Chess Match No. 5

During previews

Banal, Cliched, Dated

March 17th, 2017

See it if you like random music like John Cage

Don't see it if you think randomness is cliche

Also This type of theater is pompous and cliché. Dadaism was entertaining; this junk never adds up. It gives modernism a bad name.... Read more Read less

Julie L 6124
New York City
65+ | Male

24 reviews

During previews

Disappointing, Great acting, Ambitious, Fluffy, Dated

March 18th, 2017

See it if If you like non traditional theater, with hardly any staging and chess

Don't see it if Like exciting plays with more action and more interested topics.

Elaine 31
New York City
65+ | Female

16 reviews

During previews

Confusing, Disappointing, Great acting

March 16th, 2017

See it if you're willing to see terrific actors working w/less than stimulating material

Don't see it if you are unwilling to see a show just for the actors and not for the material

Freckleface
New York City
25-34 | Female

11 reviews

During previews

Intelligent, Quirky, Relevant, Thought-provoking

March 18th, 2017

See it if You are into viewpoints/Suzuki. You like thought-provoking theatre.

Don't see it if You prefer traditional plays/linear plots.

Tom 7026
New York City
65+ | Male

8 reviews

During previews

Absorbing, Clever, Refreshing, Resonant, Delightful

March 12th, 2017

See it if you revel in thinking about how sound and music relate to your life.

Don't see it if you mostly enjoy traditional narratives.

Also Beautifully written and acted. Lots of attention to the sound design and staging fleshed out the spoken ideas. Bravo!... Read more Read less

Critic Reviews (16)

Elisabeth Vincentelli |

March 28th, 2017

"They are not visibly doing theater, if that means plot, traditional characters or singing cats. Except, of course, that they are. You just need to recalibrate your expectations…‘Chess Match No. 5’ is a cerebral peek into an artist’s worldview…Will Bond, displaying the impish smile of an eccentri...
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Helen Shaw |

March 20th, 2017

"Even as it quotes Cage, 'Match' resists him, and the resulting performance is respectful, warm-hearted, lovely…and inert...There should be an interesting tension between Bogart and Cage—there's so much that's different, they should come together in a crash. But the SITI method sands and polishes...
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Hayley Levitt |

March 19th, 2017

"Clarke's finished product onstage is—in the most objective sense of the word—boring. And yet, it's so Cage-like in spirit, you almost can't fault Clarke or director Anne Bogart for crafting 'Chess Match No. 5' in just this meandering way...Nevertheless, this sensory stimulation can't bear all th...
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David Barbour |

March 23rd, 2017

"Works best as a kind of tribute to a singular figure in 20th-century culture, done with great affection and no small amount of charm...The text doesn't really assist in understanding the line of Cage's thought, and the director's slick, often amusing direction may be at odds with his rather aust...
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