Mimi B 7354

See it if You love the Temptations and other bands of the era. I was in my high school glory bc the bands in high school moved/sang like these guys.

Don't see it if You don’t like music or dancing, or the history of American music.

Also I don’t know how these guys do this 8 shows a week! The first show that made me smile and clap in a long time.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a sort of rom-com with 2 great actors.

Don't see it if You object to partial nudity and strong language. This is for adults only. If you want a big show-there are only 2 actors on the stage.

Also Although the show kept my attention the whole time, I feel that it could have been 1/2 hour shorter, or as another reviewer suggested, reworked into a one act play.... Read more Read less

See it if You like bawdy plays- the first act reminded me of Blazing Saddles.

Don't see it if You don’t remember your college Greek history. Besides Socrates and Plato, there are numerous characters with long Greek names.

See it if If you have to see everything Nathan Lane is in. If you like sophomoric humor. If you are a 12 year old boy.

Don't see it if You find jokes about penises, feces, farts, etc funny. If you don’t have a strong stomach forget it. I’m a doctor and I found it gross.

Also I couldn’t understand the first 15 minutes of the show at all. Nathan Lane is totally wasted in this show, which I compare to Blazing Saddles. I did like the set though. Full disclosure-I hate Shakespeare and I only got the ticket to see Nathan Lane.... Read more Read less

See it if You like gospel music and coming of age stories.

Don't see it if You are homophobic or you have no knowledge or appreciation for black spirituals.

Also I went with a group of all gay people except me. The two Catholics ( I’m one) in the group loved it. The others not so much. I’m not sure it’s going to click with people who didn’t grow up with some kind of black spiritual music.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to have a fun evening. I had no idea that this play was about, but I learned a lot about Van Halen, and laughed a lot.

Don't see it if You don’t like gender bending roles. The male roles are played by women and Valerie Bertinelli is played by a man.

Also Here’s what I knew about Van Halen before this show-Eddie was married to Valerie Bertinelli and David Lee Roth did a miserable job replacing Howard Stern when Howard moved to Sirius. It was fun learning about the band and really fun seeing women acting like the adolescent boys that rock stars act like.... Read more Read less

See it if You like musicals and silly shows.

Don't see it if You don’t like musicals or you want something serious.

See it if You have been on the roller coaster of whether to have a child or not.

Don't see it if You don’t understand why people would want or not want children. People I know who have seen it and are childless have not enjoyed it.

Also It was a little bit long.

See it if You want to see Glenn Close in an intimate theater setting.

Don't see it if You expect any originality to the Joan of Arc story. The anachronisms were silly.

Also I seriously couldn’t understand the reason for this play to be put on. It was totally boring and added nothing to the Joan d’Arc story. Isabelle Arc? Is she related to Noah’s Ark? I couldn’t wait for it to end.... Read more Read less

See it if You like musicals with great singing and even better dancing. Even if you weren’t a product of the 90’s.

Don't see it if You don’t like fluffy musicals or shows about teens.

Also I went to this fully expecting to hate it, the same way I hated Mean Girls. But it’s so sweet and funny that I found myself smiling throughout the show and clapping often. It does use 1990’s songs and rewrites the lyrics. A lot of reviewers have criticized this and I don’t understand why. Fun facts-I guess in the movie, the dress that Cher wore was a Tahari, and they wouldn’t give a dress, so it became an Armani. Also, they wanted to use a song from Boyz II Men and couldn’t get the rights, so they used an In Sync song. I was fortunate enough to attend a talk back with Amy Heckerling, the playwright and Kristin Hanggi, the director. I hope this goes to Broadway.... Read more Read less

See it if You like great singing and dancing.

Don't see it if You don’t like shows about seedy people. But everyone should see it once.

See it if If you love musicals and are interested in the history of the Musical that saved Broadway for us!

Don't see it if You have no heart

Also Everyone came in in a bad mood because of the weather. Everyone left as friends. OMG- the talent on that stage!... Read more Read less

See it if You love the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein. You love musicals. This one of the beat!

Don't see it if You want a traditional Broadway staging of the show. It’s small scale.

Also My only objection was to the Dream ballet sequence, which looked like someone from Cirque de Soleil escaped and found a different show to go to. Don’t get me wrong, she was incredible, but totally incongruous with the rest of the show. It was modern dance in the middle of a show written in 1943 about a period in US history in the 1800’s. I was baffled.
Giving the audience beans and cornbread at intermission was a nice touch, and didn’t result in a major audience fart attack, like I expected.
I seriously had chills through most of the rest of the show bc the songs and the voices are so beautiful. And I did give a rare standing o.... Read more Read less

See it if You like family drama-dies. If you liked The Humans or Fish Out of Water you’ll like this.

