Artists can leave an imprint...
"Kelly Meg Brennan holds the eerily lit venue at 44 17th Street in Buffalo for 80 ripping minutes as she portrays over 20 characters in a one-woman monologue portraying the last night of Jack the Ripper's final victim, Mary Jane Kelly. Speaking to an unseen person (Jack, himself?) she describes her life and the circumstances that brought her to her present situation, an "unfortunate" as the Victoria press called sex workers. It's not about Jack, though. It's about Mary and Ms. Brennan has the audience wrapped around her little finger in wrapt attention. If they don't extend the run, it will close on Saturday."
-Peter Hall & Anthony Chase
"Watchers and listeners are drawn into all of this quickly because Mary Jane - brought to life by the superb young actress Kelly Meg Brennan - is a keen observer and riveting story-teller. She's privy to private information about Whitechapel’s underside, funny incidents from the brothel, secrets bared - not sparing herself from assignations gone awry and her responses to kinky requests from a variety of “johns.” “You can feel them coming from a mile away,” she recounts, “and they smell of smoke, booze…and lust.” She switches genders swiftly and perfectly, gaits and accents precise, laughter, scorn, tears."
-Ted Hadley
“Kelly is a gifted, talented performer, as well as a responsible and mature colleague with whom to work. She is diligent and meticulous and never gives less than the 100% necessary to do the job exceptionally well. I recommend her wholeheartedly and without reservation for any endeavor.”
Christian Brandjes
“Kelly has established herself in the Buffalo theater community as a hard working and detail oriented actor. The roles she is chosen for are always well researched and believable and always taken on with the professionalism of an actor in a major theater or film production. She sets a high standard in this regard.”
David Butler
"It would be tough to exaggerate Kelly Meg Brennan’s behaving abilities. She takes on a roles of about 20 opposite people as she tells her tale, any time seamlessly jumping in and out of character, infrequently in a dialogue, though blank a beat. She’s sexy, fierce, pitiful, arrogant in discerning succession."
-FADLOVE
“Thanks again to Kelly Meg Brennan for her beautiful and moving performance of The Gift last night. A very thought provoking and emotional journey that I'll be thinking about for a long time.”
-Andrea Gollhardt
“Last night I had the honor to be included in a production that still, as I wake and get ready for the day, sits with my soul. It's called The Gift, an original one woman creation from the insanely talented Kelly Meg Brennan. To say that I was blown away by her performance would be an understatement. It was raw, real and haunting. The music for the night, composed by the cellist and pianist that also performed it during the show truly took me to another place. For this experience, these people who authentically show their truth to the world with grace and beauty, I am so grateful. The show is on again tonight, doors open at 7PM and show starts at 8PM at Ashkers on Main (Corner of Main and West Ferry next to Barre Centric). This is a free event but space is very limited and we had a full house last night. I cannot wait.”
-Kasia Cummings
“Every bit of your performance was beautiful! Your set design, music, incredible singing and acting - were all outstanding. I was very moved by the experience.”
-Lukia Costello
“At an incredible event on grief and loss, with the opportunity to share healthy ways to heal. Grateful to Kelly Meg Brennan for her amazing creation and gifts.Love to Kathleen Allyn Ashwill for the invitation to be a part of this! Thanks to Ashkers on Main for providing such a wonderful space!”
-Heather Lovegood
“Such a wonderful experience... Thank you Heather Mahanraj Kaur Lovegood for bringing your Love and Light, wisdom and humor to the space! Thank you Kelly Meg Brennan for this amazing opportunity and for your kind, talented, innovative, and loving spirit! It's a joy to bring your creation to life! Xoxoxo”
-Kathleen Ashwill
“The show was something special, a very powerful lesson in how death and loss can affect everyone, and that there is no one way to react to it; only your own way. The show resonated deeply with me, and I realized during the performance what Kelly had realized; that while one may spend time being “strong” for others, it takes away time for that one to deal with the experience themselves. Another lesson was that it matters not what others think of your way of dealing with grief. In my family, showing signs of sadness was almost akin to weakness. Kelly helped me learn that this isn’t the case. It is a sign of strength.”
