#26
Posted: 2/11/09 at 10:04am
The New York Daily News gives the show 3 1/2 STARS OUT OF 5:
"If the specter of Mother Courage, Brecht’s battlefield profiteer, hangs over “Ruined,” the whorehouse setting and shoot-em-up anarchy recalls classic American westerns. The reference seems apt since the script sometimes carries cinematic gloss and melodramatic moments not at home here. There’s that subplot about an uncut diamond and a daring escape. And when Mama says “Congratulations! You’re the first girl bold enough to steal from me” to Sophie, it’s a flashy line that just rings false.
That doesn’t diminish the play’s power, persuasiveness and first-rate performances. Rashad (daughter of Tony winner Phylicia) makes an impressive Off-Broadway debut, and Bernstine’s searing second-act recollection of horrors endured is heart-wrenching. Ekulona’s jungle survivor is such a vivid force of nature that even if the ending Nottage dreams up for her seems just that, a dream, it’s a welcome one."
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/arts/2009/02/11/2009-02-11_fallen_women_fight_for_survival_in_ruine.html
The New York Post gives the show 3 1/2 STARS OUT OF 4:
"Director Kate Whoriskey's vibrant and superbly acted production fully conveys the violence-tinged atmosphere of the setting, with the occasional interludes of rousing African music and dance adding to the sultry effect.
The play does ramble at times and would benefit from a tightening of its two-hour-and-45-minute running time. But the deeply moving ending, which somehow manages to convey hopefulness amid the despair, more than compensates."
http://www.nypost.com/seven/02112009/entertainment/theater/moving_ruined_fixed_on_war_torn_congo_154526.htm
Time Out New York gives the show 4 STARS OUT OF 6:
"The subject matter gives Ruined undeniable weight, and Kate Whoriskey’s admirable actors carry it unflaggingly. In addition to Ekulona—who smuggles the right amount of kindliness under her impregnable glare—they include Russell Gebert Jones as a sensitive trader, Condola Rashad as an elegant girl mutilated by bayonets, and Quincy Tyler Bernstine as a simple country wife who has been turned out by her family. (A nauseating monologue in which she recounts her history is the play’s most powerful moment.) The heaviness that imbues the drama with gravity, however, also brings a burden that Nottage’s writing cannot always shoulder. A more unconventional dramaturgy than Ruined’s—less carefully arranged and melodramatically spring-loaded—might have been even more effective in conveying the terrible reality of the Congo morass. But there’s truth enough here to scorch you."
http://www.timeout.com/newyork/articles/theater/71410/ruined
"If the specter of Mother Courage, Brecht’s battlefield profiteer, hangs over “Ruined,” the whorehouse setting and shoot-em-up anarchy recalls classic American westerns. The reference seems apt since the script sometimes carries cinematic gloss and melodramatic moments not at home here. There’s that subplot about an uncut diamond and a daring escape. And when Mama says “Congratulations! You’re the first girl bold enough to steal from me” to Sophie, it’s a flashy line that just rings false.
That doesn’t diminish the play’s power, persuasiveness and first-rate performances. Rashad (daughter of Tony winner Phylicia) makes an impressive Off-Broadway debut, and Bernstine’s searing second-act recollection of horrors endured is heart-wrenching. Ekulona’s jungle survivor is such a vivid force of nature that even if the ending Nottage dreams up for her seems just that, a dream, it’s a welcome one."
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/arts/2009/02/11/2009-02-11_fallen_women_fight_for_survival_in_ruine.html
The New York Post gives the show 3 1/2 STARS OUT OF 4:
"Director Kate Whoriskey's vibrant and superbly acted production fully conveys the violence-tinged atmosphere of the setting, with the occasional interludes of rousing African music and dance adding to the sultry effect.
The play does ramble at times and would benefit from a tightening of its two-hour-and-45-minute running time. But the deeply moving ending, which somehow manages to convey hopefulness amid the despair, more than compensates."
http://www.nypost.com/seven/02112009/entertainment/theater/moving_ruined_fixed_on_war_torn_congo_154526.htm
Time Out New York gives the show 4 STARS OUT OF 6:
"The subject matter gives Ruined undeniable weight, and Kate Whoriskey’s admirable actors carry it unflaggingly. In addition to Ekulona—who smuggles the right amount of kindliness under her impregnable glare—they include Russell Gebert Jones as a sensitive trader, Condola Rashad as an elegant girl mutilated by bayonets, and Quincy Tyler Bernstine as a simple country wife who has been turned out by her family. (A nauseating monologue in which she recounts her history is the play’s most powerful moment.) The heaviness that imbues the drama with gravity, however, also brings a burden that Nottage’s writing cannot always shoulder. A more unconventional dramaturgy than Ruined’s—less carefully arranged and melodramatically spring-loaded—might have been even more effective in conveying the terrible reality of the Congo morass. But there’s truth enough here to scorch you."
http://www.timeout.com/newyork/articles/theater/71410/ruined
"Y'know, I think Bertolt Brecht was rolling in his grave."
-Nellie McKay on the 2006 Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera, in which she played Polly Peachum
-Nellie McKay on the 2006 Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera, in which she played Polly Peachum
Updated On: 2/11/09 at 10:04 AM
