Worse Than Tigers

See it if you want to see one of the best written & performed plays of '18. Focus & be ready: set-up to conflict is quick; arcs & climaxes fulfilled.

Don't see it if you can't get passed absurdist aspect, or can't seriously focus, concentrate & pay attention to details. Your mind CANNOT wander in Act I.

Also Bouncing off the walls in my seat towards the end....

...there's a tiny burst of color (FINALLY) at the end, coming from an item pulled out of a drawer. Also, you will hear a name at the end... masterful metaphor to the title's "Tiger"... mind-blown.

All 3 performers did their jobs above & beyond. The married couple's misery & blandness is hysterical & palpable. Braeson Herold ("Humphry") is near-perfection as the cuckold husband who doesn't get angry @ anything. Shannon Sullivan ("Olivia"), the cold/distant wife delivers a LONG monologue @ the end, tears streaming down her face, that freezes the audience. Zach Wegner ("Officer Kirk") is over-powering, manic/frantic as hell, taking over ever corner of the stage as he prances around like he's peeing everywhere & leaving his mark.

Come w/a clear head & open heart. The innocent joke-telling in Act I should plant the seed. If you focus, you will not be lost. Take the damn journey. It is SO rewarding. You won't believe 2hrs have gone by.... Read more Read less

See it if There are absurdist elements but this play still has conventional appeal. Dialogue was mostly very good. Outstanding production values!

Don't see it if The ending was a bit disappointing. Not sure I loved the actor playing the husband. But the tiger was terrific.

See it if you enjoy a hard hitting cerebral drama about relationships that hits home many times over, with great sound design.

Don't see it if you are afraid of loud tiger sounds effects, darkness or the abyss of loss and grief and other human conditions.

See it if you want to see an intense, stunningly acted Albeean domestic dramedy about suppressed grief, repressed feelings & the elephant in the room.

Don't see it if you have no predilection for Absurdist drama.

Also This is a wonderful new play, which owes a great deal to Edward Albee thematically, structurally & narratively; but, unlike Albee, the playwright loses his confidence & his faith in the audience, drops his conceit, and writes a naturalistic (albeit touching & moving) scene late in the play between our main protagonists that explicitly spells out the metaphors and symbolism that heretofore drove the play to its startling climax.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see three great actors in a piece like Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Wolfe on acid! Stick with it. They tie it up nicely at the end.

Don't see it if You don’t have the patience to sit through what seems like nonsense to get to the real purpose and meaning.

See it if You like theater of the absurd. Leads got A+ showcase on silver platter.

Don't see it if You hate absurd theater and watching a bad marriage play out. Incredibly inconvenient venue, especially during a heat wave.

Also Herold and Sullivan have camera friendly features and are not long for stage. First rate acting. The play is painful to endure due to their bleak lives, though nominally a comedy. Wegner is the solid third wheel and makes the most of his first act with a burst of manic energy. Great costumes on all, especially Sullivan. Nice minimalist set reflecting their personalities. I got it all, but feel like I've seen it done better by the masters: Albee, Genet and Ionesco. The script felt to a large extent lifted and served fresh for 2018. Sullivan certainly has the training to undergo her last minute catharsis. Everyone works hard, for little pay, and will very soon be rewarded by the exposure. Stuck with miserable comped theatergoer. Right at most vulnerable moment, he turns on phone to check time. Front row center, fidgeting throughout. He ruins all he attends.... Read more Read less

See it if you love to be kept on your toes through quirky dialogue and superb acting.

Don't see it if you are looking for fluff. This is intense while also being quite funny, at times.

See it if If you know and like Albee you will like this homage to At Home/At the Zoo. provocative and suspenseful, it keeps your attention

Don't see it if Venue is off the beaten track, if in W Village. Requires appreciation of the Absurd and suspension of literal (not metaphorical) disbelief

See it if like a story that takes you on a journey through the comedic absurd to restrained grief of a couple tied up in knots over their tragic loss.

