Sunday @The Atlantic

Seeing this one in a couple weeks, though my expectations are pretty low. Jack Thorne’s work on Cursed Child and King Kong haven’t given me much faith in his writing prowess. But then again, I’ve never seen one of his real plays (the ones that weren’t commissioned by a huge commercial franchise). So we’ll see.

I will say, I like the premise of a millennial book group - sounds like it could be fresh and interesting. But one red flag for me is the phrase “emotional truths come pouring out” - sounds like one of those plays where every character vomits out their deepest secrets like it’s nothing, sucking all of the dramatic tension out of the play. These kinds of “truth vomit” plays are far too common nowadays.

I have hope for Sunday. I thought Let the Right One In was terrific. Of course, that was based on a book and movie. And it benefited from a top-notch production. I don’t know if Sunday is an original story or not.

Please delete the duplicate thread

I saw this yesterday, and I feel like I need to eat my words a bit. I actually really liked it.

Full disclosure: I am the target audience for this show. I'm a 20-something recent college grad living in New York, and trying to start a career. So on some level, of course I have some bias toward this show. But also, I think because I have a deep personal understanding of this world, and these characters' experiences, I held the show under a closer microscope. I've seen plenty of shows about teens and young adults that I hated because they struck me as so inauthentic and forced. But I'm happy to say that this show captured something very truthful.

I think the description of the show is a bit misleading, and makes it sounds like a more conventional drama than it is (not that the play is all that groundbreaking). The first part of the show focuses on this book group, but the second (and arguable more important) part focuses on one of the girls in particular, and the rest of her evening after the book group. There were a few moments during the book group that struck me as forced and inauthentic. Particularly with regards to one of the characters, who is played as something of an a**-hole caricature. But in the end, I think the show hits on some significant truths, and feels emotionally honest. The naturalistic style of the writing and the direction is done well. It felt grounded and engrossing.

I enjoyed the use of one character as an omniscient narrator, telling us things about each characters' past, present, and future, and giving us insight into each characters' defining moments. The use of movement is a little strange at first, but I think ultimately it works. I would never have guessed that this was written by Jack Thorne - not only because of his spotty record in the last couple years, but also because I never would have guessed that it wasn't written by an American.

The show could use some tightening. It does meander a bit, and the show let out at the 1h50m mark, despite the house staff's instance that the show was only 90 minutes (this is a frustrating trend that is happening more and more often - but I guess it's a conversation for another thread)

I saw this last night and I really hated it. It's so meandering and pretentious and really needs to