Jessie Bond – Splash Magazines

The Writer Review – A Resonant Scream

August 21, 2023 Jessie Bond 0

Power and privilege are messy things. Systemic power structures sink their claws into everything we do, from buying groceries to making art. In The Writer, written by Ella Hickson and directed by Georgette Verdin, now […]

Gender Play, or What You Will Review – A Transformative Performance

May 14, 2023 Jessie Bond 0

Shakespeare’s legacy has never been the most heterosexual. This largely went over my head in my early studies of the Bard’s work, but by the time I made it to an undergraduate theatre major, it […]

Think Fast, Jordan Chase! Review – A Delight for All Ages

March 23, 2023 Jessie Bond 0

As a children’s librarian, I have firsthand experience with the ongoing popularity of the Choose Your Own Adventure books. Children gobble up these stories like candy, thrilled with their ability to determine the course of […]

Layalina Review – An Underwhelming Experience

March 19, 2023 Jessie Bond 2

Goodman Theatre presents the world premiere of Layalina by Martin Yousif Zebari, directed by Sivan Battat. This play is broad in scope, tackling a family’s experiences in Iraq in the early 2000s and in the […]

Toni holds a baseball up in the air triumphantly

Toni Stone Review – A Home Run

February 16, 2023 Jessie Bond 0

Even as a non-sports fan, I have a soft spot for baseball stories. I adored Amazon Prime’s recent reboot of A League of Their Own, and I will admit that the show was on my […]

A Christmas Carol Review – An Enduring Classic

December 4, 2022 Jessie Bond 0

I’ve never been a big proponent of the classics. As a children’s librarian, rarely do I find myself recommending hundred-plus-year-old titles when so many new and exciting books have been published in the last decade. […]

Three cast members pose in front of mismatched tables

The Twenty-Sided Tavern Review – A Magical Experience

November 5, 2022 Jessie Bond 0

The quality of a Dungeons and Dragons game is often determined by the quality of the DM, or Dungeon Master. The DM guides the game, playing all the non-player characters, narrating the events of the […]

Wicked Review – Good News, She’s Back

September 30, 2022 Jessie Bond 0

I couldn’t tell you what gifts I received for most of my childhood birthdays, but my thirteenth birthday gift is forever burned into my memory. That’s because I received tickets to see Wicked when it […]

Good Night, Oscar Review – An Uninspired Script

March 22, 2022 Jessie Bond 5

Two questions I’ve carried with me from my days as an undergraduate theatre major to my current career as a theatre critic are “why now?” and “why this play?” They encourage me to think about […]

Wife of a Salesman Review – Cutting Feminist Commentary

March 15, 2022 Jessie Bond 0

Strangely enough, despite my undergraduate degree in theatre, I never had to read Death of a Salesman for school and instead sought it out on my own as a “classic” I needed to read to […]