The Inheritance
Closed 3h 15m
The Inheritance
87

The Inheritance NYC Reviews and Tickets

87%
(478 Reviews)
Positive
92%
Mixed
6%
Negative
2%
Members say
Great acting, Absorbing, Ambitious, Great writing, Great staging

About the Show

Re-envisioning E. M. Forster’s masterpiece “Howards End” to 21st-century New York, this epic two-part play follows the interlinking lives of three generations of gay men searching for a community of their own.

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Member Reviews (478)

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1015 Reviews | 420 Followers
98
Must see, Resonant, Riveting, Profound, Great writing

See it if You want to experience an emotional journey, an amazingly true to life recollection of the AIDS plague years and the impact on gay life.

Don't see it if Everyone should see this powerful play. It’s long. It’s draining. It’s worth every minute of it. Read more

982 Reviews | 343 Followers
75
Raunchy, Engaging, Heavily narrated, Rambling, Epic soap opera

See it if you'd like a sprawling, unfocused play abt current gay life. Captivating, but too lg for pay-off. Quirky staging (bare feet) Rushed ending.

Don't see it if you want a consistent experience. Writing quality varies wildly. Plot holes. Uneven acting. Gimmicky narration. Melodrama. Some gr moments.

891 Reviews | 259 Followers
97
Riveting, Absorbing, Great writing, Masterful, Relevant

See it if you want a fresh, realistic look at gay life based in current NYC with reflections on the consequences of the past-briliantly acted & staged

Don't see it if you don't care about people or do not like long plays. Read more

716 Reviews | 219 Followers
80
Entertaining, Sentimental, Raunchy, Cheesy, Melodramatic

See it if Surprisingly light entertainment, despite weighty themes. P1 is exposition for the more dramatic P2. Pleasurably cheesy; 7 hours fly by.

Don't see it if You don't like a lot of narration. Many simplistic characters. Copious explicit description of gay sex. Over-the-top sentimentality.

MJK
677 Reviews | 190 Followers
80
Overlong, Melodramatic, Intelligent, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if u have 7 hrs to devote to a group of gay men in their talky struggle to grapple with their roles & responsibilities in pre-to-post-AIDS NYC.

Don't see it if u'll be offended by (gratuitous) nudity; ur not interested in exploring gay (mostly white & privileged) history in the 20th/21st Centuries. Read more

688 Reviews | 116 Followers
86
Resonant, Thought-provoking, Great staging, Absorbing, Ambitious

See it if It's Daldry's nuanced, liquid staging that shines brightest in Lopez's stylish, modernist revision of Forster's novel of class & morality

Don't see it if Like the novel, the engaging drama doesn't try to hide its white elitist privilege despite its many good acting turns & whip-smart dialogue

505 Reviews | 729 Followers
95
Masterful, Relevant, Epic, Thought-provoking, Great writing

See it if you must see every Tony winner for Best Play, because there’s no way this isn’t winning. Beautifully written, funny, sad, and hopeful.

Don't see it if you have a hard time sitting through long shows. Between the two parts, this is well over 6 hours—though the time flies by.

543 Reviews | 133 Followers
80
Absorbing, Intelligent, Great acting, Ambitious, Emotional

See it if brilliant acting/directing; reminder of the recent past & how much has changed and how much has not; tribute to friends we loved & lost.

Don't see it if you have a short attention span; covers so much ground focus sometimes gets muddled; uncomfortable w/gay topics, nudity and/or promiscuity Read more

Critic Reviews (31)

The New York Times
November 17th, 2019

"‘The Inheritance’ Review: So Many Men, So Much Time:Breadth doesn’t always equal depth in Matthew Lopez’s supersize, vividly painted portrait of gay life in the 21st century, featuring E.M. Forster as a spirit guide."
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Time Out New York
November 17th, 2019

4/5 Stars "Rarely transmitted by the families of LGBT people themselves-many of the men in this play have childhoods marked by trauma-gay culture is a chain of links to the past. The AIDS epidemic severed many of those links; 'The Inheritance' aims to reforge them."
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New York Magazine / Vulture
November 17th, 2019

"Tragedy Plus Comedy Plus Melodrama in 'The Inheritance'"
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The Hollywood Reporter
November 17th, 2019

"Stephen Daldry directs Matthew Lopez's two-part drama about gay New Yorkers, which draws inspiration from 'Howards End' to depict the generation after the AIDS crisis."
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Entertainment Weekly
November 17th, 2019

Grade: B+ "'The Inheritance' is a funny, tender marathon drama"
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Variety
November 17th, 2019

"Matthew Lopez’s epic, two-part drama looks back to the AIDS crisis and forward to the wisdom that one generation passes to the next."
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The Wall Street Journal
November 21st, 2019

"Show, Tell and Repeat: Matthew Lopez has written a play that feels more like a novel"
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Deadline
November 17th, 2019

"When Home Is Where So Very Many Hearts Were"
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