A Hunger Artist

See it if you like weird Fringe prodns. Ingenious staging, costumes, props, lights, sound. Strange story fr Kafka w/many interpretns. Clever/moving.

Don't see it if you're impatient. 1st part drags! Meaning's unclear. Aud particpn. Levin's very thin;I'm worried. Fascinating, but friend dozed. Not for all

See it if A great not seen very often kafka body of work that focuses on one individual and his life. Great acting, enjoyable show.

Don't see it if If you dont like shows like private Peaceful that deal with dispear.

See it if Intense solo performance that goes in deep, unexpected directions. Entertaining veneer falls, and reveals truths about what keeps us alive.

Don't see it if You don’t want to see a visceral show about a man with an eating disorder in 1900. But it is about a lot more. Some audience participation.

See it if creative solo performance excites you. Best solo piece I have seen! Uses a variety of techniques and creates convincing alternate characters

Don't see it if you are disturbed by issues related to starvation and obsessive disorders.

See it if you search out the best-of-fringe fare; you like really well-conceived, well-produced solo gems, Kafka, or enjoyed Gelb’s The Black Crook

Don't see it if you avoid one-man shows and irony

Also *Revival happening Jan 6-18, 2020

This performance is quite perfect. The solo show is the ideal meta-medium for this story of increasingly desperate isolation. Levin is captivating in his obsessiveness. Surprisingly lavish, beautiful, and detailed production. A must-see if you’ve read A Hunger Artist—it’s thrilling to see an adaptation of text come to life so fully and faithfully onstage.

This show is marked as "Already Closed" but it's having a short revival in Jan 2020 at the Connelly Theater.... Read more Read less

See it if The most unusual one man show I have ever seen. Jon Levin is all over the place and at times, so is the audience. Weird to say the least.

Don't see it if If you don't like solo shows or if you need a linear play, this will not be for you,

See it if Highly evocative of 1930's German expressionist cinema.

Don't see it if You want a straightforward anything

See it if you want to see an absolutely amazing, masterful performance and amazing inventiveness. Really wonderful stuff, if a little long.

Don't see it if You want a linear plot line or don't like puppetry and one-person shows. But even if you don't think it is your kind of show, give it a try.

See it if amazing visuals achieved by remarkably modest setup. Exquisite and varied acting that never feels like a typical solo show. Quite charming!

Don't see it if There is some audience participation that worked out fairly well when I attended but YMMV.

See it if you love highly-theatrical, hilarious, unexpected shows that take you by surprise and hold your attention. Truly magical, terrifying.

Don't see it if you are sensitive to or triggered by ideas or plays containing themes of starvation or depictions of extreme thinness.

See it if you like something out of the ordinary.

Don't see it if You really don't like 1 man shows. ( I usually don't like them, but this was good!) But I wouldn't bring kids.

Also When it first started, I thought I wasn't going to like it. Accent was hard to understand. "Puppet Show" was hard to see. But then...things changed. I won't spoil the surprise.... Read more Read less

See it if ...you like ambitious, thought-provoking one-man shows with great production values.

Don't see it if ...you don't. (But see it anyway, and your mind might be changed!)

Also Kudos to all involved for taking an allegorical Kafka short story and making a fine feast of it. I loved it.... Read more Read less

See it if You like theatre that strays from the norm; something different that you don't see often, if ever.

Don't see it if You don't like shows that are outside your comfort zone, or if eating disorders are a trigger for you emotionally.

See it if If you like strange one man shows based on classic literature. Performer was talented. Show crept up on you

Don't see it if If you are easily bored and/or have short attention spoan

See it if You enjoy physical theater and inventive storytelling

Don't see it if You don't like adaptations

See it if you are looking for a show that fights to break the mold. A meditation on being an artist for one's self.

Don't see it if you'd rather classic playwriting form. Also if you can't really get behind expressionism, bare intimate theatre, and anxious experiences.

Also I love finding theatre that makes you aware of the ephemeral experience of being in that theater—being affected by the atmosphere around you, and the tension between the player(s) on stage and you with your fellow audience members. This is that kind of show. The kind that needs a theater and would be tremendously less effective in another medium.... Read more Read less

See it if You like weird shit

Don't see it if You get confused easy

See it if See it if you like the story and are ready to be immersed in it viewing it as a spectator and seeing the artist’s perspective as well.

Don't see it if If you don’t like quick paced, thought provoking shows don’t see it ;)

See it if you like old-school vaudeville with a patina of existential dread, and are into physical proficiency and unusual puppetry.

Don't see it if you like fast-moving, plot-heavy theater or are put off by physical extremity.

See it if You're younger than I am

Don't see it if Quirky isn't enough for you

See it if You appreciate physical acting, clowning, puppetry & performance art. You want an unique theatrical experience.

Don't see it if You don't like clowning or a story that's told mainly by physical acting. You dislike audience participation.

See it if A brave and ambitious attempt to bring a complicated short story to the stage

Don't see it if You need fully developed theatre with a point of view

See it if you are able to appreciate simple but brilliant means of taking a profound Kafka novella and creating a moving & unique theatrical experiece

Don't see it if it would take big budget devices to induce you to contemplate the exploitation underlying "entertainment"; you dislike serious theater.

Also One of the best pieces I've seen recently, using many theatrical devices to surprise, engage, provoke - humorous and tragic, it will be difficult to shake this one off. See it if you want to see honesty in performance and staging as opposed to glitz (which can be fun as well, but would be at cross-purposes here.) I was blown away by the effects created through the use of the most basic props ,lights, audio effects, puppets and mime techniques. It all worked beautifully for me.... Read more Read less

See it if Great costumes, sound, lighting; packed with a variety of performance techniques (puppetry, shadow puppetry, pantomime, immersive theater)

Don't see it if You prefer big budget productions; first half could use more focus, but second half retelling artist's decline was absolutely absorbing

See it if You want to be constantly surprised and delighted... you want to see a superb actor in an expertly written and directed show.

Don't see it if You don't want to see something new.

Also This show works on so many levels: large and small, light and dark, thought-provoking and whimsical. You never know what you're gonna get with a small performance like this, and I knew very little about the source material or artists going in. This is one of the best shows I've seen this year.... Read more Read less