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📝 Inviting Me to Review You

An overview of my reviewing practice, and what you can expect from me if you invite me to see your show.

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If you want to skip straight to inviting me, scroll down to the contact form or email me at ryan@ryanhamilton.work

Dear Artist,

You make theatre, and I talk about it. I would love to sit in the dark and see the art you’ve made, and more than likely, I would also love to talk about what I thought of your art on the internet.

But before you invite me, and before I accept your invitation, there’s a couple things I think I should tell you.

I’ve never really called what I write reviews or criticism. I am just one diva with one website putting whatever thoughts I have at this moment of time onto the internet. What I think is no more or less important than what you do, nor is it a final judgement on your work, and especially not on you as an artist.

A term that was bandied about at a Thinking Ground workshop and that really clicked with me was critical response. I think it captures how I want to arrive to your show with the openest of hearts, to then think through how I felt and how your work made that happen. I want to examine my response to your work, and try to communicate that back to you—a uniquely Ryan-shaped-mirror if you will.

So with that in mind, here’s what to expect when you invite me to critically respond to your show.

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The medium is the message. 

I have enjoyed talking about theatre in long & short form writing on this site, on TikTok and Instagram reels, or in little DMs in my Instagram broadcast channel. I will use my best judgement to figure out where I’d like to respond to your work.

I want to get more experimental in how I respond to work, so anticipate that I’ll critically use form (as well as content) to respond to your work.
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I value auto-ethnography & introspection in my responses.

When I respond to work, I respond from my own position in the world. So when I fail to get a work, it’s because of who I am and the baggage I carry, and I want to make that positionality clear in my response.

So, you can expect that when I respond to your work, I’ll talk about myself. I think good criticism acknowledges the context from which it’s author writes. Objectivity is dead, and from its rotting carcass we’ll let a thousand blossoms bloom.
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I will take it slow, and won’t work to a deadline.

I have brought myself close to burn out before by trying to write something about everything as soon as I see it. That’s not sustainable. 

I would rather spend the time to think through and consider your work than churning out a quick and meaningless response. Your art took so long to make, so I think a meaningful response deserves a similar abundance of time.

Criticism isn’t marketing; it’s its own valuable thing in the artistic process and deserves to be treated as such.
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I won’t always say yes to your invitation.

Sometimes I don’t think I am the best person to talk about your work—maybe I don’t have the right background or knowledge to properly respond. Sometimes I will be too busy, and I would much rather see your work when I know I can give it the time and generosity you deserve from an audience.
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I won’t guarantee you a published response.

Sometimes I won’t have nice things to say, and won’t want to publish them—there is a big difference between an emerging maker making something sloppy, and a mainstage company doing the same. If you’re emerging, I would rather not clog up your Google results with criticism which I know you’ll resolve with practice. In fact, I can’t wait to see you next time.

Sometimes I may not have anything which I feel meaningfully contributes to discourse around your work. I would rather only speak when I have something meaninful to say.

You are always welcome to ask me why I haven’t said anything, and I’m very happy to have that conversation privately.
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I won’t be apolitical. 

I have personal biases which will impact the way I talk about your work, and I won’t look past them just because of technical skill. For example, I wrote a savage critique of BK Opera & Forest Collective’s production of Fat Pig because of the poor way the work engaged with its target audiences, despite what was a relatively strong production. 

If your work is inaccessible, ableist, transphobic, nihilistic, racist, fatphobic, or zionist then I will talk about that. Art is not apolitical, nor is how audiences respond to it.

Still Keen?

With that in mind, I would love to hear from you about your show and would probably love to come and see it too.

Additional Reading

These are a couple of books and articles which have informed my reviewing practice.