Kutumba Theatre Project Reviews
Baby GirL - South Florida
Ehly the playwright also benefits mightily from the play being staged by Ehly the director. She obviously has a dead-on feel for pacing the play properly, for physical movement, for the quirky humor she intended and knows the value of ending scenes with an instantaneous blackout as punctuation.
Bill Hirschman, Florida Theatre On Stage
“Baby GirL is full of serious ideas and themes, not to mention inevitable flashes of pain when Ashley faces judgment and rejection. Yet for all its depth of feeling, Babu GirL is a joyous celebration of one woman's journey toward happiness. Baby GirL is sweet, funny, touching, unsettling, tender. It's an artistic offspring that would make any playwright proud. Ehly makes a persuasive case for looking beyond blood bonds to find family in those who love us. And in Baby GirL, she makes an impressive playwriting debut.”
Christine Dolen, Miami Herald
“It's something close to magic that Baby GirL not only works but excels with just eight cast members, a mostly bare-walled set, and static props limited to a bed, a sofa, a beat-up desk, and some movable pedestals. No matter-this is a transportive, original piece of stagecraft that rewards our imagination and always keeps us on our toes.”
John Thomason, New Times
“Baby GirL is blessed with offbeat humor, sly insight and a beating heart.”
Rod Stafford Hagwood. Sun Sentinel
“Ehly’s play Baby GirL is so successful in reaching in and grabbing so many emotions that in the span of under two hours you’ve empathized, sympathized, shed a tear or two, laughed more than a little, and discovered that somehow you, too, have become part of the family she’s created.”
Michelle Solomon, Miami Artzine
The Beebo Brinker Chronicles
"Director Ehly and a strong cast mine Beebo Brinker for not only its noir-style humor but for the sobering, resonant truths about the characters’ search for happiness in a judgmental world."
Christine Dolen, Miami Herald
"Under Kim Ehly’s direction, Kutumba Theatre Project’s The Beebo Brinker Chronicles sizzles with sex, excitement and film noir naughtiness. "
Mary Damiano, South Florida Gay News
Kudos to Kutumba Theatre Project for adding spice to what can sometimes be bland theatre in south Florida with their production of The Beebo Brinker Chronicles.
Kathryn Ryan, Edge Miami
"It’s worth noting that the entire cast, or just about the entire cast, is straight, and it’s a testament to Ehly’s direction that the many intimate scenes of same-sex kissing and bedroom romps never feel uncomfortable – they are full of life, love, passion, and most of all liberation from a status quo that would just as soon damn them to the shadows."
John Thomason, Boca Magazine
Julie Johnson
"Founder of Kutumba Theatre Project and director, Kim Ehly, once again shows deft direction in this piece. The blocking is seamless as is the use of fantastic 1980’s music, used to comment on the action at the end of each scene in this episodic work."
Kathryn Ryan, Edge Miami
"There aren’t many plays out there to pick from that have a lesbian theme (let me be more succinct – there aren’t very many good plays out there), especially those that feature characters which, regardless of their sexuality, are across-the-board relatable as they struggle with issues of acceptance and love. But Ehly’s insightful direction steers clear of making Julie Johnson a “gay play,” instead neatly keeping the focus on character and emotion. "
Michelle F. Solomon, Florida Theatre on Stage
Baby GirL - New York Fringe Festival
"As director of her own work, she gathers a good, energetic cast, beautifully led by the charming and dynamic Christa Meyers as Ashley. And as the author, Ehly has an engaging, often genuinely funny, coming of age story to tell, which is dotted by a number of nice touches that carry the ring of truth...There is some truly theatrical tension that arises when the mother is found and Ashley discovers unexpected things about the woman."
A. Buck, NYC, Theatre is Easy
“Presented with heightened first-person narrative, Meyers deftly navigates the, often rocky, terrain of this true story under the clear direction of playwright and producer Ehly… As director, Ehly does a great job of keeping the pace up and the story moving with the help of the excellent ensemble that she has gathered.”
