| Chicago Tribune - Somewhat Recommended
"...You still won't leave with great new insights into Cash, and you could argue that all here still could use a further dose of the bleak, a closer acquaintance with that cycle of sin and redemption you can find in so many of the Cash lyrics. But the ruggedly handsome Lewis, the veteran of many national tours, really fills out the Cash role and he sounds terrific. Goodman spent years in "Million Dollar Quartet" and he adds a more restless note. Goodrich has all the right charisma and, of course, an ideal voice for June."
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Chicago Sun Times - Somewhat Recommended
"...Go into “Ring of Fire” expecting a glimpse into the genius and torment that defined Johnny Cash and you’re apt to walk away disappointed. Created by Richard Maltby and conceived by William Meade, the storytelling is all but absent as the show makes its way through more than 30 numbers from the Man in Black’s extensive songbook. Even for a revue — a genre where narrative and character development generally take a distant back seat to a jukebox worth of songs — “Ring of Fire” is thin soup. Directed by Brian Russell, with music direction by Malcolm Ruhl, this is a show that sounds terrific but falters whenever the music stops and the attempts at dialogue begin."
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Chicago Stage Review - Somewhat Recommended
"...Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash is full of solid interpretations of some of Johnny Cash’s classic songs. The glaring absence of songs recorded after 1975 or so — most notably, “Hurt,” “God’s Gonna Cut You Down,” or any of the other tracks Johnny Cash did with producer Rick Rubin in the 1990s and 2000s — leaves the audience wanting more, but not in that good way performers strive for. The talented singer-musicians are given very little story here upon which to exercise their acting chops. The narrative thread is ultimately threadbare, little more than a series of segues. The performers deserve better. Johnny Cash deserves better."
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ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...This is a crowd pleaser that quickly got the opening night audience clapping and cheering. Johnny Cash would appreciate the superbly produced tribute to his legend and his songbook. Get to Munster, In at The Theatre at the Center to experience a worthy look at an American icon - Johnny Cash"
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Around The Town Chicago - Highly Recommended
"...A great many Chicago area theater audiences have seen the long running “Million Dollar Quartet” at the Apollo and have walked away with fond memories of the four featured men in the story. Of course, one of these men, Johnny Cash, would be the hero of the premiere now onstage at Indiana’s Theatre At The Center in Munster ( just a hop skip and a jump from the “loop”-”Ring Of Fire”. This is a re-tooling of a production that did not have the right “stuff” for Broadway in its original version."
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