Winter Pageant 2009 at Redmoon

Chicago Sun Times - Recommended

"...Though the transitions from scene to scene sometimes lose a bit of momentum, director Vanessa Stalling -- whose collaborators include Frank Maugeri, Jim Lasko, Chantal Calato, a slew of other visual and musical artists, and an ensemble of seven hugely likable performers -- has made sure that the arrival of our first real snowfall this year will be a bit less painful."

Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended

"...Redmoon's hour-long solstice celebration is packed with delightful fragments from delicious dreams. In fact, the young, athletic ensemble evoke all the seasons, offering visions like a golf cart decked in giant chrysanthemums, a cloud-covered clown car, addlepated pirates who use the crowd as their compass, an underwater bar with waltzing deep-sea divers, and a frost-covered banquet table at which frightened diners feed a giant, insatiable baby."

Chicago Stage and Screen - Recommended

"...A seven-member ensemble creates the visual magic under Vanessa Stalling's inventive and free-spirited direction, using clowning, improvisation, physical comedy, custom created props and a little shadow play. There is no story or script per se, yet the performers are able to capture the audience's imagination and get them involved. The results are probably closer to performance art than traditional theatre, but Redmoon's art defies labels. It all springs from a sense of play as the ensemble tosses beach balls with the kids in the crowd, builds towers with wooden blocks, rides tricycles and engages the youngsters with their energy and creativity."

Chicago Theater Beat - Somewhat Recommended

"...Redmoon’s artistry is wonderful throughout, but this year’s pageant is perhaps best seen as a showcase of performance art, a series of artful spectacles, rather than a winter’s tale."