Evening - 1910 NYC Reviews and Tickets

70%

(72 Reviews)

Positive

67%

Mixed

26%

Negative

Members say

Confusing, Enchanting, Original, Great singing, Slow

About the Show

Axis Company presents a new musical about Henry, an immigrant to 1910 New York, who becomes involved with a Bowery theater facing eviction.

As the Kinetoscopes that are replacing them are being installed, the showgirls at a soon-to-close theater wonder about their future. Meanwhile, newly arrived immigrant Henry is pulled by heart and hunger toward disparate and uncertain destinies. These stories come together in this new tuner featuring songs by Axis artistic director Randy Sharp, and Paul Carbonara of Blondie fame.

Member Reviews (72)

Great singing, Nice music, Disappointing, Repetitive

See it if You want to hear a talented ensemble sing pretty songs.

Don't see it if No book so the story is VERY light. Musical numbers become repetitive & come off more as vignettes encompassing a theme rather than a story

Clever, Enchanting, Great staging

See it if very good singing dancing lighting and music

Don't see it if Continued from above......the characters are not identified.. the music is low key. and the cast is is in tune with each other and

Critic Reviews (10)

"In its score, the creators of this sung-through show, Sharp and Carbonara, have made something beautiful and delicate. They’re billing this piece as a musical, though, and I wouldn’t call it that…The story — ostensibly concerning a theater on in 1910, as motion pictures begin to threaten live performance — is a murk of confusion that only grows…The band is excellent, the sound is full and the show is fast and fluid. But 'Evening' is more a song cycle than a piece of theater."
Read more

"'Evening' has some of the most exquisitely crafted music to be heard on the New York stage right now...The show's fuzzy story line too often makes us feel like we're leafing through an album of unfocused photos...This is a bit frustrating in a production whose gorgeous songs deserve more...Despite its snapshot of a tale, 'Evening — 1910' has much to recommend it. It is certainly a musical journey into the past that's worth taking."
Read more

“The experience of ‘Evening 1910’ is rather like sifting through old sepia photographs, now faded, trying to discern what they looked like when new. There is some exceptionally lovely music to be heard here, but if this piece is to have a further life, it needs stronger characters and action, as well as a substantial rethink of its design...There is work of much quality here, but the creators currently don't have the right frame in which to present it.”
Read more

"My initial reaction was 'pretty and pretty boring'...But this show is not one you easily see without letting your thoughts and feelings simmer...It’s a great credit that its team has made me think more about the show since leaving the theatre. Sharp and Carbonara have put together a truly beautiful and poetic score, one of the best currently in the city even...That said, it unfortunately suffers from same-melody syndrome...It’s still best coined as a song cycle."
Read more

“'Evening-1910' poetically intertwines moments of New York history with softly drawn portraits of characters...Although there is a slight narrative, ‘Evening’ is more of a tone poem...Mr. Carbonara’s score possesses an ethereal sound, one of longing and broken hearts...The cast are all exquisite singers, and as an ensemble their sound is gorgeous...Watching ‘Evening’ is like peering through a kinetoscope and being touched by the solitary sadness of each character’s flickering image.”
Read more

“'Evening-1910' is sung-through. That’s how Sharp and Carbonara tell their enchanting tale, which, to be truthful, is ever so slightly vague...The team’s approach here is to keep everything from stopping to settle on one aspect...The result is beautiful to watch, simultaneously lulling and stimulating...I highly recommend you go. If you do, I might see you there, because I’m certainly returning to be mesmerized by it once again."
Read more

"Paired with wonderful music and lyrics, the show was promised to be a success. And yet it left very mixed feelings. The director Randy Sharp, perhaps, decided to compensate for the virtually nonexistent set with busy choreography...Even though the busy choreography was over-the-top, I would take it any day of the week over theatrical clichés, especially with the delightful cast of young and talented actors."
Read more

"Credit goes to all the fine actors. The interactions of these characters are what make up the plot, such as it is, but plot isn’t the strength of this production. The narrative structure is dream-like: action swirls in and out of focus, constantly moving, dimly lit except where highlighted...Not exactly a play, this feels more like a staged concert, a theatrical experience...The beautiful songs are sung by the actor/singers who all have lovely voices."
Read more

"Director Randy Sharp and music director Paul Carbonara have put together a magnificent and poetic musical score...However, with almost 40 songs all evoking the same soft 1900s folk melody, the story tends to get lost and boring, no matter what the lyrics speak...The cast shines together though, moving in a patiently practiced dance choreographed by Lynn Mancinelli that is aesthetically mesmerizing, like watching old photographs move."
Read more

"One is tempted to call it a 'rock opera'...because it is highly impressionistic, consisting of many character songs and expository production numbers, as opposed to active, plot-driving dramatic tunes. But Carbonara’s and Sharp’s gorgeous, melodic songs and the cast’s impressive, 'legit' harmonizing seem the furthest thing from rock...Very few directors have the power or the skill to make me rethink theatre in this way, to fake me out and surprise me and fill me with wonder."
Read more