Fairview

See it if you think it's important to continually foment antagonism between races, pretending that it serves a positive purpose to "tell the truth".

Don't see it if you are genuinely striving to help create a world as free from racism as possible, and you believe that "loving your neighbor" is the way.

See it if If they are interested in a banal , boring, self indulgent view of racism even in a poor play.

Don't see it if This is not a good or even interesting example of the subject of racism which should be written with skill and real emotion.

See it if you want to see the play that won the most recent Pulitzer Prize and figure out why it did.

Don't see it if Shows that preach to the converted insult you.

Also It seems to have four different styles. After the first, it becomes incomprehensible until the end when you see its aim. Theater shouldn't be mean-spirited. There are better ways to make a serious point without insulting people, who if they are present, probably are not the guilty ones.... Read more Read less

See it if you are looking for something different and edgy. Just don't expect it to make any sense at all.

Don't see it if you like plot, character or substance. This isnt a play; it is a loose collection of ideas with no thru line or connective tissue binding it

See it if you are masochistic

Don't see it if just don't bother to see it

See it if To see what garners the Pulitzer these days...

Don't see it if Hectoring rant far less original than breathless reviews suggest. A strident, surreal "farce" about racism and other societal ills.No thanks

See it if you like to see politics (yes, racial) on stage

Don't see it if Overrated. Raises hot issues in an intense way but does not work as theater

See it if you want to see a talented ensemble of actors fearlessly making their way through this overwrought mess.

Don't see it if you have a list of what you want to see. Don't waste your time here. This is truly a play that is hollow beneath its gimmicks & histrionics.

Also … and if you are white and not a fan of audience participation, and in this case in a very dishonest & highly manipulative fashion, avoid this play. Spoiler alert ahead, I guess : It was a hoot though to see all these middle class and upper middle class white people up onstage oozing with their supposed white guilt. What a joke !... Read more Read less

See it if You want to be told that you aren’t sufficiently woke. And if you like chaos on stage

Don't see it if You would find it annoying to be lectured

See it if I strongly disliked the play. Fans of absurdist, confrontational theater might enjoy it. Some interesting ideas, but dreadful execution.

Don't see it if A convoluted mess. Raises some interesting ideas on race and identity, but they are lost as the play descends into absurdist farce.

Also ** NOTE: Those who plan to see this play might want to avoid reading reviews beforehand in order to avoid spoilers. Part of the impact of the play is being surprised by the wild twists and turns that the narrative takes. You will likely have a different experience if you know what to expect in advance. **

I had very high hopes for this play, which deals with issues of race and identity. It received strong reviews Off Broadway and recently won the Pulitzer Prize. The Off Broadway reviews hinted that the show played with the audience in ways that were guaranteed to make some people uncomfortable. It sounded promising.

Alas, the play left me profoundly disappointed. The play raises some interesting points, but they quickly become lost once the play descends into an incoherent, absurdist farce. The play ends with an interesting bit of audience participation, but the playwright's message gets lost in a disjointed and poorly written final monologue. I am mystified by the strong reviews.... Read more Read less

See it if You love to dissect the "meaning" out of crass stagecraft in the name of being racially "aware".

Don't see it if You want to understand what's going on. Or if, at times, you even would like to HEAR what's going on. Especially at the critical ending.

See it if See it if you're pretentious, like to be condescended to, and like simplistic answers to the complexity of race.

Don't see it if You are intelligent and not a phony liberal. Don't see if you're mixed-race -- you get to stand in the isle?

Also What about the Chitlin Circuit? Do the author or director know anything about it? It's black theatre for black people (hint: Tyler Perry). Do the black people there have to get on stage and feel guilty? There's far more complexity to cross-over entertainment than this play has to offer.... Read more Read less

See it if Interested in white fragility

Don't see it if Want coherent, non-indulgent play

See it if you need to be reminded that racism is bad.

Don't see it if you have deeper socio-political awareness than a backward 5-year-old. And if you don't like audience participation.

Also A truly tiresome evening of preaching to the choir and "exploring" theatrical experiments that have been explored to the nth degree. The final "coup" is just ridiculous, and be warned - physical audience participation is mandatory.... Read more Read less

See it if you like pieces centered on race, cultural exploration & identity, absurdist and extremist theater and self-awareness.

Don't see it if you dislike narrative disorientation, experimental styles and performance, or possibly being preached at and shamed.

Also Fairview starts off strong, an exciting, innovative and provocative piece with humor and wonderful acting. As the piece lurches forward it becomes confusing and disorienting, all to fantastic and introspective effect. I won't give away the event, but things take a turn that belabors its point, wears out its welcome in a bloviated and self-important way, and also manages to shame & humiliate a good part of the audience. I'm hoping that wasn't the playwright's intent (though it's plausible), but it certainly is what happened at this performance. At said point the audience seemed to check out and most seemed to stop listening to the wonderful actor who was orating - and instead started counting the seconds until it ended. Worse, as we were asked to do a task, there was no flexibility NOT to, and my heart broke a bit as we watched a disabled/injured man who remained seated, guilted into participating. Sadly, watching that man limp forward was the lasting image for me and my spouse.... Read more Read less

See it if You are prepared for a strained, unsuccessful, and didactic piece exploring race and making space in nebulous ways.

Don't see it if You don’t enjoy hostility aimed at you directly.

Also Without spoiling much, I appear white but am not, and the end of the show put me in an awkward position that left people of color looking at me as if I shouldn’t have been where I was. I was inadvertently transformed into a self-serving whitey when I’m not white at all. False assumptions were made about me due to the device used at end of the play that bordered on abusive and it was actually a little traumatic for me.... Read more Read less