NY Theatre Now, Leta Tremblay
Ehly the playwright also benefits mightily from the play being staged by Ehly the director. She obviously has a dead-on feel for pacing the play properly, for physical movement, for the quirky humor she intended and knows the value of ending scenes with an instantaneous blackout as punctuation.
Bill Hirschman, Florida Theatre On Stage
“Baby GirL is full of serious ideas and themes, not to mention inevitable flashes of pain when Ashley faces judgment and rejection. Yet for all its depth of feeling, Babu GirL is a joyous celebration of one woman's journey toward happiness. Baby GirL is sweet, funny, touching, unsettling, tender. It's an artistic offspring that would make any playwright proud. Ehly makes a persuasive case for looking beyond blood bonds to find family in those who love us. And in Baby GirL, she makes an impressive playwriting debut.”
Christine Dolen, Miami Herald
“It's something close to magic that Baby GirL not only works but excels with just eight cast members, a mostly bare-walled set, and static props limited to a bed, a sofa, a beat-up desk, and some movable pedestals. No matter-this is a transportive, original piece of stagecraft that rewards our imagination and always keeps us on our toes.”
John Thomason, New Times
“Baby GirL is blessed with offbeat humor, sly insight and a beating heart.”
Rod Stafford Hagwood. Sun Sentinel
“Ehly’s play Baby GirL is so successful in reaching in and grabbing so many emotions that in the span of under two hours you’ve empathized, sympathized, shed a tear or two, laughed more than a little, and discovered that somehow you, too, have become part of the family she’s created.”
Michelle Solomon, Miami Artzine
The Beebo Brinker Chronicles
"Director Ehly and a strong cast mine Beebo Brinker for not only its noir-style humor but for the sobering, resonant truths about the characters’ search for happiness in a judgmental world."
Christine Dolen, Miami Herald
"Under Kim Ehly’s direction, Kutumba Theatre Project’s The Beebo Brinker Chronicles sizzles with sex, excitement and film noir naughtiness. "
Mary Damiano, South Florida Gay News
Kudos to Kutumba Theatre Project for adding spice to what can sometimes be bland theatre in south Florida with their production of The Beebo Brinker Chronicles.
Kathryn Ryan, Edge Miami
"It’s worth noting that the entire cast, or just about the entire cast, is straight, and it’s a testament to Ehly’s direction that the many intimate scenes of same-sex kissing and bedroom romps never feel uncomfortable – they are full of life, love, passion, and most of all liberation from a status quo that would just as soon damn them to the shadows."
John Thomason, Boca Magazine
Julie Johnson
"Founder of Kutumba Theatre Project and director, Kim Ehly, once again shows deft direction in this piece. The blocking is seamless as is the use of fantastic 1980’s music, used to comment on the action at the end of each scene in this episodic work."
Kathryn Ryan, Edge Miami
"There aren’t many plays out there to pick from that have a lesbian theme (let me be more succinct – there aren’t very many good plays out there), especially those that feature characters which, regardless of their sexuality, are across-the-board relatable as they struggle with issues of acceptance and love. But Ehly’s insightful direction steers clear of making Julie Johnson a “gay play,” instead neatly keeping the focus on character and emotion. "
Michelle F. Solomon, Florida Theatre on Stage
Baby GirL - New York Fringe Festival
"As director of her own work, she gathers a good, energetic cast, beautifully led by the charming and dynamic Christa Meyers as Ashley. And as the author, Ehly has an engaging, often genuinely funny, coming of age story to tell, which is dotted by a number of nice touches that carry the ring of truth...There is some truly theatrical tension that arises when the mother is found and Ashley discovers unexpected things about the woman."
A. Buck, NYC, Theatre is Easy
“Presented with heightened first-person narrative, Meyers deftly navigates the, often rocky, terrain of this true story under the clear direction of playwright and producer Ehly… As director, Ehly does a great job of keeping the pace up and the story moving with the help of the excellent ensemble that she has gathered.”
NY Theatre Now, Leta Tremblay
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