The Bedwetter (Atlantic Theater Company) NYC Reviews and Tickets

81%

(121 Reviews)

Positive

89%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Funny, Entertaining, Clever, Hilarious, Great acting

About the Show

World premiere musical based on the bestselling memoir by comedian Sarah Silverman.

Sarah is funny, dirty, and 10 years old. And she’s got a secret that you’ll never guess (unless you read the title of the show).

The musical is a dark comedy written by Silverman and Joshua Harmon ('Bad Jews') with a score by the late Adam Schlesinger (Fountains of Wayne), who died in 2020 from complications of COVID-19.

Zoe Glick ('Frozen') plays Sarah. The rest of the cast includes Tony winner Bebe Neuwirth ('Chicago') and Caissie Levy ('Caroline, or Change,' 'Frozen').

Member Reviews (121)

Intelligent, Funny, Ambitious, Delightful, Clever

See it if You’re a Sarah Silverman fan and don’t mind Theatre as therapy. She tells her childhood story in clever, fun song aching for some dance.

Don't see it if You’re expecting star turns from any of the cast. Great material is often lost in unintelligible vocals (and not just from the kids). Read more

Different, Quirky, Cute, Clever, Funny

See it if You enjoy quirky off-Broadway musicals like Fun Home or Kimberly Akimbo. Although lesser than both, it’s in the same vein.

Don't see it if You dislike Silverman’s brand of profane humor or if you’re hoping to see Neuwirth in a lead role (her role is relatively minor).

Quirky, Edgy, Refreshing, Funny, Entertaining

See it if you’re a fan of Sarah Silverman’s or are interested in personal stories that are both funny and traumatic.

Don't see it if you’re a prude. There’s crass humor throughout, as one might expect from a show written by and about Sarah Silverman.

Hyperbolic, Indulgent, Entertaining, Funny, Heartfelt

See it if Get a glimpse into Silverman's 10 year old self; funny, raunchy & brave; great cast; Cassey Levy helps all stay sane in a nutty family.

Don't see it if don't like raunchy language/exaggerated personalities; you'll be singing the Bedwetting song 2 yourself 4 hours on end - when will it stop?

All surface, no depth, Wasted talent, Excruciating, Disappointing, Highly overrated

See it if you enjoy musicals that are overrated. Many of the actors are wasted. Why give Bebe Neuwirth a throw-away song?

Don't see it if There are other musicals on your must-see list. This one really isn't worth your time. Stay away if you don't like raunchy language. Read more

Funny. well done. good acting. very entertaining.

See it if You want to have a good time at the theatre.

Don't see it if You don’t want a good time with an interesting serious subject.

Great singing, Great staging, Great acting, Delightful, Clever

See it if you like a funny show about a serious issue.Great exploration of how we learn to hate ourselves.Acting is sensational.

Don't see it if you only like Shakespeare.This about families and secrets.A very serious subject handled with humor.Acting, singing, staging are terrific.

See it anyway, Some good things/ some bad things/disappointing

See it if Caissie Levy was lovely. Goldstein was charming in a snaky role. 2/4 young girls will be great. Older daughter fine. BeBe was wasted.

Don't see it if Profanity. Missed opportunity to address Rx effects/Depression. Horrid clunky set. Dumb dancing Xanax. It felt long, I got bored.

Critic Reviews (19)

"As long as it sticks close to young Sarah’s resilience as she tries to make friends without revealing her mortifying condition, 'The Bedwetter,' an Atlantic Theater Company production, is a potty-mouthed pleasure. But in jimmying the original into a more serious musical format as it proceeds, it achieves only a middling geniality."
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"Sarah Silverman’s autobiographical(ish) 'The Bedwetter' deals with a rocky time in the younger Sarah’s life. The musical itself is rocky too — dramatizing a 10-year-old’s emotional breakdown in song poses difficulties for the stage."
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"What is surprising about 'The Bedwetter' is the soft center wrapped inside its crunchy comic exterior. Sentiment is not generally part of Ms. Silverman’s playbook, but 'The Bedwetter' succeeds at illuminating Sarah’s trauma, which piles up like sheets waiting to be washed, threatening to bury her."
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"All in all, 'The Bedwetter' is an amiable summer diversion, adeptly directed by Anne Kauffman and performed in a loose, affable style with an unimpeachable message of acceptance for everyone, warts and all."
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"Potential abounds in the tangled show, ... especially in its central idea: that, to the mile-a-minute mind of a 10-year-old, waking up wearing wet pajamas can feel as emotionally traumatic as an adult dealing with divorce or depression. Life already sucks, even at 10."
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"I'm sure that Broadway is the goal for 'The Bedwetter,' but it still feels too small and unfinished for that designation right now. With the right kind of revisions, this uproarious and dirty little show could easily find a nice little home in the West 40s."
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A likable, scattered, frequently raunchy show, which uses musical comedy pizzaz, not always successfully, to sell a story shot through with heartbreak…The Bedwetter wears itself thin trying to straddle its conflicting moods; if it wants to go forward, it needs a better balance of laughter and pain, more focused direction, and (in some cases) better songs.
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"It might be best to think of 'The Bedwetter' as less a traditional musical than a revue or a series of strung-together episodes. Looked at through one lens, the troubles that sit on the shoulders of one little girl could be viewed as a sad tale indeed. But it hasn't been written that way, and, under Anne Kauffman's zippy direction, it isn't played that way."
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