Caught

“Upon entering the space at La Mama that is part art exhibit, part performance site, it is clear that this won’t be your typical piece of entertainment. Even before taking your seat, so many questions come to mind about the goal of the experiment that is explained as a variation on human imprisonment and its effect on the psyche. The concept instantly grabs your attention and sets the stage for a powerful and moving personal story – or so one would think.” Full Review

"An intricately constructed, unrelentingly destabilizing puzzle of a play about the anatomy of truth and the provocative power of illusion…The story that the sympathetic Lin Bo tells is not what it appears to be. Neither is much else in this ever-shifting play, directed with exquisite precision by Evans, and slyly designed every step of the way…The one thing spectators can be sure of is that they are inside a production that is also a kind of art installation, and that it is messing with them." Full Review

"Messes with your head in the most exquisite of ways...The show is in places very funny, but it also has some thought-provoking things to say about truth and lies and perception...By the end of the fourth scene, which swerves into the unexpected, the audience is unsure of everything, including whether to applaud. All this might sound frustrating, but it’s actually fun to experience, helped along by the credible acting and fine work in a small space by the design team." Full Review

“Evans has created precisely the right ambience for capturing the play’s nuances by inspiring performances that seem off-the-cuff and honest enough to suck the audience into its world. Each member of the ensemble has a relaxed, everyday believability that makes their lies like truth (to quote Shakespeare). Heady as ‘Caught’ is, you’ll find that by the end of its 80 minutes you may not have understood every jot and tittle but that you’ve certainly been caught. And that’s the truth.” Full Review

"Each scene unfolds itself like a mysterious Chinese box, directed craftily and ingeniously by Lee Sunday Evans…The cast is outstanding, and especially memorable are Leslie Fray, who plays both Joyce and the curator, and Jennifer Lim…This play is definitely an adventurous departure from the traditional structure of most theatre, and especially with the inclusion of an art-installation into a theatrical piece, 'Caught' is worth checking out. " Full Review

"'Caught' is filled with so many unreliable narrators and shifting stories, it is hard to know what is what...The feeling is akin to waking up from a dream, only to find oneself in another dream. Yet thanks to committed performances from the cast, we keep re-suspending our disbelief...Even if you get lost along the way, Evans' sure-footed production will keep you from drowning in confusion...Chen gleefully pokes fun at the myriad fallacies that presently reign over American art and media." Full Review

"Chen, who as a playwright is the smoothest of con artists, has neatly constructed a series of scenes that fit into each other like Chinese boxes...The director, Lee Sunday Evans, stages this flimflammery with the surest of hands, aided by a cast who are skilled at playing straight even in preposterous circumstances...Altogether, 'Caught' is a funny, stimulating evening that urges us all to think twice before spouting the received ideas that make us feel comfortable with ourselves." Full Review

"A lively rumination on the truth claims of various intellectual pursuits…Chen finds both humor and pathos in the position of artists in an age of science and technology. ‘Caught,’ which is satiric without being didactic, gets at the folly of imposing scientific standards on discourse that isn't meant to be scientific…The Play Company has assembled a resourceful production that, though frugal, appeals to spectators' eyes and ears." Full Review

"Chen's dark meta-comedy, 'Caught,' is a smart, self-assured meditation on the politics of truth, in art and in life…Under Evans's direction, 'Caught''s cascading series of revelations unfolds crisply, set against shifting white backdrops that give the impression we're in an art gallery, and a theater, at once…There's a frame around every fact, Chen suggests. Theater, an art form in which no one's who they say they are, helps us see it." Full Review

"The physical production is beautifully realized…The execution couldn't be better: Evans and her team clearly found the 'Inception'-esque challenge of the text exciting. Performances are strong throughout…Where the piece can sometimes feel thin is in the text itself. Chen broaches ideas, but he's too quick; since each scene is barely 20 minutes long, it has only time to contribute to one really clever thought. Still, it turns out to be a useful thought." Full Review

"It's not a mystery but rather, a series of scenes in which each one changes the context of the previous scene — leading you to ask what is true and how you can be sure....Chen's play has no narrative. And to say too much would ruin the experience. Let's just say that Evans keeps all the reversals from being confusing. Instead, they're disorienting in the best possible way, leading you to question everything you thought you knew." Full Review