For Peter Pan on Her 70th Birthday NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (165)
See it if You love to see pros on stage do their thing, and you like to be challenged a bit by the material
Don't see it if Fantasy ideas turn you off
See it if You are as much a Sarah Ruhl fan as I. Great writing, wonderful performances (esp. Chalfant) - reflective of aging, death and growing up.
Don't see it if You don't enjoy quirkiness
See it if If willing to build some bridges between 3 very disparate sections of a play, love Kathleen Chalfant, are interested in talk of afterlife.
Don't see it if Combining realistic family drama a la Apple plays and whimsical fantasy with heavy symbolism is not your thing, or prefer your theater light Read more
See it if You're a fan of Sarah Ruhl or Kathleen Chalfant or both. You can handle a mix of profound reality and crazy fantasy.
Don't see it if You need straight forward pieces that are easy to understand and dissect. You don't want to hear political debate or are disturbed by dying Read more
See it if I like her plays and after review had low expectations but enjoyed good dialogue
Don't see it if like a good ending the last part of the play was the weakest
See it if you enjoy the clever and often offbeat ways that Sarah Ruhl frames her plays. Definitely worth seeing for the cast - they are exceptional.
Don't see it if you want events and scenes to play out literally. There are lots of metaphors, overlapping worlds, and sometimes confusing leaps of faith.
See it if you love Kathleen Chalfont. She is AMAZING and worth sitting through 90 pointless minutes just to watch her act! Set is interesting.
Don't see it if you were looking for something meaningful or fun.It's an ok play, but very slow. Which is perfect in the hospital room scenes, but otherwise
See it if you love Kathleen Chalfant
Don't see it if you want a clearly focused meditation on its principal themes, ie aging and death. Toys with significance but never gets there
Critic Reviews (46)
"This one-act meditation on aging and dying never escapes feeling like watching someone else's home movies...The fantastical finale is totally predictable...Theatrically speaking this basically plotless piece never really soars to the level of Ruhl's better work...While that final recreation of the famous Barrie bedroom scene is more lively and fun than what went on before, the flying is decidedly low-key and limited...not the strong play these fine actors deserve."
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"The dialogue quick, clever and revealing, touching on religion, bureaucracy, politics and the all too familiar waiting for someone to die. Expect many a chuckle...It takes a while for this play to get going, but once it does, it fulfills many emotions in oh so tender moments of love and honesty, addressing our mutual humanity. The cast is lovable and loving."
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"I was hard-pressed to identify with this collection of siblings...Somehow they all remained unconnected to each other or the moment. In my experience, these situations bring out the connected in everyone involved...The play slowly drifts to an end, if not a conclusion...The performances are all quite wonderful...This is a production that you want to like. Everyone is sincere and working hard to bring this text to life. It is the text that is wanting."
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"Take a new play by...Sarah Ruhl, add a cast of seasoned New York actors including the great Kathleen Chalfant, let innovative theater director...Les Waters mix it all up, and you have a triple whammy of terrific theater...Chalfant is captivating; her hopeful performance sprinkles fairy dust to all...With poignancy and touches of alchemy, Mr. Waters’ direction stretched theatrical boundaries beautifully, shaping moments of grief, tenderness and joy along with a skillful use of music."
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“Ruhl’s bravery in exploring the landscape of this dysfunctional family without judgment and finding the love that binds them together is beautiful to behold…The director, Les Walters, did an amazing job of creating a true family dynamic and I thought he helped create a world underneath the words so vibrantly. Even in the silences, I was drawn into the play…As both Wendys, Lisa Emery is marvelous...Kathleen Chalfant, naturally, is superb as Ann/Peter Pan."
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"Ultimately proves the rare miss for Ruhl...Even her misfires are noteworthy...Here the drama has been eliminated altogether. Argument stands in for conflict; the idea, not the play, is the thing...Having foregone individuation, however, 'For Peter Pan' feels more like a Sarah Ruhl parody than a Sarah Ruhl play...The play floats along on the surface, safe and sane and totally harmless...The staging and delivery choices are mechanical and workaday, leaving the fine ensemble...to flounder."
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“‘For Peter Pan’...is sporadically touching and interesting; ultimately, though, it’s structurally ungainly, dramatically meh, and awkwardly resolved…Engaging chitchat in the overheard dialogue tradition best represented by…Nelson’s Apple family plays…Regardless of its charms, well-honed dialogue, and fine ensemble, ‘For Peter Pan’...depends too much on plotless conversation and theatrical smoke and mirrors. It could use some of that fairy dust that Peter…sprinkles about.”
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“When this story of five siblings sticks to its interpersonal dynamics, it is at its most believable and engaging. But sadly, not even a first-rate troupe of players, led by the always magnificent Kathleen Chalfant…can get this muddled play off the ground. At 90 minutes, the play feels simultaneously overstuffed and overlong, helped none by Les Waters’ often sluggish direction...The final reenactment of a scene from ‘Peter Pan’ borders on the ridiculous.”
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