Press
For Robert as Richard Burbage at The keegan theatre
directed by Ricky Drummond and Douglas Dubois
"But the absolute standouts of the show were inarguably Robert Bowen Smith as Richard Burbage and Taylor Witt as Ned Alleyn (who, within the show, is cast as Mercutio); Smith and Witt each played their characters' grandiosity perfectly, and the energy they brought to stage during their confrontation was easily the highlight of the whole production.
-Rachael F. Goldberg, Broadway World
For Robert as The EVIL STEPFATHER at Synetic Theater
directed by MARIA SIMPKINS
"Robert Bowen Smith boldly gives us an effete patriarchal figure that reminded me of Cyril Ritchard’s Mr. Darling/Captain Hook in the 1954 Broadway production of Peter Pan."
-Gregory Ford, DC Metro Theater Arts
"We’re treated to a hilariously egotistical wicked stepfather, played with snooty aplomb by Robert Bowen Smith."
-Liz Ruth-Brinegar, MD Theatre Guide
"...and Robert Bowen Smith was a pitch-perfect counterpart as the Stepfather."
-Dara Homer, Broadway World
For Robert as The Wizard in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz at Synetic Theater
directed by Ryan Sellers
"Encouraging signs are the impishness of Robert Bowen Smith’s Elton John look as the fake Wizard in oversize glasses with emerald-tinted lenses..."
-Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post
"The one character and performance that transmits the magnetism of a seeker on a mission is the Wizard himself. Robert Bowen Smith’s squirrelly, steampunk Wizard of Oz wants the hell out of this wacky, witch-filled purgatory, and he’ll take advantage of innocent Dorothy and her friends if he must. The actor’s a delight, and the story seems to want to go the Wiz’s way, but, alas, it floats off instead after Dorothy."
-Andre Hereford, Metro Weekly
"Robert Bowen Smith captures the essence of the Midwesterner with humor and pathos."
-Jeffrey Walker, DC Theatre Scene
"Robert Bowen Smith gives a very affecting performance as the Wizard, giving the character a depth and warmth that is often missing in Oz adaptations."
-Norah Dick, BroadwayWorld.com
For Robert as Joseph in Peekaboo at The Hub Theatre
directed by Helen R. Murray
"Robert Bowen Smith can be quite funny as a guileless, amorous Joseph, who’s anxious about his baby-care skills (“I’m gonna drop the hope of the world on its head!”)."
-Celia Wren, The Washington Post
"As Joseph, Robert Bowen Smith gives his portrayal a youthful slacker aura."
-David Siegel, DC Metro Theater Arts
For Robert as Gringore in The Hunchback of Notre Dame at Synetic Theater
directed by Paata Tsikurishvili
"Robert Bowen Smith capably conveys the flaky quality required for Gringoire, here a musician entangled in Esmeralda’s ever more complicated love life."
- Peter Marks, The Washington Post
"Robert Bowen Smith’s Gringoire gets a delightful, comedic fight over his prized flute; at least, until the ensemble tries to hang him. Hard to imagine this shares its plot with a Disney movie."
-Marshall Bradshaw, DC Theatre Scene
"Robert Bowen Smith is appealing and touching as Gringoire, the musician who unwittingly trespasses upon Beggars Guild territory."
-Pamela Roberts, BroadwayWorld.com
"Robert Bowen-Smith and Lee Liebeskind, meanwhile, provide some fine comic relief as Gringoire and Clopin, the leader of Esmeralda’s band of gypsies and thieves."
-Andrew White, Maryland Theatre Guide
For Robert as 'He' in Remeau's Nephew at Spooky Action Theater
directed by Richard Henrich
"Smith’s antic tour de force performance—a reason to rush to see this show—somehow turns the character’s appallingly selfish ethos into endlessly entertaining sketch comedy. I cannot recall a more enjoyable character on stage whose value system is so utterly bereft of a care for anyone but himself."
