DCTheatreScene - Highly Recommended

P. Nokio, written and directed by hip hop performing artist Psalmayene 24, hits a fun and groovy downbeat. Playing the main character, Psalmayene 24 takes on the stiff mannerisms of an artificial image plucked from an electronic game and given a body by the graffiti fairy, the irresistible Paige Hernandez, who makes dreams come true.
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Washington Post - Recommended

"...But the show is also an evocation of urban life, spotlighting the contrasting physicality of city-dwellers — a high-stepping power walker (S. Lewis Feemster), a hopscotch-playing girl (a dynamic Felicia Curry), a crotchety, stooped old lady (Neville Braithwaite) and others — in an orange-toned cubist metropolis (Meghan Raham designed the set and costumes). The storytelling sometimes drags, but there’s piquancy in the movement, which includes a fight waged through hip-hop dance, a taxi ride chronicled with swaying bodies and a dream sequence in which schoolchildren move in seemingly weightless slow-mo after their teacher (Mark Hairston) lectures on gravity. (The play’s art-rock-inflected score was composed by R. MacKenzie Lewis.) A little of this kinetic lyricism goes a long way, but with a 45-minute running time and an unobjectionable message about kindness and diversity, “The Wings of Ikarus Jackson” can hardly test anyone’s patience too sorely."
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MD Theatre Guide - Highly Recommended

"... Imagination Stage presents P.Nokio: A Hip-Hop Musical, where the beloved classic Pinocchio is re-imagined for a newer, tech-savvy generation. Powerhouse talent Psalmayene 24 boasts the titles of playwright, director, and performer (as P.Nokio himself!) in this energetic visual feast that children and parents will both love."
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