Press Quotes
“Wonderful โฆ HUNGRY, a work in which nothing much happens beyond some contemplative pre-dinner chatter, may well be the most resonantly topical and emotionally engaging play of this election year.” โBen Brantley, New York Times
“[HUNGRY’s] thousand acts of extreme daily realism, from chopping vegetables to the constant dance of interpersonal negotiation, amount to a kind of human politics, dramatizing, as many more ‘dramatic’ plays cannot, the historic conflict and consolations of living in our country right now.” โJesse Green, New York Magazine
“[Nelson] may just be quietly building a masterwork.” โLinda Winer, Newsday
“if you want to understand the forces driving the current presidential election, pay close attention to this play.” โThe Daily Beast
“Richard Nelsonโs quietly incandescent play HUNGRY, a play that feels as fresh as if it was written this morning โฆ” โJeremy Gerard, Deadline/Hollywood
“โฆ delivers the sort of intimacy rarely encountered on the stage.” โFrank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
“โฆ with a wordsmith’s scalpel, [Nelson] performs delicate surgery on the American psyche to probe what ails it. In exquisite character portrayals by Nelson’s six actors, we learn that the political season coincides with the ageless experience of loss โ the death of Thomas, Hannah’s subtle casualisation from caterer to maid, Karin’s envy of a decent, dogged family, and the perennial mysteries of old age into which Patricia is disappearing. The crafted naturalism of each family member arriving to clutter the kitchen with books and ingredients, stir the (actually) cooking pot and set the table eases the audience into a realm of domestic intimacy. Against all theatrical rules, thereโs almost no dramatic action, but as the gentle conversations unfold around the table, you feel the urge to lean in and listen intently. And you are rewarded.” โVictoria Laurie, The Australian
“Unique chance to be a fly on the Gabriels’ kitchen wall is not to be missed โฆ What is perhaps surprising about these plays at first sight is how little the family discuss politics as such. For the Gabriels, it’s the little rituals of family life that matter, exemplified by how they set the kitchen at the start of each play. It is the issues that matter to ordinary people that Nelson wants to explore. How do we pay for health care? With rich ‘out-of-towners’ buying up our properties, why can’t we afford to live in our own communities any more? When did the banks stop paying interest to savers? The communal activity of cooking a meal is the enabler, a special ‘family’ time at which such matters can naturally come to the fore at an unforced pace. It’s all real โ you can smell the onions frying โ and put across with a particularly magical naturalism inhabiting every line, gesture and chopped pimento โฆ Much of the writing is heart-warmingly gentle and brilliantly observed. There’s plenty of humour โฆ The Gabriels will stay with you long after you leave the theatre.” โClive Paget, Limelight Magazine (Australia)