The Red Letter Plays: Fucking A

See it if You want to see Hester Prinn in a dystopian future where they speak a language that only women understand so translations are projected over

Don't see it if the stage so you can read them for THREE HOURS...oh and did I mention...it’s a musical...sort of...I’m sorry...ugh! Such fine talent...WHY??

See it if Remarkable blend of serious drama, comic relief, and musicality. As with "In the Blood", the protagonist is an outcast, trampled by class.

Don't see it if You can't shift between the serious, comic and musical elements. It's a brilliant but odd mix.

Also Loved the creativity. This was a satirical black comedy, compared to the drama "In the Blood." I liked seeing both shows in the same day.... Read more Read less

See it if Dark, fatalistic early SLP work with a Brechtian spin. Bonney's top-notch direction leavens unrelenting bleakness with moments of hope

Don't see it if Brechtian didactics & uncompromising script (with brutal subject matter/misogynistic themes) may be fatiguing. Outstanding ensemble, though

See it if you understand Parks' aesthetic & want to see her attempt to repurpose The Scarlet Letter in a Brechtian style; you're a Christine Lahti fan

Don't see it if like me, you are baffled by Suzan-Lori Parks fandom and her heavy-handed and absurd (and not in a good way) storytelling.

See it if you're a Parks fan, admire the excellent Christine Lahti, want to see Elizabeth Stanley push herself, enjoy cast breaking into bitter songs

Don't see it if having an abortionist as a main character would bother you, not a fan of Oedipal like coincidence or of Brecht-Weill style presentation

See it if story of vengeance, power, use of sex to various ends brilliantly captured in medieval world; multitalented cast plays and sings new music

Don't see it if this is brutal, but like Game of Thrones you can't avert your eyes from the carnage; starts slowly but gains momentum 2 bloody ending

Also There is a brilliant scene in which the Butcher character provides a list of crimes for which his child has been incarcerated. The items listed become progressively more silly (e.g., hanging upside down in public) so that the audience is in stitches by the end. But there is a serious point being made by the playwright Parks: the behavior our society defines as abnormal/requiring incarceration is arbitrary, often just a matter of what the ruling class doesn't like. The relevance to The Scarlet Letter -
on which this play riffs - is that the punishments imposed on the powerless (e.g., through the branding and shunning of Hester Prynne for adultery) are merely social constructs.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy new forms of drama that experiment with different styles, or if you like work similar to that of Brecht.

Don't see it if You dislike tense, bloody plays or dystopian dramas.

See it if You are a major fan of playwright. You are curious about the theme of "The Scarlett Letter" and how it can be used in a different way.

Don't see it if You aren't in the mood for a depressing, horrific theatrical experience. You are tired of plays that exploit women.

Also There is 1 reason to see this play in my opinion. That is to hear a monologue which is one of the very best monologues ever written. I am certain that it will be used thousands of times as an audition piece when it becomes available. The audience broke into rousing spontaneous applause the evening I was there !... Read more Read less

See it if you want to watch a terrific cast in difficult roles - this is a dark, dangerous, brutal, class structured society.

Don't see it if Park's has a way with words, not with music-didn't work for me. Some audience left at intermission. Don't leave, 2nd act much better.

See it if you're interested in a genre-bending work that veers more towards dark comedy. More entertaining of the two plays, but still serious topics

Don't see it if you're not interested in dark & somber social themes or play/musical hybrids (there are many songs), or don't like mix of sad & funny scenes

See it if Original Parks drama of totalitarian society. Small band over the stage plays songs by Parks, sung by the cast.

Don't see it if Bloody and eerie. Grim with humor in how miserable these characters are. But illuminating and theatrical

See it if you like Brecht plays with their focus on the ugly ramifications of social inequality. This is a modern update based on the Scarlet Lett

Don't see it if you prefer something light and entertaining. This is a dark play.

See it if Well written and produced drama. Incredible acting by the ensemble.

Don't see it if If you do not enjoy an intense drama.

See it if You want a fresh take on Hawthorne's Hester. Lots of scenes and sub plots. Christine Lahti excellent.

Don't see it if sexual scenes and talk of women's private parts turn you off. Plot gets kinda silly; the ending is telegraphed and thus anti-climatic.

