The Color Purple

"'The Color Purple' has been born again, and its conversion is a glory to behold…The current version is a slim, fleet-footed beauty...There’s a deep wealth of power within its restraint…It takes hard work, ruthless editing and a spark of genius to make a miracle on Broadway. That’s certainly true of this 'Color Purple'...Celie may have started off cowed, but we’ve always sensed that there’s a rare spirit inside. That about sums up Mr. Doyle’s relationship, too, to this vitally reincarnated mu... Full Review

"It's a sheer delight to hear Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray's soulful score on a Broadway stage, performed by immensely talented vocalists…Doyle relies heavily on simple yet highly specific gestures to tell the story...This scaled-down production also allows the story, music, and performances to shine through in new ways…For adherents of the old-fashioned book musical, you can't ask for much more." Full Review

"John Doyle's bloodless, concert-like revival of 'The Color Purple;' a production that is fortunately saved by the talent and commitment of its fine ensemble of leading ladies…The score pushes all the expected buttons for this type of venture…While 'The Color Purple's' written material is rather standard, there's undeniable emotional pull in Walker's story…It offers a rare opportunity for three women of color to play complex leading roles while men are regulated to support." Full Review

"'The Color Purple' is far from perfect. Marsha Norman’s adaptation of Alice Walker’s novel takes tons of shortcuts, careening from scene to scene at full speed. Characters, including Celie’s brutish husband, undergo drastic changes at the drop of a hat. But the show works in a primal way. Its pop-inflected score — though performed here on the cheap, with a skimpy, keyboard-heavy band — has surprising staying power. Your head may quibble, but your heart’s on board." Full Review

"The ladies wear the pants in John Doyle’s ravishing revival of 'The Color Purple...' In a feat of reverse magic, Doyle’s minimalist production maximizes the strength and beauty of Marsha Norman’s book… The score has a sweeping populist appeal, sensitive to each character’s specific lyric mood…Both the beauty and the brains of the score are evident in the fact that each character’s signature song belongs only to that character." Full Review

"Doyle’s production intensifies 'The Color Purple' and brings out its deeper hues. The musical blossoms into a classic…Doyle’s elegantly minimal production keeps Celie in sharp central focus throughout…Celie’s journey has a clearer sense of direction than before...Erivo is supported by a mighty sisterhood of performers…This 'Color Purple' is a celebration of black women, and it fills you with appreciation for the musical’s return. It’s here, and it’s beautiful." Full Review

"This version is streamlined and stripped down. Doyle’s strategy allows the fine performances to brighten it up...The script is more schematic than the novel, its complexities sometimes reduced to cliches... The emotive content can tend toward soppy and it’s Doyle’s choice to lessen sentiment and to treat the characters coolly and truthfully. Every so often this backfires but the simplicity and seriousness is often welcome." Full Review

"Given the two-dimensional nature of Marsha Norman's book, it's not possible to add much in the way of nuance or character shading...The Color Purple is rich with incident, but the music never captures the sweep of the narrative...Cynthia Erivo, who here makes a stunning Broadway debut...Her work alone is probably reason enough for this revival." Full Review

"Mix Erivo and Headley together and you have two riveting star performances; when they are on opposite sides of the stage, you can barely figure out which way to look. The show itself remains a rouser...'The Color Purple' looks lustrous indeed. Add Ms. Headley to the mix and the overall enjoyment increases a couple of notches—without in the least detracting from Ms. Erivo’s lustrous star turn." Full Review

"A stunning, exhilarating and altogether joyful theatrical experience. Chalk it up to conceptual point-of-view, along with a handful of supremely satisfying performances…Doyle's process of stripping material down to its essentials and foregoing scenery doesn't work for every musical...It sure works here, though, revealing a beating, pulsing heart within the show...Midway through the 2015-16 season, 'The Color Purple' is already a highlight...You're likely to end up cheering." Full Review

"Capable of both exquisite nuance and shattering power...Director John Doyle has reduced the size of the cast by about a third, and cut some 20 minutes of dialogue. The stripped-down result somehow makes this entertainment feel closer to a spiritual experience, which is what Alice Walker intended." Full Review

"Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray’s gospel, R&B, ragtime, and jazz score is filled with foot-stomping, roof-raising, and seductively balladic numbers, performed by a vibrantly talented ensemble topped by the remarkable Ms. Erivo. Her acting remains conversationally honest, while her singing displays both sweet grace and rafter-shaking authority. Watching her evolve from subservient child-wife to proud, independent woman is an artistic revelation." Full Review

