Juno and the Paycock NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (59)
See it if You love O'Casey. The Irish Rep always puts on a helluva show with great acting and direction.
Don't see it if You're sick of hearing about the troubles and can't stand another meaningful sequence of dialogue.
See it if you are an O'Casey fan, are amenable to Irish historical material, enjoy great acting esp. Plunkett who is a joy, overall fine production.
Don't see it if you are up to your eyeballs in revivals of classical Irish plays, can't manage varying degrees of brogue, have no compassion for the poor.
See it if You like Irish theatre, drama about family struggles
Don't see it if You struggle with heavy accents, aren't interested in period pieces with resonance to today
See it if The best of the Sean O’Casey’s plays being performed
Don't see it if You don’t like plays about Irish history or Irish accents.
See it if Great acting. It shows how people lived during the 1922 Irish Civil War
Don't see it if If you can't understand the Irish accent.
See it if You want to see a terrific production of O'Casey's best play. You appreciate great acting -- Plunkett & O'Reilly were born for these roles!
Don't see it if You prefer pablum or vacuous theatre. Read more
See it if ...you are a fan of Irish Theatre. This is a classic and they do it well.
Don't see it if ...you should see it. The acting is first rate and the set beautiful.
See it if You want to see a top notch production of a classic Irish play.
Don't see it if You are expecting something avant-garde or contemporary.
Critic Reviews (16)
"Starts out as a domestic comedy before evolving into the stuff of Gaelic tragedy...Under the meticulously calibrated direction of Neil Pepe, this production is a gem of Irish realism, expertly transitioning from humorous banter to life-altering epiphanies. The production’s evocative design and lived-in performances...bolster the verisimilitude...As the Boyles struggle to survive in a world where politics and religion aim to keep them down, their potent emotions are self-explanatory."
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"Jack has the flashiest part, and Mr. O’Reilly, who also played him in 2013, is equally fine this time around...Nevertheless, it is the actor who plays Juno on whose stooped shoulders rests the ultimate success of any revival of 'Juno and the Paycock,' and Ms. Plunkett is more than equal to the challenge...Once again, you come away feeling not that you’ve just seen a play but that you spent the evening eavesdropping on a roomful of real people."
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"Performed by a dynamic cast led by O'Reilly and Plunkett, Pepe's take feels fresh and relevant while remaining faithful to O' Casey's nearly 100-year-old play...Pepe gives the play a thrilling jolt of realism in a handful of tense, shouty scenes between Juno and her son and husband that take place offstage in an inner room, making us feel as though we're listening to real-life arguments of the family next door. It's a brave directorial choice, but the cast carries it out brilliantly."
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“It is a work both delicate in its structure and brutal in its implications, a heartbreaking comedy set against a bitter background of sectarian violence, a play that seems to contain an entire tumultuous world...One of the most remarkable things about Pepe's production is how it captures the way in which hilarity tumbles headlong into heartbreak...Many members of the supporting cast deliver colorful and incisive performances that capture the heartbeat of working-class lives."
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“IRT is now offering something resembling a revival of a revival...The cast features several actors repeating their 2013-14 performances...O’Casey creates so many of the ‘Juno and the Paycock’ figures with broad yet subtle strokes of his pen that they’re marvels for actors to take on. The returning players here must have been overjoyed to have another go at them...Well-done productions confirm first-rate writing. This 'Juno and the Paycock' hits that high mark.”
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"Superb, searing revival...'Juno‘'s second act, under Neil Pepe’s stringent but deeply compassionate direction, both excruciating and mesmerizing...Flawless ensemble...By the end of 'Juno‘s' third and final act—its last two scenes punctuated by a harrowing pause that Pepe allows to linger painfully—the party is over for all the Boyles.”
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"It isn't one of those classics that trigger the directorial urge to give any revival an edgy new interpretation...O'Casey's blend of humor and intense tragedy add to its enduring power to entertain and move audiences...'Juno and the Paycock’ is especially relevant...Plunkett is magnificent...Only someone with a heart of stone will fail to be deeply moved when Juno, after two hours of emotional restraint, burst out with a heart-wrenching cry."
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"With his almost sneering delivery of Joxer's obsequious and vowel-rich responses ('it's a darlin' funeral, a daarlin' funeral'), Keating's performance is especially brilliant, pitched just before the point when servility turns into hate. As for Jack, O'Reilly brushes aside his litany of faults to make him a first-rate charmer, capable of snatching a smile from Juno even after he's brought the overburdened woman to her wit's end."
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