The Ferryman (NYC)

See it if you appreciate great ensemble acting.

Don't see it if you find it difficult to understand heavily accented brogues or convoluted story lines.

Also I'm an outlier on this show. Thought it would never end. Please read some of the more positive views for a balanced perspective.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a play with a cast of 21 very talented actors. The story did not hold my attention but I thought the cast was extraordinary.

Don't see it if You don’t want to sit through a 3 hour and 15 minute play for 2 minutes of thrill at the very end. Don’t understand the buzz.

See it if You're really interested in plays that have everything and the kitchen sink, and a goose, and a baby, and a fire...

Don't see it if You like nice, tidy shows that wrap things up quickly and neatly. This one goes on forever - needlessly

Also No doubt about it, it's a beautiful production, but it's FAR too long. If this show were an hour shorter it would be much better. I certainly don't mind sitting through a three (or more) hour show if it needs to be that long, but as with most of Butterworth's shows, they just go on and on and on for no apparent reason other than he thinks longer is better. It's just not worth the length.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy family dramas set in IRA controlled Northern Ireland; you're drawn in by politically motivated killings; you have lots of patience

Don't see it if you want a coherent plot; you don't need to see dozens of kids who have little to do; you hate when problems only appear in the last 20 mins

Also Plot holes deep as sinkholes! Yikes!
* it's unclear MARY resents her sister-in-law CAITLIN until the last 25 mins. (esp since MARY relies on CAITLIN to cook, run the household & tend her newborn). MARY's constant retreating to bed seemed more like post-partum depression!
* only in the last 25 mins do we learn QUINN has tried to get MARY to discuss marital problems for yrs; obviously, they still have sex since MARY just gave birth again!
* only at the end do we learn CAITLIN loves QUINN when her priest leaks it!
* OISIN hates his MOM CAITLIN from the beginning. Why? After he hears new info from the priest, shouldn't he change THEN? Like most characters in "The Ferryman," OISIN does not change.
* harvest ritual means a goose's neck will be wrung - but why OISIN's neck must be wrung, too, was a real big stretch
* many superfluous characters add little but clutter. Way too indulgent!
* play is seriously over-long & over-rated!
*** poorly raked theatre; hard to see past people's heads... Read more Read less

See it if You simply must see the Tony winner for Best Play.

Don't see it if You want to be entertained at the theater with something worth your time.

Also I really wanted to like this. I found it difficult understanding the dialogues except for a few of the actors. Sitting in the last row of the mezzanine, I could barely hear them. Finnoula Flanagan was the best part as was the last 15 minutes. Otherwise, very boring and way too long!... Read more Read less

See it if you’re prepared for a long evening, have a taste for family drama & foreboding or have a working knowledge of the IRA.

Don't see it if you want to sink your teeth into something—this is a “slow burn” kind of play with nothing really new to bring to the table.

See it if Enjoy long Irish storytelling

Don't see it if Can’t sit for 3+ hours Don’t enjoy thick Irish accents

See it if you like dramatic stories about the troubles in Northern Ireland

Don't see it if you expect anything new or original. The Catholics drink, dance, betray one another and have large families: Brit propaganda for sure.

Also If anything, this should have been a tv mini-series as it is so realistic, long and not very original. Not at all theatrical in concept; there's even a real baby to add to the realism. .... Read more Read less

See it if You like to see eating, drinking, dancing, animals, IRISH FAMILY LIFE on stage. Realistic and interesting.

Don't see it if you want a coherent plot. I was so with this for about 40 minutes then slowly the plot started to tear apart the story.

See it if You like the playwrights previous work. If you like sprawling dramas with many “slice of life moments “.

Don't see it if You want to see a play that earns its running time.

Also Everyone seems to be over the moon about this play. I’m clearly missing something because I found it to be much too long and slow.... Read more Read less

See it if You know little about the Troubles in Ireland; you gain prestige points from preferring British imports to american plays; 3 hours is ok

Don't see it if You dislike redundant, predictable but not always credible overpraised plays

See it if you are interested in family dramas set in IRA controlled Northern Ireland and seeing the effects of single decisions on each member.

Don't see it if you don't want to see nearly 20 individual, fleshed out characters on a stage and find it hard to follow along through thick accents.

See it if You want to see something that confirms the worst about the Irish, sees women only in relation to men, and has a yuck violent end.

Don't see it if You like plays that depict women as having any agency. And think the Irish are more than just drunk, violent, foul mouthed.

See it if You're interested in a huge cast of good actors; if you're into Irish politics; if you like family dramas with political undertones

Don't see it if Diversity is important; if smoking onstage bothers you; if a 3+ hour-long play about politics of white people sounds boring

See it if you don't mind that you can't understand half of what is said and like a meandering story line with a lot of people.

Don't see it if You like narrative drive in a piece. The worst part of this is that you can't understand half of what is said because of the accents.

See it if you can't see it in NYC anymore. I forgot to review it then. I thought the duck on stage was the most interesting part.

Don't see it if a long, long look at an enormous family without any real intrigue sounds interesting. Add in an Irish accent that is often unintellibible.

See it if You enjoy countryside love story and noisy and fuzzy conversations

Don't see it if You have a migraine and you are fed up with fighting

See it if You have 3-plus hours to spend trying to understsnd Irish accents.

Don't see it if Like plays with just a few characters.

See it if You enjoy very cerebral and very Irish theater, with great actors, but very dense dialog.

Don't see it if Can't understand Irish brogues.

See it if You love a deep-dive play that immerses you in a world of characters

Don't see it if You want a play to earn its 3 hour runtime. This is not close to Eugene O'Neill or even his earlier Jerusalem, and could use a huge edit

See it if You enjoy love stories that don't make sense and noisy conversations

Don't see it if you don't want to see 90-minutes drag on for 3-hours with animals and babies used as gimmicks

See it if you like plays about eating, drinking, dancing and all that goes with the Irish family on stage

Don't see it if you want something that is fast and unpredictable, this show is slow with nothing really new to bring to the table

See it if You like stories set in Ireland, about the IRA. Good acting

Don't see it if You have trouble understanding Irish accents. Story was slow. The last 5 minutes really picked up.

See it if ...if you like long boring plays with an Irish accent and story. If you want to see a Tony winner.

Don't see it if ...you expect a wonderful drama. This isn't it. ...if you can't sit for 3 1/2 hours with just one intermission. I almost fell asleep.

See it if You want to see a traditional type of play about issues that aren't as often discussed

Don't see it if I didn't really enjoy this play, but I'm not sure why... I think maybe it was too traditional for me?