Skeleton Crew
Closed 2h 5m
Skeleton Crew
85

Skeleton Crew NYC Reviews and Tickets

85%
(147 Ratings)
Positive
98%
Mixed
1%
Negative
1%
Members say
Great acting, Absorbing, Relevant, Great writing, Thought-provoking

About the Show

After a successful run earlier this year, Atlantic Theater Company brings back Dominique Morisseau’s hit play about four Detroit auto workers during the 2008 recession for an encore run.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (147)

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122 Reviews | 13 Followers
92
Thought-provoking, Must see, Relevant, Great writing, Great acting

See it if You love astute character dramas, beautifully acted and written, with a plot that covers ethical concerns and survival.

Don't see it if You only like light fluffy comedies or straightforward plays with no mysteries or intellectual discoveries.

431 Reviews | 129 Followers
92
Gripping and fine, Absorbing, Great acting, Riveting, Relevant

See it if You like beautifully rendered characters, you care about societal issues, you like realistic drama that unfolds carefully and true.

Don't see it if Uncomfortable with economic struggle, street dialect, topical story lines. Want fluff, easy answers. But this one's worth seeing, folks. GO.

106 Reviews | 75 Followers
91
Absorbing, Relevant, Resonant, Must see, Intelligent

See it if get a glimpse of factory workers who may be displaced & the very personal way it affects lives when companies fail. Truly a remarkable piece

Don't see it if no reason not to! I've not seen a standing ovation like this for a non-musical in a very long time!

211 Reviews | 28 Followers
90
Resonant, Relevant, Intelligent, Great writing, Great acting

See it if you enjoy great acting & direction.

Don't see it if you’re looking for something new or earth-shattering. This is a great production of a solid, relevant-if-slightly-dated play.

95 Reviews | 19 Followers
90
Great acting, Great writing, Intelligent, Ambitious, Absorbing

See it if You want to see a well written & acted play.

Don't see it if N/A

499 Reviews | 77 Followers
90
Great acting, Great writing, Relevant, Thought-provoking

See it if you appreciate good character development and an exploration of the financial crisis that is not trite.

Don't see it if you only like upbeat, entertaining theater

186 Reviews | 25 Followers
90
Absorbing, Great acting, Masterful, Resonant, Original

See it if tough lives of the working class

Don't see it if the above

93 Reviews | 32 Followers
90
Great acting, Intelligent, Absorbing

See it if like new well written scripts, great acting, interesting plot and characters, great set

Don't see it if don't like dramas with some humor, don't like dramas without music

Critic Reviews (25)

Lighting & Sound America
January 20th, 2016
For a previous production

"Each of the four characters feels the pressure even as Morisseau skillfully weaves them into a web of friendships, dependencies, and rivalries...It's strong stuff, forcefully delivered in Ruben Santiago-Hudson's crackling production, which features four exceptionally fine performances...It reaches a gripping resolution when one of the characters makes an enormous sacrifice; it may only be then that one realizes how well-constructed 'Skeleton Crew' is."
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Talkin' Broadway
January 19th, 2016
For a previous production

"Morisseau calls out to a vital yet ghostly past that informs a challenging, uncertain present. Santiago-Hudson has perfectly crystallized this in his unforgivingly realistic staging...Morisseau finds a poetry in their trials, as well as a message for all those who struggle to establish themselves, from their inner being on out, in places where that's nearly impossible."
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CurtainUp
January 19th, 2016
For a previous production

"Ms. Morisseau's storytelling isn't quite up to the poetic grandeur of August Wilson's epic Pittsburgh cycle. However, she has created four vivid, likeable characters and provided them with authentic dialogue and stories. She's blessed to have an excellent ensemble to bring those characters and their inner conflicts and interactions to life and deliver that dialogue with a natural ease."
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Theatre is Easy
January 20th, 2016
For a previous production

"'Skeleton Crew' is a poignant and effective conclusion to Dominique Morisseau's Detroit trilogy thanks to its smart script and tremendous actors...Big-hearted and quietly moving...Morisseau's drama is a testament to the ordinary lives that shaped the city's mechanical golden age that must now cope with its hastening degradation. The way each of the four characters handle this shift—eeking out their lives through an assembly line's minute tasks—is where Skeleton Crew finds its greatest life."
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Theater Pizzazz
January 19th, 2016
For a previous production

"The premise goes from dubious to fabricated, but it allows for needed dramatic tension…Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s direction is smooth and unforced...As for the playwright, she creates a mood of tension that simmers throughout. The members of the ensemble are all strong, playing off and complementing each other with street-tinged grace...Skeleton Crew comes up short on details, but its hard-bitten heart ensures there’s genuine skin on its bones."
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Front Row Center
January 23rd, 2016
For a previous production

"Playwright Dominique Morisseau has a gift for telling her very big stories in her small details…Morisseau manages to make the overworked metaphor of the work family as real family—work…To be sure, Morisseau sings the song of Detroit—this is the third in her hometown trilogy—but, more, she is writing an original American story."
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C
January 27th, 2016
For a previous production

"It’s far more than the topical relevance of the two-hour work that commands our attention, it’s Morriseau’s remarkable skill in crafting the interpersonal relationships among the four people that populate a factory break room...If Morriseau is going for a 10-play cycle about Detroit, count me in. She’s got my motor running."
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Theatre's Leiter Side
January 19th, 2016
For a previous production

"With Ruben Santiago-Hudson putting pedal to the metal with his sensitive yet powerful direction, Ms. Morisseau’s eight-cylinder play goes from zero to 60 in the blink of an eye, thanks to the high-octane artistry of Lynda Gravatt, Jason Dirden, Nikiya Mathis, and Wendell B. Franklin...When act one ended, I couldn’t help saying to my guest, 'Now that’s professional acting and direction!' It sure is professional writing...Despite its title, there’s plenty of meat on this play's bones."
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