Don't see it if you generally do not see the elephant in the room in any given situation or if you can't pick up cues on the bigger picture.

See it if you are interested in a beautifully acted example of the interplay between metaphor and reality,

Don't see it if If you get impatient with surface appearances. The characters reveal themselves over the course of the play.

See it if You like good acting and a story that is dark and funny and makes you think about the human condition.

Don't see it if You want a straight forward play that is not a bit "Theater of the absurd"

See it if You want to see a quite lovely lead actor. I never wanted to leave. Interesting reworking/combo of classic plays yet original.

Don't see it if You have difficulty with unresolved grief. If you prefer refined acting rather than loud (effective) effusive acting.

Also At the intermission I was surprised that much of the audience didn't seem to know what the play was about, whereas I felt that within the first 10 minutes the playwright had told us everything that was going to happen and that the play was just the ride to get there.
As we koffeeklatched I quoted the lead actor and lightbulbs went off. We sat and talked about it for a few minutes. so 6 strangers on opening night had a light conversation. This was very nice.
I'm not sure how perfectly this plays out. I didn't love the lead actress she didn't seem to be sure who her character was. The third member of the ensemble was committed in a manic way, which more or less worked.
But the premise, what is worse than a tiger is telegraphed. I DID love the writing in that passage and the lead actor delivered it with a seamlessness which respected my intelligence. I never felt that the playwright didn't trust me to understand. That is missing in a lot of theater these days.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy shows that keep you waiting until the end to reveal the "meat and potatoes" & if you like shows with interesting points of view...

Don't see it if you are looking for a show that's light and mindless...

See it if you like smart dialogue performed by a smart cast. The tiger metaphor works well even though the symbolism is obvious.

Don't see it if you expect realistic, well developed characters. This is an absurdist play but the big reveal was rather trite and not up to its potential.

See it if You enjoy "comedy of the absurd" w/a couple in a humdrum marriage & a cop who runs in (to escape the tiger). Photo at end explains the show.

Don't see it if Pacing could be picked up a bit - would work stronger with a 20 minute cut.

See it if You like major absurdist elements, which keep things fast moving and interesting, as slowly the underlying motivations become evident.

Don't see it if When it comes time to bring us to reality, and tell the actual human story, you may be disappointed with the overly earnest deceleration.

See it if You want a show about marital detachment. Good directing. A show that can be gritty but doesnt follow through. Can be funny at times.

Don't see it if If your not interested in a show about bad marriages. The ending is not up to what it could be. If you want an ending that lives up topotent

See it if you enjoy standard table-drama fare with an absurdist "twist" and are easily taken in by "shocking" revelations.

Don't see it if you hate table-dramas, you require something to chew on, or you're cognitive enough to understand the way a show's text functions.

Also This play is bad. It relies almost exclusively on the "no, what?" style of dialogue/expositional delivery of the standard American table-drama. It layers on the absurdist concept of a metaphysical tiger and a wild policeman to form a painfully obvious and unexciting tapestry of generic woe and middle-class anguish and then has the gall to explain it all to you at the end in big bold letters in case you somehow missed the glaringly obvious reasons behind the rift in its protagonists' marriage. The only positive thing of note in this production is that the cast is dedicated and fully engaged throughout the entire agonizing hour and 45 minutes (with an intermission for some un-Godly reason when the show both could and should have been run as a single act). The lighting design is spotty, unfocused, and doesn't hone in on the story's core. The direction is lumpy and awkward and characters make highly unmotivated choices. An actor asks "are you bored?" I audibly responded "yes."... Read more Read less

See it if Off-off B'way comedy of the absurd. Comfortable (bored) couple await their spark which arrives when a lover underscores their dysfunction.

Don't see it if Lurking tiger outside safe walls reminiscent of Jean Genet's "The Balcony." Some may miss the intelligent choice of hidden/open The Threat.