Chicago Tribune
- Somewhat Recommended
"...Although these ideas and characters would benefit from further development, "Neighborhood Watch" is already a lot of fun in its current form. This is likely the first fully staged production that you'll see featuring Harris-Walz yard signs (set design by Tianxuan Chen), and Mirza also works in a reference to Luigi Mangione. All that to say: the play is topical, and perhaps rushed to the stage too quickly, but it's a good time - even for well-meaning white liberals who may find themselves the punchline of a few jokes."
Chicago Reader
- Recommended
"...In Rehana Lew Mirza's Neighborhood Watch, now in a world premiere at Jackalope directed by Kaiser Ahmed, we're asked a simple question: where is your political fault line? At what point does liberalism devolve into suspicion and not-in-my-backyard behavior? When Mo first moves in, doting father Paul is the white, do-gooder helicopter neighbor. He hovers because he cares. But when his daughter Becca (Jamie Herb) gets involved with Mo, the whole scenario flips on its head. Mirza's script is a concise examination of consciousness in a time when we can become easily complacent in our day-to-day lives. After all, how well do we really know our neighbors? *Roll credits.*"
Around The Town Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"..."Don't be sorry; be better." This is perhaps the biggest takeaway from "Neighborhood Watch", Jackalope Theatre's world premiere dramady about white Americans' fear of the stranger. Set in December 2024, right after the election of Donald Trump to a second term in office, the story is very loosely taken from the real-life circumstance of Treyvon Martin in 2012. It focuses on the left-wing liberal Paul (Frank Nall) and his MAGA neighbor Shawn (Victor Holstein), who are white men involved in their "neighborhood watch" presumably in a South Florida suburban community. Featuring a finely written script by Rehana Lew Mirza, nice direction by Kaiser Ahmed, and decent performances, the initial focus has to do with these two men spending lots of time outside in the fresh air, people-watching."
Buzz Center Stage
- Highly Recommended
"...You'll want to join this "Neighborhood Watch," a fast-paced comedy having its world premiere in Jackalope Theatre's performance space in the Broadway Armory. Harsh Gagoomal plays Mo Rizvi with deft emotional range, a bearded, swarthy Middle Easterner who has moved into a house in white suburbia, in the weeks just after Donald Trump's return to the presidency."
The Fourth Walsh
- Not Recommended
"...NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH seems set-up to be a comedy, drama or both. Although the ingredients are all there, it doesn’t quite congeal into an identifiable choice. The humor can be witty yet is often cartoonish. This comedic spectrum then waters down the tension. Characters dramatically transform without an emotional arc to support the change. Pivotal moments feel false and confusing. Instead of being engrossed in the actual story, I spent my time trying to piece together what was happening."
Chicago Theater and Arts
- Recommended
"...The world premiere of "Neighborhood Watch" written by Rehana Lew Mirza and directed by Kaiser Ahmed at Jackalope Theatre is a humorous look at what can happen when curiosity leads to suspicion."
NewCity Chicago
- Recommended
"...The television sitcom has had a historic role in communicating issues of ethnic prejudice through an easy-to-digest format, like how the "lovable racist" Archie Bunker in "All in the Family" served as an example of the errors in reasoning encountered by closed-minded bigotry. Continuing in this vein is "Neighborhood Watch," a play in the style of a sitcom by Rehana Lew Mirza and directed by Kaiser Ahmed. It explores what happens when two Muslim men move into a majority-white Virginia suburb, and the prejudice they encounter from both their liberal and conservative neighbors."
