Heartless Critics’ Reviews
Sally lives with her mysterious family in a cavernous home overlooking Los Angeles. When a visitor arrives, Sally's dark secrets, and the secrets of those around her, threaten to come into the light.
Sally lives with her mysterious family in a cavernous home overlooking Los Angeles. When a visitor arrives, Sally's dark secrets, and the secrets of those around her, threaten to come into the light.
What Is the Story of Heartless?
Set in an eerie home that overlooks Los Angeles, Heartless is the story of Roscoe, a married professor who is staying with his friend (and presumably, lover) Sally and her family. As Sally and Roscoe try to film a documentary about Roscoe’s life, they are constantly interrupted by members of the strange household. There’s Sally’s sister Lucy, an overburdened caretaker who becomes increasingly tired of her responsibilities, Sally’s mother Mable, whose arms and legs are purportedly paralyzed, and Elizabeth, Mable’s dutiful nurse who doesn’t speak—or does she? As the inner turmoil of each family member reaches a fever pitch, Roscoe must decide whether to try to make sense of the strange secrets he has learned or leave the mysterious house forever.
"Signature Theatre’s world premiere is capably acted and nicely designed under Daniel Aukin’s direction."
New Jersey Newsroom
Michael Sommers
"…For Shepard aficionados, “Heartless” offers a fascinating focus on a figure that this restlessly imaginative author—in contrast to other great American playwrights, like Tennessee Williams and Eugene O’Neill— usually doesn’t pay much attention to: good old long-suffering, child-shaping, hearth-keeping Mom."
The New York Times
Ben Brantley
"There's something dark and alluring about the tapestry Shepard weaves."
Entertainment Weekly
Keith Staskiewicz