The Butcher Boy NYC Reviews and Tickets
About the Show
Production Covid-19 Safety ProtocolsShow-Score Member Reviews (135)
See it if my 1st time at the Irish repertory theater. amazing play & place..
Don't see it if intensity level through theroof
See it if you like to see an amazing take on mental illness with stellar writing, directing, and lead & ensemble acting & singing. Marvelous play!
Don't see it if you are triggered by descriptions of mental illness, depression & violence. This play has a lot of it and is at times very disturbing.
See it if So nice to see something unexpected and original. Actors are all great and the lead exceptional.
Don't see it if Quirky and as one can see from others reviews on this post sadly not to everyone's taste. Read more
See it if Very well done, excellent production worth seeing
Don't see it if If you don’t like plays with mental health issues, some may find it disturbing
See it if Exploring the abnormal thoughts and action of a boy with a possessed mind as he passes through life.
Don't see it if Craziness and violence
See it if I really loved this musical depiction of a young man's decline into raving madness. The book, acting, lyrics, singing were all masterful.
Don't see it if Disturbing and violent with no redemption offered. Could use some trimming and tightening. Read more
See it if if you want to see a great musical with a challenging story line. All the actors did a great job.
Don't see it if if you are looking for a lighthearted musical comedy. Some of the show especially the ending is very disturbing.
See it if you want to see a story that deals with the consequences of mental illness and being ostracized. Great set and acting.
Don't see it if you don't like very dark plays.
Critic Reviews (12)
“ 'The Butcher Boy' might have been finessed into a sharper, more forceful black comedy if the score from Muldoon, who is not yet a senior in college, had developed a more distinctive point of view. Its dutiful tour through Broadway-style pop, vaudeville and Irish influences is largely referential."
Read more
"Barasch is a fine singer and an energetic presence, but the script and the songs are prosaic, the scene transitions are clunky, and the mix of lightheartedness and violence just doesn’t work."
Read more
"Reconciling the humor, pathos and darkness of Francie’s story in the scope of a musical might be impossible, but credit Mr. Muldoon for giving it a fine college try—in this case perhaps a literal one."
Read more
"Muldoon's book and lyrics for the most part lack the wit and satirical punch needed to garner laughs rather than uncomfortable groans."
Read more
As the quick failure, a few seasons back, of American Psycho showed, it is no easy task to build a show around an unreliable narrator with a shaky hold on reality. To realize such difficult material onstage cries out for a daring, entirely original approach. Muldoon, however, has penned a conventional book musical that -- with its often pleasant, but emotionally limited, score -- never begins to grapple with the horrors on offer.
Read more
"The 'Butcher Boy,' the darkly comic musical opening tonight at Irish Repertory Theatre,... is still a bit rough around the edges. But it has all the earmarks of a future cult favorite, and it certainly makes for an impressive debut by its creator."
Read more
"The Butcher Boy – is so far out there that some observers will cheer its ominous chutzpah. Ultimately though, Muldoon’s musical is just ugly. And who wants a musical to be, in the final analysis, downright repellent?"
Read more
"Most of Muldoon’s songs lack distinctive character, just as the characters themselves are boyishly imagined simplifications. Finally, while a sense of gallows humor sometimes lurks, I never did get the hang of it."
Read more