Los Angeles Times - Somewhat Recommended
"...In the Fountain production directed by Simon Levy, the role of Daniel Blake is played by JD Cullum, an accomplished local stage veteran with a twinkling amiability. Unfortunately, Cullum softens the character’s gruff charm. The harsh Northern England accent eludes him. “I, Daniel Blake” is built on local reality, which is completely missing here."
LA Splash - Highly Recommended
"...The story is fiction, but the play features real speeches, factual interviews, and social media posts. Skillfully helmed by producing director Simon Levy, I, DANIEL BLAKE is a bleak and poignant portrayal of one man's fight to survive in an unforgiving and cold bureaucracy which robs people of their dignity and self-respect. Kudos to the entire cast, especially Cullum, Saunders, and Gamble, who do most of the heavy lifting. I, DANIEL BLAKE is a thought-provoking, stimulating, and challenging look at the world today, warts and all."
Stage Scene LA - Somewhat Recommended
"...Brilliant performances and dazzling production design aside, Dave Johns’ unrelentingly bleak stage adaptation of I, Daniel Blake, Ken Loach’s Kafkaesque 2016 film about a good man living a British bureaucratic nightmare is the most depressing 90 minutes I’ve spent in a theater in a very long time."
On Stage Los Angeles - Recommended
"...What do you get when you take a 2016 British Film, create a play from the same script with British characters, mount it on the stage with a fine ensemble cast? That would be the theatre version of "I, Daniel Blake" with the United States Premiere production at the Fountain Theatre in Hollywood."
Stage Raw - Highly Recommended
"...Despite being a British story, set in Newcastle, I, Daniel Blake is painfully relevant in America's current economic and political climate. Adapted from the Paul Laverty film of the same name, this play is a poignant critique of how capitalist societies treat the less fortunate and how people are reduced to expendable cogs in a broken machine. The production, currently playing at The Fountain Theatre, is uniformly strong: It is heartbreaking without becoming overly sentimental, and all of the production elements come together to create an engaging piece of theater."
Ticket Holders LA - Recommended
"...The groundbreaking Fountain Theatre, currently represented off-Broadway with their transplanted smash hit Fatherland, has given us another socially conscious “ode to the working class,” as I, Daniel Blake’s director and 32-year producing director of the complex Simon Levy commented."
Larchmont Buzz - Highly Recommended
"...Keeping with their tradition of presenting gut-wrenching social theater, The Fountain Theatre scores a grand slam with I, Daniel Blake. This adaptation is by Dave Johns from the film directed by Ken Loach and written by Paul Laverty. Struggling working-class individuals down on their luck confront multiple obstacles trying to provide for their basic needs. Their lives are unduly complicated by a governmental system designed to punish its people, not aid them. These characters are meant to jump through hoops to avoid sanction after sanction, which are given out readily."
