The Christians NYC Reviews and Tickets

"It’s a play that’s likely to prompt lively post-show debates about religion amongst audience members but its fixation with ideology also means it comes across a bit coldly...Some audience members will be willing to go on that intellectual ride regardless of its lack of emotional punch, but others will find themselves missing a bit more peripheral detail to support the ideological quandaries that Hnath presents in his ambitious piece."
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"A good example of the modern discussion drama. Hnath has managed to put a gripping theological problem into a novel dramatic format and to humanize it through a central character whose pride goeth before his fall."
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"What’s most unexpected about 'The Christians,' is that there’s not a scintilla of satire. Hnath, whose mother is an ordained minister, treats each character with respect. His aim seems not to score points but to explore the nature of faith and the politics of a church like this."
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"As directed by Les Waters and played by the cast, Hnath’s efforts to present balanced arguments pay off. Garman, especially, is so convincing as Pastor Paul that spectators may forget they’re in a theater and not in a sanctuary...Everyone else on the altar/stage is every bit as persuasive."
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"This is a play asking legitimately difficult questions about belief and behaviour and not providing much in the way of answer. Still, it might seem a more conventional script, were it not for Hnath’s careful formal choices and for the infinite restraint that the director, Les Waters, brings to the service. With their help, we have a clever, searching and elusively profound work. Amen to that."
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'The Christians' takes matters of faith and creates a effective play that really takes a complicated issue and makes it black and white...It’s first-rate cast and it’s simplistic production values make it a safe bet for theatregoers especially those from the mid-west...Debate is what 'The Christians' ignores. This is an issue swathed in shades of gray and they are not unearthed just glossed over."
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"Lucas Hnath has come up with a provocative, engrossing argument and put it into a well-constructed and arresting frame. What seems to be a visit to a typical fundamentalist megachurch eventually turns into a religious tug-of-war. Thanks to Mr. Hnath and director Les Waters, it's a highly theatrical one...Mr. Hnath clearly knows the territory. Combine this with a provocative thesis and even-sided handling, and what you get is a thought-provoking intellectual exercise with his Christians."
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"Hnath’s ambition in tackling the thorny topic of religion, his unusual structuring, his stylistic choices such as having the actors only speak through microphones are all intriguing. And yet, the results, at least for me, were less than stirring... I admire Hnath’s bold ambition and look forward to his upcoming play at New York Theatre Workshop. I just wish the results had turned out better this time."
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