"Personal growth and even the passage of time are treated as, at best, vague ideas…Coupled with Doyle's 'musical staging' (it sure ain't choreography), which is dry, repetitive, and disinterested, this infects everything with a stale staidness that saps what soulfulness the writing conveys…This is a drab evocation of a journey that should excite and inspire, and one that's in desperate need of color beyond the one named in its title." Full Review

"The entire enterprise, in fact, is loaded to the wings with style, thanks to director John Doyle keeping things simple…The first thing to note is that their singing is glorious, from the goin’-to-church start straight through to the final, beautifully harmonized 'Amen'… The score is unusually strong compared to what passes for acceptable scores these days...Similarly, the lyrics remain pithy and germane…The show is a wonderful gift of the season." Full Review

"The musical version of the film version of Alice Walker’s novel is an exercise in treacly feel-good sentimentality, but Mr. Doyle’s scaled-down, ruthlessly cut version makes the best possible case for 'The Color Purple'...for all its own virtues, looks and feels like an off-Broadway show that made a wrong turn at 42nd Street." Full Review

"A kind of theatrical CPR, restarting the heart of a show that, in its original production, seemed to die before your eyes…'The Color Purple' does still have its awkward elements: When the second act steps away from Celie, it loses focus and momentum…Doyle gets everything out of 'The Color Purple' that anyone could have thought to put in it...One of the best revivals ever." Full Review

"This marks one of the rare occasions where a musical's revival manages to outshine the original production…At first, Doyle's production comes off as overly mannered and limited in movement. But on the whole, it is far more dramatically charged and focused than the elaborate but undistinguished original production. This feels less like a revival than a revitalization, or a new musical altogether." Full Review

"This revelatory overhaul is characterized by its grace, restraint and soaring spirituality, peeling back the excess to expose the life-affirming material's molten emotional core. It remakes a patchy musical as a thrilling one…This production's manifold acts of renewal go far beyond its remarkable performances…The quality of the singing throughout, and the beauty of the harmonies, cannot be overpraised…This very fine revival is not to be missed." Full Review

"Gospel-inspired songs get the show off to a slow start...The musical finds its stride when it lets down its hair with sexed-up songs...British director John Doyle shows his warm side. While his use of chairs as a visual statement feels a bit gimmicky, Doyle gets something very right with a bolt of fabric that subtly underscores the story of Celie’s rebirth. The show itself has had its own new start. 'The Color Purple' is bolder, brighter and deeper than ever." Full Review

"A revival of 'The Color Purple' that lifts an already formidable musical into greatness…Marsha Norman’s book cunningly trims the story to essentials, and the songs get the job done…'The Color Purple' is more than the sum of its considerable parts. It’s a fine old-fashioned celebration of endurance, grace and goodness, given a powerful African-American depth. If you can’t cherish those you have an impervious heart indeed." Full Review

"For the first time in its long history of its dramatization, 'The Color Purple' has been afforded an incarnation fully in sync with one crucial aspect of Walker's original authorial intent — that the audience must participate in the imaginative act in order to comprehend its richness of theme and story. And, in this production, so they do. Willingly. Delightedly. When they are not rising to their feet to stop the show…The show's one weakness is the lack of attention to the conversion of Mist... Full Review

"These are direct, accessible songs that are simply structured but not simple-minded. I appreciated the original as a big, old-fashioned, middle-of-the-road show...It is less big and feels newer now, but is still rich with characters adapted by playwright Marsha Norman. Doyle has cut what I count as eight songs from the score, a decision that eliminates some richness from the back-stories and makes Celie the show-stunner she deserves to be." Full Review

"This show blows the ceiling off this Broadway house like no other…Cynthia Erivo as Celie is by far giving us something to stand up and cheer for…Probably one of the best performances you will see this theatre season, and Act 2 is a slam-dunk if there ever was…The others, every last one of them, deserves the standing ovation they get…Doyle directs this simply and elegantly, with a perfect touch of comic energy coupled with a dynamic message of empowerment." Full Review

"A sleek, vastly improved and altogether wonderful revival…Under John Doyle’s new, inspired direction the musical emerges as one of the most adult shows ever written…Doyle employs that same spare aesthetic for 'The Color Purple,' but this time he delivers what looks to be a big commercial hit…The new 'Color Purple' never loses sight of its Celie…Marsha Norman’s excellent book is essentially the same, but some of the songs have been cut." Full Review

"By concentrating attention on the show’s talented performers and the lively gospel-inflected score, Doyle has come up with a production that packs an emotional wallop. The superb cast act and sing at a very high level...Marsha Norman’s book has a lot to cover in a short time, but mostly succeeds in capturing the essence of Alice Walker’s novel. Since I had never heard of any of the composer/lyricists, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the score." Full Review