China Doll
Closed 1h 25m
China Doll
49

China Doll NYC Reviews and Tickets

49%
(142 Ratings)
Positive
35%
Mixed
21%
Negative
44%
Members say
Disappointing, Slow, Confusing, Great acting, Excruciating

About the Show

Al Pacino returns to Broadway in a limited run of a new play by David Mamet about big money, fast planes, a beautiful woman, and other objects of desire.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (142)

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40 Reviews | 15 Followers
70
Great acting, Clever, Slow

See it if You like Al Pacino! His acting is really great.

Don't see it if You want to see something funny and entertainment.

48 Reviews | 14 Followers
66
Star-driven, Omg!, Obdurate, Smarmy, Mametesque

See it if you like pretentiousness and aging actors meandering all over the stage to read the teleprompters.

Don't see it if you enjoyed David Mamet plays before he turned from a liberal to a conservative. (i.e. all the good ones). Read more

46 Reviews | 11 Followers
55
Disappointing, Overrated

See it if you're only interested in seeing a play with a famous actor

Don't see it if You're after a great story and acting. Al Pacino was not the greatest actor in stage, very one dimensional

21 Reviews | 10 Followers
51
Confusing, Disappointing, Overrated, Slow

See it if You like a slow moving play. And if you think al paccino

Don't see it if It was a play that was slow moving. And disappointing because the greatest star of all time was in the show. Can't believe he was in this.

32 Reviews | 19 Followers
50
Slow, Original, Masterful, Great acting, Disappointing

See it if you like Al Pacino.

Don't see it if you don't like Al Pacino. You'll be wasting your time and money, since he was the literally the only good thing about the play.

23 Reviews | 3 Followers
25
Excruciating, Intense, Raunchy, Slow, Absorbing

See it if You love Al Pacino

Don't see it if Hate long drawn out scenes, Two man shows, redundancy, a lot of profanity, shouting, and violence.

43 Reviews | 14 Followers
0
Disappointing, Confusing, Slow

See it if no.

Don't see it if just no.

11 Reviews | 7 Followers
91
Absorbing, Entertaining, Ambitious

See it if Al Pacino was incredible in this play. He is the only actor that could pull this off😀 He got a standing ovation from everyone

Don't see it if You don't like one man plays. There was one other actor that had a couple of lines

Critic Reviews (40)

WNBC
December 4th, 2015

"Theatergoers early in previews had trouble deciphering the plot. We’re charged with doing so based on only Mickey’s part of these chats, and it can be a challenge, particularly with Pacino's halting delivery...The climax, which occurs impossibly soon after the events that set it in motion, would have benefited from a firmer hand by director Pam MacKinnon. 'China Doll' is muddled, but it's still a treat to see Pacino, even if we're not always sure what he's doing."
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NJ.com
December 4th, 2015

"Mamet seems to have no idea what he's trying to say here…The only real pleasure here is getting to luxuriate in Pacino's presence for a couple of hours, listening to the gravelly, up-and-down cadences of that unmistakable voice, and watching him almost succeed in generating pathos out of thin air. This lion in winter can still roar. Mamet owes him — and the audience — something much meatier to chew on."
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The Associated Press
December 3rd, 2015

"The play itself is a meandering one-note character study of a doomed man…Pacino is predictably unpredictable: You never know when he'll handle something with menace or mockery. He drags out syllables to their breaking point and hurls verbal grenades that sound as innocuous as 'Well, I had a vision…' Director Pam MacKinnon has kept the tension building as the walls slowly close around Ross...But even she can't rescue the farcical, out-of-context ending."
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StageZine
December 4th, 2015

"David Mamet’s latest, 'China Doll,' is an enigma. Enigmas can be fun and brilliant...cracking the so-called undecipherable codes of Mamet’s 'China Doll,' however, is pointless; you’ll just end up with a headache...The narrative is so undisciplined and structure-free that it is hard to connect to its central character...The culprit who failed both Mamet and Pacino is the director, Pam MacKinnon. She is way out of her league with two super egos like Mamet and Pacino; she never had a chance."
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Journal Inquirer
January 14th, 2016

"It’s all about money and what it can buy. Only 'China Doll' hasn’t made that theme even remotely interesting. Paying a lot of money to have a star headline the show hasn’t worked either...As we were leaving the theater, audience members who stuck it out were questioning each other about the purpose of the play."
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American Theater Web
December 4th, 2015

"The repetitive information in the calls and Pacino’s often stammering delivery mean that 'China Doll' can make much of the first half of the play exceptionally slow-going...There’s some joy to be had in watching Pacino command attention with offbeat intensity. Further, the play’s indictment of how big business and wealth has the potential to corrupt our political system has an unfortunate and disheartening timeliness."
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Financial Times (UK)
December 4th, 2015

"If the character is gung-ho, however, the plot is gossamer...It’s a great joy to watch Pacino hold the stage for two hours. He may be aided by teleprompters and his energy may flag here and there — but his character, an ageing business magnate, is supposed to sputter...The evening sometimes seems more of a finger exercise than a full-length composition. 'China Doll' lacks delicious byplay, but in its sharper moments Mamet’s razor can still draw blood."
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Center on the Aisle
December 9th, 2015

"While Mamet has an extraordinary career as a playwright, 'China Doll' is not his greatest work, but theater aficionados will certainly get a taste for the renown and distinctive Mamet style of dialogue which is often marked by street smart, cynical and intelligently-crafted composition. While the play as a whole may not be superb in content or subtext there are elements that are absolutely incredible and transcend the show’s shortcomings."
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