“Vermillion writes distinctive characters who each have their own language, but fails to make his story believable or emotionally gripping by turning it into something closer to the surreal, expecting the audience to accept the rationalizations rather than science fiction. There are moments that communicate real emotion, particularly the low-key ending, but due to the nature of the story, Vermillion finds himself spending too much time explicating the pseudoscience behind the title character.”
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"'Jessica' teases some intriguing gender issues that ultimately don’t pay off...Vermillion is more interested in examining the boundaries of love and intimacy. The second act is more urgent than the first, due largely to Trussell‘s performance. Director Jackson keeps the action moving at a brisk pace, even if the dialogue tends to run in circles. Longer and more verbose than it needs to be, 'Jessica' is reasonably engaging but doesn’t add anything especially earth-shattering to the A.I. genre."
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“Jessica has disappeared and over the past four years, her devoted, controlling, rich boyfriend Allister has been searching for her. He commissions LYFE Industries to make an Android Jessica, who might help him find her. This play raises many interesting questions about artificial intelligence. It will keep you interested and engaged as it unfolds. The set was impressive and the acting top-notch. Oh, by the way, ‘Do you have any waffles?’ I've been hungry for them ever since I saw this play.”
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"Vermillion's winning work joins a rich tradition of speculative fiction in exploring what artificial minds can tell us about our own...'Jessica' leans more heavily into the philosophical questions raised by its premise, though not at the expense of being any less entertaining or human...'Jessica' carves out its niche in inquiries about the consciousness, and any violence is emotional...A memory worth adding to your own neural network."
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