The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Revisited Reviews
Stage and Cinema- Somewhat Recommended
At its best Search has value as a sort of time capsule: This protean entertainment covers a host of contemporary dislocations and dilemmas, in effect reproducing the modern world in a dozen voices. True, the script can seem self-consciously glib and epigrammatic (and all the more so given some actors offering a cartoonlike naturalism), but it remains remarkable how Wagner keeps the character humor from spinning off into star-turn self-indulgence by constantly connecting her characters in satisfying, even astonishing ways."
Stage Scene LA- Somewhat Recommended
"...Ten of L.A.'s finest actresses (and a couple of equally talented guys) deliver superb performances, and the production they are starring in proves one of the year's most stunningly designed. Still, as was the case when I saw Lily Tomlin perform it as a one-woman showcase back in 1987, I found The Search For Signs Of Intelligent Life In The Universe, Jane Wagner's collection of (mostly women's) monologs and occasional multi-character scenes only intermittently engaging in its Los Angeles LGBT Center intimate-stage "revisitation.""
ArtsInLA- Highly Recommended
"...eeing the LGBT Center's richly worthy reboot of The Search for..., I realized again one thing that so clearly contributes to any gifted performer's ability to bravely go where no one has gone before: a writer as brilliant and as in tune with the universe, its foibles, and its wonders, as Wagner."
Stage Raw- Highly Recommended
"...The current production at the Los Angeles LGBT Center, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: Revisited, takes the iconic Lily Tomlin one-woman show and reconfigures it with a talented cast of twelve. If, on balance, the piece still seems like it would be more effective as a one-person vehicle, it's a small quibble, considering the wealth of terrific acting and the sharp wit and wisdom of Jane Wagner's writing still on display."