Washington Post - Somewhat Recommended
"...Neither of these solidly sung pieces comes across as anything close to a finished work. I’m glad, for instance, that I had read Joe Meno’s fine novel “The Boy Detective Fails” before I saw the musical adaptation on which he has collaborated with composer-lyricist Adam Gwon, because otherwise I don’t think I would have been able to glean the rationale for this narratively challenged and emotionally impoverished show."
Washington Examiner - Somewhat Recommended
"...
Although there is some extraneous material in the first act that slows the musical down, Gwon's music and lyrics are solid throughout, including everything from Vaudeville numbers to heart-wrenching ballads. For the most part, director Joe Calarco keeps the musical moving briskly along, helped by Karma Camp's fluid choreography."
Variety - Somewhat Recommended
"...The Boy Detective Fails," author Joe Meno's quirky novel about life's mysteries, makes a thought-provoking season-opener at Signature Theater, one of two new shows premiering in repertory at the facility with shared ensemble. Although it's enhanced by Adam Gwon's sturdy score, audiences might struggle to comprehend Meno's disjointed and occasionally over-precious book."
Examiner - Somewhat Recommended
"...“The Boy Detective Fails” is quirky, original and perfectly cast, for a start. Stephen Gregory Smith plays Billy Argo, the boy who, with his sister and pal, becomes a celebrity sleuth in small town New Jersey. The trio is split when they grow up and Billy’s sister commits suicide, an event which sends him to an institution for ten years. Upon his release, the now 30 year old has gone from eccentric to something a bit more off the rails. Can he “solve” the mystery of his sister’s suicide? His attempt to do so occupies a good part of the second act. The play’s way less than satisfying conclusion is a head-scratcher, which I will not spoil. But for a play that took 15 to 20 minutes just to get set-up, that long just for an applause break, one expects, to put it crudely, some kind of pay-off. The concluding revelation here seems tacked on."
MetroWeekly - Recommended
"...Director Joe Calarco keeps the action brisk and the melancholy-macabre tone consistent, providing a compelling foundation for an array of skillful performances: Smith's and Seibert's emotionally wounded siblings; Thomas Adrian Simpson's doddering take on the aging arch villain, Professor Von Golum; Harry A. Winter as a smarmy, suspicious telemarketer; and Anika Larsen as Penny Maple, a kleptomaniacal young widow who ultimately steals Billy's heart."
Talkin Broadway - Recommended
"...As brought to life by director Joe Calarco, Smith gives a winning performance as Billy, with a shuffling posture and shyness that vividly demonstrate the dislocation of a child trapped in a man's body. Seibert shows Caroline's frustration and inability to cope with adult trauma; Simpson is a hoot as an elderly blowhard who remembers his hatred of Billy, but not the reasons behind it; and Evan Casey amuses as a criminal so grim, his name is "Killer.""
Washingtonian - Highly Recommended
"...Director Joe Calarco’s production proceeds as part nostalgic adventure story, part self-aware black comedy. It’s easy to get caught up in Billy’s final, most important mystery, following him through clues and red herrings to make some sense out of Caroline’s choices, as he strives along the way to get to the bottom of the “Pawn Shop Kidnapper” case they may have gotten wrong years ago. The story, though, sometimes leaves loose ends hanging (the town, for example, is introduced as having supernatural-sounding troubles that never really get explained), and its larger themes can get caught up in cutesiness (the duet “Little Mysteries” relies heavily on clichés to drive home a syrupy message about not getting too ambitious)."
BrightestYoungThings - Highly Recommended
"..."Boy Detective" never just hands you the story, but requires you to assemble it clue by clue. As a result, what would otherwise be just a sweet bildungsroman becomes instead something much more moving and complex as we confront with Billy the maddening riddle of growing up."
TheaterMania - Recommended
"...Calarco is well aided by choreographer Karma Camp, particularly in the energetic 15-minute opening sequence laying out the story and introducing characters. And while the show has some flaws, fans of the novel should turn out to see how the story holds up onstage, while the quirky nature of the tale should attract new audiences."
Curtain Up - Recommended
"...The mashup of themes and musical styles are distracting and the attempts at humor (false disguises, a vaudeville turn, a pawnshop killer (overplayed by Evan Casey), security men who do the bunny hop) flop. Enter Billy's love interest -- if he were interested in love, he's very shy -- a kooky kleptomaniac named Penny (an endearing performance by Anika Larsen) who always wears pink and brown and sometimes goes dancing with people who aren't there. Her advice to Billy regarding his desire to "solve" the mystery of Caroline's death is "You shouldn't wreck your brain with things you cannot explain." Right."
MD Theatre Guide - Highly Recommended
"...This Boy Detective succeeds in many ways you will never forget –and don’t be surprised if you find yourself humming some of its winning melodies as you exit the theater with a big smile on your face."
DCTheatreScene - Highly Recommended
Who would’ve bet that a musical, by turns wacky and heartfelt, guided by a suicidal narrator struggling with his sanity—himself a metafictional send-up of anachronistic boys’ detective fiction—populated by cartoon characters and plotted as an unsolved murder mystery while actually a poignant survivors’ tale of healing, would work?
BroadwayWorld - Recommended
"...Leading the cast is the incredible Stephen Gregory Smith who initially plays Billy Argo as a boy detective with his friend Fenton (James Gardiner) and his sister Caroline (Margo Seibert). You fall in love with this trio in the first two numbers, "Prologue" and especially "Billy Argo, Boy Detective". Right away you are looking forward to more of composer Adam Gwon's beautiful melodic music."
