Insurrection: Holding History Reviews
Chicago Tribune- Recommended
"...But you never doubt for a second that Clark understands the work well, nor that he has found a cast willing to dive deep into the dystopic (but hopeful) O’Hara version of wonderland, a surreal journey that at least two generations of actors have, at various times, said they found to be life-changing. It is so worth seeing this piece at this particular moment: ”Insurrection” started to teach before its most teachable moment had arrived."
Chicago Reader- Somewhat Recommended
"...Along the way O’Hara employs all manner of outrageous metatheatricality to great comic effect (his recasting of Turner as a proto-televangelist is exquisite), all well played in director Wardell Julius Clark’s production. But O’Hara’s insights rarely stretch beyond the self-evident."
Windy City Times- Highly Recommended
"...This play makes many fascinating points. One that stands out is that if you could go back in time to warn Nat Turner and his followers to abandon their failed rebellion, they would still fight. You still couldn't change history. For the will of an oppressed people, once decided upon freedom, is a will too strong to break. In a unique and beautiful way, playwright Robert O'Hara and Stage Left Theatre's fantastic team pay humble tribute to the enslaved men and women who bravely struggled to make the lives of the generations to follow better."
Third Coast Review- Recommended
"...Stage Left Theatre's production of Insurrection: Holding History, directed by Wardell Julius Clark, is raucous, funny and sometimes a bit confusing. It toys with our attitudes about history, slavery and sexual identity. In particular, it plays with our minds about what we remember (or prefer not to remember) about slavery, that peculiar institution that haunts us today."
Picture This Post- Highly Recommended
"...Sydney Charles as Mistress Mo'tel showcases a spot-on comedic timing that keeps the audience laughing with her every scene. Her Mo'tel provides a lovely contrast to Charles' portrayal of Gertha, who carries a more dark, snarky humor. Charles and Anna Dauzvardis as Gertha's daughter, Octavia, carry a hilarious stage chemistry with their constant and fast-paced bickering. In contrast, Dauzvardis' Katie Lynn, a house slave to Mistress Mo'tel, is more solemn, and elicits a powerful sense of sympathy from the audience."
NewCity Chicago- Highly Recommended
"...The heart of "Insurrection" is visible in a wrenchingly beautiful scene between a slave and his great great grandson who can't understand the sacrifices his ancestors are making. "They're going to win," the elder says, "They might die. But they're going to win. Slavery ends." And so it does, and time tumbles on, but oppression does not cease. The work of establishing freedom and equality continues today. Work we do through art, consumption, politics and discourse. But work that is not yet done."