Cardenio Reviews

Stage and Cinema- Not Recommended

"...In Cardenio, now playing at City Garage, a character states in Latin, “De gustibus non disputandum est,” which means “There’s no accounting for taste.” Well, there’s no accounting for what I saw on stage tonight. Across-the-board amateur to average to appalling acting from a 12-member cast (all of whom have trod the boards with this company before); awkward, bemusing blocking and interpretation from Artistic Director Frédérique Michel; and a shaky script by Shakespeare scholar Stephen Greenblatt and post-modern playwright Charles L. Mee. The point here was to deliver a sunny comedy about three couples rethinking their love for each other on a terrace in Umbria, Italy. Instead we get a rapid-paced but dull misfire that falls like a house of Cardenio."

Stage Scene LA- Somewhat Recommended

"...Though Cardenio as a whole may not add up to the sum of its parts (some which work quite marvelously, others not so much), it makes for a colorful, largely entertaining evening of lively live theater at City Garage."

Night Tinted Glasses- Recommended

"...The core characters of Anselmo, Camila, Will, Susanna, Sally, Edmund, and Rudi carry much of the play--and it is due to this cast as well as the direction we the audience care about what happens, and cannot quite guess what will happen next. Although in theory a romcom, Cardenio proves a little too grounded, too nuanced, too melancholy to fit into that formula. As a result what happiness there is feels deeper. Same with the regrets. And the confusion. Like life, but distilled. Such after all, is art."

Stage Raw- Highly Recommended

"...In Michel’s propulsive and imaginative staging, the actors, including Jason Pereira, Angela Beyer, Kat Johnston, Loosema Hakverdian, and Andy Kallok, pitch their performances just shy of slapstick. Scene-stealer Dunn, in particular, chews the scenery with brio, but the entire cast is engaging and well-matched. It all makes for a delightful entertainment, to be sure. But dig a bit deeper and you might discover a heartfelt Valentine to the transformative power of the theater, a fitting message not only for this play, but for City Garage’s enduring mandate."

Haines His Way- Recommended

"...Director Frederique Michel has guided her cast through the romantic shenanigans as well as choreographed them setting up of the wedding feast to end Act One. Josephine Poinsot’s black and white costumes with touches of red and pink add a colorful tint to the various characters. Sannazzaro creates a frenetic groom akin to a silent movie comic or classic Jerry Lewis while Davis-Lorton can pout with the best of the nymphets. Johnston delivers her two lengthy diatribes against love with vitriol to spare. Troy Dunn makes the most of his handyman Rudi, the Dogberry/Bottom/Sir Andrew Augecheek of this play. Martha Duncan and Bo Roberts play the well-meaning but interfering parents. Loosema Hakverdian as the sultry maid and Andy Kallock as the Italian pasta chef complete the cast."