Venus NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (101)
See it if race interests you, you don't mind theater that leaves you hurting. Quite dark in what it shows. Painful with the truth of history.
Don't see it if You want a happy ending, race history doesn't interest you.
See it if you're a curious theatergoer (I am) or a fan of Parks' work (recently, I've become one) though you still may leave shaken but mystified.
Don't see it if you're looking for light entertainment.
See it if you want to explore a provocative true story of exploitation.
Don't see it if you feel uncomfortable thinking about body issues and how people exploit others in the name of science.
See it if You are already a fan of Suzan-Lori Parks as I hear it is consistent with previous work. You're interested in the specific story being told.
Don't see it if You're not in for a heavy evening (there are some lighter elements but overall it is more disturbing material). You want a traditional show.
See it if you want to think about race, gender and sexuality issues set in the 19th century.
Don't see it if you are uninterested in how 'difference' is manifested in terms of race/sex identities.
See it if A provocative play that grew on me after seeing it the lead actress is very good
Don't see it if Looking for a traditional production
See it if Important story to be told. Beautifully crafted in content and staging.
Don't see it if Disappointing acting from the lead. Would have loved to see a character with agency and intelligence - a fault of the writing or actor?
See it if You are interested in an unfairly overlooked historical character and story
Don't see it if You don't like Brechtian and presentational theatrical styles Read more
Critic Reviews (29)
"As cultural and psychological analysis, 'Venus' has a keen provocative edge...As drama, 'Venus' is less successful — because its steady fixation on Baartman’s sexual objectification becomes repetitive over the course of two hours...Under Lear deBessonet’s direction, the pacing also seems too uniformly ponderous while the ensemble’s delivery can sound hectoring...In keeping with her character, Jah is more subdued."
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"An adventurous revival...Jah is marvelous here as a woman imprisoned, yet not wholly a victim...Most of the actors in Signature’s production, which features carnival-like and sometimes too-cluttered direction by Lear deBessonet, play multiple roles...Empowered? Feminist? Pragmatic? In control? Jah’s Venus is all those things in degrees, in spite of the choices she makes, and the choices that are cruelly made for her."
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"Admittedly, I can at times find Ms. Parks' elliptical, musical style frustrating, untethered as it is from any narrative center. But with 'Venus,' she places this within a more conventional frame, allowing for a balance of artifice and emotional satisfaction."
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“The revival features a nuanced and poignant portrayal by Jah…John Ellison Conlee is a compelling Baron Docteur…A pair of stellar performances…Kevin Mambo, The Negro Resurrectionist narrator, keeps the action moving along, although his innumerable 'Footnote' asides and 'Historical Extract' interjections are acquired tastes. Other plot devices, some successful some too clever by half, include an autopsy performed during intermission and a play-within-a-play construct.”
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"'Venus' uses theatricality as a means to interrogate the moral satisfactions of theater...The play’s themes are delineated through various performance styles, from naturalistic and choral to performative...Jah as Baartman dons a full body suit at the start of the show in full view of the audience. This realistic looking second skin can’t hide the actress’s delicacy, intelligence, and goodness...The troubling questions this tragedy opens up are no less relevant today than they were decades ago."
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