Notes From the Field NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (121)
See it if U want to look beyond the video clips of racial unrest and see a fuller picture. Deavere-Smith is a master at creating compelling narrative
Don't see it if U are not up for a play that examines the troubling issues of education vs incarceration that we see in the news. You don't like solo plays.
See it if you care about the future of a fair and just society, want to have your heart and mind challenged, love great writing and acting.
Don't see it if you want fluff and happy endings, only care about yourself.
See it if You're interested in topical works that tackle the issues of race and education, and/or have enjoyed Anna Deavere Smith's previous work.
Don't see it if You're not interested in listening to nonfiction interviews being acted out in a one-woman play, no matter how remarkable.
See it if You are a fan of Anna Deaver Smith like her solo shows where she plays many characters,you care about politics, social justice ,education
Don't see it if You aren't interested in the relation of poor education for minorities and the prison system
See it if you enjoy stunning acting w/multiple characters w/a lot of dialogue focused on social/racial/education/policy brutality issues
Don't see it if you don't like 1 person shows, want to be entertained rather than informed & don't like thought provoking socially sensitive productions
See it if you like pieces that comment on important issues in society, you want to see AMAZING transitional acting from one SINGLE woman.
Don't see it if you don't care for pieces suggesting activism or change, one person shows are not in your taste, you want something traditional. Read more
See it if Bravura performance by Deaver Smith highlights the devastating chain from subpar education to crime to jail met by men & women of color
Don't see it if Very downbeat despite respites of humor & optimism; a dulling sameness settles in notwithstanding Deaver Smith's brillance
See it if you want an insight into the circumstances of many underprivileged and their "start" towards incarceration. Great acting-multiple characters
Don't see it if You don't care about this country;s systemic problems
Critic Reviews (30)
"The show, when it covered the prison system and the education system, really hit high notes. However, Smith seemed to have a need to highlight police brutality and the recent headline stories…While I am happy to have seen such an intelligent and moving performance, I do not consider this to be a play that I would have wanted to see. It was more like a 92nd Street Y performance. I also wish the emphasis on education was stronger and the sensational racial headlines were less."
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"Smith is chameleon-like in the way she revolves from one character to the next…Perhaps director Leonard Foglia will help Smith sharpen her focus to include more school incidents rather than the extended attention to the murder of Freddy Gray, which, terrible as it was, is a disconnect with Smith's main through-line concerning public education. However, Smith's eloquence and passion in the face of injustice is strong as ever."
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"Smith becomes the voice of the people, channeling the personae of about a dozen and a half real-life characters with a stunning range of mannerisms, tone and emotions…It must be incredibly difficult for Smith to narrow the selections for inclusion in the final product, but each is compelling on its own merits. In the aggregate, the effect is a sustained emotional and intellectual pounding that is overwhelming and discomfiting, as it should be…Powerful and profound…Do not miss it."
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"She does not so much mimic her subjects — though she does that with preternatural accuracy — as render them soul, stance, dialect, tics and all…As a theatergoer who came for Smith’s profoundly affecting, activism-propelled art, not to share in mild conversation triggered by it, I can’t say that lightning struck during my particular 'act two.'…Smith’s subjects shine a light — ably cupped in the performer’s hands — on an immensely distressing problem."
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"A sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes frustrating, yet always thought-provoking piece…Smith, every minute a virtuoso, juxtaposes these scenes with vignettes about the police violence that has risen to public consciousness…Smith is a brilliant interviewer, yet the piece still feels like a work in progress, with some extraneous characters and other voices begging to be heard…That said, Smith’s performance is majestic."
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"Smith is a powerful performer…To my mind, this show isn’t up to her best efforts, though some of its problems will most likely be taken care of over the course of the run…Smith’s focus in ‘Notes From the Field’ also meanders…One of Smith’s great merits as a dramatist is that she brings together conflicting points of view, even opinions that are unsympathetic to a liberal audience. But for some reason there is little of that ideological expansiveness in 'Notes From the Field.'"
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