Persuasion NYC Reviews and Tickets
About the Show
Production Covid-19 Safety ProtocolsShow-Score Member Reviews (48)
See it if you like good theatre, clever adaptations, very good acting & incredible staging.Bedlam is one of those theatre companies that never misses.
Don't see it if you are looking for a gaudy musical or a turgid drama. This is fun, very, very clever fun.
See it if Great adaptation of a classic novel with some interesting directorial choices.
Don't see it if Unconventional adaptation of a Jane Austen story. Might not work for if you're not an Austen fan or don't like period dramas
See it if you like a show with intelligent use of humor. Wonderful portrayal of characters by Bedlam company. Very amusing and great staging.
Don't see it if you don't like the stories of Jane Austen. Persuasion doesn't have a lot of action but the production brings it alive. Read more
See it if You enjoy madcap comedy and satire and a fresh take on a classic work. Especially enjoyable if you are familiar with the book.
Don't see it if You prefer your classics “straight up”.
See it if Bedlam does it again! Charming , well acted. Female lead particularly excellent. Shows do not need elaborate sets and staging.
Don't see it if Prefer elaborate sets and staging. Because some of actors play multiple roles - possible confusion if have not read the book
See it if a fan of Jane Austen & Bedlam; don’t mind a bit of nuttiness in your Regency Romances; support off-Broadway productions with devoted casts.
Don't see it if expecting a perfect blend of serious & slapstick a la Bedlam’s & Kate Hamill’s Sense & Sensibility. This one's a bit uneven in some places. Read more
See it if You love Austen/rom coms. I’m a massive Austen nerd, and I loved the blend of nerdy details that are often missed with a fresher staging.
Don't see it if You insist on adaptation being word for word and miss the point of what other mediums bring. You have trouble with multi-casting. Read more
See it if You a unique take on a classic novel with some campy fun thrown in. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes hard to follow.
Don't see it if You don’t like small off-Broadway productions, revisions of classics or don’t like the novel.
Critic Reviews (7)
"THREE STARS! A romance that begins with a proposal has a circuitous road ahead...the action in Tucker’s frenetic production is sometimes hard to follow."
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"Awkwardness is the dominant feeling onstage, as no one has any privacy and nothing better to do than observe each other making faux pas while vainly hoping no one sees their own. The result is a hilarious and relatable adaptation for those of us nervously readjusting back to in-person socializing."
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"One thing is clear: Persuasion marks the long-awaited return of one of New York's most talented companies."
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Persuasion contrasts incisively written and acted moments with broad bits of comic shtick, wild bursts of overemoting, and distracting staging ideas. An approach that, a few seasons ago, was hailed by some as fresh and contemporary is looking increasingly exhausted.
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"Bedlam is presenting Jane Austen’s final novel, Persuasion—directed by company helmer Eric Tucker and adapted by Sarah Rose Kearns—as a production for our times. This may sound like good news. It isn’t. To use a word Austen frequently turns to, it’s vexing."
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"Among the problems are so much doubling and tripling that it becomes difficult to keep the characters separate and a lack of humor and irony that was inherent in the original material. Tucker seems to have forgotten that this should be a comedy of manners."
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I was wholeheartedly engaged with the play – for the last 15 minutes. The first two hours….not so much...it’s still Bedlam, and that means beauty, humor and precision in the design, and much clever and enlivening stage business.
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