The Rant presented by Mary-Arrchie Theatre at Angel Island Theater

Chicago Reader - Recommended

"...Case's script feels self-consciously topical at times, but Evans's pointed staging and the heartfelt performances (particularly Shariba Rivers's as the grieving mother) offer a peek into a world where calcified personal convictions trump ethics."

Windy City Times - Highly Recommended

"...Directed by Sharon Evans, The Rant is everything you'd expect from a piece defined by the daily, devastating ambiguities of crime. Mary Arrchie's production is gritty in its uncompromising realism and provocative in its exposure of the the unending, slippery grayness of a criminal justice system we'd all prefer to think of in terms of stark, easily grasped segments of good and bad, black and white."

Time Out Chicago - Somewhat Recommended

"...Rivers opens the production with a potent monologue; her unsettling and passionate turn as Denise Reeves, the victim’s troubled mother, brings the piece to life when she’s onstage. Buckley radiates sullen, wounded pride as accused cop Charles Simmons. If you’re looking for a gripping indictment of a city’s police system, though, you’re probably better off with The Wire."

ChicagoCritic - Recommended

"...The Rant is both a mystery and a cautionary tale about the relativity of the truth in emotionally charged racial incidents concerning the police. This is a thought provoking show that will get you debating the facts presented since playwright Case leaves doubt. Plot twist shade the ending."

Chicago Stage and Screen - Not Recommended

"...The subject matter is potentially volatile, but everything about the production is half-hearted and sterile. I place the blame on Director Sharon Evans. Every member of the ensemble showed potential, but fell short due to misdirection. No one appeared to be connected to each other or the material, and the intense moments felt manufactured. The pacing was so tepid it made a 100-minute play feel like three hours. Ultimately, I did not care about any of the characters or the story."

Chicago Theater Beat - Highly Recommended

"...I’m of two minds about Heath Hays’ rough and ready set design. At times the primitively constructed flats—clear plastic stretched over wooden frames–serves Matthew Gawryk’s visceral lighting design superbly and fits the anarchist vibe of the Mary-Arrchie Theatre to a T. At other times it seems too ghetto-fabulous for its own good and there’s no need for that here. The play is already gritty and fabulous. The cast is rock-solid fabulous. Mary-Arrchie has a hit on its hands. Audiences should run, not walk, to see it."