For SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET:

"Kelly's minimalist revival...focuses on theme and emotion rather than spectacle, while managing to retain the beauty of the intricate, operatic score...Kelly and set designer Harrington have eschewed the opulent, blood-drenched extravagance for which this material is known, opting instead for subtly stylized depictions of murder...the minimalism works."

August Krickel, Free Times - 10/10/23


For MR BURNS, A POST ELECTRIC PLAY:

"Kelly competently handles a long speech with just the right amount of storytelling sparkle"

August Krickel - 1/26/23

"Particular kudos go to Patrick Kelly, whose dizzily horrifying performance in Act III is breathtaking."

The Jasper Project - 1/21/23

For DEATH OF A SALESMAN:

"Workshop manages to present an undeniably great work of literature as a living piece of dramatic art, providing entertainment for those looking to enjoy good acting, but offering deeper considerations for those so inclined. Much of the credit has to go to director Patrick Michael Kelly, who helmed a similarly vital and immediate Streetcar at Trustus in 2020."

August Krickel - 11/9/22


For A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE:

"Kelly adeptly guided his cast into performances that cast aside any sense of being staged...creating a sense of immediacy, urgency and awareness that the characters conflict needed to be resolved now...there was never any doubt that these were real people, struggling with genuine issues...By embracing the raw emotions at the core of the script and allowing them to play out with realism, however ugly and disconcerting, Kelly and his cast have scored an artistic triumph." 
 
August Krickel, Free Times - 2/18/20


For SWEAT (Fight Choreography):

"Fight choreography by Patrick Michael Kelly was excellent in a crucial scene where anything less than perfection would have ruined the shock and intensity of the moment."

August Krickel, Free Times - 5/22/19


For JACOB MARLEY'S CHRISTMAS CAROL:

"There’s no blood, no mayhem and no violence, but the production is quite intense. Solely through acting and the potency of imagination, the cast recreates hell on a virtually bare stage...it’s dark and foreboding — although ultimately uplifting — with bits of comic relief here and there. Probably exactly what Charles Dickens would have wanted."
 
August Krickel, Free Times - 12/12/18 

"Director Patrick Michael Kelly has cast his show well, assembled a highly-skilled production team, and paced the show briskly, yet allows the actors to take the time they require in the moments where the audience needs to ponder and process what’s happening onstage. The smoothness of the production’s flow, and the undercurrent of suspense in what is, even in forced perspective, a well-known story are testimonials to Kelly’s vision and commitment to treating Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol as the fresh, new(ish) piece that it is."

Frank Thompson, The Jasper Project - 12/8/18

For BOY ABOUT TEN:

"Patrick Michael Kelly's cast committed fully to the raw emotions which were laid bare. Pace, timing and a delicate balance between comedy and tragedy were among the tools employed to successfully blend the narrative's more fantastical elements with a razor-sharp insight into the reality of victims left in the wake of an ugly divorce...the cast and director's commitment to relaying the author's complex and thought-provoking vision in an accessible manner is both impressive and appealing."

August Krickel, Free Times - 8/23/18

"Director Patrick Michael Kelly has taken an artfully written play, refined by much workshopping, and brought to the stage a world of slightly-heightened reality, never losing sight of the connecting themes of family and what it truly means to care for someone."

Frank Thompson, The Jasper Project - 8/19/18

For HAND TO GOD:

"Director Kelly finds a happy medium in which the audience can laugh at each of the many witty lines, and smirk with guilty pleasure at Tyrone’s indictments of the failures of modern civilization, yet still remain emotionally invested in the real-life family drama that transpires...HAND TO GOD is satisfying and entertaining as a very dark and subversive comedy, and as a showcase for the acting skills of its cast."

August Krickel, Free Times - 4/26/17

"...director Patrick Michael Kelly’s careful blocking is also a technical showcase...There’s a sense of well-rounded excellence that pervades this production, and it’s a pleasure to see such execution on a local stage."

Kyle Peterson, The Jasper Project - 4/26/17