Charlie and The Chocolate Factory (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (951)
See it if You want an updated version of the movie and Christian Borle is very entertaining!
Don't see it if The first act is a little slow and long but once the children find their golden tickets, the second act moves quickly.
See it if you enjoyed any of the previous iterations of the story, love musicals about family and self realization & can appreciate Dahl's weirdness.
Don't see it if you lack imagination or dislike quirky characters/situations. Read more
See it if You're a fan of the movie or book. It was fantastic. Very creative. Borle (Wonka) did not disappoint.
Don't see it if Some inappropriate jokes but I don't know if kids would even understand them Read more
See it if You want to take your children, feel nostalgic for the Gene Wilder film and just want to be entertained
Don't see it if You like a thinking, resonant musical
See it if you love the original film or the remake. The cast is great and there is some wonderful special effects.
Don't see it if This show urges the audience to use its imagination, which is good but it comes at the expense of a big, bold set. Not as "fun" as you hope
See it if You have young kids. Show is very quickly paced so their focus will be kept
Don't see it if Closes this weekend so go see it.
See it if You are fans of musicals, the film or Roald Dahl. Great performance from Christian Borle carries the show. Good set but expected more wow.
Don't see it if You don't like children's stories or children not playing children!
See it if You like charlie and chocolate factory story. It was very enojayable with great staging. Oompa loompas were awesome. Great music.
Don't see it if You do not like musicals and story of charlie and chocolate factory.
Critic Reviews (52)
"Flavors are missing and oddly combined, running the risk of pleasing neither children nor grown-ups...The music is serviceable enough without being in any way memorable. The lyrics are occasionally clever...What world are we in? Who is this show for? These strike me as the central problems with this adaptation and production...In the end, 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' doesn’t deliver either an endorphin-inducing chocolate high or a satisfying experience."
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"Borle plays Wonka with exhilarating ferocity. Abetted by a compellingly motivated company...Some transfers from film or book to stage work and some don't. Not so sure this time...What has presumably remained intact is the serviceable, if not quite funny enough, book and the sprightly original score...'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' may not be a golden ticket winner in the musical theater sweepstakes but it does win on its own terms by tickling our imagination."
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“Without the more spectacular effects of either of the films—or even of the London production of the musical version, for that matter—’Charlie’ loses most of its impact. It becomes a bunch of people running around a stage, trying to engage us in an empty story. And who cares, or why should we? Even Christian Borle seems to melt into the cardboard scenery.”
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"Much has gone awry with the weird humor and horror that now becomes a fudged version of itself...The standouts are the Oompa Loompas...Although I know Borle as a top-notch actor, he fails to impress in this misbegotten role...Who’s at fault? Greig’s book? O’Brien’s interpretation? Perhaps more pure imagination would have served this family musical better. But, instead, we are left with a bittersweet taste—this could have been more."
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"This adaptation, with just a few blips, rises to the occasion...Act I at moments lacks vitality, as if the muted colors have at times muted the action. Act II fares better, with dazzling color and a faster pace...A marvel of theatricality, with a great voice and a gift for physical comedy, Borle gives an electric performance of unflagging energy...O’Brien has directed an eccentric, entertaining, and at times dazzling production of a timeless story audiences will take to heart."
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"This musical is as sweet and charming as can be, with a gleefully dose of wickedness that isn’t too dark or deadly...The production whistles along quite competently hitting all the right notes of wonder, sweetness, and more importantly, devilishness when the recipe starts feeling a bit too sweet...I can’t say this musical is a revelation in any way, and at times the story lacked a strong drive forward...I was never bored, but I can’t say I was fully engaged with my heart or my soul."
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“The confection they’ve crafted overloads on sweetness, goes berserk with frenetic energy, and then, predictably, crashes. It is, on the whole, a slightly nauseating experience…Mindlessness seems to have won the day...Christian Borle, as the famous chocolatier himself, proves the exception to the rule in this production…Wonka’s factory is glaringly lacking in magic…The new musical numbers are largely forgettable.”
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“The overall effect manages to be too obvious and yet too bland...I have nothing especially negative to say about most of the performances, including Borle’s, although nothing especially positive to say about the actors portraying the four insufferable children who won the sought-after golden tickets…Their ends are clearly meant to be clever, but don’t sparkle in the execution…I suspect there are enough moments to make the show at least intermittently enjoyable for adult chaperones.”
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