See it if You love intelligent play writing, wonderful ensemble acting, warm and emotional stories on stage portrayed by a Master storyteller,
Don't see it if You dislike 'slow moving, slice off life' stories on stage, are looking for a comedy/farce, want to be entertained rather than think
See it if You like small town period dramas naturalism good acting
Don't see it if You do not like slow moving dramas about small towns.
See it if you appreciate drama about timeless familial relationships and personal struggles set in Southern towns in 1940s. Bull, Cohen, Tetlow excell
Don't see it if you prefer musicals, large sets, or drama featuring blacks, Hispanics, Asians, LGBTQs or other ethnicities/minorities or cannot sit 105 min.
See it if you like Horton Foote.Lynn Cohen gives brilliant performance. She is worth the price of the ticket.A masterclass in making a small role big
Don't see it if you are looking for heavy, meaningful drama.It's typical Foote, entertaining, light.Go to see Lynn Cohen. Wow. What a performance.
See it if you enjoy good theater, PERIOD. Excellent ensemble - both comedic and serious. NO ONE broke onstage all night - even the line-less sheriff!
Don't see it if you expect high-drama w/big set-changes. It's a simple, down-home country tale, gifted us by great story-tellers. As warm as just-baked pie. Read more
See it if I enjoyed basking in the warmth of these characters and their southern hometown.
Don't see it if The script or maybe the acting was unconvincing in spots.
See it if Wonderful staging and very good (if at times a tad overzealous) acting. Enjoyable leisurely plot.
Don't see it if Southern accents are a little overemphasized. This isn't action-packed but it never felt slow or boring to me either.
See it if You are a fan of Horton Foote! His plays can take place anywhere at anytime. Very good acting!
Don't see it if Are not a Horton Foote fan and are not into family sagas.
“Quaint and baggy, ‘The Traveling Lady’ is no great drama…Nor is the affectionate revival a great production. But if some of the play’s best qualities are muddied by performances that seem shaky and flat, ‘The Traveling Lady’ still emerges as a lovely specimen of the form…The production only intermittently achieves the paradoxical merger of vast emotion and delicate expression that Foote requires…You need a production that gets past the competencies of the scene-study class.”
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“In its beautifully performed revival, Foote’s ‘The Traveling Lady’ reveals itself as a particularly well-shaped little jewel…Pendleton has the most delicate directorial hands in the business...Luckily, Clara’s garden has room for some naughtier angels as well: the play’s tartest characters, teetotaler Mrs. Tillman and cackling maniac Mrs. Mavis (the masterful Lynn Cohen). The rest of ’em invite you onto the porch, but these two keep the tea from turning too sweet."
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"Foote himself would have delighted in the perfect stylistic unanimity of this lovely revival...Pendleton has staged 'The Traveling Lady' with a gentle understatement that draws you in before you know it, and his actors exude a feeling of community so strong as to create the impression that they’ve known one another for years...To single out Lichty, Bull and Cohen for special mention is to disserve the similarly persuasive performances of their colleagues, who are excellent without exception."
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“Under the sensitive and confident direction of Pendleton, the play slowly cooks like a stew, enticing us further with each scene. Pendleton doesn't try too hard to grab our attention or push the pace. He lets us come to the play, which we are eager to do, especially when the text is delivered by this expert cast…Few directors can make a nearly 63-year-old play feel fresh and exciting quite the same way Pendleton can. It's the kind of theatrical magic you really have to experience firsthand."
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“A warm and sensitive production…As is typical with Foote, the gentle philosophical tone of the play rises above the story. In this case, the desire for stability in life takes precedence, as the strong ensemble embraces the flavorful dialogue full of gossip and humor.”
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"A genial, if undistinguished, production...Georgette is overshadowed by a typically colorful cast of Foote supporting characters, their magpie ways effortlessly stealing the limelight...There is much to enjoy here, most notably the way that the playwright conjures an entire universe of offstage characters with complicated histories, but this is one of his weaker pieces...Completists won't want to miss 'The Traveling Lady;' others can wait for a better production someday soon."
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“‘The Traveling Lady’ is somewhat heavy-handed in its construction and occasionally overburdens the scenes with weighty symbolism. Therefore, it may not rate in the top tier of the Foote canon, but it reflects the playwright in excellent form…Director Austin Pendleton has drawn some terrific performances from his ensemble…Ziemba offers a richly layered portrayal of a woman whose mother is mentally deteriorating before her.”
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"With wonderful performances and excellent staging, Horton Foote’s 1950, small-town Texas drama is tenderly revived...Besides shepherding these sensitive performances, director Pendleton has inventively staged the play...Pendleton’s keen direction injects insight, a measured pace and incites emotion, perfectly realizing Foote’s introspective vision...Though decidedly not a major play, this production is highly successful. It also affirms the enduring power of Foote."
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