Andra Velis Simon
Chicago Tribune 12/24/14: Christopher Borrelli's article on Theater Wit's production of Mr. Burns: a post electric-play and Chris Jones' review of HMS Pinafore
Press Quotes
"Top 10 best theater in Chicago 2021"
--Chicago Tribune on Songs for Nobodies, 2021
"...passionately performed and artfully sung..."
"...with stellar music direction from Andra Velis Simon..."
--Chris Jones, CBS Chicago and Chicago Tribune, on Always, Patsy Cline, 2019
"In the hands of a superb cast and a knockout offstage band (led by Andra Velis Simon), Tesori's... score leaps from playful to profound to haunting to hilarious with an abandon matched only by its precision."
--Time Out Chicago, on Caroline, or Change, 2018
“ ... gifted music director, Andra Velis Simon ... subtly re-orchestrated the show ... so that it comes with much more of a bluegrass flavor... What a killer idea.”
--Chicago Tribune, on 9 to 5, 2018
“…the balance struck by music director Andra Velis Simon is praiseworthy.”
--L.A. Times, on Pirates of Penzance, 2018
“NYT Critic’s Pick… The music director, Andra Velis Simon, ensures that you never miss the presence of an orchestra.”
--New York Times, on Pirates of Penzance, 2017
“Applause, too, for the sensational musical direction of conductor/keyboardist Andra Velis Simon… and the all-female band… that rocks it to the rafters…”
--Chicago Sun-Times, on LIZZIE, 2017
“Andra Velis Simon gave us a gloriously goofy, unapologetically feminist take on a stale, sexist fairytale.”
--Chicago Magazine’s Best of Chicago Theater, on Cinderella at the Theater of Potatoes, 2016
“Musically there is a lot of ingenuity… Andra Velis Simon’s musical direction makes the troubadour style look deceptively simple.”
--Washington Post, on Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado, 2016
“The organic way in which the actors become musicians (and vice-versa) makes the efforts of John Doyle… seem tentative by comparison.”
--Chicago Tribune, on American Idiot, 2015
“… all the actors do double duty as a rather remarkably proficient “orchestra,” under Andra Velis Simon’s inventive music direction… top 5 musicals of the year”
--San Francisco Chronicle, on Pirates of Penzance, 2015
"Andra Velis Simon’s brilliant adaptation of the score… sounds like a late-night folk festival jam session...”
--LEO Weekly, on Pirates of Penzance at Actors Theatre of Louisville, 2014
“…incorporates many of [Tennessee] Williams’ charming musical suggestions… songs and the singing are lovely…”
--The New Yorker, on Camino Real, 2012
“Tesori’s score is exceptionally well sung… under the musical direction of Andra Velis Simon.”
--Chicago Tribune, on Violet, 2011
“The deceptively complex score… impeccably realized by music [director] Andra Velis Simon…”
--Time Out Chicago, on Boojum!, 2010
“Thanks to Andra Velis Simon's confident musical direction, the songs stay as strong as the story…”
--Chicago Reader, on 1776, 2008
“Also deserving kudos… music director and pianist Andra Velis Simon for the extraordinary range of moods she is able to evoke.”
--Newcity, on Songs for a New World, 2007
“…Andra Velis Simon, smoking up the keyboard.”
--Chicago Free Press, on Songs for a New World, 2007