The Color Purple (Broadway)
Closed 2h 20m
The Color Purple (Broadway)
94

The Color Purple (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets

94%
(3068 Ratings)
Positive
99%
Mixed
1%
Negative
0%
Members say
Great acting, Great singing, Absorbing, Must see, Entertaining

About the Show

This stripped-down revival of the musical based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel won two 2016 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival. Directed by John Doyle and starring Tony winner Cynthia Erivo.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (3,068)

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68 Reviews | 8 Followers
100
Absorbing, Great acting, Great singing, Great writing, Intense

See it if You want to be moved and inspired.. The music was brilliant and the stripped down staging allowed for the story to come through brilliantly.

Don't see it if You are with children under the age of 12.

70 Reviews | 13 Followers
100
Absorbing, Exquisite, Great singing, Great acting, Must see

See it if You love powerful, emotional theatre. One of the best shows I've ever seen. Saw it twice!

Don't see it if There's really no reason not to see this show!

Mad
52 Reviews | 11 Followers
100
Absorbing, Exquisite, Great acting, Funny, Great singing

See it if you want a masterfully told story that both guts you emotionally and glides you through deeply repairing humor.

Don't see it if I can't imagine who would not like this, but perhaps if you don't like songs at all. Or sadness. Or stories about strength. Read more

85 Reviews | 23 Followers
100
Absorbing, Exquisite, Great singing, Great acting, Masterful

See it if you want to cry and laugh and cheer all at once - because you will be. Absolutely incredible, engaging, and exquisite performances.

Don't see it if You're sensitive to themes of abuse or domestic violence.

181 Reviews | 25 Followers
100
Absorbing, Masterful, Riveting, Great singing, Intelligent

See it if you want to experience tour-de-force performances, hear a great score and enjoy innovative staging

Don't see it if NO reason not to see this production

162 Reviews | 169 Followers
100
Great acting, Great singing, Intelligent, Must see, Absorbing

See it if Want to see an incredible performances and a very moving story

Don't see it if Like elaborate stage shows... this show is stripped down to the essentials.

419 Reviews | 52 Followers
100
Absorbing, Clever, Masterful, Great singing, Great staging

See it if Liked the original, love the revival. Leading ladies are the finest on Broadway.

Don't see it if Cannot accept the merging of difficult issues with song.

70 Reviews | 16 Followers
100
Moving, Great acting, Great singing, Exquisite, Profound

See it if you want to be swept away by an amazing story and moved by incredible performances.

Don't see it if you want to see something fluffy and fun Read more

Critic Reviews (59)

The Washington Post
December 10th, 2015

"Doubtless the best version of this 2005 musical you are ever going to hear...A sleek, fast-paced treatment — virtually a concert version…This overly episodic musical still doesn’t quite measure up to the genre’s top-tier shows: although Celie’s evolution is capably recorded, the transformations of some of the other characters remain unpersuasive…There’s more than enough combustibility on that stage to compensate for any occasional energy deficits."
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Chicago Tribune
December 10th, 2015

"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 Mister."
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New York Post
December 10th, 2015

"'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."
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Entertainment Weekly
December 10th, 2015

"In John Doyle’s emotionally rich and visually striking new production there is an elegant staging and three gorgeous star performances…Marsha Norman made the still-horrible parts of Celie’s story less devastating, and she allowed for the sunny, redemptive second half of the second act...The staging works remarkably well...As usual with Doyle, the streamlining allows the script’s emotion to shine clearly through."
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Los Angeles Times
December 10th, 2015

"I'd be happy to see this transformative revival at least a dozen more times…A spiritually transcendent theatricalization of the tale that had me silently shouting 'hallelujah' and 'amen.' Doyle is aided by a glorious female cast…Through this directorial legerdemain the drama achieves the force and fluidity of a Gospel service. ...Emotion soars as despair and despondency give way to forgiveness…'The Color Purple' has finally found the freedom it needed to attain sublimity."
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AM New York
December 10th, 2015

"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."
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NY1
December 11th, 2015

"It's refreshing to revisit this show packed with so much raw energy and vocal talent. Gone are the big sets, costumes and choreography. In their place - a simple yet profound telling of a complex work that cuts right to the bone."
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Theatermania
December 10th, 2015

"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."
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