Medea (BAM) NYC Reviews and Tickets

83%

(161 Reviews)

Positive

89%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Great acting, Absorbing, Great staging, Intense, Riveting

About the Show

Euripides’ controversial icon is reborn in visionary director Simon Stone’s ("Yerma") contemporary rewrite. Starring Rose Byrne ("Damages") and Bobby Cannavale ("The Lifespan of a Fact," "The Hairy Ape").

From the show:

Euripides’ controversial icon is reborn in visionary director Simon Stone’s (Yerma) stunning contemporary rewrite. Rose Byrne (Damages, Bridesmaids, You Can’t Take It with You) and Bobby Cannavale (The Lifespan of a Fact, The Hairy Ape, The Motherf**ker with the Hat) face off as a husband and wife in the tumultuous throes of an unraveling marriage. Transposing the devastation of Greek tragedy to a modern American home, Stone’s stripped-bare staging throws the couple’s every raw emotion into stark relief, from jealousy to passion, humor to despair. Who will pay the price?

This critical sensation riveted audiences across Europe and now comes to BAM for its US premiere, featuring an all-new cast, including Dylan Baker (The Good Wife, Happiness).

Member Reviews (161)

Great writing, Great acting, Great staging, Intense, Edgy

See it if You like modern interpretations of classic dramas. Superb acting. Genius staging. Sharp writing keeps all the intensity and emotion.

Don't see it if You’re a purist. This is a 75 minute Medea for the 21st century. Read more

Must see, Great staging, Great acting, Great writing, Riveting

See it if you enjoy being immersed in the lives of 5 people interacting among themselves and with 3 support characters in a hauntingly beautiful story

Don't see it if you do not like to see traditional brought to current life experiences that are not happy-go-lucky Read more

Great acting, Intense, Overrated

See it if Solid performances, especially Rose Byrne. But zero redeeming qualities in any character. No lessons taken away.

Don't see it if You want to find meaning in a show.

Intense, Resonant, Ambitious, Great acting, Great staging

See it if excellence attracts you. Rose Byrne is amazing! The use of space is unlike anything I've seen before. And projections create immediacy

Don't see it if you're expecting Medea. Some elements are maintained some not. A title allowing me to see the play without preconception would have helped

Modern, Good acting, Tepid, Disappointing

See it if u want to see a mannered, minimalist staging of a modern (& mildly feminist) take on the Greek classic starring a real-life power couple.

Don't see it if ur a Medea purist, unwilling to allow so many liberties to be taken with Euripides' story; you think Medea is a Tyler Perry character. Read more

Great acting, Great staging, Intense, Resonant, Intelligent

See it if Byrne is arresting & outstanding in the iconic role w/ good Cannavale Stone's chic, stylish staging is chilly & a little dispassionate

Don't see it if Yet Stone's premise of a mentally deranged Medea (at the onset) robs her (& audience) of the necessary arc towards her hellish final act

Riveting, Great writing, Great staging, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if you wish to see great drama and acting at its finest. Intense, riveting performances especially by Rose Byrne. Powerful and must see.

Don't see it if you like comedy. This drama will have you involved with the characters, whose actions both repel and attract. Read more

Masterful, Great writing, Great staging, Great acting

See it if Fast-paced 1hr20min reworking of Medea in modern day (husband leaves his wife & kids for another woman). Sleek bright-white set.

Don't see it if You don't like retellings in modern-day language with lots of cursing & relationship drama. You don't like psychosis & violent endings.

Critic Reviews (18)

"Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale, Torched by Love: Simon Stone’s contemporary spin on the classic tale of marital vengeance feels more clinical than tragic."
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3/5 stars: "Byrne is riveting, but the effort at psychological dimension in a modern setting detracts from the play's mythic dimension. Stone's 'Medea' is ultimately the story of a woman who murders people because she is severely mentally ill."
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"How Do You Solve a Problem Like 'Medea?'"
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"Real-life partners Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale star as a divided couple in Simon Stone's modern-day riff on Euripides' classic Greek tragedy."
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"By framing his American bourgeois Medea with the trappings of avant-garde scenography, perhaps Stone hopes to elevate his text, but banality isn't that easy to shake."
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"Beware. This stylish ‘Medea’ adaptation offers no escape, for Rose Byrne or for you."
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"'Medea' is modern reinvention of a tragic classical thriller"
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"Rose Byrne Plays Medea On Meds: The Bridesmaids actor portrays a 21st-century analogue to the monstrous mom, opposite real-life partner Bobby Cannavale."
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