DruidShakespeare: Richard III NYC Reviews and Tickets

86%

(43 Reviews)

Positive

98%

Mixed

Negative

Members say

Great acting, Great staging, Absorbing, Masterful, Riveting

About the Show

Part of the White Light Festival, Lincoln Center presents Ireland's Druid Theater Company's darkly comic take on Shakespeare's history.

"Conscience is but a word that cowards use, devised at first to keep the strong in awe.” Shakespeare’s Richard III is a chilling story of power and ambition. His ruthless monarch resonates through the ages in DruidShakespeare: Richard III, a darkly comic production from Ireland’s Druid theater company and Tony Award–winning director Garry Hynes.

Member Reviews (43)

Uneven tone, Uneven acting, Many words lost, Slow, Disappointing

See it if you love diff approaches to WS. R3 has gr material (truly evil villain) and he's well played. But much of the supporting cast disappoints.

Don't see it if you want to hear every word, want all strg actors, want intelligent cuts (over 3 hrs). Weird laughs added. Ugly costumes. Drags in parts.

Ambitious, Imaginative, Dramatic, Exciting, Beautifully spoken

See it if you've never seen Richard III. All the complex plotting is clear and dramatically portrayed.

Don't see it if you are bothered by anachronistic staging choices.

Stunning, Riveting, Great staging, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if To see a clear, intense Shakespeare with a riveting leading performance, also focuses on the women in Richard's life, cynical, relevant

Don't see it if Not a fan of Shakespeare or can't follow Shakespeare's language, some violent images, want a modern dress Shakespeare Read more

Absorbing, Resonant, Intense, Intelligent, Great acting

See it if Monaghan's spritely, (!) corrosive Richard dominates this clear, crisp if icy production unless Mullan's fire-breathing Margaret is around

Don't see it if Haynes' tonally dark, incarcerating concept seems fitting for the current times yet feels somewhat distancing & chilly rather than chilling

Riveting, Great acting, Great staging, Masterful, Absorbing

See it if The Druids invade America with a stunning portrayal of a great Shakespearean king. The lead actor shuns the use of artificial prosthetics.

Don't see it if You are not open to a unique interpretation of Richard's wiles and the execution scenes. The accents are all different and natural. Read more

Funny/scary, monaghan's villain is great

See it if This 3 hour Richard III flies by. Aaron Monaghan is perfect as the deformed villain. He uses 2 canes and dominates the stage.

Don't see it if Ranks up there with Mark Rylance on Broadway & Kevin Spacey at BAM. Monaghan played Gogo in Druid's "Waiting for Godot last year. Versatile! Read more

Unrestrained, Splendid, Fantastical, Entertaining, Clever

See it if Elite talent dares to put on a Richard III for the ages. Screw your narrow experiments & virtuous parsimony—Druid pulls out all the stops.

Don't see it if dislike dark European stuff; prefer quotidian vision, relatable psychology, literal historicity. Irish troupe has cynical view of Engl crown Read more

Disappointing, Slow, Great acting

See it if you want great acting especially Aaron Monaghan the lead. Great lighting & sound. An experience. Must like Shakespeare's history plays.

Don't see it if you want action..mostly talk. Hard to follow story, accents difficult, long. Only for fans of Shakespeare's history plays. Slow.

Critic Reviews (5)

"All the World’s a Grave in the Druid ‘Richard III’: Garry Hynes’s visually hypnotic interpretation of the tale of the crookback who would be king sees medieval England as a cold slaughterhouse."
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"'DRUIDSHAKESPEARE: RICHARD III' Beguiles and Seduces at Lincoln Center's White Light Festival"
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"In Monaghan's interpretation, [Richard] is a startlingly original villain, an expert seducer whose first conquest is the audience…Garry Hynes' staging has a fine appreciation of the unhealed wounds lying underneath England's seemingly placid exterior."
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4/5 stars "One question this excellent production could be asking is whether the preternaturally evil Richard loses his kingdom not because he lacks a horse but because he's lost his sense of humor."
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