tiger tiger (on the nature of violence)

"An intense, disturbing, and funny ensemble work…With the power to tear us out of our 'ordinary' well-mannered reality, 'tiger tiger' is an ensemble exploration of public violence. An emotional feast for your eyes, ears, and hearts...'tiger tiger' delivers exactly what you crave in an avant-garde play: havoc, humor, and a yearning immediacy...Using every tool at her disposal with unfaltering self-awareness, Almasy truly knows what she’s doing, and she’s doing it well." Full Review

"Thanks to the high energy the ensemble brought to the stage, often sprinting back and forth between scenes, the atmosphere quickly came to resemble a sort of manic rec room. This energy was vital to the storytelling, and the performance vividly depicted the panic and confusion that spill out of a random act of violence. 'Tiger tiger' took risks in its storytelling, some of which paid off more than others. I appreciated the chaos and the mess of the set design." Full Review

"There are some interesting metaphors and provocative ambiguities...There’s also quite a bit of clutter and noise, which mostly serves to obscure the author’s intentions...The sad part of all this randomness is that when Almasy stays on-topic, she does achieve potent theatrical effects…These moments show talent and imagination, and it’s a shame that Almasy couldn’t see her way clear to pruning away the play’s more self-indulgent schtick." Full Review

"Jessica Almasy’s 'tiger tiger' burns loudly and hotly, though not especially brightly. At first it seems to be about the need to assign meaning to catastrophe. Then it doesn’t seem to be about much of anything at all...There was a brief attempt to link the tiger attack to the shooting of unarmed black men, but this seemed tentative and a little embarrassing. Much was chaotic without being inspired, and silly without being especially fun — all roar and no bite." Full Review