Chess (Gallery Players)

See it if At it's best, Chess is problematic (Nelson's lugubrious book to blame) and this moribund production does it no favors Lame direction kills

Don't see it if Because of erratic leads, Freddie (bad). Florence (decent), & Anatoly (very good) chorus steals the show Has a cold war feel but it's a slog

See it if great community theater. brought back memories of a production at Equity Lib. theater. great lighting. huge cast wide range of talent

Don't see it if relationships between the 3 leads not clearly there. at times music outplayed the singers. overall worth the trek. just about three hours

See it if you like this Tim Rice musical and can appreciate a good community theater effort, with some great voices and unique staging.

Don't see it if you are bothered by poor sound: background and band are too loud, drowning out all the female voices and making you strain to hear dialogue.

See it if You want to support a local, non-professional theatre company. You love Chess and/ or Brit pop. You like

Don't see it if You'd prefer a more professional production company. You hate late '80s-early '90s musicals.

Also There's a lot of wrong here: the best, worst rendition of One Night in Bangkok, Russian accents that are closer to Transylvanian, though it's done with heart & good intentions, so if you want to support local theatre, go see it.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy stories of complex relationships or those set during the Cold War.

Don't see it if you prefer something short and light. This show is 3 hours long and is steeped in heavy drama.

See it if you like to see musicals that are rarely done. Chess is a really interesting musical.

Don't see it if you like to hear the singing over a loud orchestra. I sat in the front row and could read their lips. The lyrics are great when you can hear

Also This is a 3 hour show. I enjoy this plot, games within games and this story is about how events shape lives and how some lives can shape events.... Read more Read less

See it if want to appreciate underheard score, experience some stellar performances, fan of Carmen Napier or Doug Chitel, want 2 well up at highpoints

Don't see it if Whitest version of One Night in Bangkok ever, unbalanced sound, awkward/minimal staging, community theatre flavorings, would keep u away

See it if you’re new to Chess and can appreciate a good musical in an imperfect production and small venue

Don't see it if you want to see the ideal version of this musical; are really uncomfortable w/ sympathetic infidelity, Bankok curiously devoid of Asians

Also Chess has a new fan. I only knew 3 songs going in but it’s very easy to see why this is such a favorite amongst singers even though it’s rarely revived. It’s chock-full of earworms in that bouncy, crowd-pleasing 80’s anthem style that makes you want to hear the songs again right after they’ve finished.

Just listening to the recording isn’t quite enough for me to feel like I get what a musical’s about. I went to see/hear the songs in context and this production provides that, so I’m satisfied. You do have to be pretty forgiving, though. Cast is charming even if the acting isn’t always convincing.

Also, for the set design people—periaktos!... Read more Read less

See it if You are good at imagining what an amazing musical it would be if you took away the problems with the staging.

Don't see it if It's a problem for you when the cast can't sing over the orchestra and even at their best, they're having to yell-sing to get it to work.

Also The three leading actors were all very good, and they did a good job generally. The problem is this is an 80s musical, and even if they were able to belt it out above the synth-pop accompaniment, it doesn't fit the music. With them working so hard to punch higher than the band, there's no room for subtlety in the singing or even acting.... Read more Read less

See it if you just want to hear the great songs from the show sung by mediocre actors and singers in a production that lacks intrigue & thrills.

Don't see it if you don't want your memory of seeing a professional production destroyed and make you question the brilliance of the show.

See it if You never saw the original and like excellent songs and score with good female lead

Don't see it if Overloud music drowning out male vocalists upsets you

Also Sound levels should have been worked out by this stage. You miss half the show.... Read more Read less

See it if you have a desperate need to see the Broadway version of Chess.

Don't see it if you don't like 80's pop-rock musicals or you have a strong attachment to another version of Chess.

Also Chess at its best is problematic. The Broadway version is not it's best. A small budget version is not its best.... Read more Read less

See it if You don't mind seeing Chess with a Florence who can't really sing (but did a great job with the acting)

Don't see it if You can't sit through a three-hour musical about backstabbing and politics. I was riveted, but it's not for everyone.

