The Pigeon in the Taj Mahal NYC Reviews and Tickets

"There’s a lot of dialogue and plenty of depredation, but having put these characters together, Ms. Sexton and the director Alan Cox don’t know quite what to do with them. Despite a persistent theme of innocence and experience, 'The Pigeon in the Taj Mahal' mostly feels like a one-act that outgrew itself. A little less conversation wouldn’t hurt. But action concerns Ms. Sexton far less than providing a vigorous, sometimes vulgar showcase for herself and the other actors."
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"The intimate space is perfect for this oddly charming little play...With a typically Irish handle of language and its comic potential, Sexton draws laughs by contrasting Pigeon's time-warped existence with the trashy excess of Lolly and her ilk...As Pigeon, Keating gives the heftiest performance, fully inhabiting a specific rhythm that feels very real in its strict artifice...Director Alan Cox commits to the tonal contrast of the script in staging and design."
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"The play's early scenes constitute a bruising acting challenge and John Keating handles it like a master...The playwright, Laoisa Sexton, has a gift for creating harrowingly vivid characters, but she overloads them with tics...Sexton simply fails to make a case for why we should be interested...Alan Cox's direction maintains a good pace, but he can't make the lines funny, nor can he do much about the many holes in the plot."
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"'The Pigeon in the Taj Mahal' is true to form with its cast. What's unexpected is that director Cox has mounted this play with drop-dead production values...'Taj Mahal' will be enjoyed by anyone who appreciates something wild and wooly...Cox has elicited powerful performances from his actors...There are times when the activities in 'Taj Mahal' are excessively over the top. You may also miss bits of the fast-paced authentically Irish dialogue. But most of the 90 minutes fly by."
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"Director Alan Cox utilizes the small space with creativity. Relationships are visually as well as verbally illuminated...What occurs offstage is well communicated. Reining in Ms. Sexton would’ve helped the piece. John Keating never disappoints...As Lolly, playwright Laoisa Sexton too often seems too forced. It’s difficult to discern how much of this is due to overwriting...The play needs editing, but most of all, we need to care. And don’t."
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"An intriguing play…The playwright has contrived Lolly’s and Aunty Rosie’s partying with Eddie to reveal their characters, and that’s the meat of the action…Sexton and Watkins convey this raucous forced fun with authenticity…The set design, staging, and music cohere to make ‘The Pigeon in The Taj Mahal’ an entertaining theatrical evening."
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"A fecund 90 minutes of beautiful melancholia…I found the text to be fresh and absorbing…Sexton has drawn characters that are heartbreaking and beautiful in all of their frailty. Sexton is a striking presence on stage, entirely captivating…John Keating as Eddie is magnificent…Director Alan Cox has sculpted a tight, well-oiled work…He has elicited great performances from the cast and created an unforgettable dark, interesting gem…It’s a truly wonderful experience."
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"Things hilariously go over the top…It is John Keating’s show. He imparts almost a saintliness to the character of Pigeon…Playwright Sexton has performed a service in writing a play that offers high—or low—comedy on the one hand, and at the same time hints at a more serious matter."
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"Rush to see 'Pigeon' for its uniquely Irish verbal gymnastics; this convoluted and arcane wordplay makes it worth catching...The words spoken by this odd quartet reveals more than just offbeat slangy patter; it presents both a lost inner world and the isolated world of Ireland’s West Country lifers…Without stating any profundity here—especially because not much really happens—Sexton’s clever text and Alan Cox’s tight direction keeps the shambling conversation going."
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