Chess Match No. 5

See it if You have some familiarity w/John Cage. You want a play about big, philosophical ideas. You like abstract & non-linear plays.

Don't see it if You're expecting a plot. You have no familiarity w/John Cage. You don't want philosophy and big ideas.

Also I didn't get everything in this play. I lost them a few times. However, I was never bored. The actors are fascinating!! Their commitment to the world of the play made up for the confusion.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy a production that makes you think

Don't see it if You're looking for a simple story

See it if you like John Cage, interesting plays about avant garde music/musicians, and thought-provoking, quiet, good acting.

Don't see it if you don't like slow pieces, meta, and unconventional pieces that lack a traditional story. I liked it, but it was weird and not for everyone

See it if don't mind something avant-guard, philosophical and imaginatively presented

Don't see it if need a conventional plot and have short attention spans

See it if You are a great fun of John Cage; you want to see some experimental theater works which discuss time, sound and space.

Don't see it if You like plot-driven or traditional plays. Nothing really happened during the play and the dialogues can be incomprehensible.

See it if you like John Cage's ideas. Like abstract, conceptual, even absurdist theater. Want your thinking expanded or your assumptions challenged.

Don't see it if you want traditional theater. Aren't familiar with (or willing to learn about) Cage's ideas. Need a clear plot; this is ideas-driven.

Also It's all about expectations. If you go expecting (& wanting) a relationship-based story, you'll hate it. It's like watching family dramas your whole life, then seeing Beckett's 'Endgame'; it won't make any sense because you'll have no frame of reference or vocabulary for it.

John Cage was not (& still is not, even after his death) a mainstream thinker. He challenged ideas of what is noise vs. music, and how we perceive & pay attention to the world around us. As far as I can tell, most of the people who reviewed this weren't familiar w/his ideas or don't agree with them. It makes sense to me that they'd find this totally puzzling or just painful.

Chess Match No. 5 wasn't interested in meeting expectations, but making us aware of them & how they limit our experience. This play was highly intentional & not "devised." If you like conceptual theater (what's more common in Europe, esp Nordic countries), if you like philosophy or just seek out new ideas, you will love it. I did.... Read more Read less

See it if u want 2 c John Cage's work & ideas come alive under Ann Bogart's genius/u want 2 c Siti's s Will Bond & Ellen Lauren exude brilliance.

Don't see it if if u don't want to think, need a story

See it if You like Endgame, Sandbox, Exit The King, The Chairs. . . and outstanding actors

Don't see it if Like comprehensible stories with linear plots

See it if your are a little tired of kitchen dramas and plays with a linear story and you are open to a different type of show, super well done.

Don't see it if you like regular plays and are not open to enjoying something out of the box. People are going to hate it or love it, and that's good.

See it if you enjoy John Cage and don't care much about plot

Don't see it if you're looking for a linear (or any) story

Also It was uncanny how much that guy looked like John Cage! Good casting, you guys!... Read more Read less

See it if You want to know more about a modern, provocative composer who was a brilliant philosopher.

Don't see it if You want constant action and just want to relax, without having to think.

Also I kind of liked it.

See it if you are a fan of experimental theater, a fan of John Cage or of Anne Bogart/SITI Company. Enjoy spectacular sound design and unique lighting

Don't see it if you only like musicals, narrative plays, hate experimental theater or require plot and characters to enjoy a performance; You hate John Cage

Also Find Anne Bogarts essays and lectures on theater deeply inspiring, but am often underwhelmed by her productions. That said, I LOVED this show and would see it again if I had the time and money. Highly recommend reading Anne Bogart's blog post about creating this production, as it both prepared my for the show and deepened my enjoyment and appreciation of it.
http://www.clydefitchreport.com/2017/03/chess-match-anne-bogart-abingdon/... Read more Read less

See it if You like experimental/ devised theater, or John Cage. You like philosophy, and you like letting your mind wonder and consider things.

Don't see it if you don't like experimental theater, performance art, 2 person minimalist shows, or if you need plot, message, or concreteness.

Also This is definitely not for everyone but I'm a fan of experimental theater and have a background in devised theater, so I very much liked this. Anne Bogart's work inspires me as an artist, and I saw a lot of her exploration of sound, levels, dynamics in this piece.

At times, you're literally watching actors making coffee, pull out chairs, or move chess pieces- my brain enjoys finding significance in the relationships of objects and simple moments, but if you're not one to sign on and craft your own meanings/thoughts, this would be very tough to watch.

I thought the actors were thought provoking, and brought unexpected but committed delivery to this piece. The questions posed were compelling and thought provoking.

