The Rise and Fall of Jean Claude Van Damme NYC Reviews and Tickets
About the Show
Production Covid-19 Safety ProtocolsShow-Score Member Reviews (36)
See it if You like stripped down, immediate, theater that doesn't take itself too seriously. You like beautiful, new venues.
Don't see it if You like big Broadway musicals
See it if fan or curious of Jean Caude behind the scene story. Want to support small scale experimental theater. Good acting & nice voice talents too.
Don't see it if want only big polished productions, musical numbers or big cast. This is a 2 man show-small production but big in talent & fun. Great venue.
See it if you like ridiculous puppet shows
Don't see it if you want something epic or serious Read more
See it if you want to enjoy a two hander with cut-outs and some video that offers many funny moments in a fringe theater presentation.
Don't see it if you expect a full bio or anything serious in this low budget play.
See it if you enjoy off the wall satire, like adventurous fringe theatre.
Don't see it if expect broadway level production qualities, have no sense of humor.
See it if into a very Fringe show - 2 guys, paper dolls, body oil. Entertaining.
Don't see it if well... here and there you can spot the recycled shtick.
See it if You are familiar with Jean Claude Van Damme, enjoy experimental theater, want to have some silly fun and enjoy good puppetry
Don't see it if You are offended by profanity, want to see a drama, musical or lavish production, don't like puppets, or lack a sense of humor
See it if Really funny concept and staging.
Don't see it if Leans a little too hard into the author didn't prepare jokes which makes it feel lazier than it is. Pacing is funky Read more
Critic Reviews (4)
"Though the show announces itself in an expansive manner, it is a minimalist affair: a low-cost approximative biography of a former B-movie action star told by just two men, using action figures that were sourced on Amazon and then jury-rigged into controllable puppets. Again: very Fringe."
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“The Rise and Fall, then Brief and Modest Rise Followed by a Relative Fall of…Jean Claude Van Damme as Gleaned by a Single Reading of His Wikipedia Page Months Earlier” is the brobdinagian title of a tongue-in-cheek, hour-long comic riff on the life of a faded movie star. The title is almost as long as the play.
Timothy Haskell has written what is actually an extended elaborate skit brought to life by Joe Cordaro (perfect as a clueless Van Damme and other characters) and John Harlacher (hilarious as the all-knowing narrator) using puppets designed by co-director Aaron Haskell.
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"There’s nothing safe about The Rise and Fall, Then Brief and Modest Rise Followed by a Relative Fall of . . . Jean Claude Van Damme as Gleaned by a Single Reading of His Wikipedia Page Months Earlier. But there is a whole lot that is hilariously entertaining. And that person sitting behind you, laughing even harder than you, just might be Timothy Haskell himself."
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" 'The Rise and Fall, then Brief and Modest Rise Followed by a Relative Fall of…Jean Claude Van Damme'... is a nostalgic, hilarious piece behind one of Hollywood’s best known martial artists."
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