Apologia

See it if You like wordy character driven plot lines with lots of long monologues delivered by exceptional actors.

Don't see it if You’re looking for lots of action or a story that wraps everything up in a tidy little way for you at the end. This one makes you think.

See it if If you want a show that is slow, unmeaning full and banal. A badly directed play.

Don't see it if If you don't like a well written, consistent play that is poorly directed.

See it if First act is full of wit and humor, with interesting characters, animated discussion, and serious themes. Ms. Channing is terrific.

Don't see it if Second act is preachy and sobby. The creative energy was gone, replaced by melancholy and simplicity. Act one 90, act two 70.

See it if Campbell's brittle drama about feminist pursueing career vs family Channing's layered performance keeps plot contrivances at bay Fine Dancy

Don't see it if Plot drags in characters/situations for Channing's Kristen to mock or demonized w/little effect Little effort made to understand motives

See it if you're a Stockard Channing fan or interested in new plays, enjoy complex family relationships, original linear plot, well-directed

Don't see it if don't like family dramas, esp. one set in England, have absent mother issues, plots that take their time getting started

Also Hugh Dancy is also quite impressive in two roles

See it if Channing dominates stage w monstrous self-absorption; witness devastating neglect faced by her children but also price she pd 4 her career

Don't see it if flabby 1st Act; irrelevant characters; failure 2 provide effective foil 2 Channing's raging humanism thru religious character missed oppty

See it if A woman of lettres sacrifices for causes larger than self and is dismayed when others do not. Sons resent being cast-offs. Terrific cast.

Don't see it if At its core, it's just another tale of mummy-can't-have-it-all. Dimly-lit second act.

Also Title refers to defending one's life without apology.

See it if You want to see these actors. However, I was really disappointed by the play. Nice set. I liked the first scene in the second act.

Don't see it if The actors seemed awkward and forced but I think that was the play. It just didn't make much sense, they didn't seem like real people at all

Also Stockard Channing's character was so withholding (when not being awful) that everyone was awkward around her. It did not ring at all true for me.... Read more Read less

See it if you like family drama & extreme dysfunction; Channing is excellent though mannered; acting is uneven; sad; thank goodness for John Tillinger

Don't see it if you want another kitchen drama; the play wallows in self pity with characters trying to get along & like each other; first act needs editing

See it if Stockard Channing in a tour de force role as a mother who cannot forgive herself. Hugh Dancy costars in this tale of love and redemption.

Don't see it if You dislike talky plays with little action, and no scene changes. Slow moving, deliberate pace. Theater is ice cold.

Also Apologia is a quick witted play performed by a stellar cast. All of us will find something in this story to identify with as a dysfunctional family comes to terms with the past.
There are two sides to every story. The only ones we can forgive are ourselves.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see a family drama with a little bit of cheesy Humor mixed in

Don't see it if You are annoyed with really long scenes that could be tightened up drastically

Also Every scene in the entire play was too long and drawn out. The older male character has absolutely nothing to do with the play other than to add some silly jokes at the dinner table. His character does not mean anything to the story and does not help move the story along. I have no idea what the playwright was trying to accomplish but whatever it was it didn’t work for me. The play started to pick up some momentum near the end of the first act. But it should have ended when Kristen left of the stage. They Even drug out the play when it was starting to get good just before intermission... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see one of our finest stage actors show her mettle.

Don't see it if you don't like talky plays or if you are expecting to gain new insights on the role of women.

See it if Apologia: Formal, intellectual defense of beliefs and actions. Activist mother with illustrious career confronted by sons who felt abandoned

Don't see it if You don’t think brilliant Stockard Channing delivering interesting intellectual dialogue can redeem an unnatural dysfunctional family drama.

Also Giotto: A Renaissance painter known as the first to paint realistic, natural-looking faces, figures, and postures.
Mushy peas: A traditional British preparation made from dried peas that takes an acquired taste to enjoy.... Read more Read less

See it if you're a fan of the actors or are interested in a play about the effect of a woman's sacrifice to put her career before children.

Don't see it if you don't want to see yet another family drama play that mostly takes place around the kitchen table. Slow start, but builds momentum.

See it if you like great acting in a play that has something to say about relationships,sacrifices,choices, forgiveness.I LOVE this show.Don't miss it

Don't see it if you want a silly farce or a light hearted musical.This will make you think and feel and reflect--and that's what theatre is all about. GO!