Don't see it if The subject of Alzheimer’s upsets you. You want a happy ending.

Also Two things really bugged me. First, they referred to paintings as “pictures” during the whole show. Second, why they didn’t put this family member into assisted living is beyond me. (No it’s not-there wouldn’t have been a story.). I saw one review which criticized the movie footage between set changes, but I thought that these showed the old lady as a younger person. Elaine May was unbelievably good as a woman slowly unraveling. In fact the entire cast was excellent, although I’m not sure of the significance of the Michael Cera character. I have to say that it did not end as I expected it to.... Read more Read less

See it if You have an interest in how evangelical Christians think. Especially important in this day and age.

Don't see it if You have no interest in plays with heavy religious overtones. You don't tolerate yelling.

Also I did keep wondering through the whole play how it was going to end and it didn't end like I thought it would, so I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I also like Christian hymns and there are a lot of them sung in the show. I sat in the top row and was glad because there was a lot of yelling. The view is great from all seats.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a funny, contemporary play with all kinds of gay.

Don't see it if You’re homophobic. You don’t like cross generational love affairs.

Also It was at times hilarious and at times touching. Idina Menzel was brilliant as a woman from NY visiting her gay father in LA, with her different kind of gay son.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a great performance by Edie Falco.

Don't see it if Political dramas are not your thing. You like fast moving drama.

See it if You love Brigadoon. You want to be swept away in the beauty of the singing. You’d like a quirky past-lives story.

Don't see it if You don’t like musicals. You don’t like improbable stories.

Also It’s a silly, improbable story, and it features a man using a woman to advance his career (shades of My Fair Lady), but the cast is gorgeous and the singing is glorious, especially Melissa Errico, Ben Davis, and John Cudia. I would see it again just for the songs.... Read more Read less

See it if If you have a seat in the last row and can leave.

Don't see it if You don’t want to see an abusive relationship, horrific animal death upsets you, and you want a story that has a coherent ending.

Also Reading all of the critics’ reviews after the show, I fail to see the themes that they did. I saw the anatomy of an abusive relationship. I didn’t understand the end and couldn’t see how it represented vindication, which I really hoped for. Not how it almost happened, but somehow.... Read more Read less

See it if You love Caribbean music and dancing. Everyone in the ensemble has an outstanding voice.

Don't see it if You’re racist. You don’t like musicals. You’re not into Caribbean culture.

Also The chemistry between Daniel and Ti Moune was excellent, but when Daniel says to Ti Moune, “I thought you understood,” I wanted to throw my shoe at him and I was in the first row.... Read more Read less

See it if You like great writing and twists in a play. If you like unusual coming of age stories.

Don't see it if People with disabilities make you uncomfortable. You didn’t like “13 Reasons Why”.

Also This show touched all of my emotions. There were a lot of funny parts at the beginning and it got more serious as it went on. I found the ending weirdly satisfying.... Read more Read less

See it if You love Bizet’s Carmen and you want to hear the most incredible voices.

Don't see it if You don’t like opera or if you only love opera with grand staging. The staging is simple.

See it if You love clever writing and acting. You are interested in how different cultures think, act, and react.

Don't see it if You want an ending. You have a problem with profanity. You are homophobic or racist.

Also I loved this show, but it had no ending! It just stopped! WTF!

See it if You like hanging with other theater lovers.

Don't see it if You don’t like awards shows.

See it if You loved High School Musical.

Don't see it if You aren’t 13-17 years old. You don’t want to listen to music at rock concert decibels. You want a story.

Also What a waste of money. Totally disappointing. A few political zingers that weren’t particularly clever. One great tap dancing number. A lot of talent wasted.... Read more Read less

See it if You love Sam Shepard’s plays. You don’t mind a confusing ending.

Don't see it if You object to animals being used as props ( and upstaging the actors). You don’t like to see dysfunctional families.

Also I will never forget the analogy of the eagle and the cat, which haunts me, even though I didn’t understand it. It doesn’t seem that it was the two predators who fought and died, but rather the members of the family. So I didn’t get it.... Read more Read less

See it if You like goofy plays. You like John Larroquette. You know what a Nantucket Sleigh Ride is.

Don't see it if You expect a typical John Guare play.

See it if You like edgy dramas set in what looks like a David Hockney landscape. Warning-the first row gets wet.

Don't see it if Nudism offends you or you are homophobic.

