Joryhebel Ginorio, Maliha Sayed, Dani Pike, Sophia G. Dennis, and Arwen-Vira Marsh Photo by Time Stops Photography

The conceit of the story centers around a secret society (the Sentinels) of women at "Joan of Arc University" in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who are poised to lose the dome room in which their predecessors have met over the last 80 years. These women, always functioning as a group of five, have a shared mission to "Challenge the Impossible." Their leader, Maeve, calls the group to order for a final time to explore a hidden stash of documentation she has uncovered.

The play then proceeds through a series of flashbacks to: 1967 and a critical NASA mission the society contributes to; 1952 and questions of inclusion during the Red Scare; and the 1945 founding of the society at the end of World War II as a generation of women face the social expectation that they will return to the home after their contributions. The original framing story then brings things temporarily back to the present, as the first female president of the university arrives to investigate reports of lights in the condemned dome room. The young women then ask the president to read the final story of the society, set in 1973 just as Roe v. Wade has shifted the balance of power in the US.

The concept is undoubtedly interesting, ambitious, and painfully timely. Moreover, Campbell-Lowe is not afraid to introduce complexity into the set pieces here. The five women wrangle (to an extent) over race, sexuality, ethnicity, values, religion, and so on, and the welcome message seems to be that intellectual excellence never rests in any particular area of identity. And yet, with a runtime of just 70 minutes, there isn't always time or space to communicate important nuances.

The comparisons between the Sentinels and societies like Yale's Skull and Bones are explicit in the text, and so there is presumably a desire to challenge not just the idea of the Great Man of history, but to turn it on its head, perhaps offering the alternative story that no individual, however great, can thrive and excel without a multi-generational ecosystem behind them. And yet, in this brief form, the show runs the risk of undermining the achievements of history's great women by implying that their intellect alone would not have been enough to get the job done.

On a similar note, the play's intention regarding the relationship between the women of the present day and the past is not entirely clear. For example, Anna Rogers' costume design does not just move the action skillfully back and forth in time (though it certainly does that), using hemlines and necklines, it also invests in a color scheme for each actor that (seemingly) connects their characters from the present day through a series of flashbacks. In a script that had more time to invest in subtlety, this might have been a strength.

In practice, though, this risks being reductive and erasing the true brilliance of women who have succeeded not just in the absence of the "leg up" network that privileged men enjoy, but in spite of the way that such networks bury the brilliance and genuine ability of these women. Similarly, in nodding to a "through line" from the present-day women to the Sentinels in the past, the play does not necessarily think through the implications of, for example, the only identifiably Black Sentinel also being the only (demonstrably) queer woman. If the intention is (laudably) to call attention to the ways in which certain social identities tug a person toward particular political positions, this doesn't come across in an entirely productive way.

But if there are shortcomings born of the play's brevity and certain undecided elements, the production does much to overcome them. As noted, Anna Rogers' costumes bring the various points in time to life. Brenden Marble's lighting and sound cues by Nicholas Reinhart keep the production nimble and well paced. And Pazdernik's direction pays off in a cast that delivers good performances.

Dani Pike is an able leader as Maeve and others. In each of the scenarios, past and present, Pike demonstrates an attentiveness to the characters around her that drives what could have been somewhat stilted dialogue in more natural directions.

Arwen-Vira Marsh does commendable and engaging work as Ashley and others. Marsh distinguishes herself among her capable peers in striking a real balance between creating entirely unique characters in each time frame, and still establishing an intellectual and political through line.

Sophia Dennis (Grace and others), Maliha Sayed (Elizabeth and others), and Joryhebel Ginorio (Katie and others) all bring their strengths to their roles, as well. Dennis is unafraid to inject a hint of superficially ditzy privilege into her performance, rightly counting on her intelligence to shine through. Similarly, Sayed allows her characters' uncertainty to surface, and yet their confidence still reads as believable. Ginorio, for her part, plays her characters' suspiciousness nature as something cultivated by hostile worlds, and the camaraderie they eventually establish in each scenario is the richer for it.

Anne Sheridan Smith has regrettably little to do as President Sureham, but like the rest of the cast, she is invested in the experiment here, and the performance makes the audience wonder what depths the play might have found if it had the space to explore intergenerational relationships and the passing of the torch within this exclusive secret society.

Sentinels runs through August 10, 2025, at Theo Ubique's Howard Street Theatre, 721 Howard Street, Evanston IL. For tickets and information, please visit www.theo-u.com.