A Life NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (136)
See it if you enjoy a magnificent David Hyde Pierce for 25 minutes or so.
Don't see it if you do not have Mr Pierce for the rest of the show. Maybe this is an attempt (perhaps) to define the meaning of life.
See it if you like funny material and twists in plot and endings.
Don't see it if you are offended by gay topics.
See it if you like a unique and intimate theatrical experience. Pierce leads a strong cast and does an outstanding job with a challenging role.
Don't see it if you're not a fan of unconventional story telling. It's hard to say more without giving spoilers.
See it if Want to see an interesting use of the stage with a solid acor, Pierce and strong supporting actors.
Don't see it if You don't want to see a play about an ageing gay man who is still looking for a love connection or not.
See it if You like charming plays that also make you think about life and love. Great acting along with writing that brings characters to life.
Don't see it if You want spectacle or "drama." Here, you get a man recounting his lovers and reflecting on his life - inspiring audience self-reflection. Read more
See it if you like David Hyde Pierce. He's very natural and does whatever can be done with the role, but the play's joys are subtle.
Don't see it if you don't want to deal with death or afterlife; you need action to enjoy a play.
See it if You are looking for a window into mortality with excellent performances.
Don't see it if You are looking for glitzy Broadway staging.
See it if You can appreciate a poignant, well modulated performance. DHP is stunning in the first act.
Don't see it if You are looking for a story with a traditional arc - have no patience for meandering dialogue
Critic Reviews (38)
"Brutally simple and staggering...Director Anne Kauffman’s production, with the help of ingenious scenic design by Laura Jellinek, cracks open like an egg, revealing a story we thought might fit easily in our palms to be something altogether more profound and messy and devastating. Pierce is a consummate performer; the grace and charm he brings to the production form the force of its emotional punch. The rest of the ensemble is top-notch as well."
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"With a head that always reminds me of a bright light bulb, Hyde Pierce projects an enormously likable skepticism and a willingness to let audiences in to watch his characters try to untangle the contradictions...This preoccupation with one’s own dramas is extended through the haunting 85-minute play on Laura Jellinek’s surprising sets. Director Anne Kauffman, who explored comparably unsettling subjects last season, takes us simply and effortlessly into the unthinkable."
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"In the half-hour opener, Hyde Pierce is able to connect deftly to his audience with the details of Nate’s past. Obviously famous from his work on television, Hyde Pierce is a consummately skilled stage actor as well. He has a wry comic delivery, sometimes self-deprecating, sometimes bewildered...Every moment feels lived in and true...It’s a graceful and powerful ending to a simple story, brilliantly staged and presented."
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"Because Nate is played by David Hyde Pierce, the most personable actor in the world, his quiet, low-key recital is compelling...Directed with a gift for eeriness by Anne Kauffman...I'm not positive about Bock's point, but I'd guess he's saying that we're sometimes totally unaware of how others regard us, and we can have a significant impact without realizing it. 'A Life' takes a tortuous route to make that case, but you can't say the journey is boring."
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"Though intermittently witty, this is pretty thin stuff, so after about 45 minutes Bock chucks in a shocking though not implausible twist. Then comes one of the lengthiest and most pointless scene changes I have ever witnessed...Pierce does his best with this material, occasionally conjuring a poignant sense of isolation and muted despair...But there’s no escaping the inadequacies of Bock’s text, which seems to run out of ideas all too quickly."
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"Features an unsettling performance by theater mainstay David Hyde Pierce, as an everyman gay New Yorker in his mid-50s...Single (again) and with a caring social circle, Pierce’s Nate Martin, an ad agency proofreader, might well have been a stand-in for half the audience members at the recent performance I attended. He’s a guy like us. That’s relevant, given the startling direction 'A Life' veers off in, halfway through."
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"A quietly powerful drama...Pierce is excellent, taking Bock’s words and bringing the character completely to life. He shows Nate to be a not-all-that-interesting man, but one filled with feelings, and hopes that are instantly recognizable and identifiable to everyone. Credit also goes to director Anne Kauffman, who guides the piece with a sure hand, never allowing things to become overtly maudlin or comical. In this way, she makes sure the audience never forgets the humanity in the situation."
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"Under Anne Kauffman's taut direction, we get a real look into the mind of Nate...This is not a typical theater experience. The set makes unexpected changes to tell this extraordinarily sad, humorous and deeply personal story of the importance of one person's seemingly ordinary life...It's an engaging and touching 80 minutes...Pierce finds the humanity in his character and pulls us in so we feel we have experienced some significant moments in the life of a friend."
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