The Wolves

See it if you like EXTREMELY light fare on a regurgitation of Mean Girls. good acting and staging

Don't see it if Vapid & shallow. Unfocused & Pointless. Pretty much a headless chicken mentioning all Mean Girl topics and delving into none. Unemotional.

Also With Mean Girls the Musical coming up and MCC's School Girls just ended, this is by far the lowest common denominator on a popular theme.
Really shallow.... Read more Read less

See it if It's well acted and the depiction of high school teens seem to be fairly realistic.

Don't see it if Show meanders around - Another mean girls story with no new perspective - Girls can be catty & everyone has issues. Nothing new here.

Also The concept has potential but I didn't find the story to be very entertaining or interesting, lots of small side discussions that don't amount to anything. At times the characters can be very annoying, but I guess so can girls in high school.

I'm surprised at the rave reviews and that this got a transfer to Lincoln Center. I left wishing I had saved my money and stayed home.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see the work of an exciting new voice, with an ensemble of exciting young actors, in an original, nuanced, captivating play.

Don't see it if you have no interest in the lives of teenage girls (tho this play avoids the usual stereotypes, conventions and pitfalls you might expect).

See it if you like straightforward narrative in innovative yet realistic manner, enjoy women's sports & seeing young women at varying maturity

Don't see it if Overlapping dialogue bothers you, have no interest in women's sports, you are not permitted within 500 feet of young women

See it if you like groups of teenage girls at their worst, rarely at their best; cohesive ensemble; you enjoy hearing everyone talking over each other

Don't see it if you do not like stereotyped characters and contrived endings. The play meanders at a slow pace, lots of words with nothing to say. Why?

See it if you like plays about young women on the verge of adulthood, struggling with feelings about the future- family, men, the world, friendships

Don't see it if you expect an elaborate set; think the play is about the forest; have no interest in teenage angst; can't follow 2 conversations at once

Also Wolves is a drama about a suburban girls soccer team. Through conversation on an empty set, nine females talk about life - problems, triumphs, family, future, world events, etc..
It is a fascinating look at what our young people think about the present situation, and how they fit into it. There is a plethora of topics covered in only 90 minutes - diversity, emotions, happiness, sadness, loneliness, anxiety about college, acceptance, etc..
This is an amazing play, and the cast is a great team. I would not miss it.... Read more Read less

See it if you’d watch a day-in-the-life of teenage girls; you’ve never seen a female coming of age plot

Don't see it if you’re over adolescence; you expect new ideas about young femininity

Also The show is well directed and there are moments of great, subtle acting…but I’m puzzled/worried that people have come away from The Wolves with the idea that this is how real teens talk to each other. Yes, teen girls are crass but the dialog rang false to me—it sounds like a Jonah Hill movie with fewer hijinks, not like actual uninhibited conversations young women have.... Read more Read less

See it if Original topic. Very true to how teenage girls are, without the typical cliches. Several nice performances. Well staged.

Don't see it if Some people might find the cross-talk hard to understand.

See it if you enjoy coming of age pieces that focus on teenage women on a soccer team.

Don't see it if a drama with cohesive conclusions is what you seek, this play asks a lot of questions with few answers

See it if touching story of teens (females) who you see working out in preparation for soccer games, where their characters & stories develop slowly

Don't see it if would be annoyed by 2 or more conversations going on simultaneously; don't want stories about teen girls no matter how creative or touching

Also I would see this again in a heartbeat.
Multiple conversations can be mildly annoying in the beginning but if you give it a chance you can get in the rhythm (as I got in the rhythm of Hamilton).
I could be biased because I am the mother of 3 women but there have been other plays about female teenagers of which I have not been a fan... Read more Read less

See it if Absorbing look at a group of teenage girls and their individual life journeys. Beautifully written and produced.

Don't see it if If you prefer musicals or light dramas.

See it if You want to experience a unique play dealing with the life issues of teenage girls as they train and play high school soccer.Cast is great!

Don't see it if You are disinterested in a play that uses soccer to explore the important life circumstances of high school girls

See it if you want strong acting in naturalistic (almost eavesdropping) play about the members of a high school age girls soccer team.

