Shhhhh NYC Reviews and Tickets

62%
(36 Ratings)
Positive
50%
Mixed
36%
Negative
14%
Members say
Edgy, Thought-provoking, Confusing, Ambitious, Disappointing

New play written, featuring, and directed by Clare Barron ("Dance Nation").

Read more Show less

Show-Score Member Reviews (36)

Sort by:
  • Default
  • Standing in our community
  • Highest first
  • Lowest first
  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Only positive
  • Only negative
  • Only mixed
122 Reviews | 17 Followers
83
Resonant, Refreshing, Entertaining, Absorbing

See it if go to this if you like extremely vulnerable, exhihibionist, over-the-top, subtle, beautiful theatre

Don't see it if you're not a very sexual person, afraid of theatre that makes you uncomfortable, afraid of relating to people who you'd rather not relate to

412 Reviews | 84 Followers
82
Intense, Edgy, Raunchy, Thought-provoking, Ambitious

See it if Barron's graphically intense & perversely fascinating look at female sexuality outside of the male gaze Ensemble cast ably up to the task

Don't see it if Disjointed & episodic narrative can frustrate esp around subplots which are interesting but left undeveloped But central playlet a stunner

Nic
596 Reviews | 102 Followers
81
Thought-provoking, Great acting, Ambitious, Resonant, Relevant

See it if you would enjoy a play that looks frankly at important issues in an honest way most shows don’t have the courage to do.

Don't see it if you would be bothered by the slow pace, which did make things drag a bit at times. Read more

761 Reviews | 166 Followers
78
Indulgent, Funny, Edgy, Clever, Ambitious

See it if if you liked the playwright's Dance Nation, enjoy edgy works with slightly unusual characters, carefully paced shows that connect at end

Don't see it if don't like slowly paced shows with meandering plots and unrelated characters, get easily flustered by nebulous plotting, not a fan of S/M

300 Reviews | 65 Followers
76
Raunchy, Insipid, Edgy

See it if you like experimental theatre...that's really all I can say

Don't see it if you are easily triggered by almost anything, don't enjoy fetishes, easily grossed out

184 Reviews | 30 Followers
72
Gratutious, Quirky, Interesting, Self involved, Indulgent

See it if you'd enjoy some interesting riffs on sexual politics today. Likely not as profound as the playwright assumes, but not boring. Good acting.

Don't see it if You need a coherent plot and structure. Pushes boundaries for pushing boundary sake. Not sure what it all means but some nice moments.

972 Reviews | 1051 Followers
70
Edgy, Thought-provoking, Uneven

See it if You enjoy shows centered around female characters. The play has a lot to say about sex & relationships & consent.

Don't see it if You are uncomfortable w/ sexual situations or language. Or if you dislike VERY cramped and tight seating. Read more

137 Reviews | 23 Followers
70
Thought-provoking, Ambitious, Intense, Edgy, Confusing

See it if You like modern theater especially newer works or experimental theater, if you like erotic subject matter, wish to see a new work.

Don't see it if You don't feel comfortable about sex, sexuality, sexual assault, are a bit squeamish, prefer traditional theater. Read more

Critic Reviews (10)

The New York Times
January 31st, 2022

"The other issue is the show’s erratic pacing. A Looney Tunes-esque chase scene and a mystical ritual both feel interminable. While other scenes are too short, and characters lack depth. Amaya has a sparky energy, but their character is less developed in relation to the others. And the characters of Francis and Sandra speak in only one scene, in the pizza shop, though the dialogue is incredibly compelling: candid exchanges about what it’s like to be a woman in a world of modern dating, and romantic metaphors about isolation and desire. I could’ve watched an entire show of this conversation."
Read more

Time Out New York
January 31st, 2022

"Barron stirs these ingredients and others into a troubling cauldron, and the play can be challenging to take in; its uncorseted structure of scenes and vignettes and near-absence of traditional plot sometimes make it seem like working notes toward a play rather than a finished work. To some extent that is surely by intention, and some scenes that were confusing on first pass clicked into place for me in retrospect. Even so, and despite the production’s persuasively low-key performances, one wonders whether an outside director might have helped shape it to be even more effective, especially in the longer Witch sections. But Barron’s thoughtful ambivalence cuts through the occasional mess. She’s up there under glass for us, spilling her guts."
Read more

New York Theatre Guide
January 31st, 2022

"But although this is Shareen's/Barron's story, SHHHH is Constance Shulman's show. Shulman bewitches as Sally aka "Witchy Witch," Shareen's sister who does magic rituals and ASMR on her off-hours from being a postal worker. Shulman is given free reign to be weird and wacky — she puts her voice-acting background to commanding use, with her every word measured, grave, like she's about to prophesy either your ultimate bliss or your impending doom."
Read more

New York Magazine / Vulture
January 31st, 2022

"At first, the production, expertly designed by Arnulfo Maldonado and lit by Jen Schriever, gives off sex-dungeon vibes (there’s black plastic on the walls in the lobby), but once Witchy Witch goes on a date at Brooklyn’s Morbid Anatomy Museum, the scenes all start to look like … exhibits. Shareen’s bathroom seems a bit like a habitat display: A wax woman with viscera piled on her belly rests in a vitrine; the naturalistic pizzeria set rolls out like a little diorama. It’s clever, but Barron falters at staging action scenes inside this crowded space, particularly when Witchy Witch starts running around the tableaux, chasing Kyle to enact revenge on her sister’s behalf. The play desperately tries to turn comic but can’t, both because Barron doesn’t have the staging savvy for farce and because the show is already so far gone in inky-black despair."
Read more

Theatermania
January 31st, 2022

"Despite the pacifying title of her latest work, Shhhh, now making its world premiere at the Atlantic Theater's Stage 2, this one is even more discomfiting than the rest. While Barron's past works teeter on the edge of an abyss, thrilling their audiences with the incredible feat of remaining upright, Shhhh fumbles through painful vignettes without a trace of safety, or a guiding hand to reassure us that we're journeying toward something — even if that something is less than solid ground."
Read more

TheaterScene.net
February 6th, 2022

Warning: Shhhh, a world premiere commissioned by Atlantic Theater Company from Clare Barron, Susan Smith Blackburn Prize-winner for Dance Nation, may just be the most visceral play you will ever see, describing all bodily fluids graphically from saliva to urine to feces and blood. It is not for the faint-hearted. Shhhh is meant for those who like adventurous, cutting- edge theater, performance that pushes the envelope. You may not like it but you will not easily forget it.
Read more

Theater Pizzazz
February 5th, 2022

"That Shhhh is a strange play isn’t really open to debate. I think it works, which is certainly debatable. Bumping into a longtime friend and fellow critic on the way out of the theatre, I was somewhat taken aback that he felt the opposite about its merits, and yet I fully understand how it might not have been for him. But if an evening of outside-the-box theatre dealing with multiple aspects of sexuality and sensuality, is something you crave, then you’ll be most interested in what Clare Barron has to say about the moment at hand in 2022 American life."
Read more

Front Row Center
February 5th, 2022

"At the end of the day, Shhh is a tease. It promises sex and kink and emotional depth and looking deeply at trauma and assault, but it gives only a hint of these items, too afraid to fully indulge in the seduction."
Read more