The Lights Are On NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (98)
See it if you like psychological thrillers! It's the perfect show for spooky season. 3 dynamic performances with lots of laughs.
Don't see it if you like big productions or shows with clear endings. Read more
See it if You liked Des Moines. Same sort of seemingly mundane domestic setting with an ominous weird vibe. GREAT performances.
Don't see it if You want a straightforward play with characters acting "characteristically" and don't like unexplained events/situations. Read more
See it if Show that you are not sure which way it is going, the acting is great. This show will leave you thinking.
Don't see it if This show about family drama and makes you think.
See it if Intriguing and intelligent script, stimulating ideas, involving performances
Don't see it if Not a lot of action and dialogue seems trivial at first
See it if u like slow reveal mystery with immediate tension building, ebbing, returning amidst everyday life & supernatural possibilities. Sane/crazy?
Don't see it if u don't enjoy figuring out motives. Dark but fun. Even the brief striptease by gay son isn't as gratuitous as it may seem. Read more
See it if Keeping you on the edge of your seat the entire time as tensions build and mysteries unfold to a satisfying finish! Trish is phenomenal
Don't see it if Definitely a slow-burn type of thriller where characters seem to have mundane conversation for a while. Acting feels a lil forced at times
See it if You like weird shows that make you think, perhaps have different meanings to different people. The acting, along with the writing is superb.
Don't see it if You like your shows to have a clear concise message and storyline. This one has many loose threads (purposefully I believe).
See it if you like plays designed to scare you. Completely engrossing, mild with just enough horror to entertain without terrifying. Fun play.
Don't see it if you don't like shows about scary things. Or you need all the plot points to be tied up at the end; it was left ambiguous.
Critic Reviews (6)
"While Panettieri’s drama has no trouble imagining the end of the world, imagining convincing characters is a tougher task."
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"Reality is a slippery thing in this psychological thriller, which pursues so many narrative possibilities that it ends up in a bewildering pileup of narrative twists. Thanks be to a trio of actors for keeping it watchable; I wonder if they've figured out the plot yet."
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"The Lights Are On," written by Owen Panettieri and directed by Sarah Norris, is a psychodrama that plays with two ideas: are we really who we think we are, and what are the reasons we do what we do? It explores the light and dark of personal psychology, our perceptions of those around us, the events that shaped those people, and ultimately, ourselves. Panettieri’s script and Norris' actualization result in a solid theater piece. It is a well-conceived and solidly acted play whose every minute is worth experiencing.
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“Without strong writing to back up its scenes, the overriding issue is the lack of proper suspense to entice the audience. It’s necessary to be disturbed as well as to care, neither of which is accomplished here. In spite of the cast’s hard work, ‘The Lights Are On’ isn’t suitable enough as a mystery play to scare up audiences this month of Halloween.”
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“Director Sarah Norris and the on-point creative team excel at building a sense of chaos under a patina of calm. Every beat is just a little off kilter, every prop just a little bit odd.”
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“ ‘The Lights Are On’ falls into a common trap for thrillers by establishing more mysteries than it resolves. On the other hand, you may like that it doesn’t answer every question—a thriller to the end.”
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