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The Amish Project at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
“Kathryn Metzger and director Sarah Elizabeth Wansley deserve immense praise for the deft creation and differentiation of these diverse characters. Especially amazing are the seamless transitions from character-to-character, which at times takes place at lightning speed.” -Triangle Arts and Entertainment
“This one-act show requires a solid solo performance by an actor who can convincingly navigate among seven very different characters. During the recent production at PlayMakers Repertory Company, Kathryn Metzger delivered just that in an exceptionally captivating way. Under the precise direction of Sarah Elizabeth Wansley, Metzger swiftly and effectively transitioned from the playful innocence of the young Amish girls to the convoluted visceral feelings of others in the community impacted directly and indirectly by the tragedy.” - RDU On Stage
A Midsummer NIght’s Dream at Chautauqua Theater Company
“Puck’s famous epilogue at the end of Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream apologizing if the play offended the audience is, of course, tongue-in-cheek. But after a sometimes goofy, often elegant but all-together pleasing multidiscipline production of Mendelssohn’s celebrated setting in the Amphitheater Tuesday night, it almost itself offended. After all, the audience witnessed — sometimes quite close-up — a frenetic and funny take on the classic by student performers that needed no apology” Chautauqua Daily (Guest Review)
“There’s something about theater that embodies humans,” Wansley said. “It brings people together. It asks us, even as complete strangers, to come together and put ourselves inside the shoes of the characters. It’s a very empathetic experience.” Chautauqua Daily (FEATURE)
Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. at Dobama Theatre
“Disturbing! Visual! Loud! This play fully captures all of the unleashed pent-up fury of being a woman in the 21st century. Should men attend? Hell yes! Should couples attend? Hell yes! Bring the kids? Hell no! Just be warned that you are in for a jarring experience much akin to your first exposure to Caryl Churchill's Cloud 9 and Eve Ensler's The Vagina Monologues. It is the type of theater that can bring empires down. “ - Talking Broadway
“Everything within Revolt suggests that leaving this performance without a sense of shock — without being prodded to reevaluate or further reflect upon your views of feminism — would be a failure to have properly connected with the message. That is to the great credit of director Sarah Elizabeth Wansley and the entire ensemble, which have done this particular play justice...Revolt greets you with the message of not being well-behaved. And once the lights go down, it doesn't take long to realize that it's as good as its word. Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again heightens and validates the inner exhibitionist in all of us, finding meaning in how the viewer interprets the performance as much as in what is actually on the stage, and that — to put it simply — is true art. ” Cleveland Scene
Radio Interview about Dobama’s 2018-2019 season with Artistic Director Nathan Motta and playwright Dominique Morisseau. Idea Center (FEATURE)
The Amish Project at Chautauqua Theater Company
Chautauqua Theater Company’s Sarah Elizabeth Wansley eyes authenticity for ‘The Amish Project’ with local dressmaker, design fellows Chautauqua Daily (FEATURE)
“I love the play; I think it’s brilliant,” Stahl said. “I think it’s a very important (play) which I would love to have discussion on, on how quickly we should forgive.” Chautauqua Daily (FEATURE)
Cleveland Play House Fellowship
Press Release of CPH Artistic Directing Fellowship for Women
Godspell at Fordham University
“Collins Auditorium resounded joyfully this weekend with songs of love from the Mimes and Mummers’ playful yet profound production of “Godspell.” In a show which can be easily modernized and modified with each production, the Mimes were bold in their stark incorporation of current social and political issues throughout the production.” The Fordham Ram
The Burial at Thebes at UC San Diego
"UCSD Theatre & Dance's well-done Burial at Thebes pits daughter against father against media...In an inspired directorial touch a woman, Tesiana Elie, plays Tiresias, the blind prophet of Thebes — and beautifully. Legend had it Tiresias was transformed into a woman for seven years. Tiresias was downstage, on Lily Bartenstein’s blasted-out set, for much of the time. And, like a Greek chorus of one, Tommy Crawford strolled through the rubble, strumming a guitar and singing tough commentaries on the events — music, by the way, that deserves a life after this well-done show" - The San Diego Reader
"Irish Playwright + UCSD Director = Greek tragedy with new resonance" - La Jolla Light (FEATURE)
"You still have time to catch The Burial at Thebes at UCSD’s Mandell Weiss Forum through November 22 only. An adaptation of Antigone written by the late, great Irish poet Seamus Haney, it has a huge company of MFA actors and theater majors, and, as designed by Lily Bartenstein, it is a spectacle, replete with a practical river...It’s a clever production directed by Sarah Wansley" - Charlene and Brenda in the Blogosphere
Cornerstone at La Jolla Playhouse
“The “realism” is fantastic in itself. We see what few outsiders do (unauthorized folks aren’t allowed inside the chain link fences). Great surges of energy engulf you – in ways no stage set could ever duplicate… Cornerstone combines often funny dialogue and an eye for the absurd with a message that blends in with the site and the piece.” - San Diego Reader
Ex Machina at NY International Fringe Festival
“While Jacobi and director Sarah Wansley do an excellent job at touching upon such important themes (echoes of Waiting for Lefty), they keep the spirit of the piece fun and entertaining… such truths have never quite been displayed in such a bizarre and enjoyable way.” - Theater is Easy
Woyzeck at Access Theater
“Overall, Aporia Theater’s production is not to be missed. The cast, crew, designers, and director create a world that supports the disjointed, rural Woyzeck world and brings to life an extraordinary play in a profound and moving way.” -Nytheater.com
“Sarah Elizabeth Wansley served as director and translator, and because of the fragmentary draft of the manuscripts, necessarily as editor. She makes the bold decision of having the play begin with the titular hero (Grant Harrison as Woyzeck) murdering his wife Marie (Eloïse Eonnet) and the play bookends with déjà vu of the poor man thrusting a knife into Marie as she repeatedly buckles. The murder is highly choreographed. The choice to stylize is marked in this adaptation and effectively conveys the sense of alienation Woyzeck experiences, and channels our disillusionment with modern life— all with a spare but versatile set (a credit to Liz Blessing). Ms. Wansley telegraphs the drudgery of existence much the way Lang did; it is not difficult to believe that she will pursue a similarly illustrious career as a director of theatre.” – Le Journal de Charles Swann
Follow Me Down at The Flea Theater
"Sarah Elizabeth Wansley’s direction is also to be commended specifically for getting such heart wrenching performances out of this stellar cast." Read the full review. - BroadwayWorld Special Feature: 99 and Under the Radar, broadwayworld.com
"This is a wise and darkly funny play…. With assured direction and a cast embodying their characters to the hilt, Follow Me Down is a finely edited, excellent production that speaks to us as clearly as it speaks to its own particular moment in time." - nytheatre.com
"… a diamond of the 50-seat house set…. Definitely worth the money if you like witty dialogue, British humor, or strapping young boys struggling to become men…. Graham Halstead is irresistible!" - Theatre is Easy, www.theasy.com
"Expertly acted! Follow Me Down gives a theatergoer the sense of being in the same room with the people Barrett has created – the play quickly becomes an intense emotional experience." - Connecticut Post, ctnews.com