"'Arden/Everywhere' has all the verve of a deflated soccer ball...'As You Like It' isn’t a great fit for the tale that Bauman wants to tell. The substance of the plot doesn’t seem to interest her...And the comedy is a non-starter. What does interest her is the refugee setting, but aside from some inspired details, this vision of the Forest of Arden is unproductively at odds with the play...If it had been more daring, the play might have found its own language to tell its own stories."
Read more

“Despite having some of Shakespeare's best-known lines (‘All the world's a stage…’) and one of his most-beloved heroines, ‘As You Like It’ doesn't live up to the promise of its title for everyone. The problem is that it's essentially an Elizabethan rom-com, which concludes with not one, not two, not three, but four weddings. And these amorous payoffs are preceded by a lot of silliness that doesn't produce anywhere close to an equal amount of laughter.”
Read more

"While this lens of exile adds a genuinely moving layer of consequence to the play and a poignancy to the interactions among the characters, there are times when the theme meshes uneasily with the fundamentally lightweight nature of the underlying story...There’s only so much that Bauman and the ensemble can do to add heft...Strong performances and the strength of the central conceit make the piece well worth watching."
Read more

"Featuring a diverse cast including many immigrants to the US, director Jessica Bauman’s play is rich and gripping...This production reverberates with a relevant and engaging energy. The fantastic cast breathes vibrant life into the text, with a commitment to relentless pacing and allowing the stream-of-consciousness nature of the dialogue to come alive...Layering in personal narratives and native languages of various cast members brings 'As You Like It' to new life."
Read more

“The play at first glance appears to be an original production about immigration, but it is, in fact, a play that re-imagines Shakespeare's ‘As You Like It’ as a story about refugees. Exiles of many nationalities live in Arden along with original characters who were banished to live in the forest. The set and lighting design are of the highest quality and the actors are all talented professionals. It is worth your time to see it.”
Read more