Wives

See it if you like feminist plays & unexpected twists, learn why women feel so unempowered, like non-linear plots that jump in time, odd happenings

Don't see it if you need a linear plot following same characters, shocked by ill-treatment o women, yearning to stand up on your own& living for who you are

See it if you can. This is a wildly entertaining show that manages to both split your sides and crack your mind wide open.

Don't see it if you're expecting something stuffy and buttoned up. This show's raucous energy manages to bolster the dramatic punch it packs.

See it if 1st several scenes where famous/not-so-famous historical wives rendered like TV “Real Housewives” amusing at times; cast better than script

Don't see it if skits are thin & jokey; final “woman let me roar” scene is tedious & sophomoric

See it if Four time period about women in comedy form (modern language).

Don't see it if Light weight show. Ending does not fit.

Also Enjoyed watching but the last scene it did not fit in the show to me.

See it if you enjoy good acting, funny & witty moments; interesting take on the treatment of women through the years; some laugh out loud moments.

Don't see it if you are looking for consistency amongst the three vignettes; third vignette seems out of place; don't appreciate satire or lots of cursing.

See it if 4 interrelated, skit-like shorts by Backhaus; 1 w/ a hilarious Hemingway parody that will be most appreciated by women who love Hemingway.

Don't see it if you’ve no tolerance for affected irreverence. Too little time to develop intimacy that would make the serious parts authentically impactful.

Also Feels a little raw in both good & bad ways. The show is, unfortunately, not as good as the awesome-sounding blurb. But I do think Wives expresses the historic and ongoing difficulty of forging a literary tradition free of inherited misogyny.

The final act is indulgent and sort of cliched (as far as coven-empowered stream of consciousness cliches go). But overall, an upbeat, fun, wife-friendly show.... Read more Read less

See it if A mixed bag. The stories of 3 wives at different eras. Some vignettes worked and were entertaining. Game performances.

Don't see it if Others did not. A bit confusing as to who was who. The vignette at "Oxbridge" University was a little too obvious.

See it if you like entertaining theater that furthers the cause of liberating women from patriarchal stereotypes.

Don't see it if you don't like to be preached to in a show that presents it's message in a fairly one dimensional, stereotypical way.

See it if The show begins brightly and absorbingly with a fresh look at history that might have been had women been in charge.

Don't see it if The end bogs down in self-indulgent, even embarrassing, rant on womenhood, motherhood and feminism. Even a feminist will have issues with it

See it if 4 short vignettes of the theme of "wives" throughout times. Quirky style - eg modern language in a 1600's setting.

Don't see it if You want one cohesive story. 3 of the 4 vignettes work well, but the 4th goes so far off that it breaks the unity of the show.

See it if Explorations in breaking the patriarchal narrative and norms with a historic, colonized not-only Western lens.Some entertaining wacky points

Don't see it if Mishmash of times, contexts, ideas, and acting styles can get confusing / too norm-breaking, subversive.

Also Diversity: 3 of 4 of the cast are South Asian! 3 of 4 of the cast are women.
Ticket from Young Membership for $26.50.... Read more Read less

See it if Clever and fun look at women through the eras-- four short segues through time with singing dancing a lot of irreverence, some humor and

Don't see it if some piercing insights. The sets were magical and oh so clever, but the four vignettes were inconsistent and got a ittle plodding at the end

Also the very best sequence was the memorial planning with Hemingway's wives--that was so good, I would see the show again just to revisit that scene.... Read more Read less

See it if You want broad comedy, female bonding, very good performances, and what felt like sketch comedy from Carol Burnett. Unevenly entertaining.

Don't see it if You want a tonal consistency. The final scene was so jarring from the rest. This isn’t wrong—I just hated it. There is comedy, drama...

See it if you want to see a very, very funny opening scene even though it goes downhill from there; you like seeing 4 actors play different parts;

Don't see it if you expect to enjoy all four scenarios;

See it if If you really want to support a play that has some interesting ideas but doesn't succeed in realizing them.

Don't see it if you prefer work that is more disciplined, insightful and clear-headed.

See it if You’re interested in a work that explores women’s roles & portrayals in history (great Hemingway wives sketch) in funny unusual ways

Don't see it if Not really a play. Three sketches, the third of which was more a pep talk for women. Never comes full circle (though tries to)

Also I love anything that highlights women in history and anything that encourages them to succeed, as this does. But in the end it felt unfinished.... Read more Read less

See it if you're looking for a light-weight show about the patriarchy and for tidy little nuggets of feminism through an avant garde theatrical lens

Don't see it if you're expecting a deep meditation on the patriarchy beyond the simplistic thought, "we need to tell our daughters they can be anything!"

See it if you want a different view of how the women behind the men think.

Don't see it if you think women should stay quiet.

See it if You are a Playwrights Horizons subscriber or have scheduled to usher for it and don't want to cancel. You are a fan of Adina Verson.

Don't see it if You don't want to watch a bunch of sketches and spin their wheels and make no point. An ending that is confusing and entirely dissatisfying

See it if you are interested in knowing how things may have been different over time if women were in charge.

Don't see it if I found it to be tedious and could not wait for it to end.

See it if you enjoy creative, well-acted, nicely-staged, funny shows that provide a clever look at women in history and raise good feminist issues.

Don't see it if you can't deal with a play that starts off well but goes somewhat downhill as the show progresses and culminates with a disjointed final act

Also This is a play that starts on a really upbeat note with the "Wives" of King Henry of France and Ernest Hemingway. However, the play becomes progressively tedious with the final act totally unrelated to the rest of the play or the theme of "Wives". The last act ends with a long feminist monologue that made me wish that it would end sooner rather than later.

Nonetheless, the cast is excellent. The staging is creatively done. The one song-and-dance number is really cute and commands attention. There is some strong ineffective language at times that seems designed to get empty laughs.

The first two acts are quite well done and seem like realistic takes on the wives. The third act was unusual but somewhat interesting. The fourth act, however, didn't have anything to do with wives and ended with a laborious monologue that I couldn't wait to finish.

As a Club-Free-Time deal, I had a good time. However, I did find myself watching my clock and feeling very relieved as it finally ended.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy good acting, staging, lighting in a well written fun play about the plight of being a woman. Very entertaining.

Don't see it if You are a male chauvinist.

See it if You feel that women have always been overshadowed by the men in their lives, but can look at this situation with a sense of humor.

Don't see it if You are looking for high drama, as opposed to light treatment of a serious problem (women's suppression by men).

See it if You want to see an exploration of human behavior soul searching interesting

Don't see it if You want to confront a troublesome subject

See it if you'd like to see historical matters told from the point of view of the women (wives) of the time.

Don't see it if you're expecting a complete, coherent, experience. This feels more like work in progress.

Also The idea is good but the execution is disappointing. The writer has ideas and beliefs that are worth spreading but it feels like the characters are just spelling out a manifesto instead of working out conflicts in their lives. Also, actors fall in and out of accents, there was no clear standard for a certain way of speech for everyone at a given time period and it was very confusing. The last act was a case study of "telling" instead of "showing". This is theater, please show us 'what it was like' instead of giving the characters huge speeches of descriptions.... Read more Read less