Grand Horizons

See it if you love and expect realism and respectability.

Don't see it if you’re looking for something more than old-people-have-sex-too the sitcom.

Also it’s a shame talents like Michael Urie and Ashley Park can’t be fully showcased here. Characters are all entirely one-dimensional.... Read more Read less

See it if You might go to see a wonderful cast or muse on love and marriage and how they produce a dysfunctional family.

Don't see it if You want characters with dimension and realism in how people react in stressful situations.

Also Bummer. I'm a fan of playwright Bess Wohl butt in this hit-and-miss play featuring several unsympathetic one-dimensional characters (I'm talking about you Michael Urie) and their theatrical reactions to their parent's divorce there was no one to root for. The children were cliches, the husband a grump and poor Jane Alexander didn't generate the kind of heat that made you care about her.
And it wasn't all that funny when it was supposed to be. Never thought I would long for NeiI Simon.
Yet there were moments in the second act when things looked up. Not enough to redeem the show but enough to feel it wasn't a totally wasted afternoon.
But if there is a Tony for the most obnoxious character in a play I'm voting for Michael Urie's performance as Brian the sensitive son. Like chalk on a blackboard.... Read more Read less

See it if To see Jane Alexander act after such a llong hiatus .

Don't see it if if you want good sit com well acted and with a real and well written approach to a problem

See it if you want to see Jane Alexander who rarely performs.

Don't see it if a repetitive sit com would annoy you.

Also How can we believe this family's issues when every conceivable problem is tossed in? Seems to be geared for an audience who just wants to laugh without substance. Ashley Park and James Cromwell were the best for me. I don't like throwing in profanity just for the comic effect.... Read more Read less

See it if A sit com type play. Alexander and Cromswell are excellent with the slim roles they have.

Don't see it if Want depth, sharp writing, or character development. The show is so cliched and Michael Urie is really an offensive cliche

Also I expect better from Wolh who has done such excellent work

See it if You want to see a truthful play about old people that is not about death or dementia, you enjoy seeing two old pros rise above the material

Don't see it if You were really expecting snappy dialogue, or a bold exploration of thoughtful themes

See it if you want to see a play that goes down smooth, anchored by some excellent actors not necessarily doing their finest work.

Don't see it if you're looking for as deep or meaningful experience as this play aspires to be.

Also This had been sold to me by some as "the kind of comedies you used to see on Broadway." While I don't disagree that this is an earnest attempt at an adult comedy with mature themes but told in breezy fashion, this ultimately fell short for me. It reminded me of Charles Busch's "The Tale of the Allergist's Wife," only for all of that play's snappy one liners and "Three's Company" plotting, it still left me with a rich experience when I walked out the door. GRAND HORIZONS is perfectly fine but constantly left me trying to fill in gaps of what seemed to be a needlessly simplified story. A few too many times I thought that it spelled out its themes as if the audience wouldn't understand them otherwise. It has big set pieces & whole sequences that could be intimated with subtext rather than action. A few performers rise above the material. Jane Alexander is marvelous. Michael Urie is playing a role he could do in his sleep but is still great. The conclusion is nice but by then it's too late... Read more Read less

See it if You looking for an unchallenging play filled with contemporary character cliches with a few mildly funny moments thrown in for good measure.

Don't see it if You're looking for something more challenging than the average network sitcom.

See it if You want a light evening, mostly laughs.

Don't see it if You want to be challenged, the drama never gets too deep.

Also Overall OK. I laughed, but I kept hoping the play would dive a bit deeper, and every time it started to, it stopped.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy family dramas with a well rounded cast. The best acting and writing of the play comes towards the end with Alexander and Cromwell.

Don't see it if you don't like cliches abound and the piece feels underdeveloped and too long. The top of act two feels like an episode of the Golden girls.

See it if you want an evening of entertainment and belly laughs.

Don't see it if you prefer a story of the dissolution of a 50-year marriage to taste more like haggis than meringue.

Also what a novelty these days for a play to begin with a curtain-raiser, revealing a stunning set to a delighted audience. (ooh! ahh! applause!) brightly lit & populated with two actors of great stature (jane alexander & james cromwell), this is a reassuring tip-off to a sprightly & expert evening. jane & james prepare for dinner silently, performing the contented rituals of a long-married couple. and then jane drops the bomb that sets this play in motion. writer bess wohl has channeled neil simon, playing everything for laughs even when she gropes for a bit of profundity. their kids hurtle into the independent living community (hence the title) in an effort to save their parents' marriage. hilarity ensues. at one point, jane alexander tells her horrified son (michael urie) about a long-ago evening of orgasmic oral sex in a lengthy monologue which is as improbable as it is funny. a far-fetched coup-de-théâtre spectacularly ends the first act. act two tries & fails to keep up the momentum.... Read more Read less

See it if If you think older people talking about sex is a hoot in and of itself. If you can wait for the much stronger, more interesting second act.

