Front Door Open Reviews
LA Weekly- Not Recommended
"...An estranged adult child turning up out of the blue might be an acceptable melodramatic conceit if it were indeed the only one. Baum's script, however, fairly bursts with overwrought concepts. Besides Eleanor's pathological fears and Gretchen's problems with husband, dad, and daughter, it turns out that Douglas, whose hands have begun to shake, is in crisis mode as well. Add to this, hidden secrets eventually emerge about this ostensibly harmonious marriage and all told, there's arguably several seasons' worth of soap opera crowbarred into this dramedy's scant 90 minutes."
Total Theater- Recommended
"...Director Asaad Kelada has the difficult task of orchestrating all this dysfunction and somehow allowing the humanity of the play to shine through. This he does, in a masterful way too. He is helped of course by the actors, a very skilled bunch, and by Tom Meleck's Broadway-worthy set and lighting design. Together these admirable theatre artists make believable a modern family"�s desperate, heartbreaking struggle to rebuild their ruined lives."
Theatre Spoken Here- Recommended
"...The superb cast are led by Joanna Miles, faultless as a woman trapped into society's role of female helplessness and dependence. David Selby, is magnificent as the father, a raging bull with the heart of a child; Anna Nicholas is excellent as the impatient but responsible daughter, and Lizzy Rich is charming as a cheeky yet tender teen who has secrets of her own. Sensitively directed by Asaad Kelada, with set and lighting by Tom Meleck, sound by Joseph "Sloe"� Slawinski and costumes by Betty Pecha Madden. Produced by Laura Hill."
Broadway World- Somewhat Recommended
"...Under Kelada's finely paced direction, the ensemble give terrific performances. Miles is so real from moment to moment as Eleanor that she could be reading the phone book and you would believe her every word. A superior actress! I have never seen David Selby better in his emotional interpretation of the frustrated husband Douglas, loving his wife but at a crossroads as to how to continue. Douglas's old-fashioned reactions to Thalia's tattoos and her flagrant cursing may seem old hat by now, but Selby makes them vibrate, giving them renewed life. Nicholas and Rich are both excellent. Nicholas has the most complicated character and she does her best to wade through the confusion, but Baum needs to clarify her past a bit more and enhance the fa"