Ernest Shackleton Loves Me
Closed 1h 30m
Ernest Shackleton Loves Me
76%
76%
(248 Ratings)
Positive
78%
Mixed
16%
Negative
6%
Members say
Clever, Entertaining, Quirky, Great singing, Delightful

About the Show

GrooveLily's electro-violinist Valerie Vigoda stars in this high-tech musical adventure about two extraordinary people connecting across time and space. Featuring a book by Tony winner Joe DiPietro ('Memphis').

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Critic Reviews (25)

The New York Times
May 8th, 2017

"Vigoda and Milburn's works mix the snarky and the sentimental. Under Lisa Peterson’s focused direction, 'Ernest Shackleton' is no exception...With the exception of a cheerily disjointed opening number, the score and the narrative that encases it are too tidy to allow for much real feeling. Kat is supposedly an experimental composer, but most of the music is merry pastiche...If Mr. DiPietro’s premise is nicely weird, his psychology and story rarely buck convention."
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Time Out New York
May 7th, 2017

"A bighearted but very silly musical...Brendan Milburn’s music is lovely, and the two actors sound great performing it...The painfully broad humor in Joe DiPietro’s script only heightens the feeling that we’re watching an after-school special for grown-ups. But 'Ernest Shackleton Loves Me' is so clearly a labor of love that it’s hard to be too bothered by the cartoonishness, even as the show sails into shallow waters."
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Theatermania
May 10th, 2017

"Under the direction of Peterson, this NY premiere proudly waves its freak flag, and, perhaps taking a clue from the adventures of the title character, boldly dares to risk its life in the admirable search for innovation...While Vigoda and McCollum don't have much romantic chemistry, they're both delightfully quirky performers who really know how to sell the material...Peterson's direction guides them both into larger-than-life performances that, remarkably, are down-to-earth at the same time."
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BroadwayWorld
May 20th, 2017

“A wildly fun and unpredictable new two-person musical comedy…As played by the energetic and charismatic Valerie Vigoda, Kat is really quite a catch. Vigoda also wrote the clever, storytelling lyrics…Add a solidly quirky book by Joe DiPietro and a spirited production by director Lisa Peterson, and ‘Ernest Shackleton Loves Me’ is just as lovable as musicals come…The plot may be thin, but the enjoyable score is a terrific mix of pop, folk and techno...This one will melt your heart.”
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Lighting & Sound America
May 8th, 2017

"Under Peterson's canny direction, this bizarre premise is so smoothly put over that there are many things to enjoy...The exchanges between a frazzled twenty-first century woman and her Edwardian explorer are often amusing...The idea of using this historical event as a way of working out Kat's personal problems is so weirdly random that often one's mind wanders...A confident production with many crowd-pleasing aspects, but it is built on a questionable concept."
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Talkin' Broadway
May 7th, 2017

"There is little by way of set design beyond the large video installation and a few props, but imagination and the energetic performances take care of the rest. Musically, the show is filled with thumping songs ranging from pop tunes to sea chanteys to soaring power ballads...Corny, perhaps, but the performances are so splendid, that you will find it hard to resist all of the positive energy that pours off the fine co-stars."
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CurtainUp
May 7th, 2017

"What sells it is the unrelenting charisma of McCollum combined with Vigoda's impressive musicianship. McCollum switches easily between several characters...Has its share of exhilarating moments, but starts to run out of steam in the latter part of the show...It's a show that may at times be a bit too zany for its own good, but it charms thanks to its incredibly appealing performers and its thoughtful design...Sure to resonate with audiences in need of a good pick-me-up."
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TheaterScene.net
May 12th, 2017

“Chelsea Cook's costumes are completely realistic, but Nichols' physical set with its scaffolding and onstage equipment never lets us forget that we are in a theater, not on an adventure since his lighting never blocks anything out. Lisa Peterson's direction is smooth but she is unable to turn the show into something that it isn't. ‘Ernest Shackleton Loves Me’ requires a great deal of suspension of disbelief but may charm those who easily succumb to whimsy.”
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