Upstairs: The Musical at Pride Arts Center

Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended

"...Honoring queer trailblazers and the subculture they pioneered while celebrating the social progress that threatens to make them obsolete is a fine line to walk, and this Pride production codirected by Eric Coleman and Gary Trick navigates it to occasionally stirring effect. But too much of what works is dampened by what doesn't-like the vocals, consistently off-key, a plodding musical score, and a supremely silly device involving the apparition of a sanctimonious uncle who, for some reason, sounds like Fred Schneider of the B-52s."

Windy City Times - Highly Recommended

"...That same low-budget ambience is reinforced by the Pride Arts Broadway space, where, at press preview, the company assembled by director Eric Coleman had yet to reconcile the unamplified vocals and Dixieland instrumentals constituting the title's "musical" element with the erratic acoustics of their speakeasy-vintage auditorium. A few more performances should ensure the ensemble's acclimation to their environment and confidence in its capabilities, though. Meanwhile, there's no denying the impressive potential manifested in Self's intelligently crafted portrait of a long-forgotten chapter in LGBT history."

Chicago Theatre Review - Somewhat Recommended

"...The cast ranges from pretty good to amateur. Notable performances come from Nate Strain as the disturbed young Agneau. This actor credits theatrical experience in his bio that has obviously trained Mr. Strain how to create a realistic character. He delivers most of his dialogue with honesty, as if speaking from his heart. It’s when the script calls for the actor to go to the dark side, Mr. Strain can be a little hard to accept. His real strength lies in being one of the best vocalists in the production."

Chicago On Stage - Highly Recommended

"...Director Eric Coleman and technical director Wayne Kupferer should be pleased not only by this but by the way this entire play, clearly a labor of love more than a commercial venture, came off. I was told before it began that they never expected any press. The fact that some of us were there, then, is gravy for them, recognition of what they have achieved: a play that may not hit on all cylinders, but certainly hits on enough to make it purr."