The Moors NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (70)
See it if you like Victorian or Bronte-esque spins on love, life, and sisterhood that are quirky and oddball and dark
Don't see it if you don't like quirky, bizarre, or oddball humor
See it if Exquisite writing, superb acting, the creation of a mysterious world with great female characters, moving themes, unexpected humour.
Don't see it if You do not enjoy peculiar settings, somewhat dark themes, and strange humour.
See it if You have an interest in plays with a literary connection. You enjoy plays that surprise continually and have unexpected humor. I loved it !
Don't see it if You can't deal with horrific scenes. You have little interest in unusually written dramas in which poetry is used as a portion of the dialog
See it if you enjoy mocking takes on classic fiction, don't take your literature too seriously, and want to laugh, a lot. Birgit Huppoch is a joy.
Don't see it if you prefer classic, serious, deep theater. The play is a bit slow at first as the story builds, but the end is malevolently delicious!
See it if an original idea in theater appeals to you. I can honestly say I've never seen a version of this story before.
Don't see it if you need a more cohesive story. The separate tracks here have nothing to do with each other, but their journeys are interesting nonetheless
See it if you have always wanted to see a Bronte novel adapted by Monty Python, and enjoy plays where you have no idea what's going to happen next.
Don't see it if you have a low tolerance for black humor, talking dogs, fog, and copious stage blood.
See it if you are ready for the unexpected, don't mind a severe twist on Bronte-esque stories, and enjoy new works from bold playwrights taking risks.
Don't see it if you need a more realistic play (this one includes "talking animals" played by the actors) or are expected pure Bronte/Romantic literature.
See it if Silverman's Victorian/Wuthering Heights send-up has many great quirky scenes but fails to come together Good acting by ensemble (esp Cabell)
Don't see it if A whimsical/magic realism subplot fails to charm, slows main action Vague feminist/sexual motifs left undeveloped Yet manages to engross
Critic Reviews (12)
"An alternately intriguing and irritating production...Questions tease and tickle throughout 'The Moors,' which as you may have gathered has a high whimsy quotient. But they never acquire much momentum in Mike Donahue’s production...'The Moors' may sometimes feel sloppy, but it’s smart. Watching it is a bit like having a conversation with an ardent and intelligent Brontë devotee, whose passion almost matches that of the pen-wielding sisters who inspired it."
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"Jen Silverman's misfire 'The Moors' does, in truth, take aim at an interesting target...But the play keeps sabotaging itself. When it tries to be mystical, its jokiness undoes it; when it tries to be warm and silly, the story's fog of cruelty chills the air. The play's lowest moments are—as is often the case these days—forced injections of magic realism...Despite some truly great actors in the cast, the tonally confused performances move at a crawl."
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"Erodes the viewer’s patience for whimsy long before it can effectively make an argument or illuminate anything real...The play keeps undermining itself with falseness on the one hand and weak attempts at humor on the other...You can’t really blame the four actors playing humans for not finding a tone that works, nor even the director, Mike Donahue...The fault is in the conception of the story, which wants to have its camp and eat it too."
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"Jen Silverman's laugh-out-loud dark comedy gently spoofs the Brontë sisters while treating us to a humorous (and brutal) take on the instability of gender roles...Silverman and director Mike Donahue have created an atmosphere in 'The Moors' that is at once mysterious, menacing, and savagely funny...Despite a few drowsy moments and an odd fantasy sequence near the end, 'The Moors' delights with its insightful and subversive edginess."
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“Silverman's flat, uninflected voice provides no pleasure whatsoever. It's rather like listening to a humorless academic analyzing a text…Still, the production has a look and sound that establish an effectively creepy mood…‘The Moors’ offers satire without any real verve or wit; Silverman neither suggests what is alluring about the Gothic romance genre nor does she provide a particularly trenchant critique of it....Her depiction of it lacks affection and fresh insight.”
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"The reviews of the Yale production suggest that another mode of both direction and design might have made a difference. As it stands, The Playwrights Realm's staging of 'The Moors' is a failure that might have been avoided, though the play does not go as far as it ought in trying to be a satire of the 19th century novels as written by the great Victorian women authors."
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“A surprising and entertaining play...Silverman’s script mines the comic potential in the Victorian novel’s standard motifs…Director Mike Donahue keeps the action moving at a crisp pace…His cast, without exception, rises to the challenge of playing this bizarre drama…’The Moors’ seems at first like a trifle...But as it progresses, it goes deeper. Ultimately, this wildly entertaining play also manages to say something profound about human nature, social change, and, yes, the power of writing."
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"Some will appreciate Silverman's take on depression, loneliness, longing, literary aspiration, and female bonding, not to mention sibling rivalry and murder on the Victorian moors. On the other hand, despite its excellent ensemble—Birgit Huppuch is especially noteworthy—others will, like me, find it an overlong, cerebral exercise lacking in emotional warmth and consistent interest. I'd suggest that less of 'The Moors'—perhaps 20 minutes less—would be a vast improvement."
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