Los Angeles Times - Recommended
"...Despite the occasional blunder, director Alana Dietze's taut and harrowing staging doesn't pull punches. Rose and Kelly-Eiding are precociously strong in their challenging roles. The sheer psychic clout of Spiegel's visceral play should not be underestimated. You may flinch -- but you will be unable to look away."
LA Weekly - Somewhat Recommended
"...Onstage on opening night, however, the relationship, with its power games, awkward secrets and hints of sexual attraction, was still a work in progress. As the reactive "friend" (and the target of Amy's careless slurs), Kelly-Eiding is solid. Rose, though she exudes mountains of edgy energy in a difficult role, delivers a patchwork of vivid mannerisms that hasn't quite cohered into a character portrayal of depth and power. (She still gets kudos for her bold and graphic performance in the abortion scene.) I also had issues with the open in-the-round staging as distracting from the intimacy of many moments. Still, there's no denying the relevance of this piece, which lays out the predicament of millions of trapped, bewildered women."
LA Theatre Review - Somewhat Recommended
"...Onstage on opening night, however, the relationship, with its power games, awkward secrets and hints of sexual attraction, was still a work in progress. As the reactive "friend" (and the target of Amy's careless slurs), Kelly-Eiding is solid. Rose, though she exudes mountains of edgy energy in a difficult role, delivers a patchwork of vivid mannerisms that hasn't quite cohered into a character portrayal of depth and power. (She still gets kudos for her bold and graphic performance in the abortion scene.) I also had issues with the open in-the-round staging as distracting from the intimacy of many moments. Still, there's no denying the relevance of this piece, which lays out the predicament of millions of trapped, bewildered women."
Stage and Cinema - Recommended
"...A similar relationship dynamic can be found in the staggeringly well-written Dry Land by nascent playwright Ruby Rae Spiegel, presented by Echo Theatre Company. At Sunday night's performance, high school came palpably crashing back in my face. This unapologetic examination of two girls on the swim team, and a do-it-yourself abortion, brought home the pain, suffering, isolation, identity crises, sexual discovery, and the bonding (perhaps love) of misfits. Director Alana Dietze evokes from Teagan Rose as the impregnated Amy and Connor Kelly-Eiding as the abetting Ester two riveting performances that will haunt me for some time to come."
LA Splash - Highly Recommended
"...Ruby Rae Spiegel wrote this insightful, gut-wrenching, humane drama when she was only 21 years old, and has literally pulled no punches! All scenes chillingly hint at a path to disaster for the unprepared teens. A rare, raw, and painful honesty prevails throughout, and the subject hints at the serious plight of young, pregnant girls with little, or no recourse to Planned Parenthood. With diminished options, many will likely resort to unorthodox, life threatening methods of procuring an abortion. This is currently a politically charged topic in the US. Certainly not a play for the faint-hearted!"
Stage Scene LA - Recommended
"...Dry Land packs an emotional wallop made even more gut-punching by the gradual way it sneaks up on you. With Teagan Rose and Connor Kelly-Eiding giving two of the year's most dazzling performances, it is a play you'll be thinking about long after the locker room fades to black."
StageHappenings.com - Not Recommended
"...I wanted to like this more, as the predicaments the unformed teens are going through are real and necessary for drama. But this production of a weak play, doesn't add up to enough to sustain interest."
Will Call - Somewhat Recommended
"...The acting and the direction by Alana Dietze are exceptional and the lurid scene of the miscarriage is realistic, horrifying but necessary to impact the story. Daniel Hagen plays the stoic janitor who has to clean up the mess. Don't say you weren't warned."
Colorado Boulevard - Highly Recommended
"...The author, Ruby Rae Spiegel, was inspired by an article on "DIY abortions," and turned that idea into a 1-3/4 hour play that boldly expands, with no punches pulled, on the ramifications of that idea, and every single minute is essential to the play, even though some minutes are difficult to watch. I was not the only one in the audience with a hand over the mouth because they wanted to gasp when they knew another gut-wrenching moment was coming. To have that level of emotion-evoking moments in a play without it seeming gratuitous is quite an accomplishment. Alana Dietze's direction is superb and intuitive, and I look forward to more productions directed by Ms. Dietze as well as more plays written by Ms. Spiegel."
The TVolution - Highly Recommended
"...The title Dry Land can denote barrenness, but in the final moments of this work Dietze, Rose and Kelly-Eiding share in bringing, what is perhaps Spiegel's intention for the piece, to crystal clarity, that in life, as in the waters of a pool, we cannot fully appreciate someone, until we look beneath the surface. This is one play you should definitely dive into."
USC Annenberg Media - Highly Recommended
"...Unapologetic and blunt, this production does not shy away from the controversial nature of the script. It gives voice to a group that is often silent on the stage, and it opens up a dialogue about one of the major political and social issues of today. A production like this reminds us why theater is so important."