-Joseph Pacillo
“Thank you for giving me the opportunity to work and collaborate with you on ‘The Gift: Encountering Life, Love & Loss”. This experience leading up to the performance has made a profound impact on me as a musician and person. The project shattered the traditional structures of music and explored the endless possibilities of creativity. In the very beginning stages of this project, it was very difficult to categorize this performance into the ‘mainstream’ musical/play, classical recital, etcetera, to which I just stopped, and became intrigued with the performance being ‘different’. As we continued to develop this project, my perspective of the ‘different’ performance changed. From listening to your ideas and understanding your comments during rehearsal, I became more aware that this performance is ‘unique’ because it communicates your emotions, your grief, your story. As a person who has also experienced loss and grief, I had to physically take a step back from the piano before each performance and place myself quietly in the audience to reflect, to meditate, to remember the cherished memories of loves ones in my life, whom have passed on. I was moved to tears because of the magnitude of your story. Your story helps people heal, and I was very grateful to be a part of your story. I hope that we may continue to remain in contact and collaborate on more projects in the near future. Congratulations on your performance and your continuing success.”
-Ryan R. Heckl
“I experienced the show both as an audience participant and as a mental health professional. The show was a combination of an engaging performance and an opportunity for individuals to process unresolved grief and loss. A particularly important part of therapy is the ability to tell one’s story. The audience witnessed Kelly’s story and as a result were able to connect with their own stories and unresolved emotional pain. It was a remarkable experience; a unique combination entertainment and therapeutic healing.”
-Patrick Greene
"And then there is Brennan, with a marvelously expressive voice that moves with staggering facility from a near-operatic range to the flat speech-song required by Weill. Her Pirate Jenny is chilling."
-Richard Huntington
"Kelly Meg Brennan, as Jenny, was a pleasant surprise in the role of the tantalizing and erotic harlot. Kelly Meg Brennan's eyes burned with conviction, and her movements were definite and forthright; she naturally commanded attention, most importantly, however, Kelly Meg Brennan's mezzo vice was the musical high point in the show. Her classical training has paid off in the form of excellent elocution, phrasing, intonation, and a foxy vibrato to boot!'
-Eric J. Starr
"With her pleasing and confident voice, her sultry delivery and her easy command of the stage, Kelly Meg Brennan wows them as Jenny. At one point, Miss Brennan must sing while being turned slowly on a box by two actors-I wish they would cut it before she falls! She is too talented to lose"
-Anthony Chase
"Kelly Meg Brennan (character C) was excellent in the role of the young woman. In Act II Brennan shined during the monologue about her character's first lover. Seductive and charismatic, Brennan evinced just the right vocal clarity, countenance and body movements to bring candor a role others might bring mere ambiguity and vagary.
-Eric J. Starr
"The dusky sensation, almost as if it were innately scripted by the performers, proceeded with the mezzo-soprano voice of Kelly Meg Brennan, (the Singer), who harbored a fiery, yet elegantly polished eclipse of the human spirit; a speechless foreshadowing, deeply encompassed with, at times, a melancholic tone, paralyzing the audience from viewing the play as most Americans do- a cheery 'good time'."
-Michael Petryshyn
"The music is appropriately Spanish in flavor and by the time narrator Kelly Meg Brennan joins in with her mournful vocal introduction, this show's weighty emotional tone is quite apparent."
-Darwen McPherson
"The guys are terrific, but especially engaging are the superbly nuanced performances of Barbara Link La Rou and Kelly Meg Brennan as Lady Bracknell and her daughter Gwendolen, respectively. Not only do they bring red hair, grace, fine line readings and rich contralto voices to their roles, but their characters impose their hidebound upper-class agenda while basking in an aura of heightened femininity and sensuality. Wonderful, wonderful!"
-Patricia Donovan
"The production looks glorious, and the entire cast clicks into the style of the piece with perfection. The laughs build momentum in waves, and embrace the entire theater. Kelly Brennan and Lona Geiser play Gwendolen and Cecily with flawless precision. Never a laugh is missed-unless it is lost in the audible glee of the audience over the one preceding."
-Anthony Chase
"A familiar face graced the stage in frill Victorian elegance when Kelly Meg Brennan appeared in the role of Gwendolen, a product of the higher end of living where the finer things in life are embraced with little or no emotion. Her animated beauty is simply nulled because of the outrageousness of her spirit. In other words, many laughs are shared between the audience when Brennan is on stage. Brennan captures the comic essence of her role and flourishes with every satiric line of dialogue."