See it if heartened by # of new plays praising female valor outside the home (Gloria, Bern/Ham, Doll's House, Pt. 2, What the Constitution Means...)

Don't see it if you’re anxious that at this rate there’ll be no more room left for Arthur Miller revivals

Also I for one am happy the show lives up to the title. Traditional theater: kitchen table conversations, interpersonal clashes, nothing too weird/abstract. May not have enough oomph for theatergoers interested in the family drama angle. Various things to get hung up on (like reliance on a New Testament analogy for a primarily secular statement).

But if you think an apologia’s long overdue for the previous generation’s nonconformists—who normalized a global mindset for the modern woman and achieved unprecedented public influence en masse—this play satisfies like meat & potatoes. The cultural backlash against these critical, angry, bra-burning women was so strong when I was younger. Nowadays, such conviction’s as necessary as ever. The other actors aren’t up to Channing’s level but I don’t really think the show suffers for it. See it if you think there’s still heroism in adhering to & advocating for your principles.... Read more Read less

See it if Channing is terrific as always. A fairly engrossing story that examines the hidden costs of activism, as paid by the children of activists.

Don't see it if An old-fashioned kind of drama. If that’s not your cup of tea, you might not care for it.

See it if you appreciate good writing. good acting and an interesting take on social commitment and what it requires personally. I would go back.

Don't see it if you want action, glitz., laughs, you have no interest in a reflection on 1960's social commitment.

Also I saw a sub in the pivotal role of the son's American fiancee so the balance of the play was off.

I have enjoyed Hugh Dancy in the past and was surprised by how little he touched me. I really felt the black hole that he was supposed to occupy.

HOWEVER the above mentioned more than filled their space. In general, I have not loved Stockard Channing (ok, some moments on the West Wing, but not on stage or film) in the past, but she was really quite lovely here. I did not know the actress who played Claire and she really stood out. John Tillinger was in fine fettle and added demension.

There are places in this play I could carp about. But for this particular production--I am giving it a pass. I truly didn't understand the choice of Hugh Dancy playing the two brothers-something psycho babbly meaningful most likely, but I didn't like him once let alone twice.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy seeing Stockard Channing do her thing on stage, she adds 10-15 points to my score

Don't see it if you are looking for clear cut black comedy/drama. It is a bit contrived and confusing at times

See it if If you like dysfunctional family dramas performed by a fine cast with a standout Stockard Channing. Provocative situations, no easy answers

Don't see it if sometimes meandering, not always plausible but very watchable.

Also The second act worked much better than the first as some of the secondary characters who seemed easy to dismiss in the first act, got a chance to let you see where they were coming from.... Read more Read less

See it if ...dysfunctional family where mother gets the blame is interesting. Stockard Channing is, as always, very good.

Don't see it if Maybe you haven’t seen this particular play, but you have seen this dynamic before. Several superfluous characters add little to action.

See it if you'd enjoy seeing Stockard Channing onstage in a role that feels like it was written just for her.

Don't see it if you avoid family living room dramas. I have to say, this is my favorite show from Roundabout recently!

See it if you don't mind yet another "domestic drama" unfolding around a kitchen table (i.e. If I Forget; The Humans) but with more grit and feminism.

Don't see it if uneven pacing, at least one miscast actor, and an unsatisfying use of Hugh Dancy's second role will bother you; seeking something flashy.

Also Creative, career-driven women seldom make the best mothers. While Apologia roots itself in this basic premise—with dryly witty Stockard Channing at the helm and charming Hugh Dancy doing double-duty as two sons—the play is more than typical family fare. After the show, I tried to think about what made me feel so provoked and invested. In truth, the story isn’t particularly novel—it’s Kristen Miller’s (Channing’s) birthday and her family and motley friends from past and present gather to toast her—and roast her with vitriol, via pent-up emotions of childhood neglect and judgment. At core are three women striving to pursue what they want (a vapid life of acting; religiosity; career beyond motherhood) without having to justify their choices. Apologia reveals hypocrisy best. I found it an illuminating look at perspective and how we sometimes lash out at those we love to protect them, find our footing in their world, and remind them we need to be heard. Sometimes, it just comes out wrong.... Read more Read less

See it if enjoy good acting in a play that doesn't really bring anything new to the parent/child relationship.

Don't see it if want more or something new regarding family dynamics.

See it if You want to have another dysfunctional family dinner with people you don't really like, but portrayed by a stellar cast

Don't see it if Your own dysfunctional family is enough for you to handle