A Parallelogram
Closed 2h 15m
A Parallelogram
79

A Parallelogram NYC Reviews and Tickets

79%
(179 Reviews)
Positive
86%
Mixed
13%
Negative
1%
Members say
Great acting, Thought-provoking, Clever, Absorbing, Ambitious

About the Show

Second Stage Theater presents a new existential comedy by Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Norris in which the past, present, and future collide. Starring three-time Tony nominee Celia Keenan-Bolger. 

Read more Show less

Member Reviews (179)

Sort by:
  • Default
  • Standing in our community
  • Highest first
  • Lowest first
  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Only positive
  • Only negative
  • Only mixed
716 Reviews | 219 Followers
80
Quirky, Thought-provoking, Clever, Funny, Refreshing

See it if Woman repeats parts of her life while talking to an older version of herself. Interesting philosophies, clever acting and staging.

Don't see it if A bit repetitive in spots. More intellectual than emotionally engaging. Characters are humorous but lack depth.

MJK
677 Reviews | 190 Followers
64
Ambitious, Disappointing, Askew, Great acting

See it if you like the "what if I made different choices" question & the sci-fi trope of parallel universes; you want to see the divine Anita Gillette

Don't see it if you're a fan of the superior plays Constellations, Marjorie Prime or even Groundhog Day, where similar themes are played out more profoundly

don
506 Reviews | 1000 Followers
95
Absorbing, Clever, Entertaining, Great acting, Funny

See it if you enjoy great acting esp by Anita Gilette and Cecilia Keenan Bolger. Also if youu like to think. Concept re: Life is fascinating. Reality?

Don't see it if need a musical extravaganza or you prefer a play that spells out what is ahead. . .What's with revolving stages? 12 in last 6 weeks

512 Reviews | 79 Followers
95
Absorbing, Clever, Great acting, Great staging, Great writing

See it if you like shows that challenge you to think, that are beautifully acted and have amazing sets. Story makes you think about time, space, etc.

Don't see it if you want a nice, pat little play.This one is thought provoking. I didn't like the set in the last act. It implied a living style. Offensive.

418 Reviews | 256 Followers
70
Great acting, Ambitious, Thought-provoking, Quirky, Disappointing

See it if you want to see an existential play that poses interesting questions & is beautifully acted by all 4 players. Anita Gillette is wonderful.

Don't see it if you want answers to those questions. The play meanders off point & at times doesn't make sense. Ultimately disappointing.

478 Reviews | 122 Followers
81
Norris gets supernatural

See it if Clever Bruce Norris scenario of a young woman encountering her older self. Anita Gillette is endearingly hilarious.

Don't see it if Kind of slight, but we really enjoyed it. When they magically replay scenes, you can see how well the actors know their parts.

470 Reviews | 113 Followers
84
Great acting, Intelligent, Great staging, Great writing

See it if Well-acted sci-fi funny comedy about a married couple where the wife is "seeing things". So true when it says money is not key to happiness.

Don't see it if Very taken aback when they said "people won't think or care about the Holocaust or September 11th in the future"; that ruined the show.

469 Reviews | 54 Followers
80
Absorbing, Funny, Great acting, Quirky, Thought-provoking

See it if Like off-kilter story done well.

Don't see it if Want more traditional/linear plays.

Critic Reviews (31)

The New York Times
August 2nd, 2017

“Offers plenty to think about and much to enjoy in Michael Greif’s sleek production. But as drama it’s not only a nonstarter but a nonender; it’s a red herring that swallows its own tail…‘A Parallelogram,’ which at first seems like a change of pace from Mr. Norris’s usual satirical approach, reveals itself as more of the same but weaker…Norris’ ginned-up climaxes go nowhere...If you knew how the play ended when it began, would you see it? In this case, I think not.”
Read more

Time Out New York
August 2nd, 2017

“Whether you'll want to see ‘A Parallelogram’ depends on your palate for poison. Norris excels at writing conversations you heartily wish would end, and Keenan-Bolger and Kunken talk at each other with the kind of blank insistence that does, in fact, make you fear for humanity. I certainly came away with a bad taste in my mouth; the play is successful, as far as it goes, in making even the pre-apocalypse savor of ashes.”
Read more

New York Magazine / Vulture
August 2nd, 2017

“The restless, disturbing new play burrowed under my skin…I left 'A Parallelogram' with the same feeling in my internal organs that I’ve had after watching certain episodes of 'Black Mirror'—and Norris’ play strikes me as the closest I have seen a piece of contemporary theater come to accessing that same unsettling strain of science-not-quite-fiction…Norris, director Greif, and their company have done a rare thing: They have created a production that’s not asking to be liked.”
Read more

The Hollywood Reporter
August 2nd, 2017

“More often than not it seems to be spinning its own wheels…‘A Parallelogram’ doesn’t live up to its sharpest moments. Whatever messages Norris is trying to impart are muddled at best and depressing at worst. The shifting perspectives add up to little more than clever narrative tricks…The play also feels needlessly dragged out…The performers do solid work, but Keenan-Bolger and Kunken are hamstrung by their characters’ shrillness...The saving grace is Gillette."
Read more

Variety
August 4th, 2017

"Greif keeps a sharp cast moving at a smart clip through a static text that’s more talk than action—and more thought than talk. Most of the conversation takes place in the bland bedroom of an unmarried couple who are themselves pretty bland...The problem with the play has nothing to do with science, or even sci-fi versions of time travel. The problem is that Bee is severely hamstrung by her limited imagination and lack of human compassion."
Read more

New York Daily News
August 2nd, 2017

"If you knew in advance what was going to happen in your life and couldn’t change it, would you still want to go on? Audiences at Norris’s darkly funny but frustrating comedy...are likely to walk away with a different query: Is that all there is? Alas, yes. Despite pungent performances all around and a crisp staging by director Michael Greif...the play leaves you wanting...Leaving things up for grabs is one thing, but copping out is another...In the end, the play doesn't square."
Read more

NY1
August 4th, 2017

"Far from Norris' best...Norris’ premise is an interesting one but what should have been an existential head trip ends up something of a cop out and dramatically it’s rather inert. All of the characters, including a young Latino lawn cutter, become tiresome halfway through. It is well acted though and Greif’s direction is strong enough to keep us guessing far longer than the play deserves...Disappointingly half-baked."
Read more

Theatermania
August 2nd, 2017

“An undeniably intelligent and multilayered play…This comedy with a bitter dramatic aftertaste will leave you pondering what exactly you just saw for days after…Norris has us mentally firing on all cylinders. Every beat seems to bring a new insight or argument to consider…A well-staged, sharply designed production…Greif and Norris steadily accelerate the flow of ideas and dramatic possibilities all the way to the end as we work to keep up with a play that always feels a few steps ahead of us.”
Read more