Taste

by Benjamin Brand

directed by Aaron Sawyer

Red Theatre Chicago

2016


BEST ACTOR IN A PRINCIPAL ROLE – Play NOMINEE 2017 Non-Equity Joseph Jefferson Awards


Kevin V. Smith (so excellent in Mary-Arrchie’s ‘Our Bad Magnet’) is simply mesmerizing as Vic. His perspiration-soaked performance is filled with realistic desperation, honest nervousness and fear, as well as a penetrating loneliness that evolves into a dauntless dedication to the unspeakable. We fear for him at every step but, more than that, we empathize with his profound sorrow. Both of these actors offer peerless, award-winning performances that must be seen to be appreciated. They won’t ever be forgotten.
— Chicago Theatre Review
[Vic]’s sense of aching loneliness come[s] through, thanks to a sad inventory of the few things he enjoyed in life and Smith’s own febrile physicality — he seems about to fall out of his translucent skin at any moment.
— Chicago Tribune
[The] cast, Gage Wallace and Kevin V. Smith, bring dancerlike precision to nearly every moment.
— Chicago Reader
[Smith’s] performance is riveting as the blood games begin. Playwright Brand requires him to maintain a nearly punishing level of intensity as a man in physical distress and psychological turmoil and Smith is shockingly convincing.
— Windy City Times
Smith is a perfect foil: nervous and sad, a man on the verge of an unspeakable act.
— Chicago Theater Beat

Photos Matthew Freer