Present Laughter NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (668)
See it if you want to see Kevin Kline doing what he does best, comedy. Colby was very good, sexy and funny in it.
Don't see it if If you don t like campy comedy. It can be slow at some points.
See it if you like NC's classic comedies. The plot is silly, but characters are memorable and the dialogue goes down like sherry. Nice set/costumes.
Don't see it if you want a meaningful play. PL is fluffy fun. It is unnecessarily long; some scenes drag. Still, this PL is superior to the Garber.
See it if you enjoy laughing at clever character driven humor. It is an escape to a time that can only exist on stage or in our minds.
Don't see it if British affectation or caricature annoys you.
See it if you're a Kevin Kline or Noel Coward fan, enjoy sophisticated comedies with witty characters & glimpses of celebrity lifestyles
Don't see it if you're not susceptible to wit and charm, lives of celebrities and actors do not interest you, intelligent farces are not your thing
See it if you want to see a blithe Noel Coward drawing room comedy, adeptly acted & smartly directed; you want to see an all-too-rare Kline sighting.
Don't see it if you have no appreciation for flippant, frivolous stage comedies and seek anything contemporary, important and/or provocative.
See it if You love classic, dry, high-brow British comedies, or would be happy to see Kevin Kline act the phone book.
Don't see it if You think this will be a raucous comedy — it’s not. Even with a good central performance, this is long and tedious.
See it if you enjoy wit at the expense of honesty, and want to see a show meant simply to entertain.
Don't see it if you want to care about any of the characters on stage, or see a show that even attempts to say something about anything.
See it if you want to watch perfection in Kline's physical comedic acting and grace; you enjoy Noel Coward and beautiful 1930s sets and costumes.
Don't see it if you don't enjoy farcical comedy and laughter; you cannot sit through some slow scenes with one particular character that does not work. Read more
Critic Reviews (56)
“An uneven but enjoyable production…Let us give thanks for what Mr. Kline, embodying the capricious god of his own theatrical universe, has wrought. It is hard not to wish that the heavy farcical high jinks that surround him were on his high level…The staging by Mr. von Stuelpnagel brings out the more boisterous aspects of Coward’s comedy, occasionally to hilarious, but just as often labored, ends. And the pace needs to be picked up throughout.”
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“An absolutely splendid revival…The simple act of handing America’s greatest exemplar of comic suavity a role he was born to play is half the battle…Kline is the very model of a star who lets his brilliance illuminate everyone around him…He enlivens each moment with palpable zest and impeccable style, arrogant brio shading into middle-aged insecurity with a twitch of his perfectly trimmed mustache. He must do more Coward or share his secrets.”
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“The production takes seriously the mess that radiates from Garry’s narcissism, and with that seriousness refuels the hilarity of the farce that overlays it. In the hands of Kline and a vividly intelligent supporting cast, it’s a great and frank and still modern comedy…The play’s three-act structure is pretty much faultless…If there are still some extravagances to prune and shaggy moments to comb out, they’re minor.”
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“Kevin Kline was born to do Noel Coward...A performance of unimpeachable skill, made all the more delectable by its lightness of touch…von Stuelpnagel's production can't entirely disguise the wheezy fatigue of the 1939 comedy, but as complications multiply and the quasi-farcical cogs click into place, it runs like clockwork. That helps correct the imbalance of an ensemble in which the seemingly effortless work of the veterans outclasses their less seasoned castmates.”
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"Kline appears to be having the time of his life onstage...It’s a fast-paced and straightforward production featuring two equally delightful and delighted costars—the goofily irresistible Kristine Nielsen as Essendine’s stalwart secretary, Monica, and Kate Burton, steely and wry as his devoted not-quite-ex-wife, Liz—plus a mixed bag of supporting players...‘Present Laughter’ is a romp of sitcom-like goings-on, incredibly well executed."
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“A delicious drawing-room comedy…Kline relishes the comic challenge in this snazzy production…Director von Stuelpnagel has assembled a cast of reliable pros who know the drill so well they could pace it out in their sleep. The lesser-skilled younger actors should study the technique of these veterans and bless their lucky stars for the opportunity to do so. Kristine Nielsen, who plays Garry’s secretary, Monica Reed, constitutes a master class.”
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"Not only is Mr. Kline’s performance a triumph, but this revival is the best staging of a Coward play—any Coward play—that I’ve ever seen...Essendine is played for truth, not as a caricature, which simultaneously makes him more interesting and even funnier...By having his actors underplay the first half of the show, Mr. von Stuelpnagel heightens the payoff of the second half...By evening’s end, the laughter is loud, continuous and entirely well-deserved."
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“Moritz von Stuelpnagel’s revival is fleet, funny, deliciously cast and over-the-top when it should be–and occasionally when it needn’t be, sweating just a bit too hard to earn the audience’s whoops of pleasure. Fortunately, Coward and Kline are too dynamic a duo to suffer any damage from such picked nits. Chief among the other pleasures are Kate Burton…Peter Francis James and Reg Rogers…Less chief among the pleasures are Kristine Nielsen...Bavesh Pavel.”
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