Chicago Tribune - Highly Recommended
"...So is the whole show, for which Cook has created new orchestrations (in his spare time, presumably) for a little orchestra in the balcony. It's hard to overstate Cook's talents - which have been evident since he emerged at the Theo Ubique Theatre - when it comes to Sondheim. Cook has a splendid voice, can play piano with an ebullient flare and he even looks like his man, in his younger years, of course. Porchlight previously put all that in play with Cook at the core of "Sondheim on Sondheim" and it does much the same with this quieter show, conjuring up a young composer at his piano in his apartment, putting down on paper the troubles of his heart."
Chicago Sun Times - Highly Recommended
"...But trust me, you have not really seen "Marry Me a Little" until you've caught up with the ideally updated and re-imagined version of the show that opened Tuesday night at Porchlight Music Theatre. Particular credit goes to the two dazzling talents involved: Austin Cook, the pianist, singer, actor and musical director, and Bethany Thomas, who has long been known for her clarion voice, which spans so many octaves you might easily lose count, and who here finally has the chance to demonstrate the full range of her dramatic gifts, too."
Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...Cleverly staged by Jess McLeod, the show features "trunk songs" trimmed from Company, A Little Night Music, and Into the Woods, as well as tunes from early Sondheim efforts including Saturday Night. Thomas, whose extraordinary voice ranges from silvery soprano heights to volcanic contralto depths, never lets her vocal prowess overshadow the all-important text, whether she's bawdily belting "Can That Boy Foxtrot" (a Follies outtake) or spinning out a delicate, spine-tingling rendition of "I Remember Spring," from the 1966 TV special Evening Primrose."
Time Out Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Stephen Sondheim’s discard pile is any other musical-theater composer’s treasure trove. That’s the attitude, anyway, that led Craig Lucas and Norman René to cobble together a two-actor musical in 1980 from songs Sondheim cut from the final versions of Follies, A Little Night Music and Company, among other shows. The plot suggested by the resulting sung-through revue: Two lonely hearts types, alone in their apartments on adjacent floors of the same building, imagine reaching out to each other and the entire potential relationship that could follow, but all remains fantasy."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...Artfully cobbled together, they carefully, sometimes passionately, chronicle a brief but combustible romance between two Gotham neighbors. Like many of Sondheim’s regret-full musicals, this impetuous liaison founders on old bad habits, dubious doubts and future fears. Not irrelevantly, Marry Me a Little is also a riveting showcase for Cook as a crooner and for Chicago favorite Bethany Thomas, a belter with a ton of heart."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...From the in-the-round set (designed by Jeff Kmiec) to the terrific orchestra in the loft, Marry Me A Little is one of those off-beat treasures that features two special talents presenting a challenging song list with an emotional edge that tells a story of love, loneliness and ubran survival. Bethany Thomas and Austin Cook create a special spark. Our 70 minute journey with these two is a joyous songfest that Sondheim aficionados will cherish. This is one of the best shows of 2017!"
Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...This is a show that is hardly ever performed. In fact, while I know many of the songs, it is from recordings by others (true Sondheim lovers) that have brought them to my attention- Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters, most notably. On the technical aspects of the production, the sound (Keegan Bradac) and lighting (Becca Jeffords) were sheer perfection. Stephanie Cluggish’s costumes and Mealah Heidenreich’s props, fantastic. The four musicians, other than Cook himself, Charlotte Rivard-Hoster (pianist/conductor, Tony Scandora (percussion), Lewis Rawlinson (cello) and Cara Hartz (flute/clarinet) made Sondheim’s music come to life and fill the “Thrust” as it was meant to be performed. The talent in this production is worthy of awards for the perfection we were able to witness."
Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended
"...Together this gifted duo elevate with brilliance such songs as “All Things Bright and Beautiful,” “A Moment With You” and the haunting, “Marry Me a Little.” Through its sensitive, economical lyrics and gorgeous melodies this one-act revue, superbly directed by Jess MacLeod, truly evolves into a sung-through musical that ranks with any of Sondheim’s other works."
The Fourth Walsh - Highly Recommended
"...Cook and Thomas are established Chicago musical icons. Pairing them in MARRY ME A LITTLE is a dynamic marriage of convenience! Well done, Porchlight, you are quite the matchmaker!"
Chicagoland Musical Theatre - Highly Recommended
"...Marry Me is Sondheim's charming if melancholy musical revue focused on two urban singles, each home alone on a Saturday night. The Man is a pianist, presumably a composer, whose playing and singing disturbs his neighbor in the apartment below, the Woman. She knocks on his apartment door when her pounding on the ceiling with a broomstick does nothing to quiet him, and their entire relationship unfolds...unless it's all just one big dream sequence."
Picture This Post - Highly Recommended
"...What a brilliant stroke by Craig Lucas and Norman Rene to create this Sondheim opera of sorts by sewing together 20 or so of his songs from 11 Sondheim previous projects such as Company, A Little Night Music, Into the Woods, and more. It feels like a continuous torch song fest, with The Man and The Woman passing this torch back and forth and then quenching its flames in water, making us want to weep when we hear the torch sizzle as love dies."
Splash Magazine - Highly Recommended
"...The quality of the material is staggering; it’s amazing to recall that these songs were “rejects” or leftovers from both classic and rare shows. The virtuoso singing, solo and together is worth twice the price of admission. It opened strongly with “Alive and Alone On a Saturday Night”, and closed poignantly with “It Wasn’t Meant to Be”, and the perfectly written and enunciated lyrics through 10 duets wove a saga of dreams of picket fences, happy-ever-afters, and, alas, regrets."
NewCity Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...Porchlight resurrects some fresh tunes, Cook plays all the keys and Thomas sings them, just in time for the tulips."
