intense 75 minute production (no intermission) that brings the artist's story to life, with the amazing Severo leading us through the years and limitations of this artist."
Chicago Theatre Review
- Highly Recommended
"...A lovely and gifted solo artist, Vanessa Severo’s intelligent, sensual and brilliantly creative self portraits of both herself and Frida Kahlo are two subjects that she knows best. The show is inspired by the artist’s published diary and a field trip to Mexico City to La Casa Azul, the Frida Kahlo Museum. A trained dancer as well as a gifted actor and playwright, Ms. Severo magically weaves her stories through voice and movement, and the end result is pure Art. Under the superb Direction of Joanie Schultz, Writers Theatre’s captivating one-act breezes by in 90 short minutes. It’s a play that’s guaranteed to entertain, educate and inspire every single theatergoer."
Chicago Theater and Arts
- Highly Recommended
"...You don’t often see costume changes right on stage against a backdrop of apparel hanging on clothes lines. But then, you don’t often see a highly charged, exceptional, one-person performance such as the one that opened in Writers Theatre on Jan. 31, 2025."
Chicago Culture Authority
- Recommended
"...I’m of two minds about Vanessa Severo’s one-woman play Frida…A Self-Portrait about the life of painter Frida Kahlo. While she delivers a magnetic performance as Kahlo, employing movement and costumes to sometimes stunning effect, Severo’s penchant for dropping out of character to tell the audience why the artist means so much to her would perhaps be better left to an after-play talkback segment or to interviews and profiles in the media and program notes."
Evanston Roundtable
- Highly Recommended
"...Some of the most compelling scenes are without dialogue. Severo shares the physical pain of Kahlo's disabilities and the emotional pain of her personal losses with body movements that draw us into her soul. There is no pretending or idealizing in this performance. Kahlo searched for her identity in the self-portraits she created. Severo searches for Kahlo's identity, and her own, through this performance."
