See it if you'd like to hear a funny story about the tribulations of becoming a dad, complete with descriptions of all the medical necessities. Fun
Don't see it if you intend to bring kids of 12 or under. It's definitely not appropriate for them; I cringed for the 11-yr-old in the 1st row as we roared. Read more
See it if You enjoy comedy, one man shows and masterful storytelling. You're looking for the lolz.
Don't see it if You want a large scale and flashy production, you prefer musicals, you don't enjoy standup or storytelling.
See it if He delivers as funny evening of laughter about family, kids. Quirky delivery but effective.
Don't see it if If you dont like comedy or its subject matter.
See it if Mike Birbiglia is very witty throughout this show
Don't see it if the idea of not wanting a child offends you or you dislike stand up comedy
See it if Observational intelligent shedding of singles skin on path to parenting. Self-deprecating and insightful views of this newly married papa.
Don't see it if Last time out, Amy Schumer opened for him and he was struggling through the dating scene. Time marches on and en route, one of us got old.
See it if Mike Birbiglia uses self deprecating humor to explain parenthood in the most hilarious way! An entertaining night at the theater.See it!
Don't see it if this show was a pleasant surprise.Do not miss it! Read more
See it if It's ALL Mike, once again The funny, self-imposed defeatedness, quirky delivery & astringent observations are applied to his new fatherhood
Don't see it if After fervently assuring us of the reasons for not having kids (esp with the provocative "they spoil careers") he totally falls into cliche
See it if you enjoy stand-up comedy. Birbiglia manages to tweak humor out of both mundane and unusual circumstances and also through exaggeration.
Don't see it if you don't like a solo show. I did not LMAO, but others did and I was certainly entertained.
"Dazzling...In this seemingly freewheeling, but exquisitely crafted monologue, Birbiglia charts his emotional, psychological, and medical passage to parenthood...'The New One' is a deft combination of stand-up comedy, autobiographical performance, and one-person play...Birbiglia weaves personal narrative with droll observations and discursive tangents that morph into new and even more discursive tangents...Miraculously, it all works, and the comic payoff is substantial."
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"Don’t ask me for specific laugh lines, of which there are scores. For me, they evaporate as they pass. Yet they are commendably effective when Birbiglia spouts them and then, just as often as not, follows them with one of those sunbeam grins...Regularly, Birbiglia has the knack of topping a gag with another line and then another...While I rarely laughed out loud but sat throughout with my own appreciative grin, the audience of Birbiglia fans giggled and guffawed from start to finish."
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"Birbiglia's grin is infectious, and after each and every punchline while the audience is still laughing, he delivers that bemused look as though he is enjoying the recollection as much as we are. This always seems to keep the laughter going longer. He also knows how to milk the most mundane material for a seemingly endless series of one-liners, a never ending stream of humor on one of life's many absurdities which he has lived through - and survived."
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"Mike Birbiglia is a terrific story teller, comedian, author, filmmaker, director...How Jen actually gets pregnant is a good portion of his story as told with jokes that spring so naturally from his narrative that we are hardly aware of the set-up. Under the unobtrusive direction of Seth Barrish, Birbiglia ambles with ease about the stage...His inevitable epiphany comes as a wonderful surprise and a heartwarming conclusion to another unique chapter in this very talented man's life."
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"One of the two best one-man shows I’ve seen in my longer-than-I-prefer-to-admit life...Birbiglia’s an amazingly honest and truthful storyteller...He’s mastered the creation of humorous concepts along with a nuanced, good natured unhurried delivery...Birbiglia’s smart. He has stage presence. His measured pacing is honed to get the biggest response from the stories he tells. He covers all the bases in his very precise commentary."
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“One of those shows that, when it concludes you automatically think back to where it started and trace the path. You don’t notice the path...because you are having so good a time...Birbiglia sends us into the stratosphere howling at his observations, and brings us to a full stop when he wants to drop deeper into what it means to be a man on the verge of changing his life forever. He examines all of it. And going along for the ride is an experience not to be missed.”
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"His fans, won over by his previous shows seemed to have a blind faith that I didn’t share. And I felt my skepticism rewarded when for the first fifteen minutes or so he seemed to ramble...'The New One' winds up a fresh, funny, subversive and even occasionally moving account of becoming and then being a father...He recounts with annoyance how people say to him 'Is it the most joy you’ve ever experienced.’ And you have to say ‘It’s the most joy’ – his expression priceless."
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"Is there anyone out there in either the comedy world or the theatrical scene capable of delivering more laughs per minute than Mike Birbiglia? I don't think so. And in the case of his hilarious new solo show, 'The New One,' now at the Cherry Lane Theatre, 'delivering' is the key word. As one might have guessed, the ultimate focus of this rollicking 80-minute diversion (smoothly directed by Seth Barrish) is Birbiglia's not completely willing entry into parenthood."
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