DUAL CITIZENS: 100% Sweet – UPDATED

BITTERSWEET
The story of Broken Nails is less stunning than Ms. Skubik’s performance. It is the usual story of an aging star using power and manipulation to keep her flame alive while alternately abusing and relying on her faithful help, who has anger and resentment of her own. There is a twist in the end that only almost makes sense and doesn’t help to explain the story. I left feeling awe at the performance, but had a “what’s the point” feeling about the show.
Geoff Hoff – LA Theatre Review

SWEET
It flies, however, on the intricacy of the relationship between the two women, both quite animated, despite one being inanimate. That single idea, of what’s alive and what isn’t, of what an imitation of life, and what isn’t, caught in the frame of an aging diva, is a source of infinite fascination. And Dietrich’s various reactions to Skubik’s proddings hold an almost child-like appeal. In one scene, we hear extended applause, and Dietrich asks, “How long does a moment last?” It’s question anyone in the theater should relate to, and probably anyone beyond the theater, too.
Steven Leigh Morris – LA Weekly

SWEET
Look What I Don’t Understand is a retelling by physical theatre conventions, the escape of the actor’s (Anthony Nikolchev’s) grandparents from Bulgaria. Nikolchev acts all the parts changing between them at a rapid pace. I imagine it is the actor’s way of trying to understand what happened to his grandparents so he can understand his own life in the present. One last note, Ms. Skubik and Mr. Nikolchev live together. Can you imagine their conversations at the breakfast table? Dual Citizens plays at the Odyssey Theatre until March 28th. Catch it if you can.
Robert Machray – Stagehappenings

BITTERSWEET
What works in a solo performance and what doesn’t? Check out these two. One is unique, memorable, abstract enough to provoke thought, and concrete enough to allow us to relate. The other isn’t.
Dany Margolies – Backstage

SWEET
Both pieces defy easy categorization. The unadventurous need not apply. Avant-garde devotees and socially conscious viewers, however, should find much in “Dual Citizens” to reward their undivided attention.
David C. Nichols – LA Times