August Wilson’s Jitney (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (388)
See it if You love smart well acted August Wilson plays.
Don't see it if You aren't into dramatic shows
See it if detailed characters who work for a car service in econ. deprived African-Amer. neighborhood played by an amazing ensemble in a detailed set
Don't see it if you want a lot of action. There are 2 scenes where there is emotional clash but we really learn stories thru conversations Read more
See it if You wanna see the most cohesive production on Broadway in a while.
Don't see it if You can't afford Broadway. Go to Lincoln Center's library though and say you're studying August Wilson and watch the recording.
See it if you love August Wilson, the finest Wilsonian actors in a very even handed ensemble, great set design, pacing. I saw it twice in 2 weeks.
Don't see it if you don't care for excellence. So, see it.
See it if want to see a very intriguing play. It holds your attention the entire time and is very educational. A fantastic work of August Wilson.
Don't see it if you are trying to see a show with young children.
See it if You get a chance (it closes Sunday). But it's a note-perfect ensemble in a fantastic piece by America's best playwright (my opinion).
Don't see it if You can't get in. That's the only reason to miss it. And if that happens, cross your fingers it can transfer for a longer run elsewhere.
See it if you're a fan of August Wilson's work and want to see the best ensemble acting on Broadway. John Douglas Thompson is brilliant in it.
Don't see it if You're not a fan of Wilson's work. BUT... maybe you should give it a chance!
See it if You like August Wilson. Great cast. Fantastic set.
Don't see it if you want a simple fluffy plot.
Critic Reviews (54)
"Lucky for audiences at 'Jitney' that those nine souls onstage are mesmerizingly heartbreaking, passionate, comical, and true...'Jitney' is only as good as its ensemble...To pick out one or two shining stars would do a disservice to the beautiful orchestration of the acting company in this production...There is an authenticity and ease with which the actors flow through the work, including Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s direction, which provides the cast with cohesion, nuance, and clarity."
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“The plotline has the familiar scent of socially oriented melodrama: the city plans to board up the place and build something else, thus depriving the struggling drivers of their livelihoods. The righteous boss, Becker (John Douglas Thompson), has a plan to fight back, thus giving the play a structural framework, but the real interest is in the intensely vivid characters, their electric, richly accented language, replete with aria-like speeches, and their emotionally fraught relationships.”
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"Much of the acting is extraordinary, particularly the lacerating father and son confrontation that closes the first act...One of Wilson’s great gifts has been locating the poetic and the performative in what strikes the ear as ordinary speech, to lift casual conversation into something more striking and more resonant. Santiago-Hudson, a longtime Wilson adherent as performer and director, has a fine ear for the play’s musicality."
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"A powerful, if uneven, new staging...Thompson’s remarkable performance makes us feel every ounce of his burden...Dirden is more the returning college professor than a trapped man just released...Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s direction doesn’t completely conceal the play’s flaws. He does, however, expose its brilliance, with a good ear for Wilson’s sly, deprecating humor...He keeps 'Jitney' running on all cylinders despite a few bumps in writing and performance."
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"Santiago-Hudson has become one of the surest practitioners of Wilson’s art. Perhaps due in part to his acting life, Santiago-Hudson helps his cast—each and every one—bring out the richness in the characters...An excellent production of an intriguing play, overflowing with that incomparable language of the master. But the script itself, as rich as it is in performance, is not quite an American classic and not quite up to the other nine plays."
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"This superb production at Manhattan Theatre Club was worth the wait...The reunion scene between father and son that ends the first act is both riveting and lacerating...Ensemble acting doesn’t get much better than this...Ruben Santiago-Hudson once again demonstrates his aptitude for Wilson’s work. The play is weakened a bit by its pat ending, but not enough to erase its many strengths...This is a powerful revival of a play well worth seeing."
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"A dynamic revival...Director Ruben Santiago-Hudson brings out more humor than Marion McClinton did in his 2000 staging...The more serious moments are equally intense...John Douglas Thompson, one of our best actors in classical roles, turns in his usual stellar work as Becker, skillfully displaying the man’s strength and his heartbreak. Brandon J. Dirden is a worthy opposite as his struggling son Booster."
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"A powerful revival...The men are an odd assortment, and we are made aware of how difficult life is and the obstacles that block paths toward fulfillment...The cast picks up the rhythm of Wilson’s dialogue and speech patterns, with each actor doing a superb job...One can walk away feeling one knows these struggling men with vivid mental pictures of them. Wilson’s poignant, well-conceived play is getting the fresh staging it deserves."
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