Bobbie Clearly NYC Reviews and Tickets
Member Reviews (75)
See it if you like sagas of midwestern small towns spread over multiple years about a murder by a 14-year old boy & its aftermath, to see town react
Don't see it if you are expecting answers to its mysteries, don't like quirky characters that make fun of such locales, can't relate to troubled young folk
See it if you enjoy a drama about a murder and how it affects members of a small town in Nebraska. It is well staged and acted.
Don't see it if you like comedy or a great set. The staging is good but simple props are used. Read more
See it if you want to see a wonderful performance by Constance Shulman.
Don't see it if you don't like long dramas. Also, the title character is a cipher. Read more
See it if you like shows that deal with the results of a violent crime.Explores impact on family, on the community, and on the killer.
Don't see it if you want clearly drawn play that explores these issues.Cast is too large.Hard to remember who is who.Acting is good, but writing needs focus
See it if Story of a small town trying to cope with a tragedy and forgive. Covers the thoughts and lives of the residents over 10 years. Victims?
Don't see it if You are disturbed by violence and blood. Cannot see two sides to every story. Read more
See it if You like problematic, imperfect plays that require you to think, while you laugh and cringe and learn about people you will never know.
Don't see it if drama laced with farce and irreverence offends, you want answers to senseless murder. I totally checked out for the gratuitous buck gutting. Read more
See it if you might like a genre-bending story about a tragedy in small town and lasting effects over years (drama, comedy, documentary elements).
Don't see it if you don't see the humor in cringe-worthy talent show performances or don't like intimate staging in which the house lights are often on
See it if you're forgiving towards a young playwright's workshopped play-in-progress, where ambitious ideas and promising writing sometimes flounder.
Don't see it if you're expecting well-polished writing, a neatly-tied-up finale, mesmerizing and groundbreaking work, and feel-good-vibes: it's a dark one. Read more
Critic Reviews (9)
"Takes on many difficult subjects, in several styles. Lubischer seems to have packed his first professional NY production with a sampler of his skills, as if it were a résumé...I wish the production achieved better control of its tone, which seems to wander...Davis does right by the play’s moments of highest tension and emotion...Plays are also about characters, and most of the ones in 'Bobbie' are too contradictory for the cast to act convincingly."
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"Lubischer demonstrates a rare sense of command...Borrowing motifs from everything from 'Our Town' to 'Serial', he displays real craft and scope. The performances, too, are executed precisely...The play’s bold combination of violence and jokiness—the horrifying content told with such gentle mockery—left me confused and sometimes even angry...Lubischer is very interested in Bobbie and has written him a complicated and intriguing play. He’s scarcely imagined Casey, though."
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"So we spend much of 'Bobbie Clearly' struggling to understand why the title character would want to move back to the community where he murdered one of his classmates...Lubischer's play jumps the rails, as contrivance and sensationalism overtake what was a sensitive exploration of a difficult story...None of it would work without emotionally vulnerable performances from the actors...We never get to see Bobbie clearly, which feels simultaneously less satisfying and more truthful."
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"As a group portrait, 'Bobbie Clearly' is often quite gripping...The playwright, Alex Lubischer, is clearly talented -- he certainly knows the territory -- and he finds plenty of drama in fraying friendships and the strange permutations that can be caused by grief. His three-act structure is awkward, however...Sets up a bizarre climax...at which point 'Bobbie Clearly' loses any sense of reality...A distinctly flawed work, it is nevertheless an affecting look at a community living in tension."
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"An awkward mix of satire and sad reflection...Lubischer has captured the community spirit...Either the playwright or the director has incorporated a tone of parody that unnecessarily pulls us away...The hodgepodge of darkish humor and authentically dark emotions never fully coalesces...In need of careful revision. With the exception of Constance Shulman's pitch perfect portrayal of the town's lone cop, we spend far too little time where it is needed."
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"Fearless and mesmerizing...Chase emphasizes the uncomfortable intimacy, sometimes having actors appear directly behind audience members in the back rows...In revealing these characters at their most self-conscious and aspirational, the playwright initially flirts with mocking clichés about small-town folk...But as the play progresses, Lubischer, who is in fact from Nebraska, makes his townspeople increasingly difficult to pigeonhole."
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"Lubischer has created a boldly compelling and mysterious piece, filled with interesting characters. It is a play that is intentionally withholding, and it ultimately fails to fully engage only because it remains too stubbornly opaque...A simple conceit, elevated by Davis's creative and dynamic staging...There are smart bits..But because we’ve never really found out what happened—what exactly Bobbie did, what motivated him, how he processed it—we can’t engage in this examination of the fallout."
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"Lubitscher was aiming for a portrayal of small-town life...rather than a portrait of Bobbie. The performances from the talent show are more entertaining than relevant...The quality of the acting varies widely...While I admire the playwright's ambition and raw talent, I do not feel that he was able to maintain firm control over his material. The tone wobbles from moment to moment...Davis keeps things moving along smoothly. While I would not call it a success, I am not sorry that I saw it."
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