-Michael Petryshyn
"Kelly Brennan finds just the right degree of outlandish snobbery in her portrayal of Gwendolen."
-Kurt Schniederman
"Kelly Meg Brennan, stands in front of three intensely bright fluorescent bulbs standing vertically. Clad in a glittery black dress befitting a siren, she belts out a beautiful section from Heitor Villa-Lobos’ “Bachianas Brasileiras.” When she finishes, the lights flicker off, and she walks slowly and stylistically across the stage (a Torn Space trademark move). The lights surround her, and consequently the negative space of her image has been seared into audience members’ eyes, so that whenever they blink, for at least the next 20 minutes, they see her and think of her song. Brennan, whose singing ends the evening with two arias from Verdi’s “La Traviata,” is herself a force to behold and a beautiful set of parentheses to a dark night at the theater."
-Colin Dabkowski
"The Opera singer Kelly Meg Brennan beautifully carved the wistfulness of “Ah, Fors e Lui”, and prepared herself for losing love and life in “Addio de Passata”, both awesome sung with a cappella skill and clarity. Her arm upraised from shadow slowly dropped before the flames."
-Willy Rogue Donaldson
"Kelly Meg Brennan gives a bravura performance as Petra, intimidating here, impulsive there, the approach to final implosion gradual and operatic. A stunning role, Brennan beautifully garbed by Melissa Meola - with credit to Brennan's "expansive closet." The extraordinary Brennan is aided by Kara Mckenney as Karin, likeable but maddening; the always precise Katie White."
-Ted Hadley
"Perhaps the most luminous of the newcomers, Kelly Meg Brennan as Gabriel’s wife, Gretta, adds a whole new layer of emotion. Gentle, sympathetic and ultimately quite vulnerable, Ms. Brennan offers a very real and undiscovered facet to the Conroy’s seemingly perfect marriage. It is a painful secret she keeps and the exquisitely genuine manner in which Greta holds, and then releases this secret produces a very rich tableau for Mr. Riggs, who takes full advantage. Together the couple delivers the knock-out which is at the heart of Joyce’s story."
-Neil Garvey
"Brennan’s recent performance in Some Explicit Polaroids at Torn Space was called “transformative”—yet another success for the acclaimed singer and actor."
-Buffalo Spree
-Peter Hall & Anthony Chase
"Watchers and listeners are drawn into all of this quickly because Mary Jane - brought to life by the superb young actress Kelly Meg Brennan - is a keen observer and riveting story-teller. She's privy to private information about Whitechapel’s underside, funny incidents from the brothel, secrets bared - not sparing herself from assignations gone awry and her responses to kinky requests from a variety of “johns.” “You can feel them coming from a mile away,” she recounts, “and they smell of smoke, booze…and lust.” She switches genders swiftly and perfectly, gaits and accents precise, laughter, scorn, tears."
-Ted Hadley
“Kelly is a gifted, talented performer, as well as a responsible and mature colleague with whom to work. She is diligent and meticulous and never gives less than the 100% necessary to do the job exceptionally well. I recommend her wholeheartedly and without reservation for any endeavor.”
Christian Brandjes
“Kelly has established herself in the Buffalo theater community as a hard working and detail oriented actor. The roles she is chosen for are always well researched and believable and always taken on with the professionalism of an actor in a major theater or film production. She sets a high standard in this regard.”
David Butler
"It would be tough to exaggerate Kelly Meg Brennan’s behaving abilities. She takes on a roles of about 20 opposite people as she tells her tale, any time seamlessly jumping in and out of character, infrequently in a dialogue, though blank a beat. She’s sexy, fierce, pitiful, arrogant in discerning succession."
-FADLOVE
“Thanks again to Kelly Meg Brennan for her beautiful and moving performance of The Gift last night. A very thought provoking and emotional journey that I'll be thinking about for a long time.”
