Play Like A Winner (NYMF) NYC Reviews and Tickets
About the Show
Part of the New York Musical Festival: A satire of the soccer mom world based on the award-winning play 'All About the Kids' by Caytha Jentis.
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See it if It's cute and fun. Good music. Some great jokes.
Don't see it if Many of the cast are not up to their task, less in the singing than in the acting. Ending was abrupt and nonsensical. Some plot gaps. Read more
See it if You enjoy watching fueds between women. Act 2 is especially fun and campy w/ many laugh out loud moments. 2 leading ladies were great.
Don't see it if The setup takes too long & things don't pick up until the end of Act1. Show could easily be condensed to 80-90min & Would be much stronger. Read more
See it if you enjoy great voices singing good songs. PLW is meant to be satirical, but school sports headlines have been crazier. Not enough laughs.
Don't see it if you want tight plotting. Act I is far superior to Act II. Too many unnecessary songs. Too much unnec'y swearing. Altho new, PLW feels dated. Read more
See it if You want to see a delightful, "adult" musical done by some very good voices
Don't see it if you want your satires to be satirical. This is much closer to reality. The book and lyrics fail to bring it over the top to absurdity.
See it if You want to see a hilarious satire of the world of soccer moms, with a razor-sharp script and great songs.
Don't see it if You're bothered by a cast that may not have the greatest voices, or you're a soccer mom who would be offended by such a caricature.
See it if you like dark comedies that are very relevant to today's world.
Don't see it if you don't like dark comedies or stories about soccer moms.
See it if you enjoy solid singing and an edgy story. Fun to watch, but needs some work adding more melodies and a different angle in the story.
Don't see it if you don't like repetative motives. The storytelling is static and lacking action. Needs additional twist, ex. adding kids perspective.
See it if you like funny, cynical musicals. You can empathize with parents looking out for the best interests of their child.
Don't see it if You are looking for something serious. Read more
Critic Reviews (4)
"'Play Like a Winner' is the kind of musical comedy that sucks you in whether it’s your cup of tea or not...With book and lyrics by Erik Johnke and music by David Wolfson, this is a well-polished, occasionally foul-mouthed caricature of suburban soccer-mom life, aimed squarely at that demographic...The fine cast is led by Jessica Tyler Wright...Toward the end it’s a little like playing 'Clue,' where you know the victim and the murder weapon and you’re waiting to find out whodunit."
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"The subject lends itself well to dark satire...But Erik Johnke (book and lyrics) and David Wolfson (music) have not yet struck the comic tone that, like good satire does, unearths buried truths beneath the surface of the material. As of now, 'Play Like a Winner' leans on simple melodies and crude shock value that make you uncomfortable without the payoff of satisfying insight. It's a play that might win a few laughs, but that's not enough of a winning strategy."
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"The book and lyrics are not clever enough to produce the undercurrents of a true satire but rather remain on the surface with a loutish book and relying on vulgar lyrics to produce laughs...The music is unobtrusive and produces some pleasant melodies but at times does not support the intent of the song. The cast is remarkable and does what they can to elevate the material...It may provide a bit of raunchy fun but needs to revamp and find its target audience."
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“The cast is blessed with powerful voices and sound terrific on David Wolfson's score. They also managed to create moments of hilarity from the script and lyrics by Erik Johnke…What’s lacking is strong comedic choices and a devilish sense of humor. The show needs to blindside you with a unique twist. Right now, it’s a little crude and not that amusing. The songs, though tuneful, don’t stand out. In the end, the game has been played, but it’s more like a tied score.”
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