Linda

See it if Women's mental health damaged by pressures of society and family. Writing hits you at multiple levels. Good characters, well acted.

Don't see it if You are not interested in women's issues. You are looking for something uplifting. This is brutally insightful.

See it if Janie Dee is the powerhouse behind Skinner's cautionary, overwrought "woman has it all" tale. Ikeda offers fine support as damaged daughter

Don't see it if Intelligent & well written but oddly flat and more damaging - unaffecting. Linda as victim of consequences not a cause never really explored

See it if you enjoy topical comedy with serious undertones, interested in role of women in workplace, family issues,past secrets and Janie Dee's perf.

Don't see it if you don't like somewhat contrived coincidences, some twee plot developments and characters, or lots of plot

See it if /4 ambitious story of why a woman cannot have it all, electrifying performance by Brit star Janie Dee/in class of Helen Mirren

Don't see it if play tries to bite off too many feminist issues so loses focus, dialogue at times is wooden/stilted, at times more a diatribe than a story

See it if you want to see the terrific actress Jamie Dee in a relevant story, with a great nemesis in Griggs. First act left me yearning for more.

Don't see it if you are not interested in a disappointingly predictable second act, which is cliched, cringe worthy and overly calculated.

See it if you enjoy watching a woman unravel over 2.5 hours. Really wanted to love Janie Dee's performance—just wish she had better material.

Don't see it if you don't like cliched and repetitive and wooden dialogue in a play. Also, a revolving set that gets overused.

Also Penelope Skinner's last outing here in the U.S. was "The Village Bike," which is a much better play than "Linda". I wanted to love Janie Dee's performance, but the material let her
down. Plus Lynne Meadow's direction did not enhance the script in any way. The play itself is repetitive. Points are made over and over again. This becomes very tiresome.
"Linda" is way too long—about 2.5 hours! The play is way too predictable.... Read more Read less

See it if You see the brits writing

Don't see it if You want satisfying play

See it if you enjoy timely plays that deal with feminist issues, aging, ethics of advertising/marketing industry

Don't see it if you don't care about gender equality or feminist issues, you want more character development and less predictable plot twists

See it if I loved this show. Janie Dee was amazing. Every woman over 50 should see this!

Don't see it if The end was depressing. Offered no solutions to the problem it posed.

Also This is a very important play, with a great cast and a relevant message. I said above that every woman over 50 should see it, and that is true. It has a special message for us. But it also accurately shows how women of all ages undermine and betray each other in myriad ways - sometimes, in worse ways than do men. Which may help to explain why 53% of white women inexplicably voted for a misogynist, self-confessed assaulter of women while vilifying an older woman who might have fought for our interests. The ending, while accurate, offered no easy answers and made me very sad.... Read more Read less

See it if Beautifully written and acted. A spot on woman's play. Absolutely well crafted concerning contemporary life issues .

Don't see it if You only enjoy light musicals or dramas with little family conflicts.

See it if Janie Dee is the powerhouse. Ikeda offers fine support as damaged daughter. Female identity, privacy, self worth & aging movingly explored

Don't see it if viewing a woman's life crumble around her is not your cup of tea. A heartbreaking tale. Well acted and directed. Saw 3/14/17

See it if if you want to see a good drama that leaves you thinking,

Don't see it if if you are tired of dramas about women who want to succeed at any price.

See it if you are interested in seeing new works.

Don't see it if you are not interesting in being about to discuss all the issues it will provoke after sitting through it for two hours.

See it if A dynamite lead & good performances are enough to make up for an unevenly directed & thematically overwritten script that reverses itself.

Don't see it if You want to see female empowerment & self-determination rewarded, or a pertinent, important subject resolved in any meaningful way.

Also As a production, Linda looks as good, sharp, attractive & dynamic as its leading lady, the terrific Janie Dee. The modern contemporary set on its revolving stage is used well, smoothly changing locations & time; costumes are attractive, doing double thematic duty; lighting & sound are great.

