PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC
On Broadway at Manhattan Theatre Club
Written by Joshua Harmon
Directed by David Cromer
“Easily the finest play of the Broadway season so far…the play surges forward on the power of Mr. Harmon’s engrossing writing, Mr. Cromer’s incisive direction, and the first rate cast…Mr. Nacer plays Charles with grave thoughtfulness.”
-Charles Isherwood, Wall Street Journal
“The performances by the ensemble, both veterans and newcomers, are exemplary.”
-Frank Scheck, New York Stage Review
“As Charles, Nacer brings a gentle, soulful humor.”
THE ORCHARD
Off Broadway at Baryshnikov Arts Center
Written by Anton Chekhov
Translated by Carol Rocamora
Adapted and Directed by Igor Golyak
“One clear standout is Nacer, who evokes a respectful, eager-to-please improviser, coping with his neighbors’ odd behavior but unable not to crow at his own good fortune. Nacer livens things up considerably, not least because his vocal and physical energy manage to leap out to the spectator.”
-Bob Verini, New York Stage Review
“Boston theater stalwart Nael Nacer gives yet another fully committed performance. Nacer supplies much-needed dramatic tension to the proceedings.”
MACBETH
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company
Written by William Shakespeare
Directed by Steve Maler
“Nacer brings his trademark intensity to his portrayal of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman and Macbeth antagonist. After Macduff suffers an incalculable loss, Nacer builds the nobleman’s grief, anguish, and fury to an emotional temperature that virtually singes the audience.”
“One profoundly moving and pivotal moment: Nael Nacer’s Macduff after discovering that Macbeth has slaughtered his wife and children,”all his pretty ones.” Watching this loyal and noble warrior crumple under the weight of such raw anguish made this night of theater under the stars darker.”
THE MERCHANT OF VENICE
Actors’ Shakespeare Project
Written by William Shakespeare
Directed by Igor Golyak
“Nael Nacer brings a mesmerizing intensity to his portrayal of Shylock, the Jewish moneylender subjected to vile antisemitism. It’s further evidence — if his last decade on Boston stages weren’t proof enough — that this remarkable actor is nearly incapable of mailing in a nanosecond of any performance.”
“Shylock is played by the masterful Nael Nacer in another very physical and fully-inhabited performance.”
“Rather than shy away from history’s ugly caricatures, Nacer grabs them by the throat and squeezes the rancid life out of them. His commitment to the cartoon capering makes it all the more heartbreaking when the illusion cracks and we get a glimpse of the wounded, soulful man inside...we can see in his eyes the emotional toll that prejudice is taking on him.”
“Nael Nacer’s Shylock is both funny and empathetic, in keeping with his string of excellent performances.”
THE TEMPEST
Commonwealth Shakespeare Company
Written by William Shakespeare
Directed by Steve Maler
“Caliban [is] brilliantly incarnated by Nael Nacer as a head-to-toe tattooed skinhead”
-Bob Verini, New York Stage Review
“His torso and head covered in tattoo-like markings, Nael Nacer plays Caliban, Prospero’s slave, adding a new dimension to Nacer’s large gallery of first-rate performances over the past decade.”
“Nael Nacer’s Caliban is one I’ve never seen before, a creature struggling to be more than the sum of his parts, simultaneously loathsome and lovable. Nacer is an extraordinarily warm, versatile actor and a surprisingly limber one. A handstand and his spidery balance on a rolling wheel as well as his initial hilarious deadpan upon realizing the benefits of said wheel, knocked me off my feet.”
-Joyce Kulhawik, Joyce's Choices
“Nacer - covered in netting and metals rings and tattooed from head to toe - explodes from underground onto the stage…[he] seems incapable of anything less than a great performance.”
THE RETURN
Israeli Stage
Written by Hanna Eady & Edward Mast
Directed by Guy Ben-Aharon
“Nacer again demonstrates his mastery at playing men stretched tight by circumstance, at imparting weight and meaning to moments of stillness, and, when the need arises, at going from zero to 60, dramatically speaking.”
