Inescapable NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (27)
See it if you like smart writing & brilliant thinking. Seems like a show that other playwrights would especially like.
Don't see it if you want a more earnest story. This is so much compact & cold wit wrapped up in a big bow for you. Also it's 2 guys arguing in a black box. Read more
See it if you'd like to experience the post-modern equivalent of a supremely funny, extended Abbott & Costello routine.
Don't see it if you are looking for a drama & not a (brilliantly written & played) comedy routine. Read more
See it if you enjoy the kind of mental gymnastics that some of Stoppard's work can deliver. This is brief, engrossing, brain-tickling and fun.
Don't see it if You want a deep or complex plot -- not happening in 65 minutes. Only two actors, who master complex dialogue on a par with Elaine May.
See it if you'd love to see Seinfeld and Kramer in a circular conversation about not much. Great chemistry between the actors.
Don't see it if You want an interesting plot - there is no plot really. It's confusing at the start, but still funny once you go with it.
See it if want quick witted and energetic theater
Don't see it if are expecting a long deep story
See it if you like absurdist or magical realist shows that look like a simple package but have layers of wrapping. You like your comedy with a twist.
Don't see it if You aren't a fan of repetitive dialogue. Read more
See it if You enjoy plays where you discover the story along w/the characters. You like plays w/sci-fi elements. You want riveting story & performance
Don't see it if You don't want to do any work to figure out what's happening. You don't like sci-fi storylines. You prefer shows w/bigger production values.
See it if You're up for sharp subtle & witty writing—yes, "Who’s On First?" crossed with Beckett—expertly performed & directed.
Don't see it if If you need linear plot or length; this is a tight fully committed & layered one act or even exercise, but terrific. Read more
Critic Reviews (10)
“'Inescapable' is diverting and well performed but fails to take us anywhere. In its brevity it feels more like an exercise than a finished product. Paterson and Dockery give it all they’ve got, keeping the energy going with fast paced dialogue and clear focus. They do build to one emotional moment. It is a much welcome pause. You think maybe the silence will restart the engine but drive the piece in a different direction. Alas, we just go back to the beginning, with no reprieve.”
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"Paterson joins Dockery in this tale of a holiday party gone awry, and his focused yet natural acting style meshes impeccably with Dockery’s amped-up energy. In the story, Dockery’s unnamed host finds an old pal looking at a mysterious box...Quesnelle’s direction let us see this mysterious box that isn’t there. And although the physical action doesn’t pick up much, in Dockery’s usual style as the words fly faster, and more bits of the puzzle are revealed, the tension increases.”
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“A tense, brain-twisting drama...’Inescapable’ reminded me of a less perplexing version of the sci-fi film ‘Primer’, or a lost ‘Twilight Zone’ episode...It lacks the romantic magic-realism glow of Dockery's previous plays performed with Quesnelle, replacing it with testosterone-fueled propulsiveness. Thanks to its tantalizingly enigmatic script and compulsively engaging performances, ‘Inescapable’ will have you crying, ‘What's in the box?’ like Brad Pitt in ‘Seven’."
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“A hilarious non-stop, high-energy, rapid-fire 45 minute dialogue that is really about, well, nothing. A sort of ‘Groundhog Day’ meets ‘No Exit’ meets ‘Waiting for Godot’ meets… just about anything you want...The two actors are well paired as each are adept, talking at a blistering pace, and much of the humour comes from their complete belief in what they are saying – wonky though it is.”
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“In this circular buzzsaw of a play...The continuous Mobius loop is spinning, fast and furious...And Dockery and...Paterson are going at it, full-throttle full-volume...’Inescapable’ is Groundhog Day on speed...with high-octane, expertly cross-hatched performances to match...It gives off tiny, glinting revelations...And, thanks to the intricate infrastructure devised by Dockery, a mid-life crisis story of betrayal and lost possibility emerges without getting told...Mesmerizing.”
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“A riveting two-hander that keeps you engaged right from the first burst of rapid-fire dialogue, ‘Inescapable’ is another winner from Fringe regular Dockery...The show and its meandering conversation might seem like a take on ‘Waiting For Godot’. The key conflict soon emerges to give both Dockery and Paterson room to invigorate their characters with an emotional heft that carries the show to its twist ending...The kind of show you will want to see again right away."
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"Features an amazing pair of actors...So perfectly intricate, witty, and well rehearsed. Paterson and Dockery, from the moment the lights came up, were a match made in heaven, providing each other plenty of energy to build off of...The script was repetitive but brilliant in its anecdotes and subtleties...A short, 45 minute piece, so rich in the story’s ability to get across the kind of lives these men lived and what their aspirations were.”
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“A two-hander about a moment that never ends. Sadly, it does for the audience...Both Dockery and Paterson give riveting performances...The script is sinuous and natural in its cyclical pattern, flowing in waves of tension that rise and fall...The actors rise to the challenge of performing similar scenes in a unique manner, making each into a fresh contest of wills, as the profound discomfort of their characters rises, and the audience gains a larger glimpse of the inescapable elephant in the room.”
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