-John Stoltenberg, DC Metro Theater Arts
"...Robert Bowen Smith, is the exuberant and erratic provocateur, “He.”
-Chris Williams, MD Theatre Review
"Smith commands the charmingly sleazy title role, conveying delicious debauchery as he makes his case for a life of vice and laments his present state of destitution. To call Smith energetic would be a gross understatement: he acts out detailed vignettes, becomes various characters, dynamically pantomimes a full orchestra, and to everyone's delight, performs an absurd song made up entirely of coughs. He truly excels at these, the play's most madcap moments, and seems to do so with ease."
-Barbara Johnson, BroadwayWorld.com
For Robert as Man in Lauren Yee's in a word
at The Hub Theater, directed by Matt Bassett
"Robert Bowen Smith takes on multiple roles: Tristan, the principal, a detective, even the neighborhood kidnapper who pops up in the produce aisle. Each one of Smith's characters is unique and fully fleshed, but the complicated boy Tristan - at times heartbreaking, at times hilarious - is especially noteworthy."
-Pamela Roberts, BroadwayWorld.com
"Robert Bowen Smith does a fine job juggling all the play’s other roles, including the unnervingly unpredictable detective and Andy, Guy’s best friend, whose gossipy comments about Tristan’s birth mother (“She joined the army.. . . /She flew the coop./She popped the weasel./She put the bomp in the bompbahbompbah.”) illustrate how the play’s naturalistic dialogue sometimes veers into poignant, jazzy poetry. Smith particularly aces his portrait of Tristan, who’s sweet one moment and throwing tantrums the next."
-Celia Wren, The Washington Post
"Robert Bowen Smith is at his best as Tristan, especially when demonstrating the boy’s stubbornness and tantrums."
-Steven McKnight, DC Theatre Scene
For Robert as Grigory in Collaborators at Spooky Action Theater, directed by Richard Henrich
"Robert Bowen Smith gives a poignant and passionate performance as Grigory, Bulgakov’s poet friend...."
-Natasha Joyce, MD Theatre Guide
For Robert in Flying V Fights: Heroes & Monsters with Flying V Theatre, directed by Jason Schlafstein
"All eight of these skilled performers are phenomenal dancers and excellent actors."
-Karim Doumar, DC Metro Theater Arts
"...not only is each piece intensely interesting and new, each of the many characters taken on by the actors is distinct and captivating."
-Heather Hill, MD Theatre Guide
"The earnest Robert Bowen Smith is well suited as an Average Joe glumly sharing his daily routine on the subway, the sidewalk, and so on with a menagerie of heroes and monsters."
-Ben Demers, DC Theatre Scene
"“The Greatest Story Never Told,” featuring Robert Bowen Smith as an everyman character, proves a total charmer of an epilogue, but one must not give it away."
-Jane Horwitz, The Washington Post
For Robert as King Louis XIII in The Three Musketeers at Synetic Theater, directed by Paata Tsikurishvili
"...plotting behind the back of the foppish King Louis XIII (a consistently amusing Robert Bowen Smith)"
-Missy Frederick, Washingtonian
"...Robert Bowen Smith’s gaudy, low comic vamp as the mincing menace King Louis XIII, resplendent in an all-white, open-collar getup that slightly recalls a latter-day Elvis."
-Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post
"Robert Bowen Smith is particularly disarming as the monarch more interested in balls (royal, tennis, and otherwise) than foreign affairs."
-Rebecca J. Ritzel, Washington City Paper
"....a flighty King Louis XIII (a delightfully quirky Robert Bowen Smith)...."
-Natalie McCabe, DC Metro Theatre Arts
"...Smith's portrayal of King Louis [...] leave [s] a lasting mark on the production. Each scene with Smith is comical, ridiculous, over-the-top, and leaves you anxiously awaiting the next one."
-Christine Kowal, BroadwayWorld.com