Twelfth Night (The Public Theater) NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (113)
See it if you like Shakespeare (or if you don't!), for Nikki M. James, you like diverse casting, and refreshing twists on Shakespeare plays
Don't see it if Don't like music in your Shakespearean plays, you don't want a fun time, are a Shakespeare purist, or non-traditional casting Read more
See it if Love an enchanting night in Central Park's Delacorte theater. Original twist on a Shakespeare favorite. Love including the community members
Don't see it if You complain when Shakespeare is enhanced.
See it if My wife and I saw Twelfth Night on a very hot and humid night, but we're delighted by the lively music and staging.
Don't see it if You only want to see your Shakespeare straightforward. Read more
See it if What a wonderful adaptation of the classic.. Most of the words are Shakespeare's with lively added music. The large cast is energetic.
Don't see it if You require Elizabethan costumes and total fidelity to the printed page.
See it if u like imaginative new interpretations of Shakespeare. Great, catchy music that makes the text much more accessible. Great ensemble!
Don't see it if you want a traditional approach to Shakespeare. Don't like music. Expect something serious.
See it if you enjoy new looks at Shakespeare's works, and enjoy folksy/NOLA jazz music.
Don't see it if you don't like Shaina Taub's indie/folk/jazz style. The ensemble is made up of amateur community groups so don't expect perfection.
See it if you love Shakespeare in all forms, including an absolutely charming musical version. Also if you want to see the main leads be amazing.
Don't see it if you only like your Shakespeare traditional...or not at all. Even with the "modern" music and lyrics, there was much of the actual text.
See it if you like shakespear and you wanna see something new
Don't see it if you love classic shakespear
Critic Reviews (37)
“Entertaining, poignant and vital community-oriented theater...Integrating a catchy, pop-style score...’Twelfth Night’ is a fast-paced and accessible musical comedy adaptation...The professional performances are terrific...but the jubilant chorus is what is most striking and refreshing...Of the many productions of ‘Twelfth Night’ I have seen in recent years, this is by far the most bright and upbeat.”
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"A musical with enormous heart and smarts to match its considerable spectacle...Theater that truly looks like NYC...One of the tightest productions I've seen from Shakespeare in the Park...Thoroughly delightful and heartwarming musical...Taub's songs are not only catchy but dramatically efficient, slicing through exposition and serving up objectives with a dexterity few other contemporary musical-theater composers possess...A truly stunning production.”
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"If theatre be the food of love, the company played on, with the audience loudly cheering every quick reprise and dramatic exit through to the finale chorus, a heart-warming anthem of empathy extolling how much better the world would be if everyone just tried seeing it through the eyes of another...Despite the tremendous work by the theatre professionals, the highlight of any Public Works production is, of course, watching the community members of the ensemble."
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“Shakespeare's unruly romantic farce is expertly trimmed down to a fast, funny, touching ninety minutes...Taub's songs effortlessly condense the action, revealing complicated emotional states and knotty plot points with ease...The production is loaded with delightful bits of business...Everyone has been thoroughly drilled and they appear to be having a ball...This version of Illyria seems like an earthly paradise.”
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“The production, a restaged version of the show...thumbs its nose at the weather and delivers its own deluge of pure delight...The acting, dancing, and singing skills vary among the ensemble members...Even with all the running around, the very large cast, and the outsized production numbers, it is very easy to follow the plot, which has been boiled down to its essentials and configured into a joyful romantic comedy in which all ends happily."
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"Taub’s score is Broadway-ready, and she is a smashingly good charmer of a performer...A veritable parade of delights...If the thought of a professional/amateur effort sounds worthy but somewhat academic, please obliterate that thought. Taub’s version can only be described as jubilant. By crowding 50 members of various community groups on stage, the entire place takes off. Amateurs, yes; but well-rehearsed, talented, and above all energetically engaged in every moment."
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"How refreshing...to arrive at Central Park’s Delacorte Theater and enjoy a production that celebrates inclusiveness without reserve—and without pandering or preaching to the choir...Kwei-Armah, Taub and Eustis not only make 'Twelfth Night' accessible to the breadth of audiences represented by their company—which includes kids—but emphasize the differences and contradictions that can exist within each one of us. And leave us laughing, and dancing, in the end."
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"Shaina Taub's joyful and sunny updated musical version of Shakespeare's comedy, 'Twelfth Night,' is back in a full production courtesy of free Shakespeare in the Park and Public Works which premiered an earlier production for four performances during Labor Day Weekend 2016. This slightly trimmed and tightened version is even more entertaining and the witty contemporary lyrics make this fun for young and old, as well as Shakespeare veterans and novices."
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