Ms Skinner's script, however, despite its snappy, quick paced dialogue fails rather spectacularly and strangely; its second act renounces its first in a burst of melodrama, & goes out of its way at the end to rebuff its own main premise — twice. A tight Act I that speaks directly to & for a very wide range of women's rights & issues, tells us at the end that nothing has changed. A strange position coming from a woman in 2017.

Ms. Dee goes all out for it but can't overcome the character's sudden & immediate breakdown, a false, jolting note in the character & in the narrative line. Jennifer Ikeda fares better as the troubled daughter, acting out the invisibility mentioned in the opening speech.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy an intense drama dealing w/ appearance issues middle-age+ women face; where each character faces a conflict or two.

Don't see it if you don't enjoy a show involving a powerful, dynamic women and the issues most women eventually deal with

Also Linda's character was well played. The issues covered were real, ones the audience could relate to... Read more Read less

See it if you are looking for great acting

Don't see it if you want a happy evening at the theater

See it if you want to see an offbeat slant on the feminist problem of balancing career and family plus a dazzling performance by Janie Dee

Don't see it if you don't want to see any more plays about the feminist problem of balancing career and family!

Also Though dealing with a subject that has been explored to the point of exhaustion, this play separates itself from the others because of its insights that relate to everyone - not just ambitious women: Be very careful that in the course of becoming the perfect "everything", you don't totally lose your ability to relate honestly to the significant others in your life. Perfectionism can be a way of losing your soul.... Read more Read less

See it if Gaining insight into lives of ambitious women is important. Linda reminds us that women can't have it all without paying a high price.

Don't see it if You're not interested in women's issues, like frustrations working in a man's world, or dealing with the double standard.

See it if You are interested in plays about gender inequality and hanker for strong female leads. Janie Dee is terrific if a bit strident at times.

Don't see it if You are frustrated by the overly ambitious and under-realized panoply of sub-themes, the ineffective ending. A worthwhile if flawed endeavor

See it if you're interested in exploring the professional and family life of a woman who appears to have it all.

Don't see it if you're not interested in a look at what it's like to be a successful but aging woman.

See it if you are interested in looking at the roles women play in society; you are ok with plays full of unlikable characters; you like the author

Don't see it if you want a satisfying ending; you like fluffy or happy plays

Also The first 3/4 of this was wonderful - the lead actress is great (2-time Olivier winner, for good reason) and the rest of the cast was quite good. (The score I gave was this high because of the lead.)

The set was perfect.

Unfortunately, the last 15-30 minutes felt just... wrong. All of the edge-of-my-seat wondering what would happen to the two characters I did care about dissipated into nothing.

It was as if the author decided not to go to the ending she had been heading for all along (including pretty heavy foreshadowing) and just pull off short of the station, leaving me incredibly disappointed.

I don't mind plays with an ending that leaves you unsure of what actually happens, but in this case it felt like a cop out. If she had stayed the course, and given this what seemed like the intended dark ending I would have scored it in the 90s...

I really left the theater deflated after what had been an otherwise good show.... Read more Read less

See it if you'd like a play on the role of women in the workplace, the hazards of technology plus other timely subject matter.

Don't see it if you'd rather be at a splashy musical.

See it if you like to be absorbed in a play that is timely and relevant.

Don't see it if women's issues aren't your thing.

Also The cast was terrific as was the scenery and lighting. The play will make you think about what makes a successful woman and the difficulties a middle-aged woman faces in business and in her personal life. I thought Ben Brantley of "The Times" missed the point of the play. Maybe you need to be a woman who has experienced some of what Linda has or know a woman who has to understand the play.... Read more Read less

See it if you are interested in female empowerment and the strains of adult womanhood

Don't see it if you want a happy ending or at least a hopeful one.

See it if You are into family disfunction, strong women, excellent acting and a lovely evening out.

Don't see it if It's very worthwhile. Just see it. The actress playing Linda is excellent.