black odyssey NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (158)
See it if The actors are good but the show is not. Back and forth with to much thrown in the mix makes it confusing.
Don't see it if Show tries to hard to be to much to everyone. Slow and confusing at times.
See it if You want to see a refreshing somewhat modern version of this gods fighting tale. Full of chuckles and lots of clever twists.
Don't see it if You’re a purist or think anything “woke” is automatically bad.
See it if for good acting, singing, dancing, and some strong scenes. Gardley uses language beautifully, but the plotting is a mess.
Don't see it if you want to be engrossed. Constantly shifting tones/scenes/themes are alienating. I loved MG's X, but Ody felt raw. Maybe it will improve.
See it if you know and like the odyssey story - here well updated with the African American experience. Costumes were very good.
Don't see it if you don't like long stories that can be slow or dislike missing dialogue as actors talk in different directions at theater in the round.
See it if you like black-focused plays, interested in a contemporary urban take on the Odyssey which can be very funny, enjoy imaginative staging,
Don't see it if worried that you've forgotten the Odyssey (not really necessary), don't like non-literal staging, confused by actors in multiple parts Read more
See it if you want to see a wonderful and relevant and original interpretation of Ulysses and his odyssey. Powerful dialogue and very ambitious.
Don't see it if you don't want a discussion of black history including oppression and protests. Read more
See it if You love iterations of the Odyssey, or want to see a show that’s fitting for Black History Month.
Don't see it if You’ve seen too many versions of the Odyssey — this doesn’t add much to the canon. Despite some good scenes, it tries to cram in too much.
See it if You want to see an interesting take of Odyssey story.
Don't see it if If you want a solid coherent story.
Critic Reviews (9)
“This classic-meets-modern, Greek-meets-Black production traverses a lot of ground in its two-and-a-half-hour running time, making the journey feel tiresome by the end. Still, ‘black odyssey’ offers a set of heroes — and villains — and a grand spectacle of Blackness to make the trip worthwhile.”
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“...’black odyssey’ has an impulse toward overexpansiveness. Gardley wants to fit nearly everything into his big mythological universe”
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“The play is at times captivating and clever, but it is more interested in reveling in its own cleverness than in seeing its choices through. The unevenness makes Gardley’s script feel a little corny in its reliance on on-the-nose pronouncements.”
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“In a theatre scene that can sometimes be risk-averse, Gardley's consistent originality and breadth of vision marks him as one of our most interesting playwrights... ‘Black Odyssey’ is an epic journey that pays commensurate with its challenges.”
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“...if I were still a high school English teacher, I would recommend black odyssey as required viewing. It is a show that is simultaneously enjoyable and edifying.”
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“The cast is uniformly excellent with superb comedic pacing and the heft for the more profound segments of Lincoln’s journey...Following the conception of his play from beginning to end reveals Gardley’s ability to effect exposition into action...This is one to see.”
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" 'black odyssesy' is theater you can really sink your teeth into — dramatic, imaginative and detailed. It takes a little patience, but once we hit our stride the storm tossed seas, and vivid nightmares are smooth sailing."
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“...Gardley’s play is most entertaining when you stop trying to match up his characters to the originals...And while Gardley is a master writer of comedy, he also knows when to keep it serious to explore his themes of persecution and injustice.”
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