Midnight at the Never Get NYC Reviews and Tickets

83%

(106 Reviews)

Positive

93%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Great singing, Entertaining, Romantic, Absorbing, Clever

About the Show

The York's world premiere musical charts the romance between a singer and a songwriter who put together a nightclub act at an illegal gay bar in 1960s Greenwich Village.

Singer Trevor Copeland and songwriter Arthur Brightman have the perfect New York romance. That’s swell. In 1965, it’s also against the law. So in the back room of The Never Get, they put together a show called Midnight— a nightclub act where Trevor sings Arthur’s love songs with their male pronouns intact. But, as the lovers hurtle towards the end of the decade, they find themselves caught in a passion they can’t control and a political revolution they don’t understand.

Member Reviews (106)

Absorbing, Clever, Entertaining, Polished

See it if you'd like classic love songs (a la Berlin) sung by gay couple. Clever premise (set in Limbo) About memory, relationships, gay history, art.

Don't see it if you don't like gay themes, many similar songs (some standouts). Trevor is over-the-top (it may annoy you). Gr band. Nice set. Kicks in late.

Ambitious, Slow, Clever

See it if would have been a better cabaret show. If you like a story or musical about a piece of history that deal with the gay community.

Don't see it if If you want a consistent plot throughout the entire show. Plot turns and not for the betterment of the show.

Absorbing, Romantic, Great music, Surprising, Wistful

See it if Gay love story set in a 1960's nightclub. Excellent original cabaret music. Surprising character and relationship developments.

Don't see it if You are not a fan of cabaret music. You are not interested in gay issues from the 60's and different ways that people coped.

Entertaining, Great singing, Thoughtful, Poignant

See it if you want to follow the arc of a pre-to-post-Stonewall romance of 2 cabaret performers & their quest for acceptance (as gays & as performers)

Don't see it if u expect to see a mere cabaret act; u don't like Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, et al (whose music Sonnenblick’s canny, original score evokes).

Ambitious, Great singing, Refreshing, Funny, Shocking

See it if you enjoy 2-person musicals, stories about gay couples in pre-Stonewall era, songs in Great American Songbook style, delicious twist endings

Don't see it if don't like 2-actor musicals despite a live band, don't like plots about gay life in NYC in 60's & 70's or unreliable narrators, hate twist

Ambitious, Entertaining, Resonant, Romantic, Great singing

See it if Glossy, high toned view of gay liberation thru eyes of budding cabaret star Classy tunes well sung by Bolen cuts thru threatening schmaltz

Don't see it if Conceptual framework around storyline rather clunky but doesn't harm Gets repetitous in its cabaret format but has powerful political stance

Slow burn, Pleasant, Intriguing, Well-paced, Slick

See it if you love standards and the type of performer who excels in performing standards.

Don't see it if you don't want to wait through a pretty straightforward nightclub act to eventually get to something more innovative dramatically.

Semi-sweet gay love story in pre-stonewall piano bar

See it if Singer meets pianist/songwriter in 1965 NY. Can their act and relationship survive? Sam Bolen is a fine singer. Jeremy Cohen at the piano.

Don't see it if Great 5 piece jazz combo behind a scrim at back of stage. The plot reflects the frustration and danger of being gay in Mayor Wagner's NYC. Read more

Critic Reviews (26)

"Sonnenblick’s music, beautifully orchestrated by Adam Podd, strikes that elusive balance between fresh and period-familiar, and the lyrics are lively. There’s only one jarring anachronism, a reference to the emergency number 911, that can’t quite be explained away. Otherwise this smartly constructed show is utterly transporting...An intimate, aching chamber musical about heartbreak and bliss, 'Midnight' is about bravery, too. And about the kind of battered hope that refuses to die."
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"'Midnight' has the slightly over-slick feeling of a show that’s been through the workshopping process, and through it and through it. But the high gloss suits the subject matter...The show is solidly constructed and well performed by both Bolen and Cohen—and its last number comes with a particularly touching twist—but it’s difficult for Friedman to find his way in the finale. The show both wants to break itself and doesn’t."
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“In this smart, well-crafted new musical as we watch Trevor reminisce about his relationship with, we gradually realize that he may not be the most reliable narrator...The period-perfect score sounds as if it consists of deep cuts from obscure LPs by Bing Crosby and Peggy Lee...Directed with stylish economy by Max Friedman, the show overcomes its obvious cabaret origins to slowly reveal a sly, unexpectedly subversive side.”
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“Wonderfully engaging and ear-tingling score...A sumptuous collection mixing beautiful melodies framing lyrical poetics with jaunty numbers loaded with snazzy jokes and unexpected rhymes - it's the superb storytelling of Sonnenblick’s book, exploring issues of the 1960s gays rights movement in a universal manner...that makes the musical truly soar...Smart and romantic, funny and politically aware, ‘Midnight at the Never Get’ is a knockout from start to finish.”
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"The songs are remarkably literate, jazzy little items that call to mind Coleman's work with Leigh; they display a level of craft all too frequently absent from today's musicals...A remarkable entertainment for several reasons -- the accomplished songs, the evocative portrait of gay life in another era, and its understanding of a certain go-for-broke showbiz sensibility...'Midnight at the Never Get,' for all its showbiz pizzazz, has plenty of raw honesty, and it is a beautiful thing, indeed."
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"A striking little production and some very-worth-hearing songs. And it still needs a bit of work...Sonnenblick's cabaret pastiches are clever and convincing...His music, if not bursting with melody, is pleasingly structured and combines traditional form with the occasional unexpected detour...And then there's the book. Well, Sonnenblick is no slouch at dialogue...You just wish Sonnenblick had devoted as much care to character development and storytelling as he did to music and lyrics."
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"A gay romance that goes sour at just about the time that the Mark Sonnenblick musical, co-conceived by Sam Bolen, itself goes sour...Maybe Sonnenblick doesn’t see the unappealing aspects of his musical. Perhaps he misses the unmitigating facets to Arthur that can alienate spectators. Needless to say, unsympathetic characters have their dramatic place. So far, however, Sonnenblick hasn’t found the place, and that severely affects his musical."
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"A sweet musical fairytale that turns sour, 'Midnight at the Never Get' offers a poignant chapter of pre-Stonewall gay life in the 1960s, garnished with Great American Songbook-style numbers...The latter revelations of the musical curdle beyond bittersweet. Watching the show is akin to sipping a Shirley Temple cocktail only to discover a worm lurking at the bottom of the glass...Bolstering this bijou musical is the sincerity of its performances under Friedman’s well-tuned direction."
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