James 7298

See it if you are primed for a visceral and not always subtle dissection of South Africa's brutal apartheid regime.

Don't see it if you cannot sit for two hours without a break. Is this too much to ask of our bladders?

Also You appreciate the design, direction and acting immediately, but at a certain Brechtian distance. I teetered on the edge of boredom. Nevertheless the show builds to a powerful conclusion. (And I still would have appreciated an intermission....)... Read more Read less

See it if you are an uber Great Gatsby fan and long to hear the text spoken.

Don't see it if you would be majorly bored by hearing Gatsby as a book on tape during an eight hour road trip.

Also I must add that I am glad I returned after the dinner break (two of my cohorts did not). Act 3 (where they decamp to the Plaza Hotel) is quite dramatic and engrossing. And Act 4 is properly elegiac. Another plus is that Nick finally stops reading the text - and the production relies less on the drab office location gimmick.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see three stellar actors enliven a good script based on a true story.

Don't see it if you have no patience for variations on a theme. Even at 1h40" there is repetition.

Also Cliche it may be, but for me the whole did not add up to more than the sum of its entertaining parts. Thought-provoking: yes. But it did not stay with me.... Read more Read less

See it if You're in the mood for a sprawling, rapacious takedown of American corporate malfeasance.

Don't see it if You are not in the mood for a 40+ year-old satire that is still (very sadly) relevant today.

Also I realize it must be hard to replicate the Olivier Theater space here in NYC. The Belasco is gorgeous, but too much of this staging takes place out of the audience's view, for those sitting on the sides. So you have to watch video screens. It becomes tiresome and annoying. But wait!! Ivo Van Hove did the same thing with The Damned, which was even more annoying.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see an original musical comedy that tugs at the heartsrings and makes you forget our fractious times for an hour and a half.

Don't see it if You can't empathize with a young man who is lonely and is searching for human connection.

Also What a winning cast! This show will put a smile on your face.

See it if you believe theatre can illuminate and make comprehensible the most intractable conflicts in history.

Don't see it if multi-character and multi-layered dramas are not to your liking. Attention must be paid; otherwise you'll be lost in this whirlwind play.

Also Do not be put off by the first half hour or so, which sets the scene. There are characters and children galore; who is who? Not to worry. Everything gels. And the 3 hour 15 minute running time flies by quickly. Riveting is an overused word; not in this case.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy theatre that gets under your skin and forces you to see and feel a character’s dilemma.

Don't see it if You think everything is hunky-dory in America.

Also It doesn’t get any more “ripped from the headlines” than this. But while subjects such as this might be examined on TV shows such as Law and Order: SVU, this intense 90 minute play is illuminating nevertheless. Flawless actors.... Read more Read less

See it if You support new musicals and their creators. The score skillfully resurrects a piano bar vibe.

Don't see it if You want a big razzmatazz show. This one has a cast of two.

Also I really wanted to like this show, as the subject matter is right up my proverbial alley. Ambitious as it is in linking one couple's relationship to different stages of the struggle for gay rights, it just didn't work for me; there was just not enough motivation to support the resolution.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to experience this masterwork in the most intimate surroundings imaginable.

Don't see it if You cannot LISTEN or have little patience for exploration of the monumental trivialities of daily life.

Also The Apple Plays don’t fall far from the tree! Nelson has ingeniously reimagined Uncle Vanya. A hushed and vivid experience.... Read more Read less

See it if Snooker is your bag. It certainly ain't mine. This is not a sports-centric entertainment that transcends its milieu to speak higher truths.

Don't see it if Snooker is not your bag. The irony is: the televised snooker match in Act 2 is the highlight of the play and well done!

Also On the plus side, the playwright does not attempt to replicate his brilliant success "One Man, Two Guvnors." Alas, this in no way achieves the delirious highs of that comedy.... Read more Read less

See it if Do you like musical revues where the songs are not shoehorned into a plot, but sung for their own intrinsic worth, a la Ain’t Misbehavin’.

Don't see it if You are immune to the immense talent of this cast.

Also Why isn’t this show selling out?
It’s a walloping great time.... Read more Read less

See it if You are interested in early LGBTQ issues in mid-century England.

Don't see it if You have little tolerance for barely audible, poorly plotted kitchen sink drama.

Also If you don’t see it in the first row, or up in the rear of the small theater, you won’t be able to see or hear much. Plus, the theater was intensely stuffy and hot. We fled at intermission.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to experience 70 minutes of sheer joy, brilliantly staged by Savion Glover.

Don't see it if You need dialogue and a story in a musical.

