Aubergine NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (163)
See it if you liked Wit. you are interested in the uneven progression of acceptance of death.
Don't see it if You are troubled by ruminatios on death and dying. you dont like stagy, less than fluent staging.
See it if You have fond memories with family meals
Don't see it if You don't want to see a play that deals with losing a parent/family member
See it if you like food, food metaphors, and an emotionally stimulating story sprinkled with just the right amount of humor.
Don't see it if you don't particularly feel like crying in a theatre full of strangers or if you're in the market for a more "action packed" play.
See it if You love food and family dramatics
Don't see it if It runs a little long at the end. A few of the last scenes (but not the last) could be cut
See it if a non-linear exploration of the connection between food that sparks memories, wrapped around a story of a dying Korean parent.
Don't see it if If you like a linear narrative, a faster-paced show, or would be uncomfortable with the theme of hospice and death.
See it if You can relate to the ways in which food can intimately link our memories, familial connections, and emotions.
Don't see it if You need more humor. There are funny moments and lines, but ultimately it is a slower-paced show steeped in loss, disappointment, and death.
See it if Topic is related
Don't see it if You have family loses
See it if You enjoy an intelligent, well written and performed play about a subject that affects us all.
Don't see it if You have trouble understanding a familiar topic presented in novel and unique way.
Critic Reviews (31)
"There are many lovely, moving moments in ‘Aubergine,’ Julia Cho’s exploration of the deep role of food in our memories. Though the results are not as meaningful as the scattered anecdotes and stories, Cho continues to create characters whose originality takes us into rich territory…Director Kate Whoriskey deftly moves the play’s many scenes within a soft-colored set of smooth unfinished wood. Alas, Cho’s insights about food and about death are, too often, done in by banality."
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"Julia Cho attempts the tricky task of weaving together the subjects of food and death. She achieves affecting moments…But, dramatically wobbly, the play doesn't fill out an entire evening…Ranging from goodhearted to morbid, ‘Aubergine’ has the mismatched feel of having been expanded…Running a little over two hours, it feels padded...As it is, it's a play of deeply sympathetic, thoughtful ideas that never manages to become compelling."
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"Playwright Cho depicts both Ray’s anxiety and sense of duty in ways that feel remarkably honest: Ray won’t even go for a walk outside, lest he not be present for the moment his father dies...Cho’s notion of centering the play around food as a way of expressing love is potent, though she switches up ingredients in the second act, and a monologue that tries to explain a key element of the father’s personality threatens to unmoor the drama."
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"What’s for dinner? How about a rich stew of family communication failures, served with a tender side dish of unspoken love spiced with comic seasoning?...The attempt to create a perfect meal to communicate with someone can be fraught with a complex mixture of memories and hopes, which Julia Cho captures beautifully in her new play, 'Aubergine,' directed with delicate precision by Kate Whoriskey. Cho imbues her meditation on family interactions with gentle humor and quiet simplicity."
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"Julia Cho manages to write a beautiful story about love, loss, and the beauty that comes after. 'Aubergine' is a play that everyone must see!...Tim Kang delivers a flavorful performance. He never leaves the stage...If you are in need of some type of closure, need to feel some sense of home, or in need of some beautiful theatre, make your way to Playwrights Horizons and see 'Aubergine.' Guaranteed to resonate with every generation."
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"Full of depth, 'Aubergine' is a quiet play in many ways, yet it is incredibly moving. Cho deftly deals with that most human of events–dying and death–without being heavy-handed...I should say too that this is not a depressing play, despite dealing so intimately with death. 'Catharsis' is the word PlaywrightsHorizons’ artistic director uses to describe the feeling. I would call it a kind of fullness, the feeling the audience carries out the door with them."
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"Ms. Cho's linkage of food and the memories it evokes gels nicely throughout the play and resonates a message that, despite the discord and frustrations of families and daily life, we should cherish the 'good stuff' always...Ms. Cho's storytelling ability is fantastic. The mood is both somber and recognizable...You will leave the theatre with a sense of finality, a sense of mortality, and possibly a little bit of a renewed sense of life and purpose. Bravo Ms. Cho."
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