Chicago Tribune
- Somewhat Recommended
"...as the show winds on, you come to see that the actors are not well integrated into this vision. Cracks between individuals start to emerge; strange casting choices begin to cast a pall; and, most problematic of all, the power structure seems out of whack. The fundamental problem with the production is that the central premises of Gregers Werle unwinding the lives of the vulnerable Ekdal family doesn’t work because you can’t believe that he would have the power to do so. In this show, they’d smack him down and carry on with their illusions."
Chicago Sun Times
- Highly Recommended
"...Credit Court Theatre's production of "The Wild Duck." Director Charles Newell (who works miracles with every script he touches these days), translator-playwright Richard Nelson and a sublime Chicago cast not only have found the arch human comedy in this play, but they have managed to turn a social critique and family tragedy verging on melodrama into a work that might have come from the more graceful and amusing pen of Ibsen's contemporary, Anton Chekhov."
Chicago Reader
- Highly Recommended
"...Henrik Ibsen was the worst kind of scold--a Scandinavian Protestant-hating Scandinavian Protestant whose plays are grimly righteous attacks on the hypocrisies of a grimly righteous bourgeois culture. Right? Well, that's what I thought until I saw this high-energy Court Theatre production of his 1884 play about two families bound by some ugly secrets."
Windy City Times
- Highly Recommended
"...Henrik Ibsen lives! This one's for you if you respect Ibsen as the progenitor of theatrical modernism, but attend his late 19th-century plays ( if at all ) out of obligation rather than desire. This world premiere translation makes The Wild Duck plain-spoken, vigorous, theatrical and absolutely clear about plot details and character relationships which Ibsen himself—writing in circumspect times—left opaque."
Chicago Free Press
- Highly Recommended
"...What sets “The Wild Duck” apart from Ibsen’s better-known plays (“A Doll’s House,” “Hedda Gabler”) is its lack of a clear-cut antagonist. Still, the story’s no less compelling; when handled as well as this, a tragedy spurred by good intentions becomes all the more heart-rending. Though some characters are surely frustrating, foolish or full of self-deception, none of the key adults here are without some blame. Even the supporting players contribute, however inadventently, in this inexorable journey toward tragedy and misery. At the same time, Newell leavened his production with visual flair and plenty of humor; his seasoned cast—full of Chicago’s best actors—know how to coax laughs out of their character’s ironies."
EpochTimes
- Highly Recommended
"...Richard Nelson's new translation of Henrik Ibsen's classic "The Wild Duck" is this year's Court Theatre production at The MCA Stage, and what a production it is! Director Charles Newell has put together a cast that handles each word and movement to perfection. This is a play that combines comedy along with tragedy and characters who have mysterious backgrounds; mixes them all together for a story that unravels slowly, with just the right touches ,until we reach the ultimate conclusion (a bit shocking, but done very well). The stage of the MCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) allows the audience great sight lines ( the sound is not perfect, but everything else is) and allows Leigh Breslau to create the perfect artist's loft."
Centerstage
- Recommended
"...Featuring a cast of eleven and clocking in at two-and-a-half hours, "The Wild Duck" is a hefty play. Happily, the Court Theatre’s current production suffers from few of the difficulties attendant on such an ambitious project. Under Charles Newell’s direction, the cast approaches Richard Nelson’s fresh translation with vigor and generosity. Ibsen’s characters, especially Gregers and Hialmar, are hopelessly wrapped up in their own delusions."
Edge
- Highly Recommended
"...Richard Nelson’s contemporary, subtly hilarious translation provides the actors with rich material, and their collective performances do not disappoint. As the inaugural project for the Court Theatre’s Barbara E Franke Commissioning Program for New Classics, "which seeks to create new adaptations and translations of classic texts for the stage," "The Wild Duck" is a terrific success."
Time Out Chicago
- Somewhat Recommended
"...In Ibsen’s 1884 play, an overly idealistic man’s obsession with exposing the lies that hold together his friend’s marriage and family brings about needless tragedy. The Wild Duck has been interpreted as a rejection of both the lines-in-the-sand moralism of Ibsen’s earlier work and the strict dramaturgical divide between comedy and tragedy. Newell and Nelson, like Pintilie, heighten those extremes here, but the effect is flattening to the point of melodrama."
ChicagoCritic
- Highly Recommended
"...Ibsen’s work rings relevant today as Nelson’s translation is contemporary as it hits home. The ensemble acting carries this psychological drama. The Court Theatre production is flawless."
Chicago Stage and Screen
- Highly Recommended
"...Every one of the characters is a challenge. Each one has a secret or something to hide. No one is honest with anyone, there are only levels of lies spanning the gamut from harmless to disasterous. The excellent performances by this group that also includes Maury Cooper, Henry Odum, Rob Lindley and Eddie Bennett are no surprise. The story is an old one, but what is fresh, new and dynamic is the explosive chemistry between Mary Beth Fisher and Kevin Gudahl."
