Prodigal Son NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (107)
See it if you want to see a teenage actor take complete control of a story and make it compelling, interesting, and dynamic!
Don't see it if you aren't interested in stories about repressed boarding school boys.
See it if you like John Patrick Shanley's works.
Don't see it if you don't like bio materials.
See it if You like thought provoking plays
Don't see it if You like a lot of action and excitement. This play brews slowly.
See it if you like coming of age stories. good acting
Don't see it if no reason not to
See it if You like coming-of-age stories.
Don't see it if You want something entirely original.
See it if only to see some remarkable acting from Timothée Chalamet. He stands out among a very fine cast.
Don't see it if your expecting to see John Patrick Shanley at his best. This is good, but not his best work. Good play, could dig deeper into characters.
See it if enjoy a well performed coming of age story with angst & drama.
Don't see it if you do not enjoy memoirs or coming of age stories.
See it if you want to see a promising young actor at the beginning of his career.
Don't see it if you don't like plays which assume that anything that happened to the author when he was young is intrinsically interesting to the audience.
Critic Reviews (36)
"'Prodigal Son' is interesting and likable. It is also uneven...The overall results are more than workable, but one suspects there's a considerably stronger play in 'Prodigal Son' than what we see at City Center. The trouble with writing autobiographical plays is that the author can be overly concerned with what actually happened, the way it happened; this sometimes leads to accurate reporting but less-than-scintillating dramaturgy."
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"The fluid and sharp script from Shanley, who also directs with subtlety, and a keenly well-observed performance from young Timothée Chalamet, rescue Jim from being seen as a self-centered know-it-all...The noteworthy ensemble is completed by David Potters as Jim’s nerdy, supportive roommate."
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"As much as one may admire the acting of Chalamet and others, it is possible to tire of Quinn’s relentless self-exploration, as if there were no one else in the world. True, that may be exactly what a young person unsure of himself may do, but it makes for severely repetitive angst...Although the drama is only 90 minutes without intermission, much has been packed into it In the way of plot threads and revelations, perhaps too much."
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"We are deeply in the thrall of Timothée Chalamet. The gifted actor, with his long, floppy limbs, dangerous energy and fierce dare-you eyes, is giving a breakout performance, embodying layers of the contradictions and complexities of a fish-out-of-water kid...Shanley ably directs."
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"In a sequence of mostly two-person scenes in this intimate, well-crafted play, which Shanley also directed, we see Jim's struggle to find validation, a center to his life...The rest of the cast is equally strong...'Prodigal Son' is obviously a play that's extremely personal for its author, but it's a work that also allows the rest of us in, to participate in his experience."
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"An enjoyable, if sometimes formulaic drama...All the performances are good. The writing is classic Shanley: mellifluous, easy on the ears. The story, though, doesn't break any new ground."
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"The three central characters are complex, and Mr. Shanley has directed his play with a firm but loving hand...The small supporting cast is excellent as well...Because the play shows growth and resolution for Jim Quinn, and because it’s autobiographical, one takes double pleasure from it, knowing that Quinn is going to be all right, and that his playwright alter ego emerged from bad beginnings to make something meaningful of his life."
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"Mr. Chalamet seems to have already mastered the art of dialogue, humor, and on-stage charm that only a young boy can…For a play without much of a twist or gotcha moment, it tended to drag at points...Awkwardness aside, this top notch cast turns out an excellent story which will linger with you."
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