See it if You are interested in theatre history, storytelling, Pirandello, clever staging costumes and movement. Truth
Don't see it if You want a standard play that's been done before
See it if you'd like to see a smart retooling of 3 plays by an Italian precursor of the Absurd into a delightful evening of quirky but engaging drama.
Don't see it if you don't like to think in the theater. Read more
See it if You like Pirandello in a new and interesting light with an excellent translation and a complete artistic vision.
Don't see it if You like something that is light-hearted and without much meaning and doesn't make you think.
See it if you like thought provoking plays that deal with reality vs illusion.
Don't see it if you like realistic plays with a linear plot.
See it if you love the way Pirandello makes you think about things you never thought about before: what literature, acting and life mean.
Don't see it if you don't enjoy dialogue-centered drama, or aren't willing to sit through the rather overplayed comic segment.
See it if you are a literate theater maven who enjoys & can debate off-center, avant-garde plays & characters from the like of Beckett, Ionesco;
Don't see it if you're looking for a straightforward, play with an easy to understand storyline & characters; don't like off-beat productions Read more
See it if you'd like to see 3 Pirandello plays that have found an author to put them together into a compelling, insightful evening of absurdist drama
Don't see it if you don't like absurdist or meta-theatre; you need high production values [tho it's wonderful to see what this co. does with a small budget] Read more
See it if You like to see thought provoking, original productions.
Don't see it if You just want to see "run of the mill" plays where you do not like to think. Read more
"Judging by the applause at Theatre 71, this bold stroke succeeded with members of the audience, some of whom were perhaps meeting Pirandello for the first time...The show-stopping moment when the 'six characters' interrupt a rehearsal of 'Chee-Chee,' advancing onto the set from backstage, looking almost as morbidly attired as the Addams Family, was wonderfully executed and memorable...Alas, the cast’s ability was uneven...Some puzzling choices popped up."
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"It’s a mash-up: the brilliant conceit of 'Raison D’Être' is that six characters in this case manage to intrude on two, otherwise unrelated works by Pirandello...A ninety-minute performance that skillfully combines Pirandello’s off-kilter comedy with his puzzling irony and sudden bursts of affecting drama...With great aplomb Linden, Allouche, and the rest of their ill-starred family make it seem entirely reasonable that their misfit Characters belong exactly where they are."
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