Noura

See it if It's somewhat interesting and thankfully short. Acting is nice. some interesting dramatic parts.

Don't see it if This is more about feelings characters' issues than anything really to do with immigration.

Also The main character is more annoying than villainous.

See it if You enjoy family dramas. Cast is good and show is well acted.

Don't see it if I found the first hour to be slow and meandering. The last 20min or so were good but by that point I didn't feel invested in the characters

See it if You want to see as play about Iraqi immigrant's.

Don't see it if If you want a deep more fluid play

See it if Interesting themes of cultural dislocation and mental chaos from past trauma. Actors convey the anxiety, confusion & emptiness.

Don't see it if Characters are insufficiently developed to make their suffering convincing. They emote a lot over their guilt, but I didn't empathize.

See it if Raffo is a talented writer and actor Acclimation a tough challenge. Ending is wonderful. 90+ minutes Clever use of the shawl. Teen Talent.

Don't see it if Not quite "A Doll's House". 90+minutes Ending could be a problem, ........ forgot.. more .for above:. great set.

See it if u want to see a modern A Doll's House, where many issues are raised about immigration, motherhood & marital obligations... with few answers.

Don't see it if you expect a true Ibsen redux [This is a pale adaptation/inspiration]; you don't have the stomach for heavy-handed diatribes & speeches.

See it if Raffo's Iraqi rumination on Ibsen's A Doll's House is equally compelling & contrived It's a taut study in disconnection & disenchantment

Don't see it if Despite excellent performances (esp Raffo & Elouahabi) often feels preachy & didactic Direction can be a little static Nice ambiguous ending

See it if you like family sagas, curious about Iraqi Christian immigrants, plight of women in Iraqi culture, forgiveness & blame, writer as lead actor

Don't see it if not interested in Iraqi culture & how it follows immigrants to this country, or in woman's struggles or in dialogue that must be listened to

See it if You want a Dolls House-inspired drama about refugees & family dynamics. You want a relevant play that deals w/of the moment issues.

Don't see it if You're not in the mood to pay attention: you'll need to in order to work out the relationships before the action. You want a light comedy.

See it if profound; beautiful, poetic script & striking set/staging show Noura's paradoxical struggle 2 both embrace & break free from Iraqi roots

Don't see it if overstuffed, poorly paced; last 20 minutes so densely packed w revelations of secrets & feminist outpourings, makes your head spin

Also If references to "A Doll's House" aren't obvious enough, Noura is named as the Arab equivalent of Ibsen's proto-feminist character, Nora. This play, in turning its main character into an immigrant, is more complex than Ibsen's classic, which is both "Noura's" strength and its weakness since it sometimes can't find a clear way to dramatize its many facets. "A Doll's House" is more powerful, in part, because of its single-minded focus on the infantilization of Nora and her devastating response thereto.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy character driven plays with contemporary themes, excellent acting, and a plot twist which you never saw coming.

Don't see it if you prefer plays in which the characters take second stage to the plot; you prefer musicals to serious drama; you dislike philosophical chat

See it if Noura is highly intelligent, likable with a good heart; terrific acting & interesting theme; happy to be in US but doesn't feel like home.

Don't see it if Too many issues going on in Noura's mind, some difficult to believe could have happened without immediate consequence. Heavy handed.

See it if you want to see characters you don't typically see on stage/screen: Iraqi-American Christians. Great acting and play tackles relevant topics

Don't see it if you're looking for more in terms of compelling drama. It's more of a character portrait than an edge-of-your seat drama.

See it if You want to see a play about people from Iraq trying to fit in and live in America

Don't see it if If you are hoping to make a connection and feel for any of the characters in the play. I don’t think many people can relate to this

Also The main reason for my low rating is because I think the playwright wrote this play for her because it meant something very special to her. I don’t think she cared much about her audience. I think the majority of people who see this will be confused and not understand a lot of what is going on or why it’s going on... Read more Read less

See it if You like overwrought family dramas dressed in relevance. an oblique discussion of identity. Christian and Muslim Arabs relating.

