Written by Carly Mensch

Directed by Jason Eagan

Produced by Ars Nova

Costumes by Jenni Mannis

Lighting by Traci Klainer

Sound by Ryan Rumery

From Lauren Helpern's clever re-creation of a Tenement Museum apartment (Helpern is quickly becoming a bright light on the Off-Off- and Off-Broadway design scene) to Eagan's sympathetic and precise direction, everything about "Now Circa Then" clicks.

-- Backstage

"From their perches in a perfectly preserved facsimile of a 19th-century tenement apartment — the atmospheric set is by Lauren Helpern — they dispense nuggets of information about the immigrant experience." 

-- New York Times

"Between the Victrola, the hand-held wooden agitator (laundry churner), and a slew of other period set and costume pieces (provided by Lauren Helpern and Jenny Mannis), the play is not only authentic, but intriguing through its last second."

-- Theatermania

""Now Circa Then," Mensch’s sweet-spirited two-hander, stars Stephen Plunkett and Maureen Sebastian as historical reenactors at a venue a lot like the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, realized by designer Lauren Helpern in a great-looking period set that allows the actors plenty of space to play in."

-- Variety