“In ‘Wives,’ the Other Halves Have Their Say: Jaclyn Backhaus’s slapdash comedy, at Playwright’s Horizons, travels through time to coax oppressed spouses out of their powerful husband’s shadows.”
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“‘Wives,’ in Four Exuberant Feminist Conversations”
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“The ‘Wives’ of History Are Breaking Free From Their ‘Man’-Made Storie: Jaclyn Backhaus writes new versions of Catherine de' Medici and Ernest Hemingway's exes for a world premiere at Playwrights Horizons.”
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"Jaclyn Backhaus' Frantically Funny and Freestyle 'Wives' Comments on Patriarchal Pigeonholes"
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“Backhaus, whose most recent stage offering, ‘India Pale Ale,’ was far less colorful, has written a time-hopping comedy that vents playfully and eloquently about the sorry lot of wives, and by extension all women, in a patriarchal society...’Wives’ is untidy and obsessive, and one is not always sure what Backhaus is trying to say, but it's still a zippy ride.”
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3/5 Stars "'Life With Papa and Three Other Feminist Tales': An episode involving Ernest Hemingway's several widows is a highlight of a new satirical comedy"
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“I must confess that I was not a fan of ‘Men on Boats’ – and I did not much care for Wives either, although I admire Backhaus’ wild sense of theatricality and daring and uncompromising attitude towards both history and the present.”
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"Despite this time traveling comedy's flaws, Jaclyn Backhaus still drives home an urgent message here about patriarchal tropes and how they can insidiously infect a marriage and undo a woman's self-identity."
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