"The New Muses production features a rock solid cast beginning with Carrie Schnelker’s riveting performance as Mrs. Alving. Schnelker commands the stage with a stately presence. She is at times imperious and at times vulnerable... Manders is played by John Kelleher, a dynamic actor who breaths life into the role of a man of the cloth who, while earnest, is too beholden to rules of propriety, is a little too willing to take others at their word, and is somewhat overly concerned about his public reputation… (Niclas Olson) plays Oswald, an artist and the son of the Alvings. Oswald has returned from the sunny parts of Europe to wet and dreary Norway where he is in the midst of a malaise. Mrs. Alving has kept Oswald away from the family in order to protect him from his father’s influence. Tragically, however, Oswald proves to be his father’s son… Two other complex characters round out the cast. Monica Lorin plays the vivacious, bright and dutiful maidservant, Regina. Engstrand, the crippled (both physically and spiritually) carpenter is played by Eric Cuestas-Thompson… “Ghosts” is haunted by an air of doom. At one point in the play Mrs. Alving laments that dead ideas and useless beliefs are passed from one generation to the next long after they have outlived their usefulness.” Dave R. Davison (Tacoma Weekly)
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"(A Doll’s House) is a smart play that is both intriguing and provocative... the most believable and engaging acting came from the two lead female characters, Katelyn Hoffman as Nora and Kathryn Grace Philbrook as Mrs. Linde. In Hoffman's subtly controlled expressions of anger and joy, I sensed the withheld fury of a woman held prisoner by circumstances. The range of expressions by Philbrook and by Olson as Krogstad, the most complex character in the play, were both noteworthy… I loved the beautifully layered blue-lighted backdrop (design by Olson), and I loved the equally beautiful white dress that Nora wore… Both A Doll's House and Ghosts are plays that are historically important and that intelligently and dramatically depict the evolution of relationships between the sexes. These are plays that should be seen." - Alec Clayton (The Weekly Volcano)
"The set is wonderfully spare. The story unfolds in three acts that flow along at an easy clip… The cast and crew do a good job of presenting the Ibsen masterpiece in a way that seems simple and straightforward. Yet the play’s multiple layers will continue to reveal themselves to the mind long after the curtain has fallen (metaphorically in this case)… Katelyn Hoffman anchors the show in her role as Nora, the titular “doll” of the story. She is sweet and docile with her moralizing and condescending husband Torvald. By the end of the play, however, she has become clear minded; steadfastly defiant of the man whom she now realizes is a stranger to her… Kathryn Grace Philbrook, as Mrs. Linde, and Niclas Olson as Krogstad are great as a pair of worldly characters who are able to find and redeem one another while the “perfect” marriage of Nora and Torvald is falling to pieces." - Dave R. Davison (Tacoma Weekly)
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