Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool (Broadway)
Closed 1h 15m
Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool (Broadway)
88

Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets

88%
(282 Reviews)
Positive
98%
Mixed
2%
Negative
0%
Members say
Entertaining, Clever, Funny, Delightful, Absorbing

Mike Birbiglia's new show about failing bodies, recovery, and laughter as the best medicine.

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Member Reviews (282)

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913 Reviews | 929 Followers
76
Entertaining, Absorbing, Fun, Funny

See it if Mike does a great job and is funny and entertaining. Especially skillful at playing to the entire audience on all sides.

Don't see it if you don't like stand up comedy.

898 Reviews | 1027 Followers
79
Relatable, Funny, Entertaining

See it if You enjoy Birbiglia or stand up comedy. It's a fun and entertaining night out. I didn't like his last show The New One but enjoyed this!

Don't see it if You aren't in the mood for a stand up comedy type show.

1033 Reviews | 425 Followers
95
Entertaining, Riveting, Intelligent, Masterful, Hilarious

See it if You like funny, smart, relatable comedy told in a friendly, non-offensive style. Warm. Endearing. He makes you care about what he’s saying.

Don't see it if You don’t like stand up comedy or storytelling. If you’re looking for a musical or political humor or comedy that’s divisive this is not it.

990 Reviews | 346 Followers
80
Charming, Bare-bones, Clever, Absorbing

See it if you like to laugh (esply if you're a MB fan). Gentle, funny, deeply observed humor abt health/aging. MB has gr timing & well-honed material.

Don't see it if you want true theater, not standup. Large venue for a 1-man show. MB's end interaction w/audience was meh (too contrived, cheap laughs).

913 Reviews | 265 Followers
93
Absorbing, Relevant, Intelligent, Entertaining, Funny

See it if you enjoy humor based on being human. This is a set of relatable stories about aging, health and medical challenges woven together well.

Don't see it if you are seeking a Broadway play or musical - this is a solo comedian in a Broadway house.

659 Reviews | 290 Followers
82
Very funny but sweet, Birbiglia's unique brand of comedic storytelling, Deals w sympathetic humor tough subjects:, Growing older, fear of disease & mortality

See it if sharply observant & self-deprecating 1-man show; movingly refracts comedic themes thru lens of his family; winning performance

Don't see it if limits to 1-man show; some bits are cliche-ish; nothing ground-breaking or subversive

670 Reviews | 131 Followers
89
Absorbing, Clever, Entertaining, Funny

See it if One man show that shows and tells humor about all in a persons life. Funny show with laughing at life.

Don't see it if Funny stand up is not your taste.

515 Reviews | 730 Followers
92
Resonant, Hilarious, Great writing, Entertaining, Absorbing

See it if you enjoy finding humor in the mundane and tragedy. If you need a pick-me-up, this show is the best medicine.

Don't see it if you’re turned off by solo shows. Think of this more as a comedy special, because it is.

Critic Reviews (20)

The New York Times
November 13th, 2022

"Birbiglia’s virtuosity as a narrator is very real, giving him full control over the evening and the audience’s reactions."
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Time Out New York
November 13th, 2022

"Like all of Birbiglia’s joints, 'The Old Man & the Pool' is carefully structured: The chatty sidetracks always loop back to the central path. Birbiglia is an expert at controlling the pace and energy of the evening."
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Variety
November 13th, 2022

"If you’ve ever seen Mike Birbiglia before, whether on stage or screen, then 'The Old Man and the Pool' feels like catching up with an old friend — albeit one with a lot more health problems than you."
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Deadline
November 13th, 2022

"This is a man in full control, perhaps not of his body or his health or any of the bad stuff that life brings our way, but of how he, and perhaps his audience, can cope with it all."
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New York Theatre Guide
November 14th, 2022

"Birbiglia doesn’t bend toward sentimentality. When it comes to matters of the heart, poetic and cardiovascular, he simply suggests chains of family history can be broken."
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AM New York
November 13th, 2022

"There is an appealing smoothness, simplicity, and sense of construction to Birbiglia’s shows...Here’s hoping that Birbiglia continues to come to Broadway each season with new autobiographical monologues and inspires the same kind of turnout."
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Theatermania
November 13th, 2022

"There is an emotional honesty to the piece that makes it feel like it only could have been born following our worldwide collective trauma. You come away feeling like you've met Mike Birbiglia, the man, for the very first time, for real. I can't wait to see where he goes from here."
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Talkin' Broadway
November 13th, 2022

"It makes for a downright pleasurable evening presided over by an adroit and crowd-pleasing entertainer. These days, that might just be what the doctor ordered."
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