Red Speedo (previews)

[jbm2]

Posted: 2/11/16 at 10:45pm

Previews started last night- anyone catch it yet?

[Broadway Joe]

Posted: 2/11/16 at 11:02pm

I'm curious about how this show is as well. Lazarus was my first show at that theatre and I would like to check out more shows there but the subject matter for this show looked like a snooze fest. 

[LightsOut90]

Posted: 2/11/16 at 11:02pm

Loved The Christians, can't wait to see this on the 20th.

[Comden Green]

Posted: 2/12/16 at 9:22am

I know nothing about this show. Never heard of it.  But let me tell you- that is one great title!

[little_sally]

Posted: 2/12/16 at 9:24am

I thought it started previews next Wednesday? Anyway, I'll be there next Thursday and I'm pretty excited. Hnath is one of my favorite playwrights these days.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 2/12/16 at 10:12am

You're correct, littlesally. It does start previews next Wednesday. I think the OP needs to check their calendar again because this is the second thread started too early.

 

Does anyone else think it's weird that NYTW has Facebook ads touting this as "the show coming to NYTW after the sold out run of LAZARUS?" As if people are just like "welp, I didn't get to see LAZARUS so I guess this is the next best thing."

[jbm2]

Posted: 2/17/16 at 2:27am

Previews start tonight- anyone going?

[Relevance81491]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:55pm

Bump

[little_sally]

Posted: 2/20/16 at 12:22pm

I was there Thursday night and pretty much loved it. I'm a big fan of Hnath, and I really liked The Christians but I think I actually enjoyed Red Speedo more (it's not as dense and it's dramatically more satisfying.) The acting was overall very strong (although there was some stumbling over lines) and the set is big and impressive. Overall, I highly recommend it.

 

If anyone is wondering, the running time is 80 minutes.

[LightsOut90]

Posted: 2/21/16 at 3:17am

id give it another week for the performers to get their lines under their belts but this production is well on its way, while I found The Christians more compelling, this is pretty solid work. The set is amazing for NYTW, always love when a set involved water, and it brilliantly uses a Roy Orbison song during preshow and later in the actual piece.

Hnath here proves he is a young playwright to watch. 

[izzio2]

Posted: 2/21/16 at 10:35pm

I thought it was great; really interesting characters and Hnath's writing style is exciting. The set is gorgeous and simple, and a couple small stage tricks really threw me off-guard.

[dave1606]

Posted: 2/21/16 at 11:35pm

I saw this tonight and thought it was good. This was my first Hnath play, and I think he has quite an ear for dialogue. This play is funny and involving even if I don't think the conclusion is totally satisfying. The cast is great Alex Breaux is well cast. Kind of a combination of Ryan Lochte's personality and Michael Phelps looks.  The set is as fantastic, though a word of warning. As there is a pool in the first part of the stage, beware of the front row as some people may find themselves in a splash zone! I saw part of the audience get a bit wet during the show tonight!

Overall, its a quick 80 minutes and a nice mix of drama and humor. 

[After Eight]

Posted: 2/22/16 at 5:40am

It's intelligently written, and for the most part, holds one's attention. That's a lot to ask, nowadays! It raises interesting issues about drugs in sports, though I think it could explore them more deeply. Some plot elements strike me as pat and far-fetched. There's also a problem of consistency in tone in both dialogue and characterization. The swimmer, for example, is portrayed at times as the most inarticulate lunkhead on the planet, but when need be, he is able to express his thoughts quite well.

 

I found it superior to the playwright's previous effort, The Christians.

 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 2/29/16 at 2:54pm

Oof. I did not enjoy it. I thought the write felt so false. Typical dialogue: 

Are you - 

Yeah - 

To the - 

Of course - 

Let's - 

The press? 

Yeah. 

I just find that really irritating listening to after awhile. Hard pass for me. 

Zoe Winters, though, continues to impress, really enjoy her on stage. 

All the actors are great in their roles, just didn't love the play. I didn't feel like it said anything new or interesting. And the direction - with those ear horns - was kind of irritating. 

[little_sally]

Posted: 2/29/16 at 3:25pm

RippedMan, that's pretty much Hnath's style.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 2/29/16 at 3:38pm

I didn't notice it The Christians. And I really loved The Christians. This felt like very stilted, stagy dialogue and not real characters having a conversation. Whereas I thought The Christians felt like real, fleshed-out characters. 

[little_sally]

Posted: 2/29/16 at 4:03pm

It's true that The Christians is a bit of an outlier in terms of his style but Isaac's Eye, Death Tax, and A Public Reading... are all written in the same style as Red Speedo.

[Fantod]

Posted: 3/3/16 at 10:53pm

Critics either love it or hate it.

http://thecriticsdecide.blogspot.com/2016/03/59100-photo-by-joan-marcus-written-by.html

[CurtainsUpat8]

Posted: 3/4/16 at 7:53am

I thought The Christians was very presumptuous.  It wasn't so much a play as it was a debate. And those awful mics. I know this thread is about Red Speedo. A NY Times Critic pick... their reviews have become a joke to me... Hughie was also a NY Times Critic Pick.