By Lauren Emily Whalen
Post-COVID lockdown was a baffling time: when to wear masks? Where to socialize, and with whom? Morning, Noon, and Night recalls that uncertain period through the eyes of a mother and daughter whose reentry comes with its own challenges. Unfortunately, Kirsten Greenidge’s play falls into a familiar trap, trying to deliver an expanse of social commentary at the expense of the human beings at its center.
After signing in for her remote job, Mia (Kristin E. Ellis) prepares for her estranged adult daughter’s birthday. Despite the Amazon boxes, broken toys, and old trophies piling up, she’s determined to make it nice.
Enter Miss Candice (Leslie Ann Sheppard), a sunny TikTok housewife who doesn’t know how she got to Mia’s doorstep. Meanwhile, Mia’s anxious teen Dailyn (Emefa Dzodzomenyo), who created Miss Candice using computer code and old Life magazines, frantically searches for the AI-generated persona who’s no longer online.
When the tech overwhelms the text
Director AmBer Montgomery’s production emphasizes technology addiction, using Jackie Fox’s lighting and Stephon Dorsey’s sound designs to project bright lights and that unmistakable “texting with the sound on” click. The effect overwhelms Theater Wit’s storefront space, and as the play progresses, it distracts rather than feeds into the play’s momentum.
Despite some vulnerable moments when Mia confronts the origins of her hoarding habits with Miss Candice (ironic, given that the latter is AI-generated), the rest of the characters fall into stereotypes. Expect an intelligent doomsday-fearing adolescent, a bougie paranoid mom, and a school friend who whines about homework rather than nuanced portrayals of those picking up the pieces of a global pandemic.
Successful plays about social issues let characters lead the way. Data, Off-Broadway’s gripping AI thriller, demonstrated exactly that—big ideas made urgent by the human beings caught inside them. Morning, Noon, and Night inverts that formula, leading with issues such as COVID, AI, and mental health while leaving its characters to fend for themselves. The result is a well-intentioned collection of tropes that has plenty to say but no one real enough to say it.
Is it worth seeing Morning, Noon, and Night?
1 out of 5 stars
Morning, Noon, and Night means well, says little, and mistakes a crowded agenda for a fully realized play.
- Shattered Globe Theatre at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago
- Notable performers: Kristin E. Ellis, Leslie Ann Sheppard
- Running time: Approximately 95 minutes, no intermission
- Performances through March 28, 2026
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