See it if You want to see a married couple ( I assume) talking about the husband abusing the wife as they flee (white people ?) in South Africa.

Don't see it if You want any suspense.

Also This was so disappointing compared to other Signature productions.

See it if You like Lynn Nottage’s work. You want to explore issues of race that span 70 years. It is hilarious.

Don't see it if You’re not interested in seeing racial inequality.

See it if You have an interest in the history of the Vietnam War era.

Don't see it if You’re not interested in this period of history.

Also Full disclosure-I am from Catonsville and I went to grade school at St. Mark’s, which is the church mentioned in the show. I was in 7th or 8th grade and I remember the day well. I had never seen this play, and the staging was very interesting. The audience was seated 360 degrees around the actors on benches that almost seemed like jury benches. I thought that the actors did an excellent job.... Read more Read less

See it if You want a heartwarming show which questions what makes someone a man.

Don't see it if You are uncomfortable with gender fluidity.k

Also The show starts very slowly. The scenes in the shoe store are gloomy and the songs aren’t very good. Andy Kelso as Charlie Price was completely overwhelmed by the orchestra-my friend and I could not understand the words to his songs. But when Callen Francis as Lola appears with his group of drag queens, the whole tone of the show changed and I started to enjoy it. When Lola appears as Simon and the focus changes to what makes a man, I loved it. It really got me thinking. It closes soon, so get your tickets!... Read more Read less

See it if You haven’t had your fill of addiction plays.

Don't see it if You want to see something interesting and unpredictable. If you liked “People, Places, and Things”, you won’t like this.

Also This was such a waste of tremendous talent. Spoiler alert-something happens at the end of the first act. Something else happens at the end of the second act. The something else is not worth waiting for.... Read more Read less

See it if You love Bryan Cranston. He is brilliant in this, and is the reason I saw it.

Don't see it if You are bored by a slow pace. You don’t want to see a sex scene on stage. You really don’t care how TV networks work.

Also I grew up in the 60’s and 70‘s, so loved the old TV ads being flashed on the screen behind the stage when the news was not being broadcast. Since I was in the nosebleed seats, I appreciated the action being projected on the large screen. Bryan Cranston was mesmerizing. But I found myself looking at my watch. I thought all of the corporate stuff was unnecessary and confusing-it could have been simplified. And the secondary plot which culminated in a sex act on stage was absolutely unnecessary and uncomfortable, and I am no prude. 2 hours with no intermission is too long. So don’t add intermission, make the play shorter IMHO.
One last thing, I saw some LBJ in Howard Beale. But maybe all old men look alike to me-LOL!... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see masterful acting. This play was close to perfect. The only play I rated higher was “The Curious Incident of the Dog ...”

Don't see it if You are expecting a staged version of the movie.

Also The children are played by adults, but they were totally believable. I was spellbound the entire time. My only problem was some confusion between the present time and flashbacks.... Read more Read less

See it if If you like medical shows and musicals, you’ll love this. Also if you like to support young talent.

Don't see it if You don’t like to hear women singing who clearly need voice lessons. I got bad chills up my spine whenever Tiff and Christina sang.

Also Kudos to Michael Ehrenreich for his achievement here. My objections were the nasally, throaty singing of Christina and Tiff, and the stereotyping of the women as boyfriend-seeking over study and rich bitch. Two better stereotypes would have been sexually harassed student and single mother trying to have a career. But the truth doesn’t get laughs. I loved the concept of the legacy kid-in my experience they don’t let them quit.
I would love to see this show succeed and I look forward to Michael’s next show.... Read more Read less

See it if You liked Cyprus Road. You would like a good play and can forgive a lot of stereotyping and derivative references from other works.

Don't see it if You can’t sit through a 3+ hour show. You don’t want to see a play about the Irish written by an Englishman.

Also Muldoon was a Darth Vader or Marvel comic villain with his ridiculous clothes and diction. The children were delightful, but I agree with one critic who said that the family reminded him of the Brady Bunch. In the 3rd act, you knew that something evil was going to happen as the Corcoran cousins began drunkenly (remember they’re Irish-(sarcasm)) egging their cousin Oisin on to take revenge on an English farmhand for the supposed acts of unrelated Englishmen, leading to the final tragic (operatic or Shakespearean?) ending.... Read more Read less

See it if You liked Wakey Wakey. If you can appreciate that the non-linearity of the play is the way our minds work. You like Michael C. Hall.

Don't see it if You don’t like stream of consciousness plays. It’s very existential.

