This Time is a skillfully constructed, beautifully acted play about one woman’s quest for liberation at a time and in a place where that struggle could not have been easy.  [Playwright] Sevan K. Greene shows a subtle touch that lets the audience fill in the details of Amal’s long, eventful life.  The director, Kareem Fahmy, makes the transitions seamless, and Delphi Harrington manages the difficult trick of showing remnants of the fiery Younger Amal incarnated by Rendah Heywood. 

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–Neil Genzlinger, New York Times  (Critics' Pick)          

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This Time is an impressive feat. The play’s sweep is staggering. The thematic material is rich.  We are constantly moving between various points in time, [but] scenes are staged so that the plot is easy to follow.  The set is a functional home interior that serves as various places in the past, as well as Janine’s home in the present.  Cheers to the Rising Circle Theater Collective for an engaging story, performed with skill and dedication by an ensemble of five.

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–Joy Notoma, Front Row Center           

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This Time follows two threads of time [which] interweave on a beautifully designed set that encompasses the first floor entryway and living and dining rooms of Janine’s house — which sometimes becomes Amal and Nick’s various homes — with upper, fabric portions serving as projection screens that allow for alterations in the backdrop as we change time and location.  The Cairo images are particularly stunning.

–Leah Richards, Culture Catch          

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This Time champions stories by/featuring artists of color while offering gorgeous design and staging.  ...While the entire cast shines with the material they are given, the design of This Time is the star in this production. Sarafina Bush’s costumes are gorgeous, artfully curated for each character, and able to effortlessly orient us in each shifting time period. Scott Bolman’s lighting design is also instrumental as the play shifts between 1990s Toronto to 1960s Cairo to 1970s Rhode Island, and successfully distinguishes the multiple worlds overlapping in the lush and sophisticated home designed by David Esler. Mark Van Hare’s sound design crafts the subtle details and tone of the world, with slow and sophisticated French music in Amal’s younger days contrasting with Toronto’s cold winds in her later years.

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–Rachel Abrams, Theatre Is Easy          

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Delphi Harrington gives a delicious diva performance that’s only more heartbreaking because we realize she is putting on a grand show only to avoid falling apart ... A performance that truly haunts.  Janine’s home — a beautiful set by David Esler — serves as the playground for characters in the present and the past.

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–Jose Solis, StageBuddy.com          

 

 

This Time is an extraordinary example of juggling multiple timelines with exacting deftness. The storylines weave in and through one another, much like a memory comes in and out of consciousness.  Greene’s storytelling is compelling and fresh.  The direction by Kareem Fahmy keeps the action moving smoothly  between decades.  Designer David Esler’s set of a house in Toronto circa 1990s transitions easily to an apartment in Cairo roughly 30 years earlier; employing five panels, scenic backgrounds transition from the skyline of Egypt to the coast of Rhode Island and winter in Toronto, gently helping to delineate location and time.

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–Ray Morgovan, OffOffOnline.com          

 

 

Without a doubt, This Time was visually stunning. The set by David Esler was smart.  Between the simplicity and the old-money furniture, Esler’s design worked wonders alongside Scott Bolman’s lighting.  Rather than adding walls to the set, Esler utilized fabric allowing the locational projections and the wallpaper to come to life.   Creating a beautiful stage picture was director Kareem Fahmy’s strongest feat.

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– Michael Block, Theatre in the Now           

 

 

This Time reveals itself a full-fledged tragedy, succeeding as an achingly human story.  ...The timelines loop through David Esler’s elegant home interior set.  This Time enjoys particularly unified production design, and when both versions of Amal coexist under Scott Bolman’s lush lights, the stage equation is striking.

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– Sarah Matusek, HowlRound.com           

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