Rhinoceros
61

Rhinoceros NYC Reviews and Tickets

61%
(48 Ratings)
Positive
46%
Mixed
33%
Negative
21%
Members say
Confusing, Thought-provoking, Slow, Ambitious, Great acting

About the Show

The Seeing Place Theater presents a revival of Eugene Ionesco's absurdist classic about a small town whose citizens begin turning into rhinos.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (48)

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360 Reviews | 76 Followers
86
Ambitious, Absorbing, Edgy, Relevant, Thought-provoking

See it if You want to learn about theatre of the absurd and if you want to experience a small theatre company that does great work consistently.

Don't see it if You don't want to commit time to a production that is intellectually demanding. This production speaks to many issues of our day.

TT
146 Reviews | 28 Followers
80
Thought-provoking, Relevant, Resonant, Original, Profound

See it if You like theatre of the absurd. Want to understand Ionesco. Hear stories that challenge your thinking, watch things develop.

Don't see it if You're looking for classic boy meets girl feel good entertainment in a classic setting. If don't want to use your imagination.

393 Reviews | 101 Followers
79
Relevant, Ambitious, Intelligent, Resonant, Great acting

See it if You like a fine cast & company diving well if unevenly into a timely, difficult bit of theatre pertinent to our political & cultural present

Don't see it if You don't like existential theatre or political theatre or ideas; or words; or disquisitions on choice, conformity & the herding instinct.

155 Reviews | 46 Followers
79
Ambitious, Absorbing, Intense, Thought-provoking, Slow

See it if you have never seen this theater of the absurd classic that is just as relevant today as it was when it was first produced.

Don't see it if you don't like longish plays that require some thought on your part.

120 Reviews | 40 Followers
75
Great writing, Intelligent, Slow

See it if You like Eugene Ionesco absurdist allegory. I saw the 1961 production with Zero Mostel & Eli Wallach & could not get it out of my mind.

Don't see it if if you do not care for the theater of the absurd

76 Reviews | 21 Followers
75
Clever, Delightful, Great acting, Great writing, Thought-provoking

See it if You really enjoy absurdist theater. If you can take you mind of reality and play the game.

Don't see it if You only like realism in theater.

65 Reviews | 16 Followers
73
Funny, Clever, Great writing, Intense, Thought-provoking

See it if you enjoy absurdist humor, smaller productions where the action is happening in front of you, and women playing some roles written for men.

Don't see it if you have a problem with using your imagination or a with playwright using a ridiculous concept to explore deeper ideas.

262 Reviews | 116 Followers
73
Ambitious, Clever, Great staging, Great writing, Relevant

See it if You read this in school and now want to see it actually produced. Good staging. Moments/music were updated well. Comedic parts resonated.

Don't see it if If you're picky about pace. Parts dragged a bit despite the desperation of the stakes. Read a blurb about the context of themes first.

Critic Reviews (3)

Theater Pizzazz
July 22nd, 2016

"One could hardly find a more enthusiastic group of actors, but a good deal of their dialog is unhearable...An hour could have been cut without impacting the story…Considering the rise of racial strife as well the extreme culturally exclusionary proposals being touted in this year’s presidential race, it seems like downplaying that vital part of 'Rhinoceros' is a missed opportunity. One must, nonetheless, appreciate this rare opportunity to see this important and especially relevant play."
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Upstage-Downstage
August 4th, 2016

“While this production cannot avoid all of the digressive traps, the good news is that it’s directed with a great antic hand by the company’s founding artistic director Brandon Walker, who nimbly keeps things bouncily aloft through most of the evening and even manages to get us past the talky bits to regroup for a reanimated airborne ending...Everything is conducted at a brisk pace, with solid comic timing displayed by the entire cast.”
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On Stage Blog
July 27th, 2016

"When the text is permitted to do its job in this production, the complexity and modern application of Ionesco's work is apparent. Sadly, I found this mission is largely marred by some distracting directorial choices and an unfortunate lack of absurdist acting technique...This particular production, with all its good intentions, would have been better served putting the language first and avant-garde innovation second."
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