Also The attempted Russian was so god-awful, I'd really rather they didn't. I couldn't even understand half of what was being "said" - makes ScarJo in the Avengers look like a native speaker.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to support a great community theater and see a musical that is not produced very often.

Don't see it if You don't like long plays; it was almost three hours long.

Also The second half of the play was much better than the first half.

The background music was sometimes too loud and overwhelmed the singers.... Read more Read less

See it if the staggering level of singing and extraordinary music.

Don't see it if the story is a bit of a slog and too much going on.

See it if You like the musical and are ok seeing a production with some very good voices/actors, but otherwise some amateurish actors as well.

Don't see it if You want to see something polished with better actors and production values.

See it if you love the musical Chess. This is enthusiastically staged by an off off off Broadway group with much heart. Wish the vocals were stronger.

Don't see it if you don't enjoy community theater productions. Don't enjoy 80's costumes.

See it if you want to support someone in the cast or Gallery Players.

Don't see it if you are already a fan of Chess. Even at the community theater level, and especially for Gallery Players, this was a miss.

See it if you can't find the broadway album anywhere.

Don't see it if you like the musical Chess, have any musical background at all, or just have ears. I don't blame the cast, but the musical director.

Also The background music was really unpleasant and badly played. The singing was frequently out of sync with the background. The actors also really needed to be miked. The sound quality was muddy. Aside from this, the show had really odd pacing and lacked energy, emotion, and commitment. It felt like there was simply too much material for the production to handle and they were just trying to get through it without really being in it. Managed to take most of the emotion/build up out of the songs completely and there were very few moments where it felt like the actors were connecting with each other. Anatoly and Svetlana were very good, though.... Read more Read less

See it if You like the not-often-produced musical Chess and want to see it any venue. You like the 80s and find US/Russia relations interesting.

Don't see it if You don't want to travel to Brooklyn for theater. You want superior production quality.

See it if you're drawn to an interesting take on the chess game of life with a talented cast highlighting pressures during the cold war period.

Don't see it if you don't like overly long performances with forgettable songs and background music that drowns out the vocalists. Romantic attempts fail.

Also I have gone to Gallery Player productions for many years and this was the first production that was actually highly disappointing to me. As another member here duly noted, "the background music was really unpleasant and poorly played" as the cast had to shout at times to be understood. The female lead (Florence played by Carman Napier) has a really great voice but was emotionally unconvincing as the love interest for the Russian chess master. On the other hand, the roles of the Russian chess master (Anatoly played by David Chitel) and his estranged wife (Svetlana played by Jennifer Walder) were very well done and emotionally convincing.

The first act is particularly slow and long but all the loose ends fall into place somewhat by the end of the show which lasts about 3 hours with one 15 minute intermission. There are so many things going on at times that the tangents become distracting instead of enhancing. Nonetheless, the play does come together at the end.... Read more Read less

See it if .

Don't see it if .

Also I guess they did something to improve the sound system since I had Lino problems as over reviewers stated.

Top notch theatre group... Read more Read less

See it if you like political and romantic conflicts delivered as a metaphor. Fantastic score, and this group had some talented singers.

Don't see it if you can't handle long shows that maybe need to be cut down a little bit.

See it if I gives one thought about the cold war and defecting

Don't see it if \Very long and the singing is not good. The Bobby Fischer character is very off.

See it if Like me you have never seen Chess and are curious. If you like to support local theater and want to see an OK production of a flawed show.

Don't see it if You expect high quality/production values, don’t want to travel to Bklyn for a 3 Hour Show of cult musical favored for the music (weak book)

Also Chess is a flawed show at its core and for any production - interesting music but a confusing book that tries to do too much . It is a cult favorite due to the music but the book has always been/remains the problem. This is strictly community theater level - although standouts are the 2 women (good voices) and the male lead playing the Russian player. It is a low budget production and a wide range of performance level/quality by the cast and clunky direction. As noted by others (and still not adjusted) - the SFX and music level from the band is too loud and makes it hard to hear singing in some songs. And actors are not miked so hard to hear lyrics. Not sure it is worth the 3 hours or the travel in from Manhattan.... Read more Read less