In Ray Saraceni, the Iron Age Theatre production has a strong Luther. It also has the advantage of the atmospheric environment of the Emanuel Lutheran Church sanctuary, where it is being presented.
Saraceni's portrayal of Luther is presented with the energy, physical vitality and purpose the man must have had, but more important the actor conveys the spiritual and intellectual restlessness that propelled him into confrontation with the church.
Saraceni's forceful portrayal is only fitfully supported by others in the large cat. Some are competent enough, among them Bill Braak as Luther's father - God wasn't the only paternal figure with whom Luther struggled - and Bayard Walker as his friend Staupitz.
Douglas Keating
Philadelphia Inquirer

There's an inherent atmosphere in the place, its character, its history and its sheer scale. And then there are those excellent acoustics - from the rousing sermons of Ray Saraceni's Luther, delivered from Emanuel's own pulpit, to whispered doubts about his faith and the consequences of his writings --the production enjoys an aural clarity surpassing several of the city's built-to-task performance spaces.
Saraceni carries much of the show's weight as Luther, in a performance that reveals a man at once both driven and doubtful, inspired and conflicted.
He's joined by a strong cast including Garrett Lee Hendricks, Gene D'Allesandro, Dordon Bivings, Gerre Garrett and Michael Dura. Hendricks' Tetzel, the charismatic seller of paper indulgences, provides an able and energetic foil to Saraceni's Luther.
Greg Miller
Arcade

Iron Age's LUTHER was beautiful and extremely interesting as well. The John Osborne play is a dramaturg's dream, and Iron Age does a lovely job in an appropriately historic site-specific space. If you saw (and loved) Iron Age's TUNNEL at Eastern State Penitentiary, you'll be amazed by LUTHER at Emanuel Lutheran Church.
Aileen McCulloch
The(atre) Consortium

Space plays a key role in the success of any theatrical production. Iron Age Theatre's use of the 153-year old Emanuel Lutheran Church's sanctuary for its site-specific production of Luther by John Osborne adds an atmosphere of reverence....
Staged and designed by Randall Wise and John Doyle, Iron Age's enormously theatrical production follows suit, most notably in Ray Saraceni's flamboyant portrayal of the militant Augustinian.
Cooper Robb
Philadelphia Weekly