Twelfth Night (The Public Mobile Unit) NYC Reviews and Tickets

83%

(47 Ratings)

Positive

96%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Entertaining, Funny, Delightful, Clever, Great acting

About the Show

The Public Theater's Mobile Unit presents a stripped-down take on Shakespeare's gender-bending, heart-mending comedy in a new production reset in Florida in the mid-90s.

When a young shipwrecked immigrant named Viola takes a chance on the “wet foot, dry foot” policy of the mid-'90s and washes up on the shore of glitzy Illyria, Florida, she becomes a stranger in a fabulously strange new land. Thinking her twin brother has drowned, Viola throws herself into a new gig as assistant to Orsino, a wealthy Floridian with a serious case of love sickness for a wealthy lady, Olivia. Having disguised herself as a boy to become Orsino’s right-hand man, Viola (now Cesario) is tasked with delivering his adoring valentines. But as Viola woos in her boss’s name, she falls head over spiky heels for the man himself, while Olivia turns her affections to the intriguing young messenger boy, Cesario (aka Viola). Set to the rhythms of house, Cuban, and '90s beats, this colorful comedy shows how the power of new people and new experiences can throw the world into beautiful disarray, and open hearts and minds to the possibility of love.

Show-Score Member Reviews (47)

Clever, Delightful, Enchanting, Entertaining, Funny

See it if A talented cast perform Shakespeare with a Latin flair & music to go with it, a hilarious romp and a fun show. Shakespeare for the masses.

Don't see it if If you are a Shakespeare snob and don't want it changed or need it verbatim...this is not the show for you then.

Entertaining, Funny, Great acting, Banal, Indulgent

See it if you'd roll w/a freewheeling Cliff's Notes version of Twelfth Night. The actors shine though this version's pared down in the wrong places.

Don't see it if you're a staunch Shakespeare traditionalist.

Hilarious, Funny, Great acting, Relevant, Refreshing

See it if You enjoy comedy and would like to see a new take on Shakespeare classics. And it's soooo funny!

Don't see it if You only like traditional Shakespeare and don't want to be entertained.

Clever, Delightful, Entertaining, Great acting, Refreshing

See it if you enjoy Shakespeare and appreciate a more contemporary staging.

Don't see it if you only like traditional Shakespeare.

Funny, Fluffy, Refreshing, Quirky

See it if you enjoy a fast-paced and funny Shakespeare, if you like multi-cultural casts and adaptations, and if you like some cast interaction

Don't see it if you want elaborate sets and costumes, or if you don't prefer any changes or adaptations to the text

Entertaining, Funny, Delightful, Great staging, Refreshing

See it if You like funky plays,latin music, diversity, lgbt,

Don't see it if U are serius, if you don't like diversity.

Clever, Entertaining, Confusing, Funny, Great staging

See it if You have never seen the play or you love the play and want to see a new, creative, energetic, shorter version of it with an impressive cast.

Don't see it if You want a traditional, full-length production of the play.

Irreverent, Entertaining, Fast & furious, Hilarious

See it if you know your Shakespeare, because this production twists and turns it on it's ear (but you'll laugh so hard, you won't care)

Don't see it if you're a Willie S. purist and don't care for the liberties a Public Theater show takes with his words Read more

Critic Reviews (10)

"The nine-member cast is having a hoot from the moment the audience starts arriving...That Ali does such a raucous job of bringing 'Twelfth Night' so alive and kicking is creditable...But there is a drawback...He has Fernandez go for laughs from first to last, thereby bleaching Shakespeare’s multi-level composing of its more baleful layers...Still, a revival like Ali’s that gives so many patrons a pungent taste of Shakespeare’s abundant pluses has to be embraced."
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“Subtlety is naturally lost in all the hijinks, but the high spirits come across loud and clear. The staging is simple…Here, little new is unearthed and certain elements are obscured but it’s an enjoyable romp with a game cast. I wasn’t thrilled with Ceci Fernandez’s campy take on Olivia but she grew on me…As dull as Cohen was in romantic mode, he was twice as fun as the live-wire Sir Andrew…I do question the cutting of director Ali.”
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Trailer

Creative team