FORGIVENESS: 100% Sweet – UPDATED

Photo by Kurt Boetcher.

SWEET
The human heart’s capacity to get past the atrocious sins of others in order to grant forgiveness is bracingly dramatized in stage and TV scribe David Schulner’s world premiere, packing more character tension into a mere 75 minutes than many another work twice its length. Helmer Matt Shakman unerringly steers a family ensemble — the core of four and one outsider — into stinging emotional reality, another solid hit for the ever-gutsy Black Dahlia company.
Bob Verini – Variety

SWEET
Playwright David Sculner’s aptly titled play meaningfully examines the various ties that bind us to our loved ones, as well as the snags and hurdles to be mended and overcome if these bonds are to remain secure. Directed by Matt Shakman, the production’s weakest element appears at the beginning in the interchange between Jill and Ben, which reverberates with little more persuasiveness than a polished staged reading; also, sans light or sound effects, it’s difficult for the performers to sustain the illusion of driving. Once the couple arrives at their destination, however, the drama becomes more compelling, as the dynamics of Sam and Pat’s marriage come into play, and the presence of Jill’s adolescent stepsister (Kendall Toole) ups the ante for everyone.
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly

SWEET
I still enjoyed myself thanks to the superb direction of Matt Shakman and the terrific acting by his cast. Peter Smith fell into the trap of his character and ends up being disliked for his refusal to deal. The nature of the forgiveness within the family is not at all clear but they all give expressive compelling performances.
Robert Machray – Stagehappenings

SWEET
From the first moment we see Emily Bergl as Jill, in the passenger seat on that long drive, we are given a full, honest look at the character. Bergl seems translucent: We know Jill’s thoughts, and we sense her emotions. Or is it because Schulner made her the only character who has fully processed her forgiveness? Or is it Matt Shakman’s savvy direction, ensuring we never quite know what the surrounding characters are thinking and feeling? Schulner leaves enough space in his script for the director and actors to fill, but questions remain, and Shakman lets us wallow in our puzzlement.
Dany Margolies – Backstage

SWEET
Beyond courageously depicting abuse in all its horrifying banality, “Forgiveness” basically offers actors a series of scenes in which awkward social exchanges hint at far more challenging moral questions. The ensemble, guided by Shakman into a series of close-up moments on the Black Dahlia’s minuscule stage, thoroughly inhabits the contradictory reality of the characters — crushed on the inside, persevering on the out. Kurt Boetcher’s starkly minimalist set conceals a girl’s back bedroom, which occasionally comes into view. The effect points to childhood scars that will never vanish — a burden that Bergl’s Jill hauntingly conveys in her dignified determination to move forward without relinquishing the past.
Charles McNulty – LA Times

SWEET
Matt Shakman’s staging is packed with telling nuances. It’s the kind of script that might be easily adapted into an indie film. I got a charge out of watching it up-close and personal in the tiny Dahlia space on the same night that nearly everyone else was watching the Oscar ceremony.
Don Shirley – LA Stage Watch