Illyria NYC Reviews and Tickets

"If you don’t know much about the real Joseph Papp, you may wonder what the heck’s going on and why you should be interested. If you do know a lot about Papp and his associates, you may be a bit exasperated by the liberties Mr. Nelson has taken...But 'Illyria' also affords distinctive if fleeting pleasures that no one these days does better than Nelson...Theatergoers with patience will be rewarded by moments throughout when they will feel transformed into proverbial flies on the walls."
Read more

"The play may be unpleasant, but at least it isn’t puffery...Dull drama...It’s dramatically inert, though the characters talk about important issues like civic space and the corrosive power of government ideologues...Nelson wants his work to be naturalistic and unfussy, but winds up with enforced murmuring...You can sense the strain it puts on the actors to speak in voices that can’t be heard, and many of them turn in mannered, uncomfortable performances. 'Illyria' has only one good scene."
Read more

"Actors in 'Illyria' are doing delicate, absorbing work conjuring very real people. The play is quite literally understated...I might even call it navel-gazing — but perhaps that’s all right when you have, admittedly, a very interesting navel...Almost feels more like documentary or museum recreation than theater itself. But despite its conscious avoidance of the dramatic, the piece ultimately works its way between your ribs."
Read more

"Nelson sketches absorbing portraits of Papp and the tight circle who ventured with him...'Illyria' continues Nelson’s preoccupation with conversational presentation in which the actors speak sotto voce, forcing us to listen hard...It’s far less effective here...Moreover, the male players in this history, starting with Papp himself, were a volatile lot, something you’d never know from the hushed tones prevailing here...'Illyria' has second act problems. Notably: There isn’t one."
Read more

“The tepid tone and low energy level of ‘Illyria’ would have us believe that the birth of the New York Shakespeare Festival was a walk in the park...Nelson doesn’t make much of these real historical challenges...As far as dramatic conflict, the play doesn’t totally flatline. The real problem is with the tone-deaf performance style that Nelson has adopted...Almost everyone falls into the stumble-and-mumble company style...The lack of energy in this production is enough to knock you out cold.”
Read more

"More frustrating than edifying, more obscure than enlightening...I sat in the third row and still couldn't make out much of the dialogue...The dialogue is so low-key and matter-of-fact that it fails to engage our attention...Subject matter so potentially fascinating makes it all the more frustrating that Illyria proves so tedious and lifeless. There's so little passion exhibited that it ironically only makes you wonder how the New York Shakespeare Festival ever got off the ground."
Read more

"A quiet, talky, pensive and unresolved new drama...The play ends without climax or even a hint of resolution, and much of the conversation rambles on too long, but those who appreciate Nelson’s intimate, low-key, ensemble-oriented aesthetic and Off-Broadway history will not want to miss it."
Read more

"Audiences will recognize a deep humanity and quiet perseverance in the play — if they can manage to stay awake. It's actually impressive how Nelson is able to provoke big yawns with such a fascinating tale...Nelson populates his drama with a cast of real characters...Their aggressively mild portrayals leave us with the aftertaste of mayonnaise: We never get a real sense of any of them...In pursuit of realism, Nelson downplays the stakes of this vitally relevant story."
Read more