The Iceman Cometh (Broadway) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (253)
See it if you enjoy O'Neill's plays and are ready to hunker down for almost 4 hours. David Morse is exquisite and understated; Denzel oozes charisma.
Don't see it if you can't sit still that long. In the age of cell phones, DO NOT be the person who gets restless and takes out their phone. Just don't.
See it if You can sit through 4 hours of theatre, you love Denzel, you enjoy the work of Eugene O'Neill, you love an excellent ensemble cast
Don't see it if You're looking for a flashy musical, 90 minutes no intermission is too long for you, you have a short attention span.
See it if you like Eugene O'Neill's plays, want to see a star performance by Denzel Washington, surrounded by a talented cast of misfits talking life.
Don't see it if If can not sit through a four hour show with two intermissions Denzel doesn't come on until final five minutes of act one, then sparks fly. Read more
See it if You are an O'Neill fan and want to see a great ensemble cast led by a dynamic Denzel Washington. David Morse as the fading anarchist.
Don't see it if You cannot sit through 4 hours of conversation. Only want to see Denzel on stage. Do not know anything about Eugene O'Neill and his life. Read more
See it if You want to go on a long and profound journey with an amazing ensemble.
Don't see it if You can't handle long, cerebral, works; especially older ones where the dialect/speech is harder to follow. Read more
See it if you know the work, enjoy Eugene O'Neill, or large ensemble plays with intense acting.
Don't see it if you are impatient (it's a Long play), have trouble paying attention, or only want to see Denzel Washington (he's not onstage the whole play)
See it if You enjoy the works of Eugene O’Neill, enjoy plays with timeless themes, are a Denzel fan, and like a play with a largely male cast
Don't see it if You are easily bored, are uncomfortable with racist terms, or don’t like plays that take place over brief periods of time
See it if you want to see an American classic staged beautifully and performed by a strong ensemble.
Don't see it if you want to see comedy, a show that lets out early, or a show that necessarily leaves you feeling more optimistic about the human condition.
Critic Reviews (43)
"This is the first 'Iceman' I’ve seen and it strikes me as a fairly conventional but fast-paced production of an episodic, behemoth play. Mr. Washington doesn’t move about the stage so much as dance, and Mr. Wolfe is an expert at crafting vignettes and smoky tableaus that keep the eye constantly engaged. Here he constructs a symphony from O’Neill’s lyrical text, aided with no doubt the strongest ensemble cast on Broadway."
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"O’Neill’s anguished character studies need to be contained and the participants magnified or they become diffuse and make only fleeting impact...Morse’s fury and unhappiness is always brimful in his dour, affecting performance...Washington is our jocular, warmly accessible guide into this Stygian watering hole, but somehow the darker register of Hickey eludes him...The sense of a world against you and of you pitted against the world, somehow never pierces as hard as it should."
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"As vivid and surprisingly entertaining a group of humans as you are likely to find on a Broadway stage this season...Washington proves once again to be as dynamic a performer on stage as he is on screen...The 19-person company is simply chockablock with terrific performances...Wolfe's direction also crackles with urgency, infusing the story-telling with suspense...The only off-note in Wolfe's direction would be the rather limp endings he gives to the first three of play's four acts."
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"George C. Wolfe's thoughtful staging of what many consider O'Neill's masterwork...Wolfe brings this one in at just under four without significant detriment or noticeable trims. There's still plenty of time to marvel at the fine cast...It is difficult to overcome the hopelessness that pervades almost every moment of 'Iceman.' So best to simply relish the power of a great play and the actors — all the actors — who tell the story."
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"There's no question that Washington brings excitement...Even though his performance doesn't always go deep into Hickey's haunted psyche, he's a dynamic presence...It's in the last hour that Washington really captivates...Until then, Wolfe's production meanders, and the pacing feels rushed...Effective moments give way to lackluster scenes and too many actors in the 19-person ensemble seem out of step with each other."
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"Clocking in at nearly four hours, you have to have the stamina of a bull elephant to sit through a repetitious, 'slosh fest' babblethon...Washington and Morse provide solid performances and manage to make this ponderous evening bearable. Honestly speaking, spending eight hours at 'Angels in America', is more uplifting and epic than this miserable evening of self-pitying and self-loathing, but if one is a Washington or O’Neill fan, it should not be missed."
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‘A leisurely but gripping four hours...Wolfe keeps the action lively, allowing the script’s more vaudevillian bits a slight natural exaggeration, without losing sight of the overall bleakness of these bedraggled souls. Not everyone onstage is at the high level of the best performances but the standout turns here give Wolfe’s showier version the looming strength that ‘Iceman’ requires...Washington’s performance overall is the finest piece of stage work I’ve seen from him.”
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"Even though the current incarnation...has a lot more laughs than usual, it still isn't exactly a comedy...The entire cast, under the energetic direction of Wolfe, simmers and stews, drinks and dreams, brilliantly...Washington...has never used his wide smile and ingratiating charm to better effect...And when he finally delivers his long fourth act soliloquy...We watch him spin, and justify, and, finally, crack, and it's as chilling a scene as ever we've witnessed."
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