Drawn & Quartered by Maggie Bofill, INTAR Theatre, 2011:
“…blunt, earthy, passionate and sensual.”
- Andy Webster, New York Times, June 16th 2011.
“Maggie Bofill…has much to be proud of, as does the director, Lou Moreno, blessed with actors reaching for the stars…The critic returned to the street, awed by the wallop generated by Ms. Bofill’s words and Ms. Fernandez and Mr. Perez’s pas de deux.”
- Andy Webster, New York Times, June 16th 2011.
“Fernandez and Perez stay admirably steady aboard this rocking ship…”
- Pamela Newton, Time Out New York, June 13th, 2011.
“Liza Fernandez is wonderful as the strong and vibrant Anna. She turns her search for a peace offering inward, making it seem as if she is finding her answers somewhere deep inside herself.”
- Richard Hinojosa, New York Theatre, June 3rd, 2011.
“The performances are top notch under the direction of Lou Moreno.”
- Sandi Durell, Examiner, June 10th, 2011.
“Fernandez gives an especially affecting performance as the deeply ambivalent Ana. Conflicted about what it is she wants from Michael, Fernandez bounces from bitingly angry to hysterical, to neurotic, to seductive. In less capable hands these choices might read as melodramatic, but Fernandez brings a level of earnestness to the role that grounds it in authenticity, reminding us that this sweeping bipolarity is something the most intense breakups entail.”
- Chloe Carter Brown, New York Theater Review, June 9th, 2011.
“Much of the production takes a cue from…the performances of Fernandez and Perez, who move from understated to larger-than-life in a few short lines…Fernandez’s monologues are captivating, with the actor seeming to approach a trancelike state…”
- Nicole Villeneuve, Backstage, June 8th, 2011.
“Actors Liza Fernandez and Jose Joaquin show immense talent in their performances, authentically capturing the whirlwind of emotions exposed as their characters plumb the depths of their bitterness and intense sexual desire.”
- Adrienne Urbanski, Theatre Is Easy, June 10th, 2011.
Dramatis Personae by Gonzalo Rodríguez Risco, Cherry Lane Theatre, 2010:
“…deftly intertwining the real and the imaginary…”
- Robert Windeler, Backstage, October 8th, 2010
“…reminiscent of Pablo Neruda, or Isabelle Allende, or Gabriel García Márquez.”
“…this fine, fine cast…”
- Tulis McCall, New York Theatre Guide, October 8th, 2010.
“The cast is perfectly suited to their characters and gives exceptional performances…”
- Nathaniel Kressen, New York Theatre, October 9th, 2010
The Playwrights Realm presents Gonzalo Rodriguez Risco’s DRAMATIS PERSONAE
Ground by Lisa Dillman, Humana Festival, 2010:
“The six-member cast gave the material a needed jolt of verisimilitude, and Liza Fernandez stood out as a slightly ditsy, pregnant housewife desperate to make ends meet.”
- David Sheward, Backstage, April 9, 2010
“Ines (Liza Fernandez) is a childlike, Mexican-American whose pregnancy is complicated by health problems and the fact that her husband is serving in Iraq.”
- Marty Rosen, Leo Weekly, March 10th, 2010
First Look at “Ground” (Part of the 34th Humana Festival)
The House on Mango Street, Steppenwolf Theatre, 2009:
“Belinda Cerbantes, Gina Cornejo, Liza Fernandez, Ricardo Guitierrez, Christina Nieves, Tony Sancho and Mari Stratton, I applaud you for your skill and talent.”
- Alan Bresloff, Steadstyle Chicago, October 14, 2009
“Well-produced, with straightforward, earnest performances from a bright young cast.”
- Bob Bullen, Chicago Theatre Addict, October 17th, 2009
Tanya Saracho on Adapting The House on Mango Street
Boleros for the Disenchanted by Jose Rivera, Goodman Theatre, 2009:
“…and U.S.A.-obsessed cousin, Petra (a very funny and fiery Liza Fernandez)…”
- Scott C. Morgan, Daily Herald, June 30, 2009
“Charming as high-spirited Petra, Liza Fernandez is also sensitive as Monica, a member of older Flora’s church.”
- Albert Williams, Chicago Reader, June 29, 2009
“…her cousin Petra (the sparkling Liza Fernandez)…”
- Alan Bresloff, Steadstyle Chicago, June 30 2009
“Liza Fernandez is excellent as the boy crazy cousin and then the young woman getting a grim dose of pre-marital counseling from Flora in the second act.”