It's tough to score this show on the same scale as a production with linear action, or solid plot. It's a totally different type of performance art, and equally valid.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy experimental theater done by masters of their craft

Don't see it if You have a short attention span or get lost in big ideas

See it if You like think-pieces, with terrific performances. Two-character one-set play that will expand your mind.

Don't see it if You want to check your mind at the door.

See it if you are interested in John Cage, the work of Bogart/SITI company, philosophical ruminations on art and life, whimsical work with no plot

Don't see it if you dislike quirky "pretentious" theater, plot-less scripts, intricate but strange sound/lighting design, the viewpoints method, Cage's work

See it if you enjoy philosophical shows with experimental elements.

Don't see it if you prefer drama, plot-driven shows.

See it if you like the writings of John Cage and his theories about sound and music. The staging demonstrates many of the concepts discussed.

Don't see it if you get impatient when nothing seems to be happening on stage or when everything the actors speak is drawn from someone's writing.

Also John Cage was keen on sensitizing audiences to unintended sound. Silence, he contended, is just the absence of intentional sound. A good deal of the action in this play is simply the actors making sounds as they make coffee or take their coats off. All the dialogue is taken from Cage's writing, which can get a bit tedious but is often entertaining. I did find that this play had the surprising effect of making me more aware of the unintended sounds around me.... Read more Read less

See it if like thinking and/or John Cage

Don't see it if you can't stand things that move very slow.

See it if You are a fan of avant-garde composer John Cage. You are a composer. You really enjoy highly unusual theatre. Different is your thing !

Don't see it if You are looking for a traditional style play. This could not be more untraditional ! You want mindless entertainment with lots of laughs.

Also This is an event based on the sometimes very strange conversations composer John Cage had with different people during his career. His most famous piece is titled "4 Minutes and 33 Seconds". It is absolute silence for that length of time. In this play he is focused on the experiences of sound and sight and how our expectations of them color what we are experiencing. Watching the 2 actors perform this I was conscious of a very heightened sense of sight and sound. The smallest sound which would be insignificant in daily life felt very important.... Read more Read less

See it if You like absurd theater, existentialism, a play that makes you lean in. It's a conversational meditation with unexpected production detail.

Don't see it if You're inclined to find stuff like this pretentious/not worth it. It's two people on a sparsely set stage, playing chess, talking, w coffee.

Also Well, obviously with scores that range from 7 to 98, this show's not for everyone, and may be only for a few. You don't need to know much about John Cage personally to appreciate this, but you'll get a lot more out of it if you've even a passing knowledge of his music. I've never been much of a fan of his compositions, (his music is only alluded to here, not played,) but Cage had a fascinating and fertile mind. Makes we want to go back and listen to his work anew - I think I'd have a better appreciation for it. The two actors are excellent, and there were production touches which were beautifully conceived. But in the end, this is an experimental theater piece about an avante-garde thinker. If that doesn't sound like your thing, (or if you've never liked a production of Waiting for Godot) don't go.It's 90 minutes without intermission, and I suspect a few in the audience found it painful to sit through. I loved every minute. Lots of delightful surprises.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy engaging with intelligent and quirky avant-garde work that only requires you to accept what occurs onstage and allow it to be.

Don't see it if you don't enjoy post-modernism, shows that don't utilize narrative structure, or experimental theatre

Also Ellen and Will are absolutely delightful to watch onstage and the show is not only beautiful to look at, but to hear. The sound design is nothing short of astonishing. Anne Bogart fully utilizes the quirky stage of the June Havoc theatre and fully embraced the reality of the space's architecture to create a truly remarkable experience.... Read more Read less

See it if You are interested in being in the moment, want to be immersed in John Cage's thought (not his music), like quirky stuff, do yoga

Don't see it if You are an impatient philistine and proud of it

Also A memorable play to share with an attentive audience.

For dinner here on the far side of the garment district try Larb Ubol for Thai around the corner at Ninth/37th, excellent.... Read more Read less

See it if You are curious about John Cage, the Father of Indeterminism.

Don't see it if Avante- garde subject matter is not your thing.

Also I still can't determine if I really liked this or fully understood it . I think I would need to see it again but that ain't happening. The two actors were excellent . Thought provoking for those with an open mind.... Read more Read less

See it if If you like avant-garde theatre. This play is solely composed of quotes & statements. Exhausting to watch.

Don't see it if If you don't like theatre of the obscure

Also Ms Lauren's acting is flawless.🎭🎭🎭🎭🎭 Some one to look out for. And yes go study with her at Juliard if you can! She keeped me glued together Thur this performances. The puppet like dance is the best part of the evening.... Read more Read less