-Andrea Gollhardt
“Last night I had the honor to be included in a production that still, as I wake and get ready for the day, sits with my soul. It's called The Gift, an original one woman creation from the insanely talented Kelly Meg Brennan. To say that I was blown away by her performance would be an understatement. It was raw, real and haunting. The music for the night, composed by the cellist and pianist that also performed it during the show truly took me to another place. For this experience, these people who authentically show their truth to the world with grace and beauty, I am so grateful. The show is on again tonight, doors open at 7PM and show starts at 8PM at Ashkers on Main (Corner of Main and West Ferry next to Barre Centric). This is a free event but space is very limited and we had a full house last night. I cannot wait.”
-Kasia Cummings
“Every bit of your performance was beautiful! Your set design, music, incredible singing and acting - were all outstanding. I was very moved by the experience.”
-Lukia Costello
“At an incredible event on grief and loss, with the opportunity to share healthy ways to heal. Grateful to Kelly Meg Brennan for her amazing creation and gifts.Love to Kathleen Allyn Ashwill for the invitation to be a part of this! Thanks to Ashkers on Main for providing such a wonderful space!”
-Heather Lovegood
“Such a wonderful experience... Thank you Heather Mahanraj Kaur Lovegood for bringing your Love and Light, wisdom and humor to the space! Thank you Kelly Meg Brennan for this amazing opportunity and for your kind, talented, innovative, and loving spirit! It's a joy to bring your creation to life! Xoxoxo”
-Kathleen Ashwill
“The show was something special, a very powerful lesson in how death and loss can affect everyone, and that there is no one way to react to it; only your own way. The show resonated deeply with me, and I realized during the performance what Kelly had realized; that while one may spend time being “strong” for others, it takes away time for that one to deal with the experience themselves. Another lesson was that it matters not what others think of your way of dealing with grief. In my family, showing signs of sadness was almost akin to weakness. Kelly helped me learn that this isn’t the case. It is a sign of strength.”
-Joseph Pacillo
“Thank you for giving me the opportunity to work and collaborate with you on ‘The Gift: Encountering Life, Love & Loss”. This experience leading up to the performance has made a profound impact on me as a musician and person. The project shattered the traditional structures of music and explored the endless possibilities of creativity. In the very beginning stages of this project, it was very difficult to categorize this performance into the ‘mainstream’ musical/play, classical recital, etcetera, to which I just stopped, and became intrigued with the performance being ‘different’. As we continued to develop this project, my perspective of the ‘different’ performance changed. From listening to your ideas and understanding your comments during rehearsal, I became more aware that this performance is ‘unique’ because it communicates your emotions, your grief, your story. As a person who has also experienced loss and grief, I had to physically take a step back from the piano before each performance and place myself quietly in the audience to reflect, to meditate, to remember the cherished memories of loves ones in my life, whom have passed on. I was moved to tears because of the magnitude of your story. Your story helps people heal, and I was very grateful to be a part of your story. I hope that we may continue to remain in contact and collaborate on more projects in the near future. Congratulations on your performance and your continuing success.”
-Ryan R. Heckl
“I experienced the show both as an audience participant and as a mental health professional. The show was a combination of an engaging performance and an opportunity for individuals to process unresolved grief and loss. A particularly important part of therapy is the ability to tell one’s story. The audience witnessed Kelly’s story and as a result were able to connect with their own stories and unresolved emotional pain. It was a remarkable experience; a unique combination entertainment and therapeutic healing.”
-Patrick Greene
"And then there is Brennan, with a marvelously expressive voice that moves with staggering facility from a near-operatic range to the flat speech-song required by Weill. Her Pirate Jenny is chilling."
-Richard Huntington
"Kelly Meg Brennan, as Jenny, was a pleasant surprise in the role of the tantalizing and erotic harlot. Kelly Meg Brennan's eyes burned with conviction, and her movements were definite and forthright; she naturally commanded attention, most importantly, however, Kelly Meg Brennan's mezzo vice was the musical high point in the show. Her classical training has paid off in the form of excellent elocution, phrasing, intonation, and a foxy vibrato to boot!'
-Eric J. Starr
"With her pleasing and confident voice, her sultry delivery and her easy command of the stage, Kelly Meg Brennan wows them as Jenny. At one point, Miss Brennan must sing while being turned slowly on a box by two actors-I wish they would cut it before she falls! She is too talented to lose"
-Anthony Chase
"Kelly Meg Brennan (character C) was excellent in the role of the young woman. In Act II Brennan shined during the monologue about her character's first lover. Seductive and charismatic, Brennan evinced just the right vocal clarity, countenance and body movements to bring candor a role others might bring mere ambiguity and vagary.