Also Kind of copying the modern bloody Irish plays but not as well written.

See it if you don't mind didactic allegories that blend music into the drama in ways that make the satire feel sometimes too obvious; are openminded.

Don't see it if easily offended by crime, violence, rape, abortion, misogyny, and immorality; prefer classic dramas; don't want to confront awful truths.

Also Having seen both of Suzan-Lori Parks' The Red Letter Plays, I can attest that Fucking A is the superior one, although both reimaginings of The Scarlet Letter work as part of a greater conversation about how we--as people existing in a world so often inundating us with violence, grotesqueries, and abuses that reduce us to brutes--can go on living without taking a meaningful look at reality and doing something to change it. Yes, Fucking A is a bit proselytizing (both of the Parks plays are), and both often disallow us from feeling fully-committed to the characters, as they are types as in the old allegorical play sense. This drama, though, includes dark humor that is simultaneously amusing and disarming. It uses music (and some gorgeous voices and instrumentation, truly) to punctuate dark thoughts and serious decisions and thrust them into our conscience: why do we make light of situations, and allow them to escalate out of control? When did we all become monsters? When did we go wrong?... Read more Read less

See it if you like having a story you think you know turned upside down on its head.

Don't see it if you can’t stomach the future results of the Trump presidency plan for woman’s health care services.

Also Through the lens of playwright Suzan-Lori Parks, we get a glimpse into the BACKWARDS world of the LONG LASTING EFFECTS of the fate of woman’s health care thanks to the presidency of Donald J. Trump. As one would expect, back alley abortions are all the rage again. Christine Lahti, as the lead character Hester Smith, dives head first into this sad story of a delusional mother’s struggle to free her imprisoned son by working as an abortionist. Despite Hester Smith being the one who is branded with the letter A, it is playwright Suzan-Lori Parks who really deserved an A+ for this audacious creation of characters trying to get through every day with just a bit of dignity, but failing at every turn.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a well-written, well-acted modern day riff on The Scarlet Letter.

Don't see it if You are looking for something light and fluffy. This is an intense show.

Also Christine Lahti and Brandon Victor Dixon lead a phenomenal cast in this story inspired by, but very different from its source material.... Read more Read less

See it if You are a fan of Parks, Lahti, or Kudisch -- all who shine in this production. You like intense, proactive theatre and bold staging.

Don't see it if You are offended by harsh language, sexuality, violence, or difficult life situations.

Also A very bold production. It pulls no punches.

See it if you are a fan of Parks and can tolerate self-indulgent, derivative work. I felt sorry for the talented cast - especially Lahti. Good music.

Don't see it if you expect insight into the subject matter, a well written work,

Also The cult around this author is not well-deserved. She needs a dramaturge to make plays out of her diatribes. The exposure of anger is not dramatic - it is like a torrent of emotional outbursts from a person having a tantrum. That is not great theater.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy audacious, compelling, original works full of ideas

Don't see it if you need a piece to fully hang together or have a solid message it clearly gets across

See it if You like moving dramas with great acting about injustice, and women's role with have and have nots.

Don't see it if You don't want to be moved.

See it if you want to see an incredibly talented cast do their best to give coherent purpose to a confusing script about an over-the-top dystopia.

Don't see it if you have been considering suicide lately because this will definitely push you over the edge!

Also Special kudos to Raphael Nash Thompson for the one bright spot in the evening: a "monologue" that leaves the audience gasping with pleasure and applauding at the end. To be fair, the entire cast is a bright spot, but I'm so tired of seeing how many terrific actors there are around that are better than their material.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to watch an amazing writer at work, and great acting, surprisingly harmonious music, a few [bitter] laughs. Staging is excellent.

Don't see it if you want a lighthearted evening, or cant bear to contemplate cruelty & violence. It's dark yet, remarkably, it is not depressing.

See it if you want to see an intelligent, thought-provoking, beautifully acted drama.

Don't see it if you don't like the work of Suzan-Lori Parks.

See it if you like brilliant acting in intense scenes that push you emotionally and morally. Singing nicely complements dialogue.

Don't see it if your views on abortion are fixed or physical/ sexual violence upsets you. Not for squeamish. Lahti is wow. Voices impressive.