The Mushroom Cure NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (70)
See it if You want a play that deals with OCD. Has some funny moments. As a one man show, Adam Strauss does a nice job. Good lighting.
Don't see it if If your not into one acts. If you do not like smaller east village theater like St Mark's.
See it if You have an interest in OCD, alternative therapies, Love and some really great story telling. One of the better one person shows I’ve seen.
Don't see it if You have no interest or experience with mental illness or recreational drug use.
See it if you like to hear how one guy conquered OCD. And how he found love, at least for awhile. Clever, funny, insightful, honest, raw, engaging.
Don't see it if you want more insight into how Adam got OCD or how the cure worked. Some parts too slow, others too fast. Why's it hard to get mushrooms?
See it if Comic with OCD seeks hallucinogenic cure, while courting his smart girlfriend. Hip humor, captivating story, good acting.
Don't see it if You don't want to see the challenges of living with OCD. You don't like self-deprecating humor. You prefer a bigger production.
See it if You typically like one person shows
Don't see it if Watching one actor tell a story for almost 2 hours bothers you Read more
See it if you enjoy one-man shows with too much material in search of a good editor or director. There is way too much material covered here.
Don't see it if you do not like overlong one-man shows.
See it if You like one-man shows and enjoy stories about mental health, drug use and romantic relationships.
Don't see it if You prefer elaborate staging or are offended by drug induced stories or if you are not engaged by story telling.
See it if you like one-person shows. If you want to see a comic portray in a funny and touching way, his own struggle with OCD.
Don't see it if you don't like one-person shows with the actor portraying multiple characters talking to each other. It can be annoying and isn't done well.
Critic Reviews (16)
“Strauss is an affable performer...Overall, however, he works a little too hard in attempting to make a comedy out of his experiences, and his relationship with that graduate student who becomes his partner in pharmaceutical crime isn't always believable. ‘The Mushroom Cure’ is a mildly amusing hour and a half, but kids -- please -- don't try this at home!”
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“Strauss makes the standup-monologue-as-one-man-show his own, with a sweetly vulnerable take that has quite a few belly laughs...You’ll feel that you’ve entered into the labyrinth of the creative mind...A lovely remembrance...This is a tale of boy-meets-girl underneath all of the remarkably intricate talk of drug dealers...A real treat. One caveat, I’d limit the amount of times the lights go out...We want to see his pathos, his heart on his sleeve. He’s the whole reason we are there.”
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“Over the course of 90 minutes, Strauss reveals perhaps more than anyone ever wanted to know about obtaining drugs, including psychedelic cacti which requires circuitous preparation before ingesting, and dealing with an unorthodox community of chemists...As a result, Strauss’s more banal ramblings caused a couple of audience members to nod off...It's astutely directed by Jonathan Libman.”
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"Mining a great deal of laughter from disabling pain, it tells what Mr. Strauss says is the true story of his quest to rid himself of obsessive-compulsive disorder with psychedelic drugs, and it feels true partly because of the awkwardness that underlies his demeanor...The show is a bit overlong...but it winds its way to a reasonably happy ending: Mr. Strauss is here in front of us, well enough to spin his tale."
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"Strauss' true-life tour de force is a funny, frenzied trip through his OCD and the methods he uses to try to cure himself...His constant, manic attempts to achieve perfection can be maddening and even heart-wrenching. Strauss has an engaging, ironic delivery that keeps you riveted throughout the show’s nearly two-hour running time...'The Mushroom Cure' might benefit from a stronger structure and a 20-minute trim—but hey, no one’s perfect."
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“In the course of 90 minutes, we follow the ups and downs of Strauss’ professional, mental health and romantic lives in great detail. To his credit, Strauss gives the impression of delivering these stories as if for the first time. He is fresh and very involved, yet sensitive to the audience’s reactions. He manages to make a tediously unattractive condition fascinating and also manages to make himself affecting and human. OCD has never been as attractively rendered.”
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“Strauss takes us on his fatally flawed magic carpet ride...Some of his states are humorous, his commentary funny. Other sections are tedious...The production might have been perfect, brilliant genius: if the script sections were tightened, if tepid sections that flat-lined were jettisoned...Strauss needs to work on a balance of tone...As a shorter piece, 'The Mushroom Cure' might have been magnificent, illuminating, humorously scintillating. As is, the show is funny, revealing, and enjoyable."
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“Desperation courses through Adam Strauss’s performance...Yet Strauss, a stand-up comedian, tells his story with humor as well, as the best playwrights do for serious material...Strauss is becomingly ordinary, with his mop of black hair itself displaying some disorder, but less than his personality provides...Under the direction of Jonathan Libman, Strauss does a splendid job of navigating romance, pain, desperation, and humor in the piece.”
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