The Roundabout
Closed 2h 20m
The Roundabout
77

The Roundabout NYC Reviews and Tickets

77%
(53 Ratings)
Positive
83%
Mixed
15%
Negative
2%
Members say
Great acting, Entertaining, Delightful, Funny, Clever

About the Show

Cahoots Theatre Company presents a rare revival of this comedy about England in the '30s, when it looked as if the social order might be changing. Part of 59E59's annual Brits Off Broadway festival.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (53)

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68 Reviews | 19 Followers
81
Clever, Delightful, Funny, Great acting, Intelligent

See it if you like British parlor comedies from the pre depression era that are acted perfectly.Lovely costumes and set. Written by JB Priestly

Don't see it if hate tv shows like Downton Abby. Can't understand British accents. Want to see shows that are gritty. Prefer grunts to complete sentences.

812 Reviews | 133 Followers
81
Clever, Great acting, Entertaining

See it if you enjoy witty dialogue with British accent. Very developed characters, especially the daughter. Shaw would have done even more with plot.

Don't see it if don't like farce or British accents.

271 Reviews | 66 Followers
80
Delightful, Entertaining, Witty, Intelligent, Fluffy

See it if You enjoy romantic comedies and comedy of manners from the 1930s and 1940s.

Don't see it if That seems twee to you. Read more

570 Reviews | 88 Followers
80
Delightful, Great acting, Great writing

See it if you like terrific acting, great writing, and an interesting set. This drawing room comedy explores issues of class in a delightful way.

Don't see it if you are looking for something serious and pedantic. The acting is really top notch. Show is a lot of fun without being silly.

223 Reviews | 45 Followers
79
Entertaining, Funny, Great acting, Intelligent, Relevant

See it if like your comedies British. It's an old school show, with serious discussions of class disparity, delivered with humor and fun.

Don't see it if don't like political comedies

745 Reviews | 328 Followers
79
Some oldies deserve to be revived, others not; this oldie but goodie does

See it if fun; '30s play combines sting of GB Shaw/satirizes casual communists + breeziness of Noel Coward/upper class idiocy well played by Brit cast

Don't see it if a lot of overacting by stock characters to evoke laughs, predictable plotting, too restrained to be memorable farce

139 Reviews | 19 Followers
79
Charming, Clever, Great acting, Amusing, Entertaining

See it if you'd like an amusing view of English satire of class and politics

Don't see it if vintage plays hold no interest for you

414 Reviews | 70 Followers
78
Entertaining, Delightful, Funny, Slow act 2

See it if English drawing room comedy about British classes facing economic downturn in early 1930's; funny characters

Don't see it if Act 2 slows as one of the main characters becomes (as described by another character) 'tiresome'. 2 fun characters in Act 1 do not appear. Read more

Critic Reviews (25)

Theatre Reviews Limited
May 1st, 2017

"Under Hugh Ross’s well-paced direction, the cast is uniformly engaging...It is the unpredictability of these parallel story lines that makes 'The Roundabout' consummately entertaining...Priestley chooses not to explore the issues he introduces with any depth...Still, Mr. Priestley’s 1931 'very light comedy' is a delightful romp around the roundabout well worth the trip."
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Theatre's Leiter Side
May 5th, 2017

“'The Roundabout'…offers enough nutrition for a band of first-rate thespians to feast on to make its resurrection edible. However, it's still second-rate Priestley, far too long and chatty, at two hours and 15 minutes, for its wafer-thin, drawing room/romantic comedy plot, leavened by political satire…There's some enjoyment to be derived from Priestley's then timely and sometimes still pertinent observations on social and economic matters, but the…laughs are mostly of the polite, muffled kind.”
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The Huffington Post
May 5th, 2017

"A grand production, directed exactly as it should be and with precisely the right cast...Dated, yes, but possessing the kind of charm those plays continue to hold...'The Roundabout' also has a very special humor about it...The true value is that it’s Priestley getting laughs at the expense of the upstart English who’ve jumped on the Communist bandwagon...A threat he might have taken more seriously. But if he had, 'The Roundabout' wouldn’t be half the fun it is."
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Times Square Chronicles
May 3rd, 2017

“A delightful romp into the past…Under Hugh Ross’ direction, the play moves at a clip and is crisp and refreshing. Mr. Sachs is delightful as ‘Chuffy,’ bringing comedic chops…Ms Laing has that ‘it’ factor that makes her completely watchable…Plays written in other eras are turning out to be morality plays that show us how little we have learned. With 'The Roundabout,' at least it is served up in a palatable, witty way.”
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Wolf Entertainment Guide
May 1st, 2017

“A classy staging...The sprightly cast is built around the life of Lord Kettlewell, played with charm and occasional bewilderment by the excellent Brian Protheroe…The excellent cast members include Richenda Carey, Charlie Field and Ed Pinker. Polly Sullivan has designed an effective Kettlewell country home in the small stage space, and Hugh Ross directs what is a very stylish production, the kind we have come to expect from visiting Brits.”
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W
May 4th, 2017

"As it stands, we’re subjected to a tedious two hours in the hands of milquetoast Kettlewell, almost-ran Chuffy, bratty, tantrum-throwing, mischief-making Pamela, and boorish cliché Comrade Staggles...Aside from flickers, those onstage range from poor to irritating to ho-hum. Hugh Ross’s direction is so heavy-handed, movement has no motivation except audience view, irony goes by practically unnoticed."
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Off Off Online
May 1st, 2017

"Ambitious and well-acted...The actors deliver cut-glass diction and high style; it’s the play itself that frequently betrays their efforts...Unfortunately, Pamela is the center of the action, yet her character is often irritating, and Laing doesn’t make her as palatable as she needs to be...'The Roundabout' is no lost diamond, but it’s more than a lump of anthracite. For fans of Priestley or drawing-room comedy, there are charms. Too often, though, one wishes it were that missing diamond."
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Let's Talk Off-Broadway
May 1st, 2017

"Emily Laing–both as character and actress–is half the show and worth every minute...The direction is tone-perfect and the cast without exception excellent...The play ends a little too quickly: we’re left with a sense that some explanations are needed about why things resolve as they do. But that’s only after a thoroughly delightful time spent at Lord Kettlewell’s country home."
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