Turn Me Loose NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (71)
See it if Joe Morton is a wonderful performer and the show is compelling and powerful.
Don't see it if You're not interested in Dick Gregory or don't want a slice of history
See it if you like memoir type theater done masterfully, exquisite acting, great humor, and themes of social justice and black rights.
Don't see it if you're easily offended by swear words, or don't like one-man shows. This is a great one though!
See it if You are fascinated by interesting and lesser-known true life stories, barrier-breakers, and social justice issues made funny and relevant
Don't see it if No reason not to see this inspiring show unless you're allergic to hearing (entirely appropriate and necessary) words "nig***" and "mofo"
See it if You want to see a great one man show. Sent a friend who loved it. A good story of Dick Gregory who deserved more respect than he was given.
Don't see it if You’re not interested in the story of Dick Gregory. You are not into one man show. Need scenery and set changes.
See it if Love great performances by an actor. Should be videotaped and shown nationally on PBS. An important and outstanding show
Don't see it if Absolutely no reason
See it if want to get inside the mind of the most intelligent comedians of the 20th century who was ahead of his time. Joe Morton is masterful.
Don't see it if You don't want to hear about the civil rights movement or race relations.
See it if you want an uplifting, intense, complex, hilarious to heartbreaking production. the most inspirational piece of theater i've seen in AGES.
Don't see it if you're triggered by racial violence/ harassment (mostly off-stage; some happens on stage), fat shaming, or minimal audience interaction. Read more
See it if You want to see a tour-de-force. Joe Morton is astonishing (he scores 100), And the play is good as well.
Don't see it if You aren't willing to hear some real and perceived criticisms of the US. The play draws directly from Dick Gregory's life.
Critic Reviews (23)
"Morton has long been a fine utility man in all media...Here he delivers the tour-de-force that Law's script calls for, capturing Gregory at many stages of his life...It may very well be the capstone of his career to date. Under the direction of John Gould Rubin, the action is fast and funny when it needs to be and commanding--and disturbing--when the words call for it...At least as presented here, Gregory may be in his mid-80s but his ideas are as fresh as today's newsfeed."
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"Joe Morton is spectacular…It is one of those memorably electrifying performances to be treasured...Ms. Law skillfully weaves all of the biographical details with artful concision into dramatically revelatory sequences. One can know nothing about Dick Gregory and still be entertained as Law’s execution is so informatively accomplished…'Turn Me Loose' is a riveting showcase for Joe Morton’s dynamism and for dramatizing the cultural significance of Dick Gregory."
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“What's noteworthy is the actorly technique with which he shifts from early adulthood to middle and advanced age and back again in full view of his spectators, without benefit of wigs or altered make-up. Morton embodies this monumental role with utmost believability...Law's script has no fat: what's there is essential to Gregory's story, and Morton makes a feast of every scene….Directed by John Gould Rubin, ‘Turn Me Loose’ is impeccably paced.”
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"Alternately hilarious and moving...The audience is kept at rapt attention for the entire 90 minutes of Morton’s tour-de-force performance…There are standard jokes too, about aging, sex, and Michael Jackson, and Morton nails them as if he had done stand-up comedy all his life…As this extraordinary life unfolds, we listen in awe, disbelief, silent approval, occasionally disapproval, and never doubt his sincerity about trying to make the world a better place."
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"'Turn Me Loose' is not so bad as a biography. Gretchen Law has constructed a well-thought-out path and Joe Morton, under the direction of John Gould Rubin, trusts the material and the story…Morton’s performance is fluid...However, he fluctuates wildly in his physical representation of Mr. Gregory. Rarely is he able to drop his silken baritone to achieve Gregory’s higher pitched and scratchy voice…This show still leaves the audience inspired and shattered – which is the intent."
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"Morton’s challenge to play such an intense character was steep, not only for its intensity, but also for the great intelligence of the character and script. Certainly, many of the best lines were taken directly from speeches and club acts by Mr. Gregory himself. But Joe Morton’s ability to step into the role is spectacular. Morton’s performance is the epitome of what we love to watch when we watch great acting."
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"Morton has always been a first-class actor. In ‘Turn Me Loose,’ a two-man (but practically solo), 90-minute piece...he achieves greatness, revealing everything from perfect comic timing to quiet determination to raging anger, demonstrating total absorption and conviction in every word and gesture...This stuff not only isn’t dated, it’s as funny as ever, perhaps funnier, while remaining painfully true to the social evils that inspired it."
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“One leaves this 90-minute play by Gretchen Law thinking of it as a stand-up comedy routine more than a biographical drama...'Turn Me Loose' is an entertainment, and so his serious views—some of them still controversial, many now more or less mainstream consensus–are presented here fleetingly, with little context and without challenge, largely as free-floating rants...Morton handles the rants the way he handles the humor and the few moving moments—which is to say, persuasively.”
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