Kimberly Akimbo at A Red Orchid Theatre

Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended

"...How funny you'll find all this depends on your penchant for black comedy and, frankly, your mood. [playwright] Lindsay-Abaire has a lot in common with David Sedaris, the brilliantly self-destructive absurdist who can rock a theater with laughter and then kill a room by making some perversely indulgent misstep. Kimberly Akimbo has some very funny lines. And Shade Murray's production is better than some -- mostly because he has cast the sardonic and talented likes of Kozlowski and Engstrom, who are willing to commit like crazy to the truth of their dumb characters. But the show moves too slowly in places, and it's only about half way there."

Chicago Sun Times - Recommended

"...Kimberly Akimbo, which premiered in 2001, is now being staged by A Red Orchid Theatre, where director Shade Murray (who did such a fine job earlier this year with "The Subject Was Roses" at Writers' Theatre) has cast a top-notch group of actors. The performers give the play everything they've got -- to the point where they almost make a believer of me."

Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended

"...Shade Murray's actors, particularly Roslyn Alexander as Kimberly and Steve Haggard as her nerdy schoolmate (a relationship with echoes of Harold and Maude), bring plenty of energy to the show. But two hours of self-absorbed diatribes punctuated by occasional Hallmark moments of tenderness start to feel long-winded even if, unlike Kimberly, you're not counting minutes as hours."

Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...The script is in safe hands at A Red Orchid, a company with no shortage of unhinged actors, and has a spot-on ingenue in Alexander, the elegant elder who flavors the title role of an off-kilter teeny bopper with plenty of piss and vinegar."

ChicagoCritic - Recommended

"...Kimberly Akimbo’s crazy characters and insane situations offer a refreshingly different take on teen struggles, mortality and dysfunctional family life. I thought Roslyn Alexander and Steve Haggard were excellent. This show is a hoot!"