Our Brother’s Son NYC Reviews and Tickets

80%

(61 Reviews)

Positive

90%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Absorbing, Great acting, Thought-provoking, Entertaining, Great staging

About the Show

Charles Gluck's drama about a family torn apart by a medical problem makes its New York debut.

Member Reviews (61)

Thought-provoking, Intelligent, Great acting, Great staging, Great writing

See it if you like excellent productions that reflect real-life, difficult circumstances. This intense drama builds as you learn more about characters

Don't see it if you do not like tense family discussions with shouting or if you are bothered by lots of scene changes in a short play.

Intense, Great staging, Thought-provoking, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if you like a meaningful drama with good acting and set. This is a painful but realistic family drama. It is very thought provoking.

Don't see it if you do not like family dramas or talk of medical conditions. This drama packs quite a punch. Read more

Perceptive, Relevant, Fine cast & set, Intelligent, Extremely interesting

See it if you like realistic plays about family dynamics, moral issues, very interesting plot, fine acting, characterizations, set & dialog.

Don't see it if you dislike serious plays about family dynamics, disfunction & tensions that require analysis to enjoy.

Absorbing, Riveting, Great acting, Great staging, Intelligent

See it if A moving drama with interesting family dynamics that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Don't see it if If you wanted a light play, then skip this one.

Great staging, Quirky, Relevant, Ambitious

See it if family dramas are your thing. There's PLENTY of family drama to go around in this play.

Don't see it if you don't find the discovery of family secret bombshell interesting. Read more

Intelligent, Great writing, Great staging, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if you want to see a well written and acted play about a family with problems.

Don't see it if you want to see a play that is light and funny. Read more

Intelligent, Great staging, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if A wild ride from start to finish - storyline has twists for each character that are interesting and thought provoking. Gripping. I loved it

Don't see it if Realistic family dramas are not relatable for you.

Great writing, Riveting, Masterful, Intelligent, Great acting

See it if You enjoy a well written and acted play presenting a complex life problem for all of us to ponder. Jump in to life’s complexity.

Don't see it if If you are looking for a lighthearted comedy. This intense play asks complicated questions and makes you part of the family.

Critic Reviews (6)

"Dr. Gluck is certainly better qualified than I am to comment on the ethics of organ transplants from the young to the old. And perhaps as someone who has spent a career witnessing hard choices, he wanted to let his audience off easy. As a new dramatist, however, it's tantamount to malpractice."
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The battery of shocker revelations keeps things lively, but Our Brother's Son is what Variety used to call a "sudser," with characters and dialogue that feel imported from a long-ago plot arc Guiding Light or Another World. There's no nuance or shading in the writing, just a ton of exposition followed by a series of bombshells that cue plenty of finger-pointing.
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Freshman playwright Charles Gluck, a retired gastroenterologist who has finally followed his dream to write a play, has turned out one terrific piece of theater. There is virtually no superfluous dialogue in this script; almost every line serves a specific purpose, whether it’s to provide key exposition, continue to build the play’s fully three-dimensional characters or to accelerate and intensify the dramatic through point.
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Our Brother’s Son suffers from single-issue doldrums exacerbated by symptoms of contrivance, cliché, and casting. It needs a script doctor more than a doctor playwright to prescribe a remedy for relief.
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The premise of “Our Brother’s Son” is a promising one, and Charles Gluck, though a first-time playwright, might seem like the right person to explore it: He was a practicing physician for thirty years. But, while the play seems initially like a workmanlike family dramedy, it begins to feel like a missed opportunity, until it takes a sharp turn into an outright misfire.
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Despite family secrets being revealed, two brushes with death, a constantly rotating set and repeated storming out of the house, not all that much happens in Our Brother’s Son, a passable but toothless drama by career gastroenterologist turned first-time playwright Charles Gluck.
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