Dead Poets Society NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (103)
See it if you don't mind a rushed-feeling story or you want to see a bunch of great, new actors kill it as the students
Don't see it if you expect it to closely resemble the movie or for Jason Sudeikis to emulate Robin Williams
See it if you want to see the stripped-down John Doyle style applied to an adaptation of a realistic film
Don't see it if you've seen the film. It's not an improvement. Read more
See it if you are into intimate setting kind of theatre. And if you haven't seen the movie.
Don't see it if you love the original film. While the young actors were talented, the play felt bland at some points.
See it if ...you enjoy a tight ensemble. The company of the students is particularly strong.
Don't see it if ...you need a strong script. Like the film, the play coasts on the strength of its cast.
See it if you're a fan of the film or Jason Sudekis, like stories about boys' schools & coming of age tales or father-son relations
Don't see it if you expect deeper character development & more feel for a private school, don't like unresolved issues or rushed conclusions
See it if you like coming-of-age stories or want to see how hard it must have been to be a white man in the '50s.
Don't see it if you hate cliches and stage productions that do nothing to elevate the material.
See it if you're a big Jason Sudeikis fan.
Don't see it if you loved the movie and are expecting the same thing.
See it if you saw the movie (I NEVER saw it–I know, right?) or if you like Jason Sudeikis. I felt he was just doing a serious Mitt Romney impression.
Don't see it if you want a fully staged production. Much like Mr. Doyle's Color Purple, this production is very bare bones.
Critic Reviews (33)
"'Dead Poets Society' is both often funny and moving in its salute to developing an independent mind and matching behavior…Sudeikis is very believable and enjoyable...In the confines of a small stage a variety of story threads come to life, sometimes amusingly, sometimes ultra dramatically. The entire cast is excellent, and Doyle, who has proved himself a master of directing on a small scale, furthers that reputation here."
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"Sudeikis is compelling, endearing and utterly comfortable...For a story about releasing our free spirit, however, this turns out to be a very conventional play...Despite such directorial stylizations, the 100-minute script, adapted by Tom Schulman from his own Oscar-winning screenplay, is heartfelt but dishearteningly old-fashioned...The six classmates have character definitions that might have been picked according to a one-from-column A, one-from column B writing manual."
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"A deft, engaging stage version superbly directed by Doyle...Sudeikis is an easily likable presence on stage, and he acquits himself very well indeed. Despite the star billing, though, he is only part of a solid, talented ensemble...There’s pleasure to be had, and a tinge of nostalgia in the love of books that Keating represents...Advocates the importance of the individual amid the pressures of social conformity...The message, both bittersweet and satisfying, is as relevant now as ever."
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"The drama plays like a reduced, highlights version of the movie. Left out is the connective tissue of characterization and motivation, leaving us to chew on the play’s ideas, which are as stale as month-old pumpernickel...None of this shorthand tragedy, unsubtly directed by John Doyle, makes a lick of dramatic sense. Sudeikis, meanwhile, works hard — you can see him working hard — at being charismatic and does get his character to likable."
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"Jason Sudeikis makes a convincing stage debut...Director John Doyle, the CSC chief and respected Sondheim interpreter, has, as is his way, stripped down 'Dead Poets' to the essentials...Mann and Pais both bring sensitivity to the stage. Cody Kostro is equally on point as their rebellious classmate Charlie Dalton...'Dead Poets Society' stands on its own as an effective work of drama, even for a generation of audiences who may have no idea what preceded it."
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"'Dead Poets Society’ may not be anybody's kind of show. It's stiff, shallow, a little perfunctory — the stage seems to diminish the celebrated moments of Schulman's screenplay…Jason Sudeikis, following in Williams's footsteps, seems like a man working very hard to make a borrowed suit of clothes look tailored to fit him. And while the rest of the actors in John Doyle's tidy, modestly effective production aren't bad, the magic they haven't quite caught is readily available on YouTube."
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"A terrific stage adaptation of the film of the same name...Doyle's staging is perfection...The action plays to the audiences on all sides of the thrust-style stage on the floor, pulling us into the classroom. Suddenly dialogue is underscored by humming; songs shift mood...A couple of performances weren't as sure, but I saw a preview, so I am willing to bet that rough edges will be smooth post opening."
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"Jason Sudeikis has this 'Robin Williams role,' and he’s splendid in creating the teacher you always wanted to have and love but never did...Schulman has done well himself with the four precepts he’d designed for Welton; he certainly 'honored' the 'tradition' of his original script and was 'discipline' enough to see the project through. And while he succeeded at making the show 'excellent,' he can’t give us a compelling enough reason why his screenplay should come to the stage."
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