-Eric J. Starr
"The dusky sensation, almost as if it were innately scripted by the performers, proceeded with the mezzo-soprano voice of Kelly Meg Brennan, (the Singer), who harbored a fiery, yet elegantly polished eclipse of the human spirit; a speechless foreshadowing, deeply encompassed with, at times, a melancholic tone, paralyzing the audience from viewing the play as most Americans do- a cheery 'good time'."
-Michael Petryshyn
"The music is appropriately Spanish in flavor and by the time narrator Kelly Meg Brennan joins in with her mournful vocal introduction, this show's weighty emotional tone is quite apparent."
-Darwen McPherson
"The guys are terrific, but especially engaging are the superbly nuanced performances of Barbara Link La Rou and Kelly Meg Brennan as Lady Bracknell and her daughter Gwendolen, respectively. Not only do they bring red hair, grace, fine line readings and rich contralto voices to their roles, but their characters impose their hidebound upper-class agenda while basking in an aura of heightened femininity and sensuality. Wonderful, wonderful!"
-Patricia Donovan
"The production looks glorious, and the entire cast clicks into the style of the piece with perfection. The laughs build momentum in waves, and embrace the entire theater. Kelly Brennan and Lona Geiser play Gwendolen and Cecily with flawless precision. Never a laugh is missed-unless it is lost in the audible glee of the audience over the one preceding."
-Anthony Chase
"A familiar face graced the stage in frill Victorian elegance when Kelly Meg Brennan appeared in the role of Gwendolen, a product of the higher end of living where the finer things in life are embraced with little or no emotion. Her animated beauty is simply nulled because of the outrageousness of her spirit. In other words, many laughs are shared between the audience when Brennan is on stage. Brennan captures the comic essence of her role and flourishes with every satiric line of dialogue."
-Michael Petryshyn
"Kelly Brennan finds just the right degree of outlandish snobbery in her portrayal of Gwendolen."
-Kurt Schniederman
"Kelly Meg Brennan, stands in front of three intensely bright fluorescent bulbs standing vertically. Clad in a glittery black dress befitting a siren, she belts out a beautiful section from Heitor Villa-Lobos’ “Bachianas Brasileiras.” When she finishes, the lights flicker off, and she walks slowly and stylistically across the stage (a Torn Space trademark move). The lights surround her, and consequently the negative space of her image has been seared into audience members’ eyes, so that whenever they blink, for at least the next 20 minutes, they see her and think of her song. Brennan, whose singing ends the evening with two arias from Verdi’s “La Traviata,” is herself a force to behold and a beautiful set of parentheses to a dark night at the theater."
-Colin Dabkowski
"The Opera singer Kelly Meg Brennan beautifully carved the wistfulness of “Ah, Fors e Lui”, and prepared herself for losing love and life in “Addio de Passata”, both awesome sung with a cappella skill and clarity. Her arm upraised from shadow slowly dropped before the flames."
-Willy Rogue Donaldson
"Kelly Meg Brennan gives a bravura performance as Petra, intimidating here, impulsive there, the approach to final implosion gradual and operatic. A stunning role, Brennan beautifully garbed by Melissa Meola - with credit to Brennan's "expansive closet." The extraordinary Brennan is aided by Kara Mckenney as Karin, likeable but maddening; the always precise Katie White."
-Ted Hadley
"Perhaps the most luminous of the newcomers, Kelly Meg Brennan as Gabriel’s wife, Gretta, adds a whole new layer of emotion. Gentle, sympathetic and ultimately quite vulnerable, Ms. Brennan offers a very real and undiscovered facet to the Conroy’s seemingly perfect marriage. It is a painful secret she keeps and the exquisitely genuine manner in which Greta holds, and then releases this secret produces a very rich tableau for Mr. Riggs, who takes full advantage. Together the couple delivers the knock-out which is at the heart of Joyce’s story."
-Neil Garvey
"Brennan’s recent performance in Some Explicit Polaroids at Torn Space was called “transformative”—yet another success for the acclaimed singer and actor."
-Buffalo Spree