Also The guy who leaves at the beginning is a plant, people. Michael c. Hall is so handsome and talented, I could watch him do nothing for 70 minutes. But I really think this was a demonstration of how our minds work, in a totally non-linear way, and I loved it. If you want a linear plot, don’t see it! There’s no real ending, but it works here.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy non-linear plots and stories about WWII.

Don't see it if You expect any of Vonnegut’s satire. I kept waiting for it to appear, but no.

Also Very well acted, especially by Gabriel Grilli, but the non-linear plot and the ensemble characters became difficult to follow. There’s no Vonnegut here. And so it goes...... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy family dramas.

Don't see it if You’re not interested in a female Asian playwright’s interpretation of straight white men. (Which is hilarious nonetheless).

Also There is driving, loud hip-hop music playing in the theater before the show. It is designed to make you uncomfortable. It gave me a headache. This is somehow supposed to be linked to the discomfort induced by 2 actors of indeterminate gender who introduce the show. If you get headaches from loud music, take your seat at the last minute.

Most straight white men that I know are glued to football games at Christmas, not singing and dancing, but this was clearly a different kind of family, with 3 grown sons, a John Mahoney type of father, and a deceased mother who is still a huge presence in the play. I felt that the play deteriorated near the end, and I was disappointed and a little bit confused by the ending.... Read more Read less

See it if You are fans of Andy Karl and Orfeh. You like great singing and choreography, even if you don’t like the story.

Don't see it if You are not a fan of musicals or Pygmalion type stories.

Also Full disclosure-Inwould see Andy Karl in anything. He did not disappoint. In fact, no one disappointed. The voices were outstanding. I thought that that songs should have been more singable though-I honestly don’t remember any of them, although a few of them vaguely reminded me of songs from other musicals (Dear Evan Hansen, maybe). The choreography was also outstanding. I had never seen the movie because of lack of interest in the story (although I finally watched it the week before I saw the show, and it was disappointing as expected). This musical is well worth seeing.... Read more Read less

See it if You love musicals, this is a must-see.

Don't see it if You don’t like musicals. Pygmalion type stories bother you.

Also It was beautiful!

See it if You love musicals-there are quite a few memorable songs.

Don't see it if You don’t like musicals. You are cancer phobic.

Also The entire cast was fabulous, especially given that they had 6 hours to practice. I’d love to see it with more of an orchestra.... Read more Read less

See it if You like musicals. You were alive in NY in the late 70’s and 80’s. You liked the music in Runaways.

Don't see it if You expect disco music (This ain’t no disco.). Raunchy gay scenes offend you.

Also I don’t think that this show deserves all of the bad reviews. I thought it captured the NY of the late 70’s-early 80’s prett well, but if you weren’t alive then, or you were too old for the club scene, you may not get it. The actors who played Steve Rubell and Andy Warhol were great in their portrayals. The choreography was great.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a great performance by Stephen Rea.

Don't see it if You don’t like violence. There’s a lot of cursing, yelling, domestic violence.

Also It’s not always clear what is actually happening and what is in the mind of the main character. I was hoping that it was all happening in his mind, but no.... Read more Read less

See it if You love good dancing and singing, and you don’t mind a silly story.

Don't see it if You are offended by gay or transgender story lines. You take yourself too seriously and don’t appreciate a good silly joke.

Also This show was in the style of a Shakespearean play or an opera, ie, silly and implausible. I loved the songs (nostalgia) and the choreography, and the audience roared after each number. The last time I heard this was at Dear Evan Hansen in previews. This show is what a big Broadway production should be, IMHO.... Read more Read less

See it if If you want to see some great acting.

Don't see it if You want a story that moves along and that you can’t predict the ending of by intermission.

Also I really wanted to like this play, but it was slow moving and predictable. I considered leaving at intermission, but stayed in hopes that it would pick up pace. The actors were great though.... Read more Read less

See it if You like historical or political fiction. You like BD Wong.

Don't see it if You are offended by profanity. There’s a lot of it.

Also I loved this show. It was riveting.

See it if You think it's incredibly hilarious to listen to 2 groups of people trying to communicate in broken English. If you like middle east music.

Don't see it if You don't find people speaking English with a foreign accent hilarious.

Also OK, maybe I'd feel differently if 80 people hadn't told me that this was their favorite show of the year. (Full disclosure-I didn't think Hamilton was all that either.). The people behind me thought that every single second of this show was so hilarious that they couldn't stop laughing. People please-heartwarming is different from hilarious!
I did think some of the songs were sweet. (But everyone else thought they were hilarious). Book of Mormon is hilarious. The Play That Goes Wrong is hilarious for Monty Python fans. This show was not hilarious.... Read more Read less