Also How often do you see a show that you want to be twice as long? Practically every number is brilliantly performed and staged. Bravo. It was so worth seeing this show again.... Read more Read less

See it if You are a big fan of Ivo Van Hove's deconstructions of various different properties.

Don't see it if You have little patience with an auteur's devotion to theatrical tricks.

Also The Armory is a wondrously huge space to fill, and this production tries mightily to do so. It does not always succeed. For the first hour, most of the stage action is stage right, making much of the audience far far away. At least there is simultaneous video to help out....some of the time. The movie tells the story much better, imho.... Read more Read less

See it if You can never get enough of Sondheim’s masterpiece. A miraculous production- beautifully cast and staged.

Don't see it if You prefer frivolous light-hearted musical theatre. Plenty of Spongebob and Buffet around in that case.

Also Hard to believe what miracles were accomplished here. The cast is uniformly strong.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to immerse yourself in the world of an autistic adult and those around her.

Don't see it if You find story telling less than riveting.

See it if You want to be entertained and challenged anew by a classic musical, albeit one with an amazing and still relevant source: GBS's Pygmalion.

Don't see it if You are impatient with steady and engrossing character development, or cannot sit and concentrate for 3+ hours.

Also This was my second or third Broadway musical back in the early 60's, so any new production has a lot to live up to, and I've seen them all. What these marvelous actors and singers have managed is miraculous: they make you take a fresh look at the material, and forget previous interpretations. Yes, the pacing could be sped up a bit. Just sit back and revel. Shaw's genius shines through beautifully.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a well directed, well paced and acted production of a rarity… And pay homage to Mel Miller’s 100th and final production.

Don't see it if You have no stomach for hokum and shenanigans.

See it if You love Jule Styne’s oeuvre and musicals from Broadway’s golden era

Don't see it if You would be offended by a lighthearted look at a deadly serious subject: homelessness and joblessness

See it if You want to see a show that deserved a lot better from the critics. It’s just stuffed with showstoppers.

Don't see it if You have little interest in one of the titans of American musical theatre: Hal Prince.

See it if You want a feel-good 9/11 musical.

Don't see it if You want scintillating music and lyrics to go along with your uplift.

See it if You are in the mood for athletic variations on A Clockwork Orange’s themes performed by a stunning all male cast.

Don't see it if Do you want a replication of the movie.

See it if You enjoy original musicals that deal with pertinent social issues in an innovative way.

Don't see it if Do you lack compassion and I are unable to forgive people make mistakes.

See it if you are a Lynn Nottage fan. I am. She's a wonderful writer with lots to say.

Don't see it if you are loathe to acknowledge the racism that has long plagued Hollywood casting and writing.

Also While imperfect, this is a hugely entertaining and smartly serious satire.... Read more Read less

See it if you loved the film Moonlight. Here again the lives of African American men, both gay and straight, are examined with empathy and insight.

Don't see it if you feel like you've seen and heard the story before: harassment of gay males in a Christian private school. But you'd be wrong.....

Also A terrific group of actors! Kinetic direction by Trip Cullman makes the entire experience cohesive and moving.... Read more Read less

See it if You need to laugh out loud and forget reality, while at the same time revel in this show's human message.

Don't see it if You have little enthusiasm for yet another LGBTQ story.

Also When this show is firing on all cylinders - which happens often - it is a real hoot. A lot of pros are involved with this fizzy confection, and their expertise is evident.... Read more Read less

See it if You are in the mood, yet again, for a play with gay subject matter. This one tugs at the heartstrings.

Don't see it if You are not in the mood, yet again, for another play about gay life. Hang in there: it becomes much more than that.

Also At first this seems like well trod territory, as skillfully done as it is. Then little by little you are drawn into new territory, and there is much food for thought. Especially fascinating when compared with the recent revival of The Boys in the Band.... Read more Read less

See it if you're a Janet McTeer fan. She is fantastic. The entire cast is excellent, but she is the reason to see this play.

Don't see it if you have little interest in theatre history, specifically the challenges Sarah Bernhardt faced when playing Hamlet in Paris many moons ago.

Also Act 1 is a boulevard comedy manque; it is witty but doesn't quite work. Hang in there for Act 2, however. It is entertaining and moves swiftly.... Read more Read less

See it if You can empathize and understand what is going through the mind of a preacher’s wife in the dangerous Jim Crow South.

Don't see it if You have little interest in this nation’s African American history.

Also Shattering. Wondrously theatrical and luminously acted. An all too timely companion piece to American Son on Broadway.... Read more Read less

See it if You like gigantic spectacles and don't care about much else.

Don't see it if You love gigantic spectacles but also want characters, humor and skilled music and lyrics. You will not find them here.