Don't see it if Raucous laughter by much of the audience at unfunny lines will grate on your nerves.

See it if You want to see some good actors doing pretty good work in an OK, but certainly not great comedy.

Don't see it if You want to see something excellent.

See it if Have low expectations of a Broadway show and can enjoy with a very simple/predictable story and flat characters

Don't see it if Would like to see good story, observations, production and acting in a Broadway play for that price range

See it if You can get cheap tickets and you have seen most other shows. Sometimes funny, often predictable HBO mini-TV series stuck in nineties.

Don't see it if You value your Broadway experience or are visiting New York.

See it if You find most multicam broadcast tv sitcoms funny, like seeing famous actors on stage, and enjoy safe family comedies.

Don't see it if You think theatrical dialogue should be sharp and fat-free, and expect plays to have more substance than television sitcoms

Also The audience was laughing, but one could see the jokes coming and many seemed recycled or cribbed from other sources. Long stretches of banal dialogue. The actress with the smaller part in the second half had the most charisma and did the most with her role. Both of the sons were underwritten and Michael Urie’s usual set of histrionic gestures was on full display but without the jokes or depth to match. Pacing was surprisingly, disappointingly slack. Jane Alexander still has charisma, though. James Cromwell does a good job, but he doesn’t have enough to do. Younger actors do not fare as well.... Read more Read less

See it if you're over 75 year old, not gay, and don't like good comedy.

Don't see it if you don't like the relegation of gay characters, if a slow paced drama that doesn't really earn its emotions appeals to you.

Also Maulik Pancholy was BY FAR the best part of the show, and he was only in ONE SCENE.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see the principles. Jane Alexander had her moments to shine. Nice to see Ashley Park even as a stereotype.

Don't see it if Again with the sex jokes? Michael Urie needs new schtick as gay son. Another not very funny sitcom.

Also Warning: Plot Points below/Spoilers?

Mom wants divorce tired of not being seen, memories of "true love".

Stoic Dad loves wife but...wants to be an octogenarian stand up comic...

It's contagious, soon dtr in law wants to be seen. Can a flat Ben McKenzie ever stop calling her 'babe'? PLEASE.

Throw in a few scenes of irritating psychobabble and...Will they or wont they divorce?

I disdain the psychobabble but ultimately its works in the hands of these two pros.... Read more Read less

See it if You like sit-coms. Acting is excellent, both Jane Alexander and Cromwell superb. Nice set. Young audience laughing hysterically.

Don't see it if Constant sexual references annoy you. Stupid sex jokes, raw sex talk, contrived plot points, some characters just filler.

See it if you want to see this set of actors doing the kinds of characters you'd expect

Don't see it if you're used to Bess Wohl's more ambitious works

See it if You want very light entertainment. It’s sitcom-esque writing about marriage, sex, love, etc.

Don't see it if You’re in the mood for great truth or great farce. This is pitched right down the middle of the road.

Also McKenzie felt miscast. Park, Pancholy, and Lopez give the strongest performances in the smallest roles. Nothing about the show was BAD, but it also didn’t feel special.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a new comedy about a family dealing with feeling unseen.

Don't see it if You want dark humor.

Also There are a few good jokes and few nice moments, but it doesn’t add up to anything I didn’t feel I’ve seen many times before.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see a throwback to the 1960s Neil Simon style of comedy. Broad, yet somehow also mild, and rather unsurprising. Great cast!

Don't see it if you want a challenging work. This is a safe, sitcom-ish, totally conventional comedy one might find in regional theatre. Competent, though.

See it if you want to see a couple of old pros (and some young pros) giving their all in the service of a perfectly pleasant but unremarkable play.

Don't see it if you saw Bess Wohl’s “Make Believe” and are expecting something equally imaginative from her this time around.

Also Why has Second Stage changed the signage at the Helen Hayes Theater to refer to it as the “Hayes Theater”? I asked about the name change when I picked up my ticket at the box office, and was told that the name of the theater is still the Helen Hayes, but that, when Second Stage uses the theater, they refer to it as the “Hayes”. As you can tell from my avatar, I’m opposed to any sign of disrespect to Helen Hayes, so I’m deeply offended, and frankly puzzled, by this policy.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see a sitcom masquerading as high art. It's great to watch Jane Alexander, but the play was pure fluff. Nice premise was ruined.

Don't see it if you want real reactions to a real situation. Not sure if the writing was bad, the acting or the directing. wasn't farce wasn't comedy.