Chicago Tribune
- Somewhat Recommended
"...I’ve long had a soft spot for apocalyptic dramas—if you’re going to sit and ponder something in a theater, you may as well ponder something substantial. And this is not entirely a fantastical premise. Once or twice every million years, a comet or an asteroid falls to Earth. Forms of life have been snuffed out before. If our timing happens to be bad, it could happen to us. There would be a silver lining: It would render moot everything you are currently worrying about."
Chicago Reader
- Somewhat Recommended
"...The onstage action is revealed as a living-history museum exhibit, with neurasthenic guide Barbara (Shannon Hoag) interrupting the action to fret about losing her job. Jason Southerland's staging hits a sitcom level of prefab hysteria early on, flattening the few insightful moments. Though Barbara extols the need to be passionate about stories, this one turns into a clinical setup for a wan punch line."
Windy City Times
- Not Recommended
"...The play has some amusing moments, for John Stokvis ( Jules ) and Kelly O'Sullivan ( Jo ) are attractive and deft enough ( narrator Shannon Hoag has far less to do ) , and Nachtrieb summons the occasional smartly quirky line, such as "Fish may not be intelligent, but they are rational." Southerland, as director, has staged Boom competently and his design team's work is solid ( especially Nathan Leigh's sound and Andre LaSalle's steel-bolted laboratory ) . But the sketch-like play offers little story or character development. Indeed, nothing evolves but the fish in this, the second play I've reviewed in a week ( Mistakes Were Made is the other, reviewed last week ) featuring an aquarium and finny folk. Is it a trend? Fishy or not, this Boom is a bust."
Chicago Free Press
- Somewhat Recommended
"...Jason Southerland’s equally charming staging deftly distracts us from asking the many questions that call this story into doubt if not derision, as well as comparisons to Thornton Wilder’s funnier and more incisive “The Skin of Our Teeth.” The embodiment of Shaw’s life force, John Stokvis plays the fey savior of the species with pluck and joy, while, as his darker, suicidal, and unlikely Eve, Kelly O’Sullivan almost makes us like her strident bitch. Shannon Hoag is the sardonic museum narrator whose back story adds little to the arguments here. “boom” is flippant fun. It’s as deep as it purports to be but then it’s also totally and savingly unpretentious throughout 80 fascinating minutes."
Copley News Service
- Recommended
"...Next Theatre artistic director Jason Sutherland directs the play with an emphasis to its humor, possibly blunting the nuances of the serious story beneath the laughs. There are thoughtful and intriguing ideas embedded in the narrative that tend to get buried in all the comic sound and fury."
Centerstage
- Somewhat Recommended
"...The universe is immense, and we are small; nature doesn't care whether one animal lives or dies. "Boom" invites us to think of evolution as a beautiful thing, but it's hard for most humans to step out of our myopic concern for our own species, therefore its message may go unappreciated."
Time Out Chicago
- Not Recommended
"...Stovkis and O’Sullivan are spirited, smart young performers; they do what they can with the alternately snarky and embarrassingly earnest exchanges. Andre LaSalle contributes a retro futuristic set. But the production’s most impressive accomplishment is that it makes planetary destruction seem not just trivial; after 90 minutes of boom, you’d almost welcome it."
ChicagoCritic
- Somewhat Recommended
"...boom has its funny moments and it is based on a unique premise and it could work as a short 45 minute work. But Nachtrieb has much to say and he got trapped into his plot never finding a satisfactory way to end it. He has Barbara, a futuristic museum attendant, maneuver the exhibit set affecting the behavior of the couple. When Barbara stops the show several times to over explain the action and to talk about her job, etc., her asides become tedious and distracting to the play’s flow. Eventually, we realize that the couple could be the founders of the next human race or are they?"
Chicago Stage and Screen
- Not Recommended
"...While "boom" has a wonderful concept worth exploring, director Jason Southerland is somewhat limited by the script and despite some clever movement and wonderful scenes between Jo and Jules, the story is incomplete and leaves a lot more to be desired. Perhaps it was the intent of Nachtrieb to make this into a "think piece" or perhaps he could not find a suitable ending for a story that had too many loose ends. While I enjoy new plays and concepts I felt that this one cheated me in the end and I also felt that the Barbara character was much too over the top."
Chicago Theater Beat
- Recommended
"...The cast executes this farce with precision and verve. Its rapid-fire, whip-smart dialogue encompasses everything from modern dating and sexuality to the random chance to the rationales of hope pitted against despair or disillusionment. Perhaps the most brilliant exposition of Nachtrieb’s powers is the full-on rant that bursts forth from Jules, exasperated with Jo’s unrelenting, snarky pessimism. Stokvis delivers it with an almost joyful fury."
