Chicago Tribune
- Highly Recommended
"...One of the most notable aspects of the play is that the antagonist forces are mostly internal to Kenneth. He has to deal with setbacks and challenging people, like the rest of us, but most of the folks he encounters (such as his employers, both played by Fred Zimmerman) during his ordinary days wish him well and try to help. And that’s one of this play’s most appealing aspects. In many ways, it’s a play about learning to use the people around you to find the help they want to give you."
Chicago Sun Times
- Highly Recommended
"..."Primary Trust," receiving its Chicago premiere at the Goodman Theater, is a more modest play than I expected given that it won this year's Pulitzer Prize for drama. But what playwright Eboni Booth lacks here in scope and complexity, she makes up for with the quality of the work's warm-hearted sentiment. This is feel-good theater, the kind that bathes you generously in sincere appreciation for simple acts of friendship."
Daily Herald
- Highly Recommended
"...That’s the timeless message of this quiet, little play: Practice kindness and patience, extend a hand when you can, and reach out for a hand when you need one."
Stage and Cinema
- Highly Recommended
"...The Goodman’s Chicago-premiere production of Primary Trust by Eboni Booth is everything I’ve been craving in theatre lately. Directed by Malkia Stampley, this Pulitzer Prize-winning play about loss and loneliness is intimate, dripping in empathy, but most importantly full of hope. I’ll even dare to say it’s my favorite piece of theatre this year."
Let's Play Theatrical Reviews
- Highly Recommended
"...Primary Trust, written by American playwright Eboni Booth, is one of those plays that not only entertain but also prompt deep reflection on the themes of love and isolation. Booth's play reminds you that you have a soul, and one's life from someone you never knew can touch that soul deeply."
Around The Town Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"...Malkia Stampley’s keen direction of this cast on a set designed by Lex Liang is smooth and allows the audience to feel as if they have broken the fourth wall. The music composed to work with this story by Mike Przygoda and Brandon Reed is fitting and the lighting (Heather Gilbert) is sheer perfection. The costumes were fairly simple, but effective (Yvonne Miranda). This was 90 minutes of high quality story-telling that brought us a great story about friendship, love, adjustment and work ethics. You may leave the Goodman’s Owen Theatre in need of a Mai Tai ( FYI- Petterino’s, next door, makes a mean one), but of greater importance, you will leave the theater with a smile on your face and a good feeling in your heart."
WTTW
- Highly Recommended
"...Booth's play is expertly cast and directed by Malkia Stampley in what marks her impressive Goodman directing debut. It also features a stunning set design by Lex Liang that takes the form of a vast backdrop that captures the face of what might be Kenneth's mother (or even Kenneth himself) with a cluster of small, almost toy-like buildings on the stage to suggest the town where he lives."
Chicago Theatre Review
- Highly Recommended
"...This recent Pulitzer Prize-winning play is a true winner. Do not miss this quiet, almost unassuming one-act play that’s laced with warmth and good humor. It’s the feel-good play of the season and a story that reminds us of our need for friends, kinship and human connection in our lives. Eboni Booth’s gently humane play, lovingly Directed by Malkia Stampley, sensitively demonstrates how we can all relate with each other and care for our fellow man, especially as we stretch our arms across the divide that seems to separate all of us."
Buzz Center Stage
- Highly Recommended
"...Namir Smallwood's portrayal of Kenneth is truly extraordinary. He captures the character's quiet vulnerability, depicting a man whose life revolves around the safety of a small, predictable world. Smallwood infuses Kenneth with a subtle yet profound emotional depth, inviting the audience to experience both his fear of change and his intense longing for connection. His interactions, especially with his imaginary friend Bert, reveal Kenneth's deep-seated need for stability and companionship. Bravo!"
Third Coast Review
- Highly Recommended
"...Grief is born out of trauma and thrives in loneliness. Playwright Eboni Booth creates a devastating inner world of grief in Primary Trust and builds a shell of a world around her main character Kenneth (Namir Smallwood). It is a brilliant journey with Kenneth as he loses the security of the familiar that has cosseted his feelings since losing his mother at the age of 10. That world starts to crack with the inevitable changes to the town of Cranberry, New York, which is right outside of Rochester. Malkia Stampley directs Primary Trust."
MaraTapp.org
- Highly Recommended
"...Primary Trust is one of several plays now on Chicago stages that offer us evidence of the inestimable value of that human connection, of friendship, of kindnesses, both small and large. This play challenges and engages its audience while offering comfort and encouragement to emerge from our isolated, unhappy times and selves. It's evident why Primary Trust won this year's Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Don't miss the chance to see for yourself and drink from its refreshing cup."
Splash Magazine
- Highly Recommended
"...The Goodman Theatre brings Eboni Booth’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Primary Trust to Chicago. Directed by Malkia Stampley, this insightful show tackles themes of loneliness, trauma, and friendship with a healthy mix of laughs and poignant moments."
BroadwayWorld
- Recommended
"...Eboni Booth's PRIMARY TRUST is a slight and intimate play, made more heartfelt by Namir Smallwood's beautifully realized central performance as Kenneth. Set in a time vaguely before smart phones, the 2024 Pulitzer Prize winner finds 38-year-old Kenneth, who's extremely attached to his routine, in a moment of profound change."
NewCity Chicago
- Highly Recommended
"...“Primary Trust” has a superb ensemble cast which evokes laughs and tears as well with Booth’s clever dialogue showing us what’s inside them. Namir Smallwood is a natural and touching Kenneth, the show’s gentle, introverted central character whose growing social courage and capacity for friendship unfolds in unconventional ways."
