Peer Gynt NYC Reviews and Tickets

"An admirable, absorbing production...To tell this richly metaphorical and philosophical tale with no set and no props is a remarkable accomplishment, requiring considerable artistic skill. Doyle is aided by an able cast, featuring Gabriel Ebert as Peer, at the center of his universe. 'Peer Gynt' is a challenging ride – and that’s what makes it so worthwhile...Expect more thought-provoking, soul-searching theatre at CSC."
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"Mr. Doyle’s adaptation reduces Ibsen’s sprawling opus into a pint-sized 'Reader’s Digest' version of its former self...The actors are all quite good and perform with confidence but it doesn’t amount to anything remotely coherent, either in the moment or in later recollection...As a director Mr. Doyle does not seem interested in telling a story of any kind...I would even encourage you to stop reading this review, so you can avoid wasting any more time on this pointless production."
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“Doyle has crammed way too much into a vessel that craves and demands expansion...It’s anchored by the larger-than-life performance of Gabriel Ebert...As it stands, it’s a production admirable for its economy, excellent performances and ambitious direction, but just like its central character it can’t help but alienate others who’d rather move on than indulge its narcissism."
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"As directed and adapted by the Doyle, Ibsen’s 'Peer Gynt' is the story of the quest of a young man who willingly descends to the underworld and ascends to heaven in search of his 'self'…Peer neither finds his ‘self’ at home (initially), nor at his father’s banquet, nor during his encounter with the trolls (a wonderful archetypal image)…This is pure and powerful mythos."
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"There’s so much oxygen in the room that it has displaced other key elements needed for an evening of engaging theater, such as a sense of place and emotional resonance. Gabriel Ebert throws down the gauntlet in a performance packed with physicality and vocal inflection, but it’s cast into an abyss that swallows him whole. By the end of the play, as Peer faces his final calling, I felt equally depleted."
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"A company of first-rate New York thespians is unable to inject more than momentary life into Doyle’s frugal version of Ibsen’s banquet. Nor is it easy to follow Peer’s peregrinations, especially without visual or verbal markers...John Doyle's ‘Peer Gynt’ may end blessedly sooner than standard versions but it still can’t avoid seeming overlong, like so many of its more elaborate predecessors. ‘Bore Gynt’ would be a much better name for it."
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"This piece is long and it is unfortunately not interesting enough to sustain most of the audience's attention. Part of the problem is the casting of Ebert as the title role. He is just not layered enough or likeable enough for us to buy into his journey...Everything about Doyle’s production is dark. The costumes, the sound design and the orginal music do nothing to make this production watchable...'Peer Gynt' has a lot to say but this production keeps too much in the dark."
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“A case of too little Ibsen and too much Doyle. Up to a point, Doyle’s stripped-down version with just seven actors works, but there is so little specificity about location or identity of the characters that it all runs together into a blur...Nevertheless, Ebert is a wonder to behold. He is onstage for virtually the entire play and probably has 90% of the lines...I hope this production will not set the template for what we can expect during Doyle’s reign as artistic director.”
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