Radiant Vermin NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (73)
See it if you want to see an original portrayal of greed and desperation. A young couple agrees to take a free house of their dreams. Then mayhem...
Don't see it if you don't want to know how far you might go to get what you want without considering the consequences. Nothing is free...
See it if These two actors do it all. I was not expecting anything like this when I saw this show. So kool what they were able to pull off here.
Don't see it if If you don't want to use your imagination. But its so fun to use it and get lost with this show.
See it if you'd enjoy a brilliantly performed, scathing examination of our materialistic keeping-up-with-the-Joneses-at-all-costs culture.
Don't see it if you need a sympathetic protagonist in your theatre experience. There are none to be had here!
See it if you enjoy dark comedy
Don't see it if you don''t like british accents
See it if You want to meet a likable young couple who will commit execrable acts to obtain their dream home.
Don't see it if You do not enjoy dark humor and are repelled by a morbid solution for achieving one's materialistic desires.
See it if you like dark British humor and are not offended by story lines that deal with murder. You like to see two energetic young actors.
Don't see it if You can't stand a bare set and unrealistic story lines. The last party scene was way, way too long.
See it if You like extremely black comedy. You like absurdist plots acted by just 3 actors.
Don't see it if You can't deal with excruciatingly loud, erratic movement and unintelligible dialogue. You don't like a bare stage No furniture or props.
See it if you want to see three excellent actors grapple with this material. You like artificial, meta thought experiments over personal, real stories
Don't see it if you don't enjoy modern morality plays. If you're already "woke" this play will just get a bit tedious as it problematizes without solving.
Critic Reviews (27)
"Ridley’s play is not only a grotesque satire on dealing with those useless people we call 'homeless,' but on consumer excess, greed, the problems of home ownership, and the distorted preoccupations of obsessive child-raising...A serious problem, though, is that once the play has made its point it keeps circling back with very little place to go, and drags on far longer than is necessary."
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"In order to go along with the mounting macabre proceedings, patrons have to believe that the two homemakers are extremely gullible when Miss Dee first appears, but maybe that’s easily enough done...During a lengthy prior-to-closing sequence, the actors play all the neighbors who show up for their offspring’s first birthday party. It’s a tour de force with an emphasis on the force."
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“Playwright Philip Ridley’s black comedy is timely, original, and skillfully produced. Even when you realize what’s going on, small surprises and manifest reactions make taking the trip a buoyant pleasure. Ridley’s ending is priceless. Director David Mercatali straddles stylization (exaggerated, precise, sometimes incredibly rapid movement) and naturalism. The empty stage is well utilized with cogent mime. No point in analyzing. It works.”
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"A horrifyingly humorous play…The plot is madness, but the charisma of the two leads allows you to buy the craziness with few questions. Their stunning portrayal of the moral disintegration of the two protagonists leaves you uncomfortable. Verey and Johnson are exceptional in this play…You will laugh and drop your jaw at the physical and spiritual stamina they use to keep you enthralled…Ultimately, the play is a riveting look into the power of money and greed."
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“The outstanding cast delivers exhilarating performances under David Mercatali’s brisk direction. Ms. Johnson and Mr. Verey share a wonderful chemistry...Mr. Mercatali helps the duo achieve a satisfying balance between their use of theatrical grammar and the fact that the storytellers, Jill and Ollie, are not themselves performers. The result is a slightly less 'actorly' but more intimate and inclusive telling.”
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"Bitingly droll up to a point, but after Jill and Ollie have lost their souls there’s nowhere for the plot to go...The story spins its wheels for too long before the denouement arrives. David Mercatali’s direction is clear and brisk, and it’s fun to see the normally somber Ridley exploring his comedic side. But the satire here seems unfocused. To be sure, the rampant consumerism of today’s society is a deserving target for ridicule, but that alone is not enough to fill a full-length play."
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“Ridley is known for examining the darker side of humanity, and ‘Radiant Vermin’ is no exception...Between Ridley’s fantastical writing, Mercatali’s direction, and Verey and Johnson’s acting, numerous neighbors come to life in a frenzy of mime, dialect, and comedic timing...Verey and Johnson are the heart of this fast-paced black comedy, delivering Ridley’s satiric dialogue...If this is the best Britain has to export, long live Brits Off Broadway.”
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"A gripping dark comedy, adroitly directed by David Mercatali...Ms. Johnson is the pick of a stellar cast, whose talent is sensibly allowed to shine unadulterated against the backdrop of an admirably spare and uncluttered set. Think of Lady Macbeth midwifing Rosemary’s Baby to get some sense of the demonic kinetic energy she summons…A play whose central message has never been more of the moment."
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