Don't see it if You dont like predictable plot lines. You dont like listening to a shrill, whiny lead or you want consistent characters. with true stakes.

Also I really quite hated this play.
1. Our "strong independent" lead "allows" her husband to change her name to Nora when she is naturalized and then complains.
2. Said lead tells us she is having an identity crisis and longs to reclaim her connection to her home THROUGH BONDING WITH SOMEONE ELSE?
3. And the someone else--any surprise here?
4. They are meant in some way to represent immigrants and their needs-She is an architect, he is a doctor, who worked in Subway while studying to take his boards. Luxury problems- should they get a couch, an xbox.
5. The husband is amorous, modern, engaged and supportive? take dance lessons?--until he turns into a vile cretin in the final minutes.
6. There is all this nonsense about being "safe", finally citizens yet for the last 8 yrs lived in a large elegant apt in NYC.
7. The Muslim friend, an ace in this mess,
speaks of the true loss of his home twice now with ISIS and yrs ago the Christians when he was forced to emigrate. This is the story.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy talky family dramas, with references to A Doll's House. You enjoy sets that complement the story and themes.

Don't see it if You want something that's active or mind-blowing.

See it if you enjoy a tale about the difficulties of leaving one country and coming to another.

Don't see it if you want a lot of action. The story is about the characters, not a lot of action.

See it if great acting and well-written family story of those looking for home

Don't see it if want fluff - this is drama

See it if You are interested in refugees. You like stories about families trying to adapt to new value systems.

Don't see it if You don't like arguing. They argue a lot.

See it if you like naturalistic drama, evocative of THE HUMANS or THE PROFANE -- about Iraqi-Americans grappling w/cultural boundaries & dislocation.

Don't see it if you want something big & splashy. This is thoughtful drama -- although the messages are a bit muddled at times. Superb acting all-around.

See it if you find it interesting to have the playwright star in her own play as the lead character.

Don't see it if a story about a Christian Iraqi refugee, born in Mosul but now living in New York who celebrates Christmas just doesn't interest you.

Also My favorite thing about Noura was the set. The set for this play was beautifully designed from ceiling to floor. It is a real work of art. Sat through the whole play wondering what the theater will be doing with the set once the play's run is done.... Read more Read less

See it if If you enjoy psychodrama and theater that explores patriarchal attitudes and ensuing tragical events

Don't see it if Plays that end abruptly with the stage going black drive you bonkers

See it if You want to see a melodrama. Despite the very relevant aspects of the play's plot, it is very much a melodrama of the first degree.

Don't see it if You dislike plays that depend more on "twists" than character development. Dislike uneasy resolutions.

Also "A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed." -Henrik Ibsen

Noura, inspired by Ibsen's A Doll's House, has all of the intrigue of Ibsen's work and then some. And then, even more.

Heather Raffo script works well when it's written in the vernacular but every once in a while it wanders into the poetic. This shift in language is accompanied by a specific gesture (involving a shawl) and a lighting cue. This abrupt change of mood ends up heightening these moments for a very specific plot-related point large in the show but they feel oddly out of place in the moment.

The set design is wonderful.

Heather Raffo is wonderful as Noura. Though it's Matthew David, as the charismatic Raffa, who steals the show. Dahlia Azama, as Maryam, is also a standout performance.

There are too many loose ends here. There is a Chekov gun that is left consciously unfired. Maryam's future profession is never explored and confronted. These are two among many.... Read more Read less

See it if you are interested in the issues faced by educated, middle class immigrant families; women's concerns & identity

Don't see it if you're looking for light entertainment or fast-paced, high drama-this one is talky, talky, talky

Also There were important concerns laid out but I just didn't find the drama all that effective.... Read more Read less

See it if want to see a play about the plight of Iraqi immigrants in America. They know life is better here but regret that they can never go home.

Don't see it if you prefer lighter fare - this play is very intense.