“The play hangs on the superb work of actors Nael Nacer and Philana Mia. This duo is locked in a tense negotiation of sorts, and they deliver extraordinarily modulated, detailed, emotional performances, by turns volatile, infuriating, and soul-wrenching.”
TRUE WEST
Gloucester Stage Company
Written by Sam Shepard
Directed by Joseph Short
“Raging, self-pitying, manipulative Lee is the showier role here, of course, and Boston favorite Nael Nacer makes the most of it, calling to mind Travis Bickle with his shaved head and a voice that sounds like he’s got a mouthful of chaw, though it’s mostly just beer. He’s funny, too, until he isn’t, when he gets right up in Austin’s face, vibrating with real threat.”
“Nael Nacer, one of the Boston area’s most versatile and compelling actors, brings home a Lee who devours life, and Austin, with no constraint whatsoever...He seethes and reverberates and one no longer knows whether it is a life-force or death-force that drives him.
MACBETH
Actors’ Shakespeare Project
Written by William Shakespeare
Directed by Dawn M. Simmons
“Nacer delivers a fiery, full-throttle performance as Macbeth that ranks among his best. His grief-wracked rendition of the storied “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow’’ speech, delivered after Macbeth learns of the death of Lady Macbeth, will stay with me for a long time.”
“Well-known for his many roles in Boston area theaters, Nacer delivers a tour-de-force personification of a man on the downward path to ruin, transforming from a loyal soldier to a despot, riven with guilt but gripped by his desires.”
“Nael Nacer as Macbeth was truly outstanding.”
-David Tomkins, Broadway World
“Nacer is a terrific, nuanced Macbeth, his descent into madness and paranoia a slow unraveling of a decent man who’s been tricked by his own ambition, his guilt over his deeds a barrier to enjoying the fruits of his labor.”
SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS
Speakeasy Stage Company
Written by Bess Wohl
Directed by M. Bevin O’Gara
“Perhaps my favorite moment: When Nacer’s Ned is called upon to go first in a ritual involving the burning of written “intentions’’ in a brass bowl, and Nacer creates a comic ballet out of Ned’s flailing perplexity.”
“Ned – in one of the few instances in the play where a character actually speaks – prefaces a question to The Teacher about the meaning of life. He delivers a monologue enumerating the bleak details of his misfortunes that would make even a cynic tear up – if it weren’t for Nacer’s wonderful comic delivery.”
“Nael Nacer brings intensity, along with a native gentleness, to his portrayal here. His long soliloquy detailing the horrors of his life is riveting, and the anguished wrestling match he undertakes, with its inverse result, is wonderfully and evocatively executed.”
-Charles Munitz, Boston Arts Diary
“Nael Nacer, who plays Ned, is excellent at garnering laughs.”
THE FLICK
Gloucester Stage Company
Written by Annie Baker
Directed by Bridget Kathleen O’Leary
“The inimitable Nael Nacer provides the emotional ballast in this Gloucester Stage Company production, displaying his chameleon-like ability to inhabit whatever character is handed to him. Nacer is mesmerizing as Sam.”
“Nael Nacer’s sputtering, early-Mamet-esque Sam, too inhibited to express his feelings until they pour out of him in a manner both wrenching and unseemly, speaks volumes with his face. His Sam appears constantly staggered by the coincidence, connection and profundity of things.”
“An intense performance by Nael Nacer as custodial supervisor Sam dominates the evening. Nacer’s searing gaze and valiant struggles to express himself in the simplest phrases are riveting. He looks like someone on the edge — continually trying to decide between fight or flight. Nacer delivers an absolutely hilarious performance that is also touching at times as Sam’s real emotions boil over….As realized by Nacer, the character of Sam is so original and mesmerizing he would make a fitting centerpiece for a television comedy series.”
-Sally Applegate, Wicked Local