Broadway World - Highly Recommended
"...I cannot think of a better way to spend a hot summer night than to watch a sizzling stage production of a Tennessee Williams film. Baby Doll, when it first arrived in 1956, was condemned by the Catholic Church for indecency, and because of its lewd poster-sized ad depicting Carroll Baker lying in a crib, sucking her thumb, was one of the most controversial films across America. Now, 60 years later, the West Coast premiere stage adaptation by Pierre Laville and Emily Mann of Williams' Baby Doll is a practically flawless production at the Fountain Theatre, directed with stunning clarity by Simon Levy...and boasting an unforgettably ingenious cast of five."
Stage Scene LA - Highly Recommended
"...A just-right darkly comedic tone and pitch-perfect performances turn minor Tennessee Williams into major summer entertainment as the Fountain Theater gives West Coast audiences their first taste of Pierre Laville and Emily Mann's streamlined, Williams-estate-approved adaptation of the 1956 movie potboiler Baby Doll."
On Stage Los Angeles - Highly Recommended
"...The main course for all the heat is, of course, the arrival, with riding crop in hand, of Daniel Bess as Silva Vacarro. Vacarro's cotton gin is the unfortunate victim of an arson fire, the source of which we all know. The dance of seduction between Silva and Baby Doll is obvious and inevitable.
The romance of Williams' words in and of themselves is seductive. When Baby Doll invites Silva to take a nap, apologizing for the size of her iron crib, he smiles and says, "Any flat surface is suitable for slumber." And, the predictability of the plot moves quickly and assuredly thanks to Levy's decisive hand. Bombast and seduction, a theme for Williams from time to time. That's what this one is all about. It's a must see for those who love the heat."
TheatreMania - Recommended
"...All of this makes for a twisted bit of psycho-sexual gamesmanship with Baby Doll as both pawn and prize. Alone with the girl while Archie is off working in his factory, Sylva works his considerable charm both to seduce and interrogate. Meanwhile Baby Doll, a none-too-sophisticated girl whose own hormones are blazing, can't tell the difference."
Culture Vulture - Recommended
"...Kazan's casting for the film was pitch perfect. Fountain Director Simon Levy has wisely chosen to have his actors closely follow the original performances, which they have done admirably. In 1956, "Baby Doll" was called notorious, salacious, revolting, etc. It was banned in much more than Boston. 77% of the theaters scheduled to show it cancelled. Now, in 2016 Los Angeles, it has lost some of its bite. While the stage version may not set the world on fire in this day and age, and the characters may seem overdrawn, "Baby Doll" is certainly good entertainment. We might wonder, however, if this is what some Trump followers mean when they say "make America great again." It is easy to forget just where women's rights stood throughout the US in 1956, and how ugly and prejudiced it was and can still be."
Total Theater - Highly Recommended
"...All the steamy sexuality and macho jousting lead to a violent, explosive end. But out of all the smoke and heat of battle emerges a singular figure, Baby Doll. Having shed her girlish idiosyncrasies and fantasies, she has managed to grow up, become an adult, a woman. The Fountain's lavish, excellent production does Williams proud."
The Los Angeles Post - Not Recommended
"...The real problem is that the tone of the play itself is so uncertain. It veers restlessly between over-the-top Saturday Night Live sketch comedy and plangent melodrama. Is it farce? Is it tragedy? Is it just a plain old shaggy-dog story?"
Stage Raw - Somewhat Recommended
"...There are some affecting moments, all of them intimate ones between Baby Doll and Vacarro when it seems like a genuine relationship just might be possible. Hopefully, the production evolves to feature more of these."
Theatre Notes - Recommended
"...The Fountain Theatre's production of the West Coast premiere of Baby Doll, adapted by Pierre Laville and Emily Mann from Tennessee Williams' screenplay, stars the excellent Lindsay LaVanchy in the title role. Baby Doll, nubile, immature and not just a little dim (she left school in the fourth grade; long division made her cry), married Archie Lee at the behest of her dying father, who wanted to make sure she was cared for."