“An intense new play...Kennedy, an ambitious playwright, is tackling a number of themes…The cast does valiantly in this action-packed melodrama that tackles so much – family, marital abuse, immigration, feminism, same-sex love, and unanticipated catastrophe. Central to it all is Luda, played with passion and conviction by Alyssa Bresnahan – a woman who becomes the feminist mouthpiece of a beleaguered generation.”
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“‘Napoli, Brooklyn’ has the palpable sense of someone’s actual family story…The cataclysm that shocks the audience into intermission is stunning…Luda delivers the last speech with an exquisite tenderness speaking of her child, her daughter, and all daughters, all women. I was moved. That said, when the curtain falls, there is something missing…While there is much substance here, one is hungry for more substantial resolution. It is a good pasta meal, but it is not the Seven Fishes.”
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“Kennedy is more than capable of incisive characterizations, smart dialogue, and revealing the depths hidden beneath the surface…Even though (almost) everyone changes in some way, some of the transformations seem too sudden. And while some of the characters’ behaviors are clearly spurred by the out-of-the-blue Act I incident, Kennedy doesn’t make as full use of it as one might expect...Still, we do become heavily invested in the fate of this family."
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“While the multiple…strands tend to weaken the…emotional impact, the writing is often too self-conscious to fully engage…belief. Giving Luda a habit of revealing her fear of losing her faith by having her speak to an onion…is a disturbing bit of whimsy…For all their assumed difficulties with English, Nic and Luda's vocabulary and syntax strain credibility…These flaws could easily be overlooked if the company wasn't so disparate in its ability to recreate this specific time and place.”
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"The flavors in this melting pot kitchen sink drama...don’t quite combine into a satisfying dish. But numerous parts are individually tasty, giving drama-hungry playgoers something to chew on along the way...The problem in 'Napoli, Brooklyn' is that there are too many of them stuffed into one story...The poor theatergoer is drawn in too many directions to focus on the heart of the play...Quite a bit of 'Napoli, Brooklyn' is compelling. But there just seems to be too much pasta in the pot."
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“Kennedy is better at sketching the play’s many female characters…She has a flair for dialogue…But she has a tendency to telegraph plot points…And pivoting her drama around an external real-life event carries some unfortunate consequences and rushed denouement in the second act. The dynamics of the Muscalinos could have provided all the fireworks she needed. There is much to admire here, but ‘Napoli, Brooklyn’ feels like a tasty but overstuffed manicotti."
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"The family drama is steadily involving and, even though it can at times feel over-jammed with conflict and events, it carries the ring of truth...Edelstein handles all of the action smoothly...Nothing seems overly contrived...All cast members distinguish themselves, but I am especially impressed by Bresnahan as Luda...As family sagas go, Kennedy has given us a very absorbing one filled with sharp dialogue, insights, and characters tailor-made for good acting opportunities."
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“I didn't believe any of it, except for that real-life event, which director Gordon Edelstein stages to impressive effect at the end of the first act…Kennedy’s determination to touch on every obstacle...leaves her little room to dig deep into any of them. What's left are stereotypes and platitudes. Like so many young playwrights Kennedy tries to cover up the patchy parts of her play with a couple of explain-it-all speeches at the end. For me, it was too little and too late.”
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