Chicago Tribune
- Highly Recommended
"...“Until the Flood,” which opened Sunday night at the Goodman Theatre, is the result of that commission. It is, in essence, an oral history wherein Orlandersmith assumes the personas of, and gives voices to, a variety of citizens in and around Ferguson: African-American, white, young, old, angry, caring, frightened, sad, resigned."
Chicago Sun Times
- Recommended
"...Writer and performer Dael Orlandersmith confronts the agonizing distance among perspectives on race in the U.S. in “Until the Flood,” a thoughtful, deeply compassionate one-person show about the death of Michael Brown, a black teen whose shooting by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, sparked days of unrest and exposed the intensely deep racial wounds of a community."
Chicago On the Aisle
- Recommended
"...“Until the Flood,” directed by Neel Keller, is a photo gallery, snapshots from the streets and front porches and barbershops of Ferguson, Mo. No judgments are made; the images – the voices, the perspectives –are what they are. I loved the street-wise kid, exuberant in the fleeting immortality of youth, so full of himself, full of life. He knew Michael Brown, but just to say hey."
Stage and Cinema
- Highly Recommended
"...Until the Flood lasts only 70 minutes. But its concentrated running time delivers a devastating drama. A ton of truth-telling now on tour, this 2016 one-act is the creation of actor, poet and oral historian Dael Orlandersmith. She becomes the partisans, witnesses, survivors and, above all, inhabitants of a town that epitomizes America’s divides — Ferguson, Missouri."
Let's Play at ChicagoNow
- Highly Recommended
"...We highly recommend that you see this limited engagement of common humanity at Goodman Theatre. Lastly, we commended Goodman for always being a voice for the people and opening their doors to these crucial topics into the theatrical world. We only pray that people will experience this dramatic masterpiece with the very talented Dael Orlandersmith!"
Chicago Theatre Review
- Highly Recommended
"...But in opening and closing her terrific play by portraying Miss Louisa Hemphill, a retired black teacher who has experienced decades of racism herself, Ms Orlandersmith touches every theatergoer with her words and thoughts. The elderly woman feels that Michael Brown, perhaps, set himself up to be victim. She tells us how, at a young age she realized that in order to succeed as a young African American woman, she'd need to move away from Ferguson. Then she sadly recalls the advice she gave herself, a message she would give Michael, were he still alive to hear it: "Don't let the sun go down on you in this town, if you're black.""
Third Coast Review
- Recommended
"...This play is evocative of 2000's The Laramie Project, which explored the 1998 murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard, but here there's only one actor to portray the spectrum of viewpoints. A single delivery provides continuity among characters, but also lends sameness to each person. Orlandersmith is a commanding presence and connects with the audience, but more differentiation, besides adding a shawl or a broom, would strengthen the disparate narratives."
Picture This Post
- Recommended
"...We're taken through perspectives of different ages, sexes, races & socio-political statuses that reflect- to this reporter -as very human, rather than caricatures of faintly represented demographics. The moments of switching chuckles, sighs, and hums of contemplation among us succeeded in what seems to be Orlandersmith's intention of bringing communities together so we can together assess the many truths of complex tragedy and race."