Don't see it if I recognize this as thoughtful theater, although must acknowledge I was often bored by seemingly endless adolescent chatter without focus.

See it if you appreciate a good script that tells a compelling coming-of-age story of the members of a girls soccer team. You know all of these girls.

Don't see it if you don't enjoy stories about teamwork or trying to follow multiple parallel storylines.

Also NOTE: I did not see the Lincoln Center production--my review is based on the production of this show I saw at TheaterWorks in Hartford, CT. I found the script and the story compelling and identifiable. As the proud uncle of three teenage nieces, I saw pieces of each of them in the characters. Even though the characters are known only to the audience by their number, you really feel like you know them by the end of the show. The production I saw was well acted and masterfully directed and choreographed.... Read more Read less

See it if you love dense, rapid (often overlapping) dialogue and beautiful, physical stagings.

Don't see it if plays set in high school don't interest you.

Also I loved this show. I laughed and cried and feel like I got a whole lot of stuff packed into a relatively brief play. All the women were great actors, but the script carried the play. It moves fast enough that for every dud of a line there are three successes apace.

If I had to raise a nitpick, it would be that the ultimate raising of the dramatic stakes / conflict, seemed unnecessary. I was more interested in the "lesser" conflicts than the giant that takes over the end of the play.... Read more Read less

See it if Team of blistering adolescence, sharing a common goal: female adulthood. Great ensemble.

Don't see it if Rapid fire dialogue takes some adjustment. Cannot get a ticket.

See it if You need to know that young actresses get their exercise, but are happy to be bored with silly banter & no real plot.

Don't see it if You are looking for an interesting night of theater.

See it if You want to see something on a stage that resembles actual life and the people who inhabit it without artifice. Unapologetically brutal.

Don't see it if You are not interested in plays that do not follow a typical narrative arc. You are not ready for something truly heavy.

Also "I heard each of the nine voices orchestrally, so there would be a moment when I could just intuitively feel that we needed more piccolo here, or more cello here." -Sarah Delappe

I was lucky enough to see The Wolves when it was at the Duke on 42nd street. It is one of my favorite pieces I have ever seen on a stage for a very simple reason. It is rare to see a piece so utterly devoid of separation between you and the characters. There's always some level of artifice, some reminder that you're suspending your knowledge that you're watching a performance. But The Wolves successfully reduces that barrier to razor thin levels.

Because of this, and the wonderful ensemble's performances, the piece hits harder than most. Though the end feels a bit rushed, and there's certainly a red herring or two, it's a remarkable piece, and I'm so happy to see it being produces all over the country now!

No matter where you may live, I highly suggest checking out any local production.... Read more Read less

See it if you want an insight into the world of teenagers today, team sports or all the complications that both provide.

Don't see it if you blush at adult language or talk about body functions and sex or aren't interested in what teenage girls are like today.

See it if Realistic rendering of the multitude of issues facing high school female athletes transitioning to adulthood (sometimes messily)

Don't see it if High school issues in suburbia may not be everyone's cup of tea; attempts to not reveal plot makes for an awkward final scene

See it if Insightful drama into the life of teen age girls centered around a soccer team. Well-written and directed with great ensemble performances.

Don't see it if You like your plots structured, and your characters mature.

Also A uniquely structured drama that reflects on our society by observing what our children absorb from it..... Read more Read less

See it if you like sports and are interested in teenage lives. You will enjoy the complexity of the characters and watch them grow.

Don't see it if you don't care about teenagers and their problems. If you think that teenage problems are not as important as your problems.

See it if Great ensemble piece where you feel like you’re eavesdropping on teenage girls with their smart takes on life and individual personalities

Don't see it if You can’t handle overlapping dialogue though it’s realistic. Nice to see the teamwork of the actors and the athletes they portray.

See it if you are interested in adolescent thinking and action. There is too much going on to care about any of it or any of them. Pity

Don't see it if you are looking for an indepth development of character or plot. well acted but poorly constructed and superficial. terrible ending

See it if you care about issues of teens (esp. girls). Nails their voice--witty and cringeworthy. Beautiful rendering of pack mentality of sports.

Don't see it if you seek plot...story imposed on girls team and *spoiler alert* ending feels forced.