"Though this morality play has its collection basket full of tokens of charity, it still feels withholding. Under Hill’s direction, the 95-minute Keen Company production moves quickly, in a series of gasp-like three- or four-minute scenes...While full of heart, the writing skimps on the meat of the story...Hutchinson sprinkles in tidbits about class and race but the most charged material is quickly sidestepped. It’s too bad, for both the characters and the actors who capably portray them."
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"It gives us the chance to make the acquaintance of Jay Mazyck, a nineteen-year-old actor with an uncanny way of laying bare the soul of the character he plays...Hutchinson comes up with a couple of painfully engrossing confrontations...As it stands, it's a film script passing as a play, and not felicitously...Hutchinson creates such appealing characters that it's a pity at 'Surely Goodness and Mercy' never pulls its elements together into a fully convincing drama."
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"Ironically, as Hutchinson shapes her play—and Jessi D. Hill smoothly directs it on Lee Savage’s multi-area set—goodness and mercy may be in too generous supply...Another hard-to-dismiss ‘Surely, Goodness and Mercy’ drawback is casting Mazyck as Tino...He can’t, and doesn’t, pass for 12...Yes, ‘Surely, Goodness and Mercy’ is worth seeing now for not only how much, well, good there is in it but also for how much it promises of Hutchinson’s next play. Surely.”
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"Playwright Chisa Hutchinson has a fine ear for dialogue and an excellent sense of fair play. Unfortunately, 'Surely Goodness and Mercy' is rather unreal in its naïvete as well as having no dramatic arc. Under Jessi D. Hill's astute direction, the play seem better than it is with performances that somewhat cover up the holes and inconsistencies in the script. The feel good ending will please some, while others will find it rather hard to believe."
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“An uplifting exploration of defying the odds and having the guts to be generous...The acting is definitely the production's strong suit...The production values don't measure up quite as well. The problem lies in Savage's multi-leveled set which is far too busy...Hutchinson's dramaturgy isn't flawless...But there's no question that the playwright has a sharp ear for dialogue that sounds natural and flows well.”
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"In Hutchinson’s hands, the relationship between Tino, Deja, and Bernadette is deftly written, with laughs and genuine tenderness...My main issues are with the abrupt end to the first act and the unresolved, somewhat pat ending...That being said, Keen Company is doing something pretty rare right now with their 'Season of Impact'—putting on shows that look to leave you moved, perhaps enough to inspire you to additional acts of kindness."
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"I most definitely enjoyed ‘Surely Goodness & Mercy’, but I wished that it had fleshed out its plotting and characters a bit more to make for a more nourishing meal of an evening...I do feel the play is worth seeing, especially acted as well as it is. Nicely staged and directed by Jessi D. Hill...It is to the credit of the two young actors that they accomplish what they do, considering they are rarely believable twelve year-olds. ”
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"It's a heartwarming story about doing good in the world and how that good keeps building and creating more good. It's a wonderful part of our human experience that is often overlooked today. But I do have some caveats about recommending this wholeheartedly despite excellent acting and the story of the play. Some scenes in Chisa Hutchinson's script are a flash, more a moment than a full fledged scene...Other scenes are prolonged to the point of tedium."
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