Reviews

“A provocative brace of shows…I also thought it looked absolutely arresting.”
Jeffrey Sweet, Playwright

“…a cold harsh reality sets in after the intermission as The Diamond Eater takes over the stage.  The bleak spectre of death hovers over the protagonists.  Where the set of Sawbones features picturesque rows of wheat set against the backdrop of an endless blue horizon, The Diamond Eater set is stark, clinical, cold, foreboding.”
“…In human terms, this pairing gives us two knockouts in one evening.  Ms. Robbins shows us how intelligent historical writing can evoke emotional responses while not romanticizing the history, from the spot-on costumes to the sets and music…”
Milo Jordan, BERKSHIRE ON STAGE & SCREEN

“…the special composed saw music…added an ironic and haunting beauty to the piece.  Who knew that such sweet sounds could come from such a terrifying device?”
Kimille Howard, ARTS IN COLOR

“Remarkable & moving.”
Charles Strouse, Composer

“Pretty damn good.”
John Simon, Critic

“Everything about The Diamond Eater is a spectacular showcase of storytelling, both in the writing and the execution of it.  The poignancy of each individual situation is mixed fluidly with the harsh reality of an incredibly dark period in time…The performances all feel natural and profound.” 
“Fleshing out the tale with stellar performances are Roselle, Kuttner, Naumovski, Wynn Harmon and the supporting actors.  Complementing the poignant and well-crafted play by Robbins and her cast is the crew…Each detail of the set, lighting, and musical score is designed to underscore but not overpower the stories being told.”
Milo Jordan, NY Correspondent, BERKSHIRE ON STAGE & SCREEN

“…Ms. Robbins’ dialogue is witty, fast-paced and completely intriguing.  In a year of mostly badly written plays, Sawbones & The Diamond Eater stand out.” 
“Tazewell Thompson’s direction is smart and he brings out the best in this terrific ensemble of talented actors.”
Suzanna Bowling, TIMES SQUARE CHRONICLES

on the musical score:
“Recently I saw two one-act plays by Carrie Robbins: Sawbones and The Diamond Eater. Both plays feature original musical undercscoring by Scott Munson. What is immediately striking about Mr. Munson’s music is his ability, with great specificity and clarity, to wed each musical sequence perfectly to the drama. This enhances the audience’s understanding of character and plot elements. His work is eclectic in nature, flexible to the demands generated by each scene. One of many memorable moments is in the underscoring of the final speech in The Diamond Eater. We hear an ironic slide on the clarinet, at once giving us information about the character (in this case a concentration camp survivor). In this music Mr. Munson conveys a clear suggestion of time, place, and cultural background, without being heavy-handed.”
James Bassi – composer

“I thought the musical score was right on perfect and always a joy hearing Natalia ‘Saw Lady’ Paruz on musical saw”
Sonny Kompanek – Orchestrator (De-Lovely, South Pacific, It Could Happen to You, Brighton Beach Memoirs)

“…Among the many things I inherited from my father are my great loves for classic films and stirring soundtracks.  Westerns, in particular, figured so prominently that a good portion of my childhood memories are literally scored by Morricone and Montenegro, thanks to dad’s amazing collection of LPs.  Thus I can offer you no higher praise than to say, I wish my dad could have seen the “Sawbones” show with me, today, just for the music alone…”
(private Email to Composer)

on “Sawbones”:
“Even though it is about a rough subject, ‘Sawbones’ is a charming and beautiful play about the human condition…There is a tremendous stirring of the American spirit in the doctor, and the play…It is also an historical gem.”
“They are absorbing tales of medicine in wartime, a story that is not addressed very often in entertainment”
“The gorgeous, simple countryside sets, and buckboards and kitchen tables by designer Brandon McNeel give the entire play the sweeping feel of a movie.”
“The play, based on a true story, is well directed by Tazewell Thompson.  He gets stellar performances by Gregory Marlowe as the black solder, Wall, Wynn Harmon as Dr. Cuttaridge, Alexander Salamat as Sgt. McElwain and Erika Rolfsrud as Cuttaridge’s boarding house landlord.”
Bruce Chadwick, HISTORY NEWS NETWORK

on “The Diamond Eater”:
“The play is provocative.  The Jews in their striped uniforms are chilling and within minutes they lose most of their hope of survival…”
“The history in this play, too, is superb…”
“Brandon McNeel’s sets here, too are superb, especially the scene in which he creates a snowstorm and uses a wall of plastic to make the snow shimmer as the doctor walks through it…”  (projections by Robert Figueira)
“You sit in the audience and hope that the two doctors succeed in their little scheme, but whether they do or not still leaves you shuddering.”
“Director Thompson gets good work from Timothy Roselle as Dr. Kuttermann, Wynn Harmon as Dr. Polsky, Eric Kuttner as the diamond eater and Tony Naumovski as the Nazi commander.”
Bruce Chadwick, HISTORY NEWS NETWORK

“It’s a stunning evening of theatre.  Congratulations!”
Steven Hauck, Actor

On The Actress:
“A tiny gem of a play…”
“A delightful & humorous look at what costume designers have to deal with in creating the look of the show.”
TIMES SQ. CHRONICLES, Suzanna Bowling Online

On Obsessions of an Art Student:
(2016 N.Y. New Works Theater Festival)
 
“Obsessions of an Art Student” is a brilliant show –
writing, directing, acting, design. I adored it!”
Dr. Susan Horowitz on NYNW Theatre Festival