Welcome To Jesus at American Theater Company

Chicago Tribune - Recommended

"...Nabers’ great gift — and it’s enhanced by Davis’ inventive but simple staging — is to show us the nightmare world hiding in the mundane. That is, of course, the world occupied by most black people in America, where a routine traffic stop can end in a hail of police bullets. The simple play of flashlights in the dark takes on more horrific overtones as the story unfolds. The chorus of voices from townspeople filling the aural background (Jeffrey Levin’s sound design is particularly effective) captures the muttering gossip and growing groupthink that helps dehumanize those who don’t fit in."

Chicago Reader - Somewhat Recommended

"...Director Will Davis has done exciting work since taking over as artistic director at American Theater Company last year, including a beautifully stylized reimagining of William Inge's Picnic. But here stylization only adds to the overall murk—literally as well as figuratively, insofar as a great deal of Jesus takes place in the dark. There's some fun and a little horror in the play, but far from enough of either."

Chicago Theatre Review - Highly Recommended

"...Audiences looking for a scary play, laced with the terror of what lies unseen in the shadows and goes bump in the night, will find Janine Davis’ new ghostly, racially-motivated horror story at the American Theater Company to their liking. In a skillfully produced production by Will Davis that’ll keep theatergoers chilled with goosebumps and riveted to their seats, this tension-filled Southern Gothic is the stuff of guilty fear and sweat-soaked nightmares."

Third Coast Review - Somewhat Recommended

"...But most actions here are not remarkable as the body and mind of a young Black man are appropriated, enslaved, to serve white aspirations. A vital, visceral reminder and discussion, but better plumbed in a movie like Get Out, where viewers first find common ground with the white family before being confronted with their horrendous hearts of darkness."

Picture This Post - Highly Recommended

"...Funny, dark, and at times bridging on the side of terror, Welcome to Jesus is the perfect play for this time of year. As for Opening, it made the perfect way to celebrate the night before Halloween."

NewCity Chicago - Highly Recommended

"...Under Davis’ artistic auspice it’s easy to overlook any shortcomings in the script. “Welcome to Jesus” looks unlike anything else you’re likely to see this season. Davis continues to demonstrate his profound freedom of thought when it comes to the art of direction and the results do not fail to captivate."