Wives

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 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 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 related to the playwright or any of the actors.

Don't see it if you are a crabby old man.

Also rubbish! 10 seconds in, and every fiber of my being cried: FLEE! but i stayed (being in the center of the front row forced me stay in my seat). clearly, i am not the right audience for this kind of play -- i guess that i am part of the categorically dismissive patriarchy that the playwright deplores. and from that vantage point here's what i experienced: a play that began as a parody of a badly overacted high school production and morphed clumsily into pretentious drivel about selfhood and independence. blech!... Read more Read less

See it if to see 4 brave, talented actors yuk it up & try to hold together a trifling historical comedy about the chronic marginalization of women.

Don't see it if u hope for a sharp comedy (or even a mildly funny one!); u expect a play that "subverts patriarchal narrative" to actually feel empowering.

Also Not a single funny thing is said for the entire 90 minutes in what is clearly meant to be a "lol" comedy. Lots of things are said funny, but they're not funny things. Any laughs elicited by this third-rate, amateur script -- aside from those supplied by the comical voices & faces of the very resourceful cast -- are mostly cheap laughs from the anachronisms of pre-21st Century characters saying things like "dope" and "OMG" and "bitch, please" or sashaying like contestants on Drag Race. And I don't even know what to say about the rabbit hole of pretentiousness that the play suddenly plunges down in the last act. The irony is not lost on me that the whole show feels like it was written by the naive, self-indulgent, overachieving Oxbridge coed who makes an unwelcome appearance towards the end of this play.

Nice sets & costumes, btw.... Read more Read less

See it if You find it absolutely hilarious (like some in the audience) when the women call each other "b*tch" or keep saying the F word over & over.

Don't see it if You can't make any sense (like me) of who these 3 women & 1 guy were supposed to be. 4 different scenes & they're different people in each?

See it if you support female voices in Off-Bway houses—no matter what.

Don't see it if you desire stronger writing and stronger direction.

See it if Your relative is in it.For example, Adina Verson is hilarious as a Julia Child-esque medieval cook at the open & good w/weak material later.

Don't see it if You are hoping to laugh throughout what aims to be a farcical play.

Also First preview, so some potential to improve. But other than the first scene, the concept did not really click.... Read more Read less

See it if You are a fan of Jacqueline Backhaus and want to see her entire oeuvre. This is no Men On Boats. The Hemingway wives are divine though.

Don't see it if Just don't see it.

Also The actors are all excellent and there are valuable, interesting ideas buried in the this plodding, pointless production. Trying to like it proved exhausting.... Read more Read less