Chicago Reader
- Somewhat Recommended
"...The only way to transpose screen to stage or vice versa is radical reimagination. Why try to mount a 70s flick in a storefront in 2024? I wonder whether Invictus thinks that premiering this when the DNC is in Chicago might be resonant (it isn't). The only thing their obviously sincere and dogged efforts result in for this viewer is an itch to rewatch the source material, so that's what I do."
Chicago Stage and Screen
- Highly Recommended
"...James Turano as Howard Beale is the real deal. A WGN Radio regular, he convincingly
channels Beale’s anguish, rage, and dynamism into the role. Diana Christensen plays Anne
Trodden, the director of programming, possessed of a shrewd grasp on what will captivate the
public. Trodden’s professional ambition and personal desire are inextricably woven, as
exemplified in the famous climax scene."
Around The Town Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"...This is primarily a one man showcase with a strong ensemble to fill in the gaps. They are terrific: Chuck Munro, Anne Trodden, Joe Sergio, John Chambers,Joe Feliciano, Fred Wellisch, James Lewis, Whitney Minarik, Colin K. Jones, Thomas M. Shea, Patrick Blashill, Keisha Yelton-Hunter, Ophelia Harkness, Layke Fowler and Liam Ryan. Each cast member added to the tension, the pressure and the wonderful story-telling."
Chicago Theatre Review
- Highly Recommended
"...Invictus Theatre Company’s penetrating and profound new presentation is excellent. This is a flawless, totally immersive production that drops the theatergoer smack dab into the middle of what appears to be an actual functioning television studio. Although we know it’s fiction, we feel like we’re watching a real newscast being directed, produced and televised. Everything about this environmental production appears authentic, from the TV studio to the hard-driven people involved in the program, both behind and in front of the camera."
Buzz Center Stage
- Highly Recommended
"...“Network” at Invictus Theatre Co. is one fun, funny, exciting show. In this full-throttle Chicago debut at the WIndy City Playhouse on Irving Park Road, we get a powerhouse rendering of Lee Hall’s script."
Third Coast Review
- Highly Recommended
"...Director Charles Ashkenaizer (Three Sisters, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf) proves his mettle once again as a skilled theater-maker with this three-ring circus of a play. The 1976 film (screenplay by Paddy Chayefsky) features the screed by the iconic character Howard Beale (played by Peter Finch), “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it any more!” Lee Hall’s stage adaptation builds on Chayefsky’s screenplay; Hall notes in his introduction that “almost every word in the adaptation is actually Paddy’s.”"
Chicago On Stage
- Highly Recommended
"...Even if you’ve never seen the seminal 1976 movie Network, you probably have heard its most famous line. (Say it with me: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”) This line, spoken by Howard Beale, a TV news anchor who has stopped caring about rules of propriety, is his mantra: looking at the world and the influence of TV objectively, who wouldn’t be mad as hell? Invictus Theatre’s new production of Lee Hall’s stage adaptation of screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky’s stunning satirical masterpiece deconstructs both the TV news industry and the ways in which it manipulates audiences works on multiple levels."
NewCity Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"...Theater is all about timing, and the gutsy and ambitious Invictus Theatre—founded and led by Charles Askenaizer, who also directs this Chicago premiere—has perfectly synchronized the opening of “Network” with the Democratic National Convention, taking place a few miles south. Based on the Paddy Chayefsky-written film from 1976, a blackly comedic, but ultimately dead-serious look at the TV news business, and adapted for the stage by British playwright Lee Hall, the show is a perfect dramatic counterpoint to our own silly season of political conventioneering."
