Reviews for Before It Hits Home

The average rating for Before It Hits Home based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-02-12 00:00:00 Doug Horner This play appears to be one that benefits greatly from being seen and not read, especially in the first act where the scenes overlap each other. Reading the scene where Wendal is literally torn between Douglass and Simone was difficult to read because it was hard to tell when he was talking to which partner. I found the ending to be really abrupt, and very, very dreary (but I mean, it is a play about AIDS so). I often found Wendal hard to sympathize with, especially in Act 1. Other than cheating on Simone with Douglass without her knowing, we also learn by the end that Wendal had unprotected sex with her after he found out he had AIDS (probably infecting her and their unborn child with the disease... and knowingly infecting other people with HIV/AIDS is a crime). He also lets his parents raise his son while he pursues his own career but is annoyed at his father for having Dwayne refer to him as Daddy (even though Wendal isn't the one doing the parenting). In Act 2, Wendal is more sympathetic only because he's clearly deteriorating at a fast pace and ends up abandoned by everyone except his father. I also struggled with differentiating Reba and Maybelle and actually had to go back and check the character breakdown more than once to see who was Wendal's mother. I think their relationship, and what Wendal tries to allude about his own bisexuality and his mother's relationship with Maybelle, could have been given more time and attention. Overall, this play had some really poignant moments, but ultimately falters because Wendal isn't always easy to root for, especially when he's stepping out on both of his partners - blaming one for infecting him, and then infecting the other - and not attending to his parental responsibilities. I also find it interesting that this play premiered at almost the same time as Part 1 of Angels in America (I guess there was no shortage of AIDS plays on Broadway in the early 90s, since RENT began workshopping in 1993 too), but I can also see why Angels in America became an enduring piece of literature about the era and this one did not.

Review # 2 was written on 2008-10-03 00:00:00 Ryan Svenson Great play. Intense look at the impact of the dl on a family... amazing portrayal of the redemption of a father.