Wives NYC Reviews and Tickets
About the Show
The author of "Men in Boats" returns to Playwrights Horizons with a new comedy that tracks and subverts patriarchal narrative tropes throughout the ages.
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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 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. Read more
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 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 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. Read more
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 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.
Critic Reviews (15)
“In ‘Wives,’ the Other Halves Have Their Say: Jaclyn Backhaus’s slapdash comedy, at Playwright’s Horizons, travels through time to coax oppressed spouses out of their powerful husband’s shadows.”
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“‘Wives,’ in Four Exuberant Feminist Conversations”
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“The ‘Wives’ of History Are Breaking Free From Their ‘Man’-Made Storie: Jaclyn Backhaus writes new versions of Catherine de' Medici and Ernest Hemingway's exes for a world premiere at Playwrights Horizons.”
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"Jaclyn Backhaus' Frantically Funny and Freestyle 'Wives' Comments on Patriarchal Pigeonholes"
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“Backhaus, whose most recent stage offering, ‘India Pale Ale,’ was far less colorful, has written a time-hopping comedy that vents playfully and eloquently about the sorry lot of wives, and by extension all women, in a patriarchal society...’Wives’ is untidy and obsessive, and one is not always sure what Backhaus is trying to say, but it's still a zippy ride.”
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3/5 Stars "'Life With Papa and Three Other Feminist Tales': An episode involving Ernest Hemingway's several widows is a highlight of a new satirical comedy"
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“I must confess that I was not a fan of ‘Men on Boats’ – and I did not much care for Wives either, although I admire Backhaus’ wild sense of theatricality and daring and uncompromising attitude towards both history and the present.”
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A Theasy Best Bet "Feminism is a laugh-out-loud riot…Under the direction of the very talented Margot Bordelon, the play's relentless momentum speeds through all four parts in 80 short minutes…A great deal of the glory here goes to the excellent four-person ensemble."
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