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DIRECTING  Lies & Liars"Theatre Seven of Chicago's world premiere of Lies & Liars
stylistically dazzles on just about every level... Stylishly directing
the whole production are co-writers Margot Bordelon and Cassy
Sanders... (who) position their characters and props with plenty of
panache onstage."
"Bordelon and Sanders's direction is handsomely choreographed."
"Crisp staging by Margot Bordelon and Cassy Sanders."
"The average adult tells three lies a day, which makes over 90,000 lies in a lifetime. In the aptly titled "Lies and Liars," the mischievous Theatre Seven confronts one of our most basic and crucial modes of existence – dishonesty – using a futuristic style (strangely reminiscent of a 1950s sitcom) with fantastic results. What begins as an employee orientation for ALCOR, an international lie protection agency, then turns into a trivia lecture on lies and how they function in society, which then turns us to the story of Benny (Brad Smith), a recently dumped new hire on the ALCOR janitorial team. ALCOR's task is to house a file for every person on earth, with every lie that has ever been told to them. From the Tooth Fairy to faked orgasms to lies we tell ourselves, ALCOR has them all stored and arranged according to severity (white lies are harmless, bald-faced lies the worst). The cast members all do a stellar job of portraying the mainly stock characters, particularly Vicki (Marjorie Armstrong) the surly, Honeymooners-esque receptionist, and Marcel (Joe Zarrow), the corporate-but-cares-about-your-feelings manager. At first, "Lies and Liars" has a chummy, slapstick tone, but once Benny begins to read his own file, which is expressly forbidden for his protection, the play shifts to a darker and more swiftly paced dance, a kind of Matrix meets Inspector Gadget on quaaludes. The intensity rises and bubbles until Benny learns the real reason why his girlfriend left him and his life fell apart. While the play addresses the necessary yet problematic pitfalls of human nature, it does so in such remarkably clever ways as to make us forget that we are constantly being deceived, and mostly by ones we love. Beauty may be truth and truth, beauty, but it surely doesn't make for very interesting theater. And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't completely smitten by "Lies and Liars." "A MUST-SEE SHOW" -Anna Pulley, Centerstage  Yes, This Really Happened to MeTheatre Seven of Chicago's hour-long one-act is a first-rate piece of story theater--crisp, funny, moving, and utterly devoid of self-indulgence. A nine-person cast, all in their 20s, perform autobiographical texts by five writers who also appear on video to provide reflective commentary. Familiar themes--childhood friendships, family relationships, sexual experimentation, drug experiences--get fresh, idiosyncratic spins. Playing multiple characters (this is an ensemble work, not an evening of monologues), the actors are precise, detailed, confident, and emotionally authentic, while directors Margot Bordelon and Cassandra Sanders maintain a pace that's brisk but never rushed. If these young artists represent the future of off-Loop theater, we're in very good hands indeed. CRITIC'S CHOICE.
- Albert Williams, The Chicago Reader  Never Swim Alone"Directed with impeccable timing by Margot Bordelon." "Directed with head turning precision by Bordelon. #1 of the Top Five shows not to miss in Chicago."
"Dynamically orchestrated by Margot Bordelon"
 Scarrie! The Musical“It’s the spirited but disciplined direction of Margot Bordelon that really carries “Scarrie.” The sense of wicked but good-natured fun that dominates the production is to her credit. Working with very little, she and scenic designer Matthew Kollar pull off some great bits of staging. Bordelon’s cartoonish vision, complete with pratfalls and asides, demands a lot of the young ensemble. And it delivers.”
–Louis Weisberg, Chicago Free Press “Director Margot Bordelon adroitly never lets the pace flag and the ensemble she has to work with is a dream come true.”
–Rick Reed, Windy City Times “Margot Bordelon's decisions about what to heighten and what to play straight are balanced with David Cerda's gay sensibility.”
-Web Behrens, Chicago Tribune  Psycho Beach Party“The kind of brave and unabashedly theatrical work that theater will need to maintain its relevance for younger generations… Director Margot Bordelon's take on it, mounted at the Northwest Actors' Studio, transcends the tepid "spoof" value of Busch's script…The success of the show, lies in the wild comic abandon that Bordelon cultivates in her talented cast…Bordelon imbues a rare sense of detail and craftsmanship into this airtight, focused production”
-Leah B. Green, The Seattle Times “Director Margot Bordelon has whipped this fluff into a towering, frivolous meringue, driving her enthusiastic, high-energy cast at top speed through dance numbers, schizophrenic freakouts, half a dozen preposterous plot twists, and homoerotic fumblings”
-Bret Fetzer, the Stranger PERFORMING  Killing Women“Superbly played by the classy, wound-tight Margot Bordelon... Bordelon is an actress who totally gets Wegrzyn's style. Mostly thanks to her rich and vulnerable performance, the killer Abby's final, humbling,ennobling, self-defining debacle had me hooked”
-Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune “The near perfect cast is grounded by Margot Bordelon’s exemplary performance as Abby. Bordelon is both caustically determined and exasperatingly lost, a true human being in extraordinary circumstances”
-Brian Kirst, Chicago Free Press "Margot Bordelon is terrific"
-Kerry Reid, Chicago Reader  In So Many WordsNamed "Top 5 Solo Shows of 2007"
-NewCity Chicago “Bordelon, 27, is in total command of her airtight material. She also
is pretty, funny, observant, fast-talking and knowingly sexy -- with a
1950s girl-next-door allure that disguises a mischievous, naughty-girl
persona. Highly recommended”
-Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun Times "Love, Valor, and Technology, her winningly observed one-woman show
analyzes the ways in which cell phones and MySpace have invaded the
early flirt stages of a relationship. Blending cute with an intelligent
quirkiness… the show has an appealing self-assured polish… Tip of the
Week”
-Nina Metz, NewCity Chicago |