- Dan Zeff, Copely News Service, June 30 2009
“Rounding out the ensemble is Liza Fernandez, who’s over the top as Flora’s giddy, fun-loving cousin Petra and only a little more restrained as Oskar’s fiance, Monica.”
- Anne Spiselman, Hyde Park Herald, June 29, 2009
“The funniest of the crew was definitely the trio of Joe Minoso…Elizabeth Ledo…and Liza Fernandez…Each of these younger actors showed great posterity among the more tenured ensemble. The hit their marks right on cue and had the audience roaring with laughter half the evening!”
- Jennifer M. Lezan, LA Splash, June 30 2009
Cheeky Gets Nosy With Liza Fernandez: A Thriving Chicago Actress with Four Countries to Call Home
By Alison Weiss
Boleros for the Disenchanted: Behind the Scenes
Go behind the scenes of José Rivera’s Boleros for the Disenchanted with Director Henry Godinez and the cast of the Goodman Theatre production.
Perfect Mendacity by Jason Wells, Steppenwolf Theatre, 2008:
“Liza Fernandez is most arresting as the Arab spouse of a paranoid man.”
- Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, August 4, 2008
First Look Repertory of New York
The mission of First Look Repertory of New Work is to develop plays for future production at Steppenwolf Theatre and other theaters across the country.
Since its inception five years ago, nine of the fifteen plays presented during First Look’s first five seasons have enjoyed subsequent world premieres at other theaters, including Jason Wells’ Perfect Mendacity produced at Asolo Repertory Theatre in Florida (2010 M. Elizabeth Osborn New Play Award) and Wells’ Men of Tortuga also at Asolo (followed by a second production at Profiles Theater in Chicago).
On the Verge by Eric Overmeyer, Remy Bumppo Theatre, 2008:
“Susan Shunk (Mary), Rachel Sondag (Fanny) and Liza Fernandez (Alex) are terrific as the energetic and independent women.”
- Tom Williams, Chicago Critic, May 17, 2008
“The performances are uniformly radiant: Shunk, Sondag and Fernandez invest their explorers with humor, humanity and unerring fashion sense.”
- Lisa Buscani, Time Out Chicago, May 29–Jun 4, 2008
“Susan Shunk, Rachel Sondag and Liza Fernandez are terrific as the energetic and independent women. They take turns articulating Overmyer’s complicated language to paint vivid portraits of the lands and people they explore.”
- Tom Williams, ChicagoCritic, May 17, 2008
“…Alex (Liza Fernandez), the youngest of the three, is the most impressionable and segues easily into this newfangled world.”
- Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times, May 22, 2008
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot by Stephen Adly Guirgis
Victory Gardens Theater & The Gift Theatre, 2008:
“I particularly enjoyed the stellar ensemble work from Mark Czoske as the Judge, Paul D’Addario as Satan, Liza Fernandez as Saint Monica…”
- Tom Williams, Chicago Critic, April 2, 2008
“Liza Fernandez’s Saint Monica and Mark Czoske’s Caiaphas the Elder are also brilliantly imagined.”
- Brian Kirst, Chicago Free Press, April 2, 2008
“Other noteworthy performances include: Liza Fernandez’s spicy, sassy Saint Monica…”
- Barbara Vitello, Daily Herald, June 30, 2009
“The vast ensemble matches that opening emotional intensity throughout ‘Judas,’ from Liza Fernandez sassy, brassy Saint Monica…”
- Catey Sullivan, Windy City, April 2, 2008
Widowers’ Houses by George Bernard Shaw, TimeLine Theater, 2007:
“And Liza Fernandez is tops as the wily maid who deftly catches on to the rules of the game.”
- Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times, May 8, 2007
“That Lisa Fernandez, in the small role of a parlor maid, carries so much weight proves Houses is directed by an actor’s actor.”
- Christopher Piatt, Time Out Chicago, May 10-16 2007
“… and Liza Fernandez rounds out the terrific ensemble.”
- Tom Williams, Chicago Critic, May 10, 2007
One of My Favorites…
Buicks by Julian Sheppard, The Side Project, 2005:
“Liza Fernandez as the receptionist with a dream of becoming a Buicks Salesman is nothing short of spectacular.”
- Don Hall, Chicago Theatre Blogger, August 30, 2005
“Actor David Parkes is utterly compelling…as is Liza Fernandez as Naranja…”
- Fabrizio O. Almeida, New City Chicago, August 30, 2005