Side Effects May Include NYC Reviews and Tickets

75%

(54 Ratings)

Positive

76%

Mixed

22%

Negative

Members say

Entertaining, Funny, Thought-provoking, Relevant, Great acting

About the Show

Based on a true story that originally appeared in the New York Times Modern Love column, this solo show offers a comic look at living with Parkinson's.

At age 47, Phil's wife is diagnosed with Parkinson's. This sends him on a roller-coaster ride through an escalating mountain of pills, dangerous liaisons, questions of manhood and womanhood, desire, faith, and love. On this ride, he finds himself exploring whether our personalities and passions may be little more than tamper-resistant chemical reactions stirred up in our brains.

All proceeds benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

Show-Score Member Reviews (54)

Entertaining, Great acting, Well written, well acted, great pacing, and moving

See it if They want an entertaining, well acted view of living with Parkinson's disease and the side effects of medications

Don't see it if You love the pharmaceutical companies or you are looking for a romantic musical about Viagra

Absorbing, Entertaining, Great acting, Great writing, Thought-provoking

See it if If you like stand up comedy, one man show, displaying the dark side of Parkinson disease, heavy drug use wt a mixture of humor

Don't see it if You are not fan of listening to the effects of a disease that changes every aspect of life, not only for the patient but ppl around it Read more

Absorbing, Good writing, Quirky, Intelligent

See it if you enjoy one person shows & good writing; you'd like to see some humor in a dark situation. You won't mind some overacting & minimal sets.

Don't see it if seeing a show about a spouse with Parkinson's will hit too close to home; you don't like 1 person shows and/or minimal sets. Read more

Clever, Funny, Great acting, Thought-provoking, Relevant

See it if you can appreciate a solo show about finding humor in coping with illness. It's real, it's funny, it's compassionate, and, at times, sad.

Don't see it if You are offended by anyone making jokes about serious health issues. Read more

Funny, Entertaining, Semi-raunchy, Thought-provoking

See it if You need a break from serious discussion of a major disease. Treats subject with respect and is pretty funny. Benefits the MJF Foundation.

Don't see it if You are too close to Parkinsons (or other major disease) to hear jokes about it. Heavy focus on sex - the easy joke.

Funny, Great staging, Relevant

See it if Curious or care about Parkinson’s and it’s side affects; enjoy one-man show; most characters are funny

Don't see it if Not a fan of sex-related jokes; not into solo comedy; expecting a more dramatic and profound angle into this incurable disease;

Entertaining, Funny, Cathartic

See it if you find it cathartic to find some humor in the horror of situations like Parkinson's or if you read the Modern Love column and wanted more.

Don't see it if you would be frustrated by the focus being less on the person with Parkinson's than on the marital dynamic, or if you hate one-person shows.

Entertaining, Thought-provoking, Relevant, Funny, Great performance

See it if You're up for a piece of good work in service of good works. Koesters is terrific telling this true tale of an onset of Parkinson's Disease.

Don't see it if No reason not to. Well written and performed, its humor is uplifting and goes a long way to raising an awareness of this incurable disease.

Trailer

Creative team