Hello, Dolly! (NYC) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (2,565)
See it if you want a bright, colorful, iconic show that will make all your worries disappear for 2 hours, 40 min. Legendary performance by Bette Midle
Don't see it if you think you are too cool to enjoy a big, old fashion musical.... otherwise go!! Read more
See it if You are keen to see an example of one of the great Broadway musicals from the golden age done to perfection. And Bette Midler is sublime.
Don't see it if You don’t like traditional musical comedies.
See it if You love a pure definition of a musical. With excellent singing and acting, not to mention top name stars in it
Don't see it if You aren't into a classic piece of Broadway/film history with songs, dances and a script to take you away for a few hours
See it if You enjoy classic musical comedy brilliantly performed and brilliantly directed.
Don't see it if You only enjoy "modern" musicals or "significant" drama.
See it if you like an upbeat evening
Don't see it if you like edgy downtown theatre
See it if you want to experience Broadway at it's very best. Bette Midler and David Hyde Pierce together is pure magic.
Don't see it if you don't want to rob a bank to buy a ticket.
See it if you want to enjoy a classic Broadway experience
Don't see it if Musical theatre bores you!
See it if Are a Bette fan!! She’s is hysterical! She steals the show. David wasn’t too shabby himself!! Throughly entertaining. I’d say run to see it!
Don't see it if No reason unless u hate musicals. This show was 1 of my favorites to date.
Critic Reviews (64)
"A cheery production that brings back nostalgia for classic musical comedy...It’s hard to do this show wrong. The story is silly, but we forgive it simply because of the nostalgia attached to it...Midler knows how to hit the comedic beats without batting an eye...This ensemble of supporting players was more than capable to help carry the show...'Hello, Dolly!' is a sweet production that stays in bounds. If anything it brought Midler back to musical theater. And that’s a triumph right there."
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“At 71, Midler still has expert comic timing…Jerry Herman's 1964 score contains more earworms than virtually any show in history…Zaks' traditional, if sumptuous, production makes sure it feels constantly fresh and funny…The performances mix and match realism with caricature. Midler's Dolly is naturally larger-than-life, and if she sometimes overdoes the comedy, there's a knowing charm that is completely disarming.”
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"Peters, the night this reviewer attended at least, seemed more distant and more nervous and tentative in the role...Peters’ Dolly feels more skittish and scattered, and less focused...There is no sense why Peters' Dolly and Garber’s Horace would get together, and no sense of them operating together when sharing a stage...Suddenly, 'Hello, Dolly!' feels like a company of individual performers working hard, rather than a company of performers in smooth, collective command of the material."
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"A star vehicle with more than its share of glitz and glamour masking an old-fashioned story that is mediocre at best and downright embarrassing at worst...Midler has charm and energy to spare, if not quite the pipes and the moves...This version is really more of a cabaret-circus variety show than a full-fledged Broadway musical...Through it all, though, there’s Bette, who never really inhabits the role but plays herself playing the character while basking in the unending attention."
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"She brings a refreshing vulnerability to Dolly Levi — a word that you could never put in the same sentence with Bette Midler. In Peters’ hands, the Act 1 show-stopper 'Before the Parade Passes By' begins as a heart-tugging almost introspective cri de coeur until she builds up the courage to take on the world...Peters is well-matched with Victor Garber...But the real standout in this production is Charlie Stemp...Stemp virtually steals the show."
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“An unstoppable juggernaut of old-fashioned schmaltz and star power. Zaks’s staging sticks resolutely to that familiar formula and eschews any trace of directorial innovation…Midler’s magnetic stage presence duly compensates for a singing voice that displays limited range…It all adds up to a slick yet somewhat hollow package that cries out for a smidgen of pathos amid over two hours of relentless merriment…'Hello, Dolly!' nonetheless delivers a potent dose of high-spirited fun.”
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“It is simply showcase for the beloved performer to strut, parade and pander…Somehow in the back of my mind, I firmly believe that Midler could have come through with a real and unforgettable character had she had the right director. Zaks wasn’t and she didn’t. The supporting cast generally keeps the faith with the melodic Herman score…Choreographer Carlyle has effectively filled many of the most cringe-worthy gaps with obligatory bursts of robust dancing.”
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"Peters bring to the role all the authority, magnetism and variety she has displayed and perfected in a career stretching over five decades...Like Midler before her, Peters and her fans – not to mention the wily promotion and ad campaigns – elevate the show to an event, not simply just a first-class Broadway remounting of a classic musical comedy...The grace and liveliness of the production numbers make up for the occasional hardening of the show’s many riotous moments."
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