Therese Raquin NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (216)
See it if you have patience and can wait 4 the pay-off - the acting is phenomenal however Ms Knightley's character is mostly mute for the first 1/2hr
Don't see it if you need fireworks throughout
See it if You are drawn to classic plays whose themes are still relevant today.
Don't see it if You have a short attention-span and prefer "Disney-fied" Broadway fluff...
See it if You enjoy beautiful, well-crafted, and elaborate set design and/or simmering tales of adultery and madness.
Don't see it if you prefer lighter theatrical fare. This one is dark and heavy.
See it if You love serious drama and you love the brilliant actors. The staging is unique and wonderful
Don't see it if You don't like heady drama
See it if you are familiar with Emile Zola's novel Therese Raquin, enjoy a chilling slow-burn of a thriller, or are fans of elaborate stage design.
Don't see it if You're looking for intense drama, realistic sex-scenes, or a memorable performance by Keira Knightley (this is Judith Light's show).
See it if you enjoy classic theater.
Don't see it if you're looking for light comedy.
See it if You like good acting and strong drama
Don't see it if You are into happy stuff
See it if I was an outlier as a TR fan. KK's perf was stiff, but I blame the director. Her perf undermined the affair's power, but TR's still haunting
Don't see it if And the sets, costumes, staging were exquisite (water scene, suspended bedroom). Judith L was outstanding. I found TR a satisfying evening.
Critic Reviews (51)
"A confoundingly dreary adaptation of Emile Zola’s steamy 1867 novel…The stage adaptation feels leaden, devoid of sexual tension…Zola may have been interested in examining some of the more clinical aspects of attraction, but in director Evan Cabnet’s production, the appetites that compel the couple to adultery and homicide are treated as the prelude to an affair of no more than a perfunctory variety."
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"The overarching problem with this production is that neither Knightley nor Ryan evidences any joy in their initial coupling…Even their extramarital sex is perfunctory… Knightley is an expressive actress and her work here has integrity. But it doesn't feel like an entirely secure performance because, well, it is not fully connected to anything else on view…Edmundson's adaptation deserved better.”
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"While it clocks in at two-and-a-half hours, the production is surprisingly fleet and contemporary in feeling...Light and Ebert bring gracefully comic touches to their characters, and the sets by Beowulf Boritt will keep audiences captivated – every scene change bears a detail that’s either subtle or dazzling. Still, Knightley is the real draw…Her raw-nerved performance proves that with or without period attire, she’s an actress who can surprise us."
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"The show may be grim and overwrought, but 30-year-old film actress Keira Knightley deserves a lot of credit for making her Broadway debut in a new adaptation of Émile Zola's once incendiary, emotionally charged 1867 novel 'Thérèse Raquin'...Despite elaborate production values, an eerie tone and strong performances, this proves to be a slow-paced and dreary adaptation. The novel's close-up, ultra-naturalistic depictions of the characters gets lost onstage."
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"Despite its literary pedigree and painterly design, 'Thérèse Raquin' is a good old-fashioned melodrama, full of sex, murder and a dash of black humor, not to mention a passionate turn by Knightley. She’s a killer."
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"Director Evan Cabnet's brutal and earthy production certainly captures the heart of Zola's vision, furthered still by compellingly raw performances. This 'Thérèse Raquin' is as hot as it is terrifying…Knightly is a marvel as Thérèse…Edmundson authors one of the most faithful adaptations of a novel I've ever witnessed, while maintaining a zippy efficiency…This beautifully rendered adaptation of classic French literature turns out to be the surprise thriller of the season."
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"Director Evan Cabnet's gorgeously understated mounting of Helen Edmundson's adaptation looks like a somewhat faded oil painting come to life…The evening offers many breathtakingly still moments worthy of framing...The first-rate cast has Keira Knightley's introverted Thérèse subtly expressing the acceptance of her sorrow, so that when unfamiliar urges take over it allows merely the slightest change of physicality to clearly state that she's overwhelmed.."
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"Edmundson structures the action in a series of shortish episodes that don't build dramatically and often feel arbitrarily cut off. Cabnet's staging has the measured pace of a funeral procession…Overall, this is a generally dispiriting evening…The most fatal thing about this murder tale is its lack of excitement. Edmundson, Cabnet, and company clearly understand Zola's importance, but they stumble badly in trying to communicate it."
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