Hysterical! (FringeNYC) NYC Reviews and Tickets

89%

(20 Reviews)

Positive

100%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Thought-provoking, Entertaining, Clever, Original, Funny

About the Show

Part of FringeNYC: It’s the Bandits’ Best Year EVER! Until…one by one, the girls succumb to a mysterious illness. As the traditional pecking order is upended, the girls’ relationships are tested. A poignant, cheer-full look at life on the cusp of adulthood.

Member Reviews (20)

Ambitious, Funny, Original

See it if You want your teen portraits to be multi faceted and thought provoking.

Don't see it if You just want the easy disparagement of cheerleaders.

Funny, Confusing, Original, Thought-provoking, Clever

See it if Enjoy some fun lyrics and not intent on coming out with all your questions answered.

Don't see it if You need a beginning and an end.

Critic Reviews (3)

“It’s commendable that a cast of five on a bare-bones stage could become such an effective vehicle for playwright Elenna Stauffer’s inspired-by-true-events tale...While low on athleticism, director-choreographer Deborah Wolfson’s spirit routines provide comic relief and help pep up the pace...There’s a dark undertone to the story, which touches on the fragility of youth’s fleeting friendships and the inherently stressful nature of adolescence...Not your average teen comedy."
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"I was surprised by the incredibly powerful and moving moments embedded within this show…The interplay between the comedy and the harsh realities of the social issues within 'Hysterical!' create a well-established balance, but there are moments in the first half of the production that could be tightened up...A fun night out dealing with forgotten but necessary themes in new ways. I'm excited about the future of this production, which has the potential to be truly powerful."
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“Stretches of the play call to mind the second acts of low-budget zombie films...Juxtaposed with these scenes of realistic teenage life are the cheer routines...These routines cast the girls as a Greek Chorus in their own lives, which only makes sense, as modern-day society constantly tells women–and especially young women–that their experiences are not theirs alone, and that their pain needs to be acknowledged by men in order to be considered real.”
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