Dael Orlandersmith

“[A] harrowing new solo show . . . Forever derives much of its power from the anger Orlandersmith carries and unflinchingly expresses . . . Orlandersmith refuses to pander to us, denying us our pat Hollywood closure . . . ” —Los Angeles Times

“ . . . a relentlessly intense and deeply disturbing charting of the broad swath cut when adults abuse young men, whether they do so physically, sexually or through sheer, selfish neglect . . . these are very difficult topics to bring up in the theater, as in life, and there is only one way to do so, which is directly and honestly, letting the aesthetic, political, critical and box-office chips fall where they may. That is what Orlandersmith is doing, and it is gutsy, admirable and the only way to make such a piece work.” —Chicago Tribune [on Black n Blue Boys/Broken Men]

“ . . . one cup of Orlandersmith is worth a gallon of what most other monologists serve up. Stoop Stories offers this aromatic storyteller as a guide to her home town and, more specifically, to Harlem . . . [a] compelling spinner of city stories, with whom you'd always be happy to spread out on the stone steps, and listen some more.” —The Washington Post [on Stoop Stories]

“[A] hard and piercing drama about intraracial prejudice . . . [Orlandersmith] has a poet's gift for building imagery by stealthy repetition. Her use of sensory detail—in describing the swing of a walk, the lilt of a laugh, the shimmer of sweat on flesh—is especially incisive.” —The New York Times [on Yellowman]