Tom & Eliza Reviews

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...Song writes repetitive dialogue that the two characters volley back and forth, reinforcing and contradicting each other with simple syntax that could be mistaken for a children's storybook if not for its adult themes. Sometimes narrating different perspectives on the same events and sometimes splicing together two unrelated monologues, the actors direct most of their dialogue toward the house rather than each other. Park develops an especially strong rapport with the audience, her wry delivery belied by a mischievous twinkle in her eyes."

Chicago Reader - Recommended

"...It's a tricky piece to pull off tonally, but Frei and Park keep the dialogue taut and engaging, even as they mostly don't move from their stools. (There is a terrific stage effect late in the show that I won't spoil.) Eliza seems like the obvious villain here (I mean, book burning for god's sake!), but Song knows that people are complicated and that relationships don't always make sense, whether we're on the outside looking in through a screen, or stuck in a box together trying to figure out how to survive."

Stage and Cinema - Highly Recommended

"...Tom and Eliza spend the entire play enclosed in a life-sized shadow box, perched on stools, literally separated from the audience by a see-through membrane. This remarkable set design by Tatiana Kahvegian makes them seem larger than life and doll-like at the same time. The two actors are claustrophobically close, getting closer still as they open, after a brief prologue from Tom, in a staggered recitation of their first encounter."

Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended

"...Near the end of the show, there is a moment when the whole room goes utterly dark. Afterwards, walking out into the balmy Chicago summer night, it felt as though we were re-entering America after a strange, unsettling journey in another country. This thoughtful, provoking piece, despite the darkness of the message, left me with a feeling of awe of what theater can do."

Chicago Theater and Arts - Highly Recommended

"..."Tom & Eliza" is a fairly brilliant example of absurdist theater. Beautifully performed by Clifton Frei as Tom and Seoyoung Park as Eliza, it is written by Celine Song and expertly directed by Aileen Wen McGroddy."