Once Upon a Mattress NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (105)
See it if Do/Don't already worship Jackie Hoffman. Enjoy inventive tech in theater and use of scenic animation. Support non-trad casting.
Don't see it if Expect a show of actual theater and not just a campfest. Expect professional theater to have higher production values than a high school.
See it if You like sweet old fashioned musicals with clever lyrics and lilting tunes. There are cute touches in the staging too.
Don't see it if You're put off by a community theater level of performance, besides the two principals. The cast is spirited and well meaning however.
See it if you like Jackie Hoffman. She's worth the price of admission. Hysterical!
Don't see it if dated, tedious musicals aren't your thing. The material's not great and the production felt like a high school musical with Broadway actors.
See it if You just want to have a fun time
Don't see it if you aren't into slapstick humor
See it if You love Jackie Hoffman. She is always great but the story is dated and not interesting.
Don't see it if You don't like musicals. And even if you do this is not a very good one.
See it if You really like fairytale spoofs and have exhausted most other options, or are just a huge fan of Jackie Hoffman.
Don't see it if Your idea of humor is not taking a half dozen funny jokes and driving them into the ground.
See it if You want a fun classic show with an amazing cast
Don't see it if You hate joy
See it if Need an upper. Have a great time and a lot of laughs with a cast that is clearly having a lot of fun.
Don't see it if …shows based on a fairy tale are beneath you. (It’s based on Hans Christian Andersen‘s Princess and the Pea)
Critic Reviews (22)
"As the orchestra plays the opening strains from the Transport Group’s revival of 'Once Upon a Mattress,' a smile will start to spread all over your face and will stay there for more than 2½ hours. Ah…an old fashion musical done well. What makes this production such a delight is the new orchestrations by Frank Galgano and Matt Castle."
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"The director, who has come up with some terrifically imaginative concepts for his company's past productions, seems just as much adrift. His big contribution is having an artist augment the show's low-budget scenery by drawing in additional elements in simulated real time via video projections. But he isn't able to get his cast performing as though they're all in the same show."
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"So we have two meta performers, whose very casting is ironic commentary on their roles, while all about them are more conventionally cast in a conventional, funny, tuneful ’50s musical-comedy burlesque of The Princess and the Pea. How does the experiment work? Splendidly...For tuneful family holiday fun, with an energetic cast kicking up its heels in the service of bringing extra oomph to tried-and-true material, this 'Mattress' is hard to beat."
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"Fairy tales that end with the proverbial 'everyone lived happily ever after' are strictly lightweight, one-note fare. The revival of 'Once Upon a Mattress' off-Broadway at the Abrons Arts Center, is no exception...It's a staid Fifties-style work, though Mary Rodgers' score is melodious and Marshall Barer's lyrics enjoyable. The Transport Group's rendition is fairly lively, given its parameters, and Hoffman is a standout. Known as a belter, she can also carry more tender melodies."
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"The cast is studded throughout with first-rate talents, and they’re given a number of chances to demonstrate it...The celebrated inventiveness of director Cummings is also evident in the physical production...What could use a bit more buoyancy is the book. It’s undoubtedly clever, but it does occasionally hit some lumpy moments. These are small quibbles when it comes to more than two hours of comedy that bubble very much like uncorked vintage champagne."
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"Transport Group's production is delightful, timely, and utterly winning. 'Mattress' itself is lumpy and overlong...Several charming musical numbers feel tacked on. But under Jack Cummings's sly direction, it's smartly designed and gorgeously dressed; the entire cast excels."
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