Ink NYC Reviews and Tickets

83%
(457 Reviews)
Positive
94%
Mixed
5%
Negative
1%
Members say
Great acting, Great staging, Absorbing, Relevant, Clever

About the Show

MTC's new play follows the brash young Rupert Murdoch in 1969 London as he purchases a struggling paper, The Sun, and sets out to make it a must-read smash. Starring Bertie Carvel ("Matilda") and Jonny Lee Miller ("Elementary").

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Member Reviews (457)

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1026 Reviews | 423 Followers
89
Resonant, Intelligent, Relevant, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if You’re interested in seeing a big part of the puzzle of why we are in the major crap storm that we’re in now with the downfall of the media.

Don't see it if You don’t care about current affairs or want something light and fluffy. Read more

754 Reviews | 124 Followers
85
Thought-provoking, Great writing, Great acting, Great staging, Absorbing

See it if you are interested in newspapers, Murdoch or morality of decision making. The remarkable staging is enough reason to see it! Loved the music

Don't see it if you want an uplifting experience. There are no winners, no moral message, nothing but the unhappiness of people who got what they wanted

716 Reviews | 157 Followers
86
Great staging, Great acting, Clever, Ambitious, Absorbing

See it if you're a fan of print journalism, British newspaper history, curious about Rupert Murdoch, fan of Carvel or Miller, enjoy a good story

Don't see it if Have no interest in recent British history or in the London tabloids, don't care for Rupert Murdoch, have trouble with English accents

650 Reviews | 284 Followers
78
Fascinating story of how r murdoch purchased a minor london newspaper and thru his editor turned it into an audacious tabloid that became the most-read paper in the country; needs to dig deeper

See it if shows high testosterone atmosphere of newsroom in 1969/70 thru fabulous mise-en-scene (set, lighting, etc.) & amusing stylized acting/mvmnt

Don't see it if largely spectacle; not probe deeply into Murdoch's motivations; 2 much acting is animated shouting, words hard to understand

667 Reviews | 131 Followers
84
Absorbing, Great staging, Great acting, Funny, Entertaining

See it if About making a newpaper with different topical and way of reporting new or not news.

Don't see it if It is need 3 hours, sometimes strong language or not interested in subject.

MJK
677 Reviews | 190 Followers
80
Illuminating, Entertaining, Very good acting, Great staging, Absorbing

See it if ur interested in a complex, creative, engaging chronicle of Rupert Murdoch's rise (or should I say descent) into tabloid journalism fame.

Don't see it if u expect the Murdoch-Fox News story [tho his purchase of the Sun offers insight into his latter infamy]; u don't like British music hall.

688 Reviews | 116 Followers
90
Great staging, Great acting, Dizzying, Edgy, Entertaining

See it if Profane, vulgar, self-absorbed & wildly theatrical Ink is a dramatic version of the tabloid it depicts Miller, Carvel & cast are thrilling

Don't see it if The lengthy 1st Act of The Sun's beginnings cuts into the more pressing moral questions of the 2nd Yet the arc into the present is chilling

don
506 Reviews | 1000 Followers
90
Thought-provoking, Intelligent, Great staging, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if Powerful acting esp. by Bertie Carvel & J. L.Miller Great set Lighting so good. Musical bits and semi dances hit me just right. Great story.

Don't see it if British accents might be a problem for some . Beware 1st row seats at the Friedman

Critic Reviews (51)

The New York Times
April 24th, 2019

“Directed with vaudevillian flair and firecracker snap by Goold...The first act abounds in adrenaline...'Ink' proposes that the sensibility that would generate today’s tidal wave of social media originated with early London-era Murdoch. At the same time, this production is steeped in a gritty nostalgia for the end of a chapter in journalism...The largely American, multicast ensemble deploys varyingly confident British accents. But it does well in sustaining the play’s propulsive momentum. "
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Time Out New York
April 24th, 2019

“Graham labors hard to humanize Lamb with shadows of self-doubt, this psychological element is oversold and unconvincing, and we’re left with a long show about a foregone conclusion...Goold knows that ‘Ink’ needs ginning up, and boy, he ladles on the gin. This production is loud, and it’s lit like a rock show...Goold may think he’s rescuing a dry procedural by turning it into hyperactive, overamplified children’s theater for adults, but he’s actually administering the killing blow.”
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New York Magazine / Vulture
April 24th, 2019

“Directed with plenty of pop and fizz by Goold, and driven by the compelling performances of Carvel and Miller, it’s both playful and thoughtful — not, perhaps, a kick-in-the-guts play, but an energetic, respectable handshake...’Ink’ is perhaps on the back-heavy side, with all of the play’s weightiest, densest episodes shoved into Act Two, whereas most of the first act is dedicated to the amusing, 'Ocean’s Eleven'–like assembling of The Sun’s ragtag team.”
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New Yorker
April 28th, 2019

"Your fairly standard slice-of-life drama, but one that’s been tricked out to feel more contemporary than it really is...Graham never really tells us who Murdoch is...Graham has written a buddy newspaper story—one without a buddy but with all the wisecracking and smoking and typing that we’ve heard and seen time and again...One could make an easy argument for ‘Ink’ as a treatise on the rotten rise of celebrity culture, but its intellectual properties aren’t that expansive.”
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The Hollywood Reporter
April 24th, 2019

“Basically a semi-dramatized Wikipedia page with two satisfyingly fleshed-out characters in a crowded field, and two correspondingly compelling performances competing for attention with a load of directorial froufrou...Goold stages it all with a putting-on-a-show adrenaline rush, even if it's somewhat undercut by lack of character shading in the newsroom figures...Graham's storytelling instincts too often get dulled here, and Goold's frantically busy direction can't disguise that.”
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Variety
April 24th, 2019

“’Ink’ is the theatrical equivalent of its subject...Like the tabloid, it feels unsubstantial, rushed and icky...Those expecting a psychological study of a titan, deep analysis of the marketplace, or personal stories...will find the play lacking, as it favors boisterous pronouncements and mythologizing over the human touch...Instead of digging deeper into the story, Goold and company simply crank up the speed and volume...It’s not until the end of the play that things slow to a human tempo.”
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The Wall Street Journal
April 25th, 2019

"Carvel's fictional Murdoch is irresistibly outrageous...Miller is just as good, bulldozing his way through his scenes with knockdown energy, and the rest of the ensemble cast charges after the two of them like gung-ho soldiers bound for glory, egged on by Mr. Goold and his superb design team. They generate enough energy among them to mostly overcome the structural weaknesses of 'Ink'...A refreshing piece of intelligent, mostly unpreachy entertainment."
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The Observer
April 24th, 2019

“Directed with nonstop gusto...On the whole, the leading men are well-matched...Graham churns out meaty dialogue and keeps things moving, but there’s a sense that he’s often rushing to check off the next journalistic milestone. The action seldom slows down long enough to dig into any of the characters’ back stories..Still, due to Goold’s brassy, athletic staging and a fine ensemble, ‘Ink’ is never boring...But turn the page, and you find yourself wanting more news, less flash.”
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