Also Much of Act 1 was promising. Okay, not the score. Definitely not the score. But Kong - OMG. Stunning, theatrical, entrancing - even terrifying. And the scenery and projections: spectacular.
Alas, in Act 2 it becomes crystal clear that the ape has 1000% more personality than any of the humans on stage. A lost opportunity.... Read more Read less

See it if You’re interested in a radical re-imagining of a classic musical that is mostly successful

Don't see it if You want your Americana served straight up with no hot sauce.

Also I’m not sure the bowling alley dimensions of the staging serve this version well....lots of seats are problematic, and the acoustics are not great either. But when it works, it’s charming and challenging and dark, and the dialogue rings true.... Read more Read less

See it if You yearn for human and humane theatre that touches the heart and funny bone in equal heartbreaking measures.

Don't see it if You cannot empathize with a family struggling to deal with a loved one's slow descent into the fog of Alzheimer's.

Also This was only the third preview and the cast was pitch-perfect. Elaine May is a revelation at 86. Just spellbinding.... Read more Read less

See it if You want the antithesis of a Broadway razzmatazz musical, with strong characterization and tremendously effective atmosphere.

Don't see it if A gorgeously sung and acted human story doesn’t appeal to you.

Also Like fine wine, this show has continued to improve since its off Broadway incarnation at the Atlantic Theater. The small, intimate show fills the larger Broadway house with ease.... Read more Read less

See it if You love heart-stopping Theatre with a capital T. A whole world comes alive.

Don't see it if You’re not a Dylan fan.

Also Most of the music used in the show was totally unfamiliar to me, and made me realize how little I knew of the Dylan oeuvre post – 1960s. The show was so well done that I even forgave his born-again phase.... Read more Read less

See it if You’re in the mood for “Mamma Mia, Something’s Rotten!” ... a goofball go-go musical.

Don't see it if You want a coherent plot and exquisitely wrought songs.

Also This show, despite its flaws, is infectious fun and the cast is superb.... Read more Read less

See it if You do not tire of seeing Fiddler and want to experience a different take on this priceless musical.

Don't see it if I cannot think of any reasons NOT to see this, unless you hate classic musicals.

Also This production is just wonderful. Brings tears to your eyes multiple times. The show seems like it had been originally written and composed in Yiddish, and that the English version must have been a translation: that is how authentic it comes across. Top notch singing and action too. Not to be missed.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a fascinating early Williams play featuring version 0.1 of Blanche and Maggie and.....

Don't see it if You want realistic and linear direction. This is definitely a strange staging.

Also Williams is a hothouse flower. This icy and cold setting of the play is intriguing at first but gets in the way. What are they miming? Oh yes, those are fans....
And why obstruct seats with an anatomy chart that could easily have been placed elsewhere on the huge, empty white stage.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a new musical with a mostly accomplished score and really resonant performances.

Don't see it if You have a lack of patience for the tried and true dynamics of a dysfunctional family. The story gets a bit bogged down in its latter half.

See it if You want to laugh and cry and cringe and enjoy a fantastic cast enact what could be a stand-in for our current state of the union.

Don't see it if You have a low tolerance for profanity or mocking of religious institutions.

Also Even though this material is 15 years old, it is relevant and alarmingly fresh: we now have a reality show government. Huge shout out to the New Group for finally bringing the show to New York. I'd see it again in a heartbeat.... Read more Read less

See it if You care about reacquainting yourself with one of the most profound plays of the late 20th Century, brilliantly realized.

Don't see it if You can’t sit spellbound for two four hour stretches, even though the time flies by....

See it if You long for the sort of well-made entertainment that hardly flourishes on Broadway these days. This show has gotten a bum rap.

Don't see it if You don’t like spending an evening with unlikable people. It’s like a good tight episode of House of Cards.

See it if You love adventurous theatre and are willing to hang in for the long haul. The ending is gobsmacking. If you loved Curious Incident--go!

Don't see it if You are automatically turned off by twelve step stories of addiction and recidivism.

See it if You can’t get tickets to Hamilton or can’t afford tickets to Hamilton, but want a spot-on parody I will give you a good idea of the show.

Don't see it if You haven’t seen a lot of Broadway musicals, hence might not appreciate how brilliant Gerard Alessandrini’s parodies are.

See it if You love musicals from Broadway’s golden era and original ones to boot. Musicals Tonight has never been better.

Don't see it if You are looking for a huge glitzy extravaganza. They achieve miracles in a vest pocket theatre.

See it if You are keen to see an example of one of the great Broadway musicals from the golden age done to perfection. And Bette Midler is sublime.

Don't see it if You don’t like traditional musical comedies.