"Svelte Hannah Shankman is a tough, tightly-strung and ultimately touching Betty Rizzo, the easy girl who sings the satirical song, “Look at Me, I’m Sandra Dee,” and the hard-eyed ballad, “There Are Worse Things I Could Do.” She generates some dance sizzle in her numbers.."

...".all of us wondered how the lead actress playing Fanny Brice would stack up against the iconic Barbra Steisand. Could anyone wrest songs like “People” from the grip of the star who owns it? On opening night last week, I and others in the large audience found out. Hannah Shankman.... almost had us on our feet from the opening moments." - The Columbia Tribune

"— this Fanny Brice belongs to Hannah" - The Columbia Daily Tribune

"Going into casting without a solid Fanny Brice in my back pocket was probably my riskiest move this year — I can’t begin to tell you what a relief it was when Hannah Shankman walked into our audition studio in NYC, as she was clearly born to play this role" - Interview with Quin Gresham for The Columbia Daily Tribune

"Hannah Shankman as 'Rizzo'... sang beautifully and (was) uproariously funny." - Tanglewood