Los Angeles Times
- Highly Recommended
"...Thomas Hodges' lush original music, performed live by Joe Symon on piano and Jyvonne Haskin on cello, sets an appropriately elegiac tone. The cast yanks its fair share of tears, none of them forced. As Cleve Jones, the originator of the AIDS quilt, Clifford Bañagale gives a spectacularly gripping account of the quilt's genesis. Vash Boddie also shines as Milk's drag queen friend and supporter. The standout turn of the evening, however, is Heidi Sultzman as Milk's young campaign coordinator, whose dry reminiscence builds into raw grief."
LA Weekly
- Somewhat Recommended
"...The all-black set, wreathed in votive candles, suggests a memorial service, with emphasis on celebration rather than grief. Many events are familiar-- Milk's successful campaign to defeat Proposition 6, which would have barred gays and lesbians from teaching in California schools, his alliance with San Francisco Mayor Moscone, their deaths at the hands of disgruntled homophobe Dan White, and the massive out-pouring of rage when White received a minimal sentence due to the infamous "twinkie" defense. But the use of the words of people who were there lends color, humor and authenticity. For director Anthony Frisina and his large, able ensemble, this is clearly a labor of love, assisted by a musical score by Thomas Hodges. Actor John Meeks plays Milk throughout, while the other roles are divided among the ensemble."
Backstage
- Recommended
"...Developed at San Diego's gay-focused Diversionary Theatre last year, Patricia Loughrey's theater piece is a heartfelt tribute to San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk (1930–78), the first openly gay elected official in California. An impassioned activist, tirelessly crusading for equal rights for all minorities, Milk was murdered by disgruntled former city supervisor Dan White. Since then, Milk's legacy, particularly as a fearless pioneer in gay-rights legislation, has grown to legendary status. Smartly and sensitively directed by Anthony Frisina, Loughrey's docudrama achieves a thoughtful and touching portrait of the man and the myth. Though it's simple in format and small in scale, the production deftly sums up the inspirational effect Milk had-and still has-on people."
LA Theatre Review
- Somewhat Recommended
"...Interspersed throughout is the story of Milk's arrival in the Castro area of San Francisco and opening a small camera shop, his early rise to power and his eventual tragic death. Despite the parenthetical soliloquy cautioning that Harvey Milk was hardly perfect, the rest of the play tends to belie that. Also, the play assumes those watching are familiar with his story, because it is inexplicably told out of sequence. This technique perhaps adds to the emotion, but makes it confusing to the uninitiated and somewhat anticlimactic. For a more straightforward timeline, I would recommend seeing the film Milk prior to coming to this show, which is written more as a tribute than as a biography."
Stage Scene LA
- Recommended
"...Dear Harvey serves as an excellent live supplement to Milk (The Movie) as well as to the books, documentaries, and exhibits dedicated to the preservation of Harvey's legacy. Hopefully Frisina and cast will be able to make the rounds of local high schools with this stirring production. In the meantime, those in the mood for some inspirational, educational, entertaining theater can find it at WeHo's Lee Strasberg Theater. Harvey would be proud to see how his words, and those of the people he called his friends, continue to impact our country and our world nearly thirty years after the events of November 27, 1978 robbed us of his life and leadership."
