“The brilliantly twisted thing about ‘Charolais’ is that what Siobhan wants, ultimately, is a snug little nuclear family...The trouble with pitting Siobhan against the nameless Charolais, at least in Ms. Stapleton’s performance, is that the cow is by far the more charming of the two…Still, we feel glimmers of sympathy for Siobhan, an antiheroine too petty to inspire outright affection. When the play’s too-tidy ending gives her what she thinks she wants, we suspect the triumph is fleeting.”
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"The one-woman show cleverly captures passion, heartache, and feelings about motherhood from multiple perspectives...The play is captivating from the first minute to the last...Stapleton is a master storyteller and her talents are very well employed in 'Charolais'...It is a memorable, well-crafted and wonderfully performed piece of theatre."
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"This earthy, faintly macabre tale is delivered with remarkable skill by Stapleton...She transforms into the Charolais in all her hauteur—although I fear these passages represent her one misstep: They're the stuff of sketch comedy, a satirical conception that represents a jarring break from the story's naturalistically rendered human barnyard...Even so, I'm betting that Stapleton, who is equally adept as a writer and performer, will leave you spellbound."
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"You haven't lived until you've heard a lusty French Charolais heifer mooningly mooing a rendition of 'La Vie En Rose'...That is just one of the gloriously rich and comic moments in 'Charolais'...Stapleton is a marvel as she alternates between the roles of Siobhan and the cow. All it takes is whipping off the tie from her ponytail and going into a slouch to make the transformation...You are in for an evening that both delights and surprises, especially as it leads to an unexpected conclusion."
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"Engaging, flavorful, and suspenseful...Stapleton offers a richly detailed portrait of an ordinary person that revels in the mundane...Stapleton's gutsy performance is commanding. Her assured vocal delivery mines every laugh and bit of drama out of the events...Chaoimh’s accomplished staging hauntingly conveys the senses of reality and illusion with lightheartedness and tension."
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"The play is unexpectedly original, well written, acted, and directed. It’s off the wall, but in the best sense...Stapleton plays Siobhan with earthy freshness and honesty...And we buy it. All of it. The situation is pithy not whimsical, relatable (I swear), frustrating, infuriating, funny, and touching. You’ll never see anything like it. Director Ni Chaoimh conjures her characters with imagination and compassion, never losing sight of emotion in favor of flippancy."
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"It stars the wildly talented Noni Stapleton, who also wrote this charming, funny, and wicked little play...Smartly directed by Bairbre Ni Chaoimh, Ms. Stapleton plays all the parts...Performed in a fast-moving 65 minutes, the show is a remarkably honest exploration of love, lust, jealousy, and need. It is as funny as it is brutal. This is one of those special little shows that one hopes theater nominators from various committees will not overlook. But if they do, you shouldn’t."
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"Ms. Stapleton’s script has meat on its bones and serves up enough twists and turns, hints, and surprises to sate the appetite of the sophisticated theatregoer...Under director Bairbre Ní Chaoimh’s steady hand, 'Charolais' is a welcomed battle of wisdom and wits tempered by whimsy delivered with empathic grace throughout Noni Stapleton’s authentic and believable performance."
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