Tony, Emmy & Golden Globe winner Mary-Louise Parker returns to Broadway in Adam Rapp's new play about a tenured professor, a talented student, and a troubling favor. More…
Bella Baird (Parker) is an accomplished professor at an Ivy League university who prizes her solitude. But when she faces a challenge she cannot tackle alone, she allies herself with a brilliant and mysterious student, Christopher (Will Hochman). Intensely intimate, this haunting play probes the question of what one person can do for another.
See it if If you want to see an interesting story with good acting. This keeps the attention of audience. A deep at times play.
Don't see it if Can be depressing for some who want something litehearted and less intense.
See it if Professor and student have a brief, deep, scary & fateful relationship. Exquisite writing. Is the "sound inside" the will to live or die?
Don't see it if You won't enjoy an introspective play with unclear meaning. Dark stage & depressing themes. Narration mixed with dialog.
Also Recommend sitting close to the stage. Off to the side is ok.
See it if Parker & Hochman are riveting in this spooky two-hander about creative lost souls Cromer's nuanced staging aided by Gilbert's eerie lighting
Don't see it if Rapp's best writing in a while despite some questionable developments near the end It's Parker's story yet Hochman grows more interesting
See it if fan of Parker or Rapp, enjoy easy to follow but intriguing stories, plays about creative minds & troubled people, subtle unexpected twists
Don't see it if don't like to listen in a quiet, dark setting, don't like brief 2-actor plays with reticent characters, or want to think right at the end
See it if Psycho-thriller.A writing prof's health status urges her to draw in creatively(if not fictitiously) to her writing charge.Gorgeously written
Don't see it if Rapp has matured here, outgrowing his past gimmicky stunts. Monologues. Tiny, gripping drama with tiny ideas in a very big space.
See it if you enjoy stripped-down productions that let the characters and words shine. This is a beautifully written & acted piece w/o ornamentation.
Don't see it if you’re turned off by stories featuring depressed characters and self-harm.
See it if you like Mary-Louise Parker and enjoy listening to a professor spout off her opinions and then take advantage of an unstable student.
Don't see it if you enjoy a drama that has a point. I had English professors but thankfully none like this one.
Also What she asked a young person to do was atrocious. I felt like booing ... Read more Read less
See it if You are interested in two character heavy drama. I found it to be very depressive, and lost my train of thought 3/4 of the way into the play
Don't see it if You are the least bit depressed. You do not like dialogue spoken directly to the audience. Become mesmerized in a darkened room.
Also Mary-Louise Parker is spellbinding in her role as a college professor ... Read more Read less
See it if You want to see MLP on stage doing a phenomenal job. You like dialogue driven plays. You want an easy 90 minutes, and you don't mind dramas.
Don't see it if The story doesn't quite add up to a full cohesive play for me. I was left with a lot of questions, which is fine but also exhausting.
See it if you like plays that make you pay attention, that challenge you, that twist & turn.Literate,well paced, beautifully acted.Amazing lighting
Don't see it if you want a Neil Simon comedy.This play makes you think, demands your attention, and will stay with you.Characters are flawed & very real.
See it if If you LOVE great performances of GREAT pieces by master author and actors. This piece evokes gasps, tears, smiles all while you ride along
Don't see it if you don't enjoy great drama, no musical here
See it if You enjoy everyday stories with unusual characters and surprising interactions. If you like dark characters and unique relationships.
Don't see it if If you are sensitive to may-december relationships, suicide ideation or terminal disease. If you prefer traditional stories.
See it if an intense & moving play about a creative writing professor, a talented student of hers & their writing processes; troubling aspects
Don't see it if don't want actor directly addressing audience; don't want dark sets or dark topics including cancer; want something light
Also the monologues/discourses are very descriptive as would be expected of... Read more Read less
See it if you enjoy two-character plays and cerebral fare. Both performances are quite good, though I doubt will garner Tony notice.
Don't see it if you’re over the steady onslaught of WASP-y Ivy League stories in theater. We’ve seen twelve hundred versions of these characters before.
Also the experience is enjoyable enough, but this is nothing new under the ... Read more Read less
See it if You like Mary Louise Parker who gives a great performance. A complicated interesting story which I am still figuring out.
Don't see it if You want easy light weight theater. This play can be depressing...cancer suicide murder loneliness...(but really about so much more).
Also Two character play with little action but lots happens through a narra... Read more Read less
See it if you enjoy a two actor play with strong character development and powerful, yet subtle, plot development.
Don't see it if you don't like a small cast with a minimal set that allows for the focus to be on the characters and plot.
See it if you want to see a really great scrip, well directed and well acted. I was riveted for the whole thing.
Don't see it if You want to see something lighthearted or a musical.
See it if Clever story of a lonely creative writing female professor in her 50s meeting an intense freshman.The plot moves unexpectedly with dry humor
Don't see it if Suicide, loneliness, cancer are triggering. High brow, frequent name dropping of authors, literary works, and Ivy league life annoy you.
Also Diversity: lonely woman in her 50s is the protagonist. But super upper... Read more Read less
See it if great acting in an excellent written two-hander. captured one's attention the whole time. good story and characters.
Don't see it if want light theatre, then this is not for you.
See it if you are a fan of Mary-Louise Parker and you want to have one of those special theatrical experiences.
Don't see it if you hate two character plays. PLEASE NOTE: You will be kicking yourself when you realize just what you missed! DUH!!!
Also I love a GREAT one man show, but I am NOT a fan of two character plays... Read more Read less
See it if An entertaining 90 minute, two character play about the interactions between a professor and her student. Great acting by Parker and Hochman
Don't see it if Too much info could spoil future theater goers enjoyment of the play.
See it if you want to see a cleverly constructed script performed by two great actors. It requires your attention, but I didn't mind giving it.
Don't see it if you are into plays that are dialogue heavy or that don't have a lot of action. As I said above, this requires your full attention
Also One thing I was thrown by was the description of this play as a thrill... Read more Read less
See it if Like two-handers with ponderous dialogue that sounds like writing instead of actual conversation.
Don't see it if Need authenticity in writing or acting. Did not find any of this production to be believable.
Also Avoid a matinee where the audience whispers to each other and says "wh... Read more Read less
See it if A thrilling two-hander that twists and winds through the human condition. Desire, fate, fame, self-loathing, and good books abound.
Don't see it if This play stirs powerful emotions. (see more) You don't like contemporary plays that are self-consciously heightened in language.
Also There's a lot going on that might upset an audience. I found it ultima... Read more Read less