Hal & Bee NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (18)
See it if If you like good acting with a decent staging. If you like the 60's culture.
Don't see it if If you don't like a show that misses the mark, violence.
See it if you enjoy plays with characters you won't have any emotional involvement with.
Don't see it if just don't see it. Not worth anyone's time or money. Read more
See it if An absurdist drama about a college-age daughter trying to separate from aging, not so happily married, hippy parents as ceiling closes in.
Don't see it if You don’t like mixing real and absurd events and you don’t believe that a fantasy of killing is a solution for a problem.
See it if you enjoy shows with a unique twist albeit confusing at first, worth staying with it.
Don't see it if contemporary dramedy doesn't suit you considering you have to be a bit patient at first
See it if You want to watch great actors have fun with a wild show.
Don't see it if You want a play that doesn't stray into being repetitive - the core idea wears thin a little too early.
See it if You enjoy shows that deal with the Baby Boomer generation, and NYC -centric family/comedies.
Don't see it if You are tired of plays/movies involving the Baby Boomer generation. You wish a show in a comfortable setting. Read more
See it if You like strong performances that don't hold back, top-notch set and smart direction.
Don't see it if You don't want to see a play dealing with older characters. Read more
See it if you like dark comedies and great acting.
Don't see it if averse to violence.
Critic Reviews (11)
"With a stellar cast and excellent staging, this entertaining dark comedy is very thought provoking...Leading the cast are Broadway veterans, Candy Buckley as Bee and Jeff Hayenga as Hal who master their portrayal of aging hippies...The troupe also includes the talents of Lisa Jill Anderson who portrays Moon...Poake excels in his role as The Bug Man...This four-person cast delivers Max Baker's clever dialogue with perfect pacing...Humorous, surprising, and touching."
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"Various acts of uxoricide take place in Hal's increasingly frustrated mind. These are meant to amuse, I guess, but they don't, in part because the joke, which isn't that strong to begin with, grows stale through repetition, and in part because...one can't help but feel that Hal and Bee aren't really worth one's attention...The actors throw themselves into every spat...'Hal and Bee,' the play, never makes a case for why one should care about Hal and Bee, the characters."
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"This is a play that works by successfully capturing the nitty-gritty of the couple's lives, and, with the exception of the fantasy 'murder' sequences, the playwright has created a very realistic pair...Audience could be seen grimacing with apparent recognition at some of the more blistering lines...Supporting characters...Each of whom provides a welcome relief from the constant sniping, are smartly conceived and performed...Directed with a keen eye for detail."
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"Baker's lines are spiky and colorful, often dark, sometimes banal, but his portrait of these two and the two lesser characters is always illuminating and full of real emotion. The fade-out, a quiet revelatory moment, is simply lovely-and sad."
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"These actors Candy Buckley (Bee) and Jeff Hayenga (Hal) are gripping…Anderson delivers her profanity-laced screeds with both conviction and a strangely charming aplomb…Director Sarah Norris gets what she needs from each of the actors...So — compelling performances, well directed and supported by production staff, addressing a subject we all struggle with — what could go wrong? There’s nothing wrong with 'Hal & Bee,' it just goes on too long. I’m glad I saw it."
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"Refreshingly witty...Hayenga and Buckley are perfectly matched as the feuding pair and trade barbs at a fierce pace that's both delightful and challenging to follow. We enjoy watching their tit-for-tat spats - littered with Baker's punchy jokes and fresh observations...Buckley and Hayenga also make their union understandable by showing evidence of a deep-seated affection that continues to endure despite their differences."
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"In this allegorical extended metaphor, 'civilization and its discontents' camps at the doorstep of the scrapping couple’s apartment in a rapid-fire exchange laced with flights of fantasy and just the hint of buyer’s remorse...The plot, driven by the exaggerated (albeit authentic) conflicts of the play’s colorful and well-developed characters...Under Sarah Norris’s astute direction, the cast handily delivers Max Baker’s intriguing script with energy and determination."
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"Unfortunately, both brutal violence and victims’ responses are unrealistically orchestrated…A good idea gone wrong. Differentiating script from production, I find the concept intriguing, speeches evocatively generational and character specific...The play should zip along and doesn’t. Jeff Hayenga’s Hal is irritating but we never see him uncontrollably angry, only the results. He’s credibly high, but otherwise one note. Candy Buckley (Bee) is more nuanced and grounded in her efforts.”
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