Hand to God NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (880)
See it if You want to see a brilliant piece of theatre
Don't see it if if you get easily offended
See it if you want to see a show that will surprise you, hit you with the feels and make you uncomfortable enough to laugh.
Don't see it if you get uncomfortable easy and are sensitive to the topics of religion.
See it if you want to laugh your head off for a solid hour and a half and be on the edge of your seat
Don't see it if you're highly religious and would get offended by a play poking fun at religion and the devil
See it if ...You have a wicked and naughty sense of humor
Don't see it if You thought Book of Mormon was inappropriate and offensive
See it if You enjoy theatrical comedy, innovative approaches, theatrical surprise, and intelligent commentary
Don't see it if You are not open-minded
See it if you like edgy humor and being challenged.
Don't see it if you're religious in the traditional sense or not open minded.
See it if You want to laugh, scream, and gasp all within the same ten-second period. Unexpected, dark, hilarious, and moving, with a great cast.
Don't see it if You're scarred from the puppet shows at your childhood church camp. You hate dark and irreverent religious family comedies.
See it if you like to laugh and think at the same time, appreciate clever writing and incredible acting, or just want irreverent entertainment
Don't see it if You are offended by profanity or those who who question the Church
Critic Reviews (41)
"A brainless barrage of trash, heresy, stupidity and nausea called "Hand to God" is the first time, in all my years on the aisle, that I have finally seen an entire stage filled with unmitigated crap. There is no plot, no narrative form, no theme...The hand puppet shrieks, screams, spits, vomits and fornicates profusely while the audience explodes with laughter so loud and raucous that it echoes from the Booth Theatre...With "Hand to God," the audience is a cause for serious concern."
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"Arresting, funny and thoroughly disconcerting...highly original and laudably fearless and politically incorrect...Askins sets his play, which is directed with real punch by Moritz von Stuelpnagel somewhere in Texas. Crucially, though, the script and the production show great compassion for this group of struggling, lower-middle-class characters...That compassion is what takes "Hand to God" beyond the usual condescension you find on Broadway toward Texans or people of faith in general."
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"Staged with unflagging energy by Moritz von Stuelpnagel...A scalpel-sharp show about the ways people cope with their troubles...it’s Boyer’s virtuosic performance that defines “Hand to God,” as he seamlessly toggles between Jason and [sock puppet] Tyrone — and if the actor doesn’t win a Tony for this, there’s no justice in the world. Just watch how the little fellow’s arms shake with rage when he reaches out to strangle someone — it’s simultaneously hilarious and scary, like the play itself."
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"Hand to God" - a dark, irreverent and smart comedy by the young, previously unknown playwright Robert Askins - is one hell of a great success story, having graduated step by step from off Off-Broadway to Off-Broadway to finally Broadway itself. This is the kind of raw and raunchy play you don't typically see on Broadway, but once there ends up making Broadway a more exciting place."
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"One could choose to only concentrate on the show’s comedic elements (and it is nothing if not hilarious) but its beauty lies in the moments between puns and witty dialogues; it's in the pauses and moments of silence where we see the characters’ humanity shine through... For a play that appears to be so cynical on the surface, 'Hand to God,' actually makes us want to reach out to the person sitting next to us."
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"Robert Askins’ completely outrageous and outrageously funny new play 'Hand to God,' proves two things: that sock puppets can be downright demonic and Broadway is readier than ever to offend just about anyone…For all its copious, jaw-dropping laughs, Askins’ script, which has been handled expertly by director Moritz von Stuelpnagel, is also full of heart…New voices of such wit and wisdom are rare in the theater these days."
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"Robert Askin’s funny, filthy, violent and sensitive play...This is not a play for children. But it is a show for adults, with hints of psychological insights beneath the hysterical exterior...The triumph of "Hand to God" on Broadway is also a victory for Off-Off Broadway, where the show began, and it retains a quirky, raw, uncompromising quality more characteristic of its origins than its destination."
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"Arguably the best play of the 2014-2015 Broadway season...Because Askins has written the figures so fully, they need to be played as fully. They absolutely are. Boyer's is the indisputably key performance, but the others, expertly directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, whip up all sorts of subtle character mannerisms that add to the production's unerring perfection. "Hand to God"'s assault on religion as irrevocable healer both tickles the ribs and gives them a powerful punch."
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