Kid Victory NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (175)
See it if want to experience classic Kander, excellent acting, & an interesting story.
Don't see it if you want a big production.
See it if you're a fan of John Kander or Karen Ziemba and game for experimental theatre—the alchemy of disturbing-tale-as-musical is unsettling.
Don't see it if you're looking for upbeat story or traditional musical format of interwoven songs (none listed in program) or are averse to disturbing plot. Read more
See it if daring look at teen abduction & abuse by internet sexual predators suits U. The boy is rescued & returns home. But there's no easy happy end
Don't see it if U want a linear plot or if sex abuse & religion don't work for U as a musical. I found the music too traditional to fit the subject. Read more
See it if You want to cry, but don't necessarily love the show. It's not fully realized, but has a lot to say. You'll be surprised.
Don't see it if You want to come out singing fun show tunes, or want a fully realized show. It still needs work, but it gutted me at the same time.
See it if you like the musicals of John Kander, can accept a dark story with both downbeat and upbeat music, are not put off by troubling scenes.
Don't see it if you want a happy tale where problems are resolved for all, are sensitive to dangers teens face on the Internet, don't like John Kander music
See it if you're a theater aficionado, are drawn to dark human dramas with complex themes, want to see excellent performances (esp. Brandon Flynn)
Don't see it if you're looking for an experience like Chicago or Cabaret - the themes here are much darker and more extreme, but thought provoking.
See it if You like incredibly well-written music and very strong performances, and won't mind if the piece still feels slightly unfinished.
Don't see it if You have difficulty with themes of abduction, coercion/rape, or suicide. You like your musicals uplifting and peppy. Read more
See it if you like quirky small-scale musicals. The young lead is excellent and the show is quite absorbing and disturbing. Kandor's music is lovely.
Don't see it if you are looking for a really outstanding show. The lyrics are often banal lists of nouns. The use of the chorus is distracting. Doesn't work
Critic Reviews (37)
"A small, dark, tight chamber musical with thoughtful lyrics by Greg Pierce...It’s the religious community/Greek chorus, alas, that the creators and director Liesl Tommy encourage to surround Luke with oblivion, ignorance and zealous stereotypes...This isn’t a big commercial musical, but it takes on a radioactive subject without exploitation and finds some human music in it."
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"A harrowing coming-of-age musical that is difficult to watch, but too relevant not to...Director Liesl Tommy seamlessly interweaves present-time scenes of Luke’s emotional struggle and social interactions with split-second transitions into surreal sequences in his mind and hallucinatory recollections of the past...Would 'Kid Victory' work as well or better as a straight drama than a musical? Either way, the production tells a crucial must-see story, the likes of which happen too often."
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"A pleasing, wide-ranging musical score by the legendary John Kander and less satisfactory book and lyrics by Greg Pierce...Flynn makes Luke’s circumstance enormously affecting, but 'Kid Victory' doesn’t work very well as a musical...Numbers often seem tangential to the mood of the evening...Despite that, 'Kid Victory' offers a vivid portrait of a tortured soul."
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"A powerful, ambitious and disturbing new musical...It is a story as gripping in emotion as in psychological insight...Having no intermission works smoothly for this here-and-then emotional flow...Ziemba is a standout with her demanding assurance and Jenkins seems hesitant around the boy...It is Flynn and Denman who grasp the audience's attention...Kudos to Kander who, at age 90, still stands strong in American musical theater, exploring today's world with aspiration and creativity."
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“An affecting coming-of-age tale…A show whose moods are sometimes uncertain and even jarring…The story holds together thanks in large part to the fluid staging of Liesl Tommy and a top-notch nine-person cast…Truly elevating the entire proceedings is Kander’s music. He has composed a bountiful score, filled with lustrous settings for Pierce’s persuasive lyrics...It has its occasional bumps, but all in all, 'Kid Victory' is a senior triumph for Kander and colleagues."
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"A major achievement...Under Tommy’s direction, the material drifts back and forth from the present to the past, sometimes simultaneously, and this is no mean achievement...Flynn's performance is flawless and covers great range. He is very important to the success of this small but powerfully effective piece of stagecraft...The rest of the small company bring specific qualities to the other characters; and, as this is a very strong and specific play, they are all essential to its success."
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"'Kid Victory' may be one of the best/most harrowing musicals to hit off Broadway...Brandon Flynn is riveting as Luke...Heavy themes are eased by the gorgeous book and lyrics by Greg Pierce, whose songs felt tinged with hope even when a character is singing at their most broken...'Kid Victory' is a victory. Liesl Tommy has directed a play that both punches and holds your heart with sentiment."
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"Kander’s music seems out of place here. It works, but just barely, mostly because Pierce’s lyrics integrate with book (he wrote both) and because of an expert cast...Keep an eye on Brandon Flynn. He anchors 'Kid Victory' from beginning to end...To her credit, director Liesl Tommy confidently eschews anything flashy directorially, so the play remains story-driven...Seldom (ever?) has a story like 'Kid Victory' been sung about before."
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