“First of all, Coates is an unappreciated local talent whose presence — instinctual, sensually and emotionally oriented — tends to elevate the prose of the productions he is in. Secondly, the production is directed by K Brian Neel, himself a master of the solo format.”
-Jose Amador, The Seattle Star
“For a play about a zombie, Ricky Coates' frenetic one-man romp has plenty of life.
Horror is a tough thing to achieve onstage, and he gets the gasps he's going for by gulping bits of raw egg (a gateway drug of sorts), among other things. The humorous moments hit their mark as well, with Coates contorting fearlessly through fight scenes and revelations.
A mix of fright, philosophy and humor, it's compelling just to watch one man pull it all off.”
-Tod Caviness, Orlando Sentinel
“An exceptionally well-performed, entertaining and grisly story of one man’s difficult passage through the land of the undead.
Ricky Coates has incredible range, great dramatic focus and amazing physical vitality.
Even at its most gruesome there is always an element of pleasure in the sheer energy of the performance.”
-Jerry Kraft, seattleactor.com
"Never mind the deliciously gruesome subject matter. As a play…well, it’s believable. And that’s high-praise for a one man zombie-themed character drama. It’s surprisingly easy to feel a real connection with Brian, even as he is ravaging the corpses of the homeless, or stuffing medical waste down his gullet.
There is a certain amount of gratuitous shock-value elements. But after all, it’s a zombie show. And the shock and the gore is half the fun.
…And as I’m sure zombie-Brian would agree, why chew the scenery if you could chew some intestines instead?"
-Fringe Review Canada
"That writer and performer Ricky Coates is a bit of genius in a slick and muscled body is without question. From the second he first shambles onstage and clicks on the TV — faking us into thinking he’s dead — the control of his body is successfully crucial to telling his story.
This is worth a look, especially if you’re into the zombie genre, which so fits the selfie age with its idea that we are both the monster and, as individuals, better than the monsters who look like us."
-Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal
"From Seattle’s theater simple comes Ricky Coates’ grizzly one-man tour de force! As the typical Brian who finds his world unravelling due to his new “medical condition,” Coates prowls the stage like a cross between a Balanchine dancer and a feral animal; turning this gory story into a surprising tale of self-actualization, due to Coates’ thoughtful and thought-provoking script and his winning on-stage presence. Never has an audience cheered on an impending apocalypse more!"
-Todd O'Dowd, l'etoile Magazine
"The Death of Brian takes its subject surprisingly seriously, presenting the start of the ghoul apocalypse from the flesh-eater’s point of view with both mordant humor and an unexpected depth of feeling.
Under the direction of K. Brian Neel, Coates gives a gut-munching master class in physical commitment, baring himself (literally and figuratively) as he beats himself senseless, suffers shock therapy, zips himself into a body bag, and hobbles around on a shattered ankle.
If, like me, you’ve seen Dawn of the Dead a couple dozen times, you definitely don’t want to miss this emotional intestine-eating epic."
-Seth Kubersky, Orlando Weekly
Brian was already a zombie of a man before he became infected -- dragging himself between the television set and a dead end job -- but that didn't make the transformation of his once human body any easier to digest.
He is as surprised as the audience is disgusted by a sudden lust for brains and entrails: a bloody mess that paints a work of art.
This is a one-man show, but several other characters are seamlessly brought in and out of the story. It's through these pre-recorded "other halves" of the conversation that The Death of Brian feels even more like a dance, as he carefully times each movement and response between the voices.
He is dragged away and imprisoned. He pulls off elaborate fight scenes. He devours half of a homeless man only to hold him in his arms and consider the meaning of it all.
In a world of zombie comedies and dramas, The Death of Brian takes a stab at art. Don't miss the transformation.
-Kim Kaschor, CBC News
It is a unique concept, one that should not have even been possible: a one-man zombie show. Writer and performer Ricky Coates (totally committed, emotionally and physically) and director K. Brian Neel, of Seattle, find a way to make zombies new again by giving Brian, an Everyman turned undead fiend, something no zombie character has ever had: a character arc. Although Coates is alone on stage, the ingenious sound design by Dan Yost provides disembodied, recorded voices playing a number of other characters. The fact that they aren’t present on stage only serves to underline the isolation and desperation of the title hero.
— Ben Wiebe, Winnipeg Free Press