Chicago Reader - Highly Recommended
"...This exceptional production's fine cast also features Joanne Dubach as Laura; haunting scenic and lighting design by Grant Sabin and Matt Gawryk and an original, never-intrusive score by Daniel Knox re-create the fractured, dreamlike experience Williams so poetically describes. Every bold choice amplifies every one of the play's subtleties, making this-to my mind, at least-the definitive Glass Menagerie."
ChicagoCritic - Highly Recommended
"...The oft-quoted line from Thoreau, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation," has all but become a hackneyed, reflexive notion today, where it is repeated with a blithely sagacious air that tells of how little we truly appreciate its wisdom. By staging The Glass Menagerie as he does, however, Fleischmann prevents us from missing this truth in The Glass Menagerie: Tom, homeless and mad, neither escapes his past nor his desperation, both of which continue to haunt him on whatever "adventure" in which he seeks to absolve himself. Indeed, we depart Tom's memory deeply moved by the sobriety of this truth. And as all great Art speaks truth into our lives, I dare say Fleischmann's The Glass Menagerie offers something truly great to Chicago theatre - something one ought not miss."
Chicago Stage and Screen - Highly Recommended
"...The acting is uniformly strong, with an excellent, empathetic turn by Kate Buddeke, a last minute replacement in the role of Amanda. She moves far beyond the surface level shrillness of the role, and instead paints a portrait of a woman desperate to protect her daughter, and blinded to reality in her desperation. She is softer, a woman accustomed to a certain life who has learned to adapt to survive. As Laura, Joanne Dubach does great work conveying both the painful shyness of a woman who has retreated so deeply into her own world, and the simple honesty of someone who never learned how to lie or pretend. Her pivotal scene with Jim the gentleman caller (Zach Wegner, balancing genuine affection and a practiced slickness) is all the more devastating because of how clearly every realization dawns on Dubach's open face."
Chicago Theater Beat - Recommended
"...Even though this latest production of The Glass Menagerie has its cracks, the collection remains magnificent. After experiencing Fleischmann's vision of this celebrated play, I would have a difficult time attending a classical staging of it. A director elevating a playwright's work to something beyond the original conception in this manner showcases the best of theatre's collaborative nature."
Third Coast Review - Highly Recommended
"...Hans Fleischmann developed a distinctive poetic vision for his production of Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, which ran for about six months in 2013 at Mary-Arrchie Theatre and then at Theater Wit. Fleischmann reprises this production as director and lead actor in the new Hypocrites production. Fleischmann as the narrator and poet Tom wanders in and out of time, in his homeless-man persona, as future Tom and past Tom. He's the son of the Southern belle mother, Amanda (Kate Buddeke), and brother of fragile Laura (Joanne Dubach)."
NewCity Chicago - Somewhat Recommended
"...“The Glass Menagerie” comes with its own set of built-in values. Mounting it is like renting a vintage sports car. It is a luxurious, time-tested play that is bound to garner attention whether you launch it out a reputable regional playhouse or a metropolitan storefront. Yet it is easy to be too attentive to Williams’ anti-magic act, to swoon too deeply for the charms of his play. With their current production, The Hypocrites fall hard for this national treasure. The feelings, evidently, are not mutual."