Summer and Smoke (Classic Stage Company) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (143)
See it if you're a Tennessee Williams fan and/or love a classic piece of drama.
Don't see it if Southern drama is not your thing. Read more
See it if You want the chance to see a compelling production of a lesser known Tennessee Williams play, featuring great acting.
Don't see it if You dislike minimalist sets, mime instead of props, and an unfortunate dose of racial stereotyping. Read more
See it if Opposing morals clash like the tension between body and soul and the inner and the outer you. Great spartan prod w/ concise acting by leads.
Don't see it if Bare stage forces the imagination and focuses concentration. No lighting changes for 2.5 hrs. My head hurts. Marin's tics consume 2nd act.
See it if You want to see a fascinating early Williams play featuring version 0.1 of Blanche and Maggie and.....
Don't see it if You want realistic and linear direction. This is definitely a strange staging. Read more
See it if You want to be transported by an ephemeral, exquisite, and expressive actress, Marin Ireland. The play is a low-key prelude to Streetcar.
Don't see it if You prefer fast-paced, happy tales.
See it if You are a Tennessee Williams fan - simmering love & family obligations in Mississippi. Marin Ireland & a stellar cast!
Don't see it if You do not like a slow, unfolding Southern drama. Characters are typical church goers v sinners. Very sexy implications. Minimal set.
See it if You love Tennessee Williams writing. Brilliant performances.
Don't see it if You don't love Tennessee Williams and plays about the sadness of human interaction.
See it if Tennessee Williams. First-class actors, led by Marin Ireland. Minimalist.
Don't see it if Focus on language and the movement of the person...can be both engaging and distracting.
Critic Reviews (34)
"Admirers of Williams’ works should make a point of seeing the resonant new revival of this 1948 drama, although the minimalist style of its staging may not appeal to everyone’s taste...What enriches the drama and contributes significantly to this production is an original score composed by Michael John LaChiusa...Smoldering performances by Marin Ireland as Alma and Nathan Darrow as John live up to the play’s title."
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"Cummings III has made the puzzle pieces fit completely in his often-mesmerizing revival...Ireland is sheer perfection as Alma...She's well matched by Darrow...The almost complete lack of scenery and the constant use of miming can make the evening feel like you're watching an acting class...The unevenness of the rest of the cast is a bit surprising...Flaws aside, one's chances to see this striking work don't come along every summer."
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"Ireland is indeed a fine actress, and everyone else on stage did their best, but this super-spare, impressionistic staging somehow lacks energy and clarity. This is a play imbued with emotional richness and lyricism, but it's tapped into only occasionally here...Even in a disappointing production like this, Williams's language still gives Ireland's Alma an opportunity to break our hearts."
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"An anatomical chart becomes one of the very few props in the current Classic Stage Company and Transport Group revival of the 1948 play. Under the circumstances, the many players (a dozen in all) are often reduced to charades, as they describe a new gaudy hat, or a jigsaw puzzle, or gloves. For that matter there's not really a set at all, only a large white platform in the center of the playing area, echoed by a large white rectangle hanging above--a kind of ceiling for the platform."
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"What made Williams a great playwright and what stands out in his better plays is that the women are not just one dimensional. And these characters are best played by remarkably accomplished actresses, such as Marin Ireland...Director Jack Cummings III’s hyper-minimalist approach diminishes several otherwise inspired performances...Ireland inhabits Alma beautifully, but the strange, austere production design distracts from her character’s development."
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"Cummings III has directed this production brilliantly. It is taught and purposeful yet unhurried...The centerpiece that drives this production is the cathartic performance of Ireland as Alma...She mesmerizes. She dazzles. She tears your heart out. Darrow as Buchanan, complements her work with a committed, nuanced performance...He gives us so much more than the handsome, charismatic yet troubled young man. Ireland and Darrow share a palpable, almost painful chemistry."
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"The production leaves almost too much to the imagination; the pantomiming of every little prop...is more distracting than engaging...Alma, played to Southern twang perfection by Ireland...Williams' poetry flows effortlessly out of the mouth of the impressive Ireland...A powerfully raw performance, almost matched by the more restrained Darrow...Because of Cummings III majestic work...we can't turn away."
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"Cummings III’s production manages to mostly slip the bonds of overwrought melodrama thanks to a minimalist approach, a singular leading lady, and a strong cast overall...I could have watched Ireland’s Alma for days...There are some production missteps which are frustrating...Though many scenes take place around a park and fountain, here there’s just a photograph of the angelic fountain on stage...The power of these ideas falls flat on their easels."
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