The Brutes

See it if to see a sparsely staged but overstuffed story of the Booths prepping for a benefit & dealing w/family feuds & the charged politics of 1864.

Don't see it if you're not interested in 19th C theatre history; you expect to find any heart or motivation beneath the densely packed play of ideas.

Also There is so much going on in this play, that one has to hand it to director/actor Sara Fellini for even attempting to wrangle all of the plots & subplots & sub-subplots as well as all of the thoughts, themes, concepts & characters crammed into this 70 minute play. Although the result is still messy & confusing, that she handles it as adeptly as she does is a testament to her earnestness.... Read more Read less

See it if you are fully in tune with the history of the brothers and want a different take on a part of their lives with some good acting.

Don't see it if you want any peace-this is a romp from beginning to end with shouting, shooting, stomping and bright lights that often make you squint.

See it if If you want to see a history based play of negligible if any importance.

Don't see it if If you're looking for a musical

See it if You like words. A rather murky comparison of the 2 greatest actors of their age in signature role who happen to be father and son.

Don't see it if You are fussy about Shakespeare. The Shakespearean sections do not soar. you want a big production

See it if you like to support small, new theatre companies. Or if you are Booth-obsessed. Or if you have friends in the cast. Otherwise, don't

Don't see it if you expect the script to make sense. It is ambitous and ultimately, unsuccessful. The acting and staging aren't much better. A weak show.

See it if You are interested in the history of the Booth family and the mind of Wilkes-Booth prior to The Lincoln Assasination

Don't see it if You do not want to see a show based on the history of the Booth family. Do not like shows off off Broadway.

Also My friend and I were very surprised at how well written this script is for this play. With the right producing team and some tweaking here and there this show could make it much further and maybe Broadway! Please take the trek downtown to Christopher Street to see The Brutes. Support this small show that has a lot of potential.... Read more Read less

See it if You REALLY love Julius Cæsar (the play, not the Roman dictator (spoiler alert:he dies)). You like well acted shows that aren't well written.

Don't see it if You need a coherent plot (there are ghosts and a framing device in this that are largely unneeded) or great writing. Neither are found here.

See it if you want to learn some history of the Booth Family brothers (Junius Jr., Edwin and John Wilkes).

Don't see it if you do not enjoy plays that have the actors screaming their lines and the plot jumping all over the place.

See it if you want to see a snippet of theater history when the three Booth brothers share the stage.

Don't see it if you like a linear plot and well defined characters (the story line is somewhat random which made it difficult to follow).

See it if you are interested in historical recreations, and forgotten performances.

Don't see it if you like lavishly staged, full Broadway productions

See it if Great acting! Intriguing plot. Civil war and presidential assassination insights. Serious play.

Don't see it if Muddled storyline. Don't want a serious play. Prefer lighter material.

See it if You like historical plays that are told from a different and rarely heard perspective

Don't see it if you don't like plays with a lot of dialogue and multiple characters

See it if you have an interest in the history of the Civil War and theater history surrounding the Booth family.

Don't see it if you are interested in a more linear plot, traditional staging.

Also Parts of the play were fascinating, but it tried to mix in too many elements and ultimately was too confusing.... Read more Read less

See it if You like really good acting. I thought the actors did their best with the material they were provided.

Don't see it if You like plays to have a story that is not impossible to follow. I found the story very confusing.

Also Character's weren't well defined, nor were their relationships. A group of four characters called "the brutes" would appear every once in a while but I couldn't for the life of me figure out their purpose. They just seemed inserted for no reason at all and were completely disconnected from the other characters. Many scenes didn't make sense. I think the writer had good intentions but then went off on tangents.... Read more Read less

See it if you are interested in theater history and want to see a play about the famous - and infamous - Booth family.

Don't see it if you are looking for a straightforward drama as the some of the scenes - especially those involving “the brutes” - can be confusing.

See it if good acting especially adam belvo; historical plays

Don't see it if if you dont like fragmented confusing plays....the actors did the best they could with a mediocre script

Also the back and forth between caesar and the lincoln theme could have been better handled using the play about caesar and having john wilkes booth character have musings or conversations within the caesar play to show where he is headed psychologically.....and build to a crescendo ....instead they ran the play on two parallel lines instead of integrating both themes.... the actors did a yoemans job with this material though but it could have been much better with a better script... Read more Read less

See it if you like history, but don't care if the facts are correct. This show required outside research after for me to see the connections.

Don't see it if you hate when a show has less than half original writing. (Shakespeare was the predominant writer of the evening).

See it if You want to see A+ acting. The cast was really great, especially Belvo, Fellini Keeney and Martin. If you can follow fast dialogue.

Don't see it if You struggle to follow interweaving plot lines or don't know a lot about the Civil War.

See it if you love great acting, with American history and inventive staging

Don't see it if you don't like American history

See it if You like history. You like Shakespeare and great Shakespeareans. You work with your siblings. You appreciate that all the word's a stage

Don't see it if You're hard of hearing. You dislike wit for its sake. You won't contemplate the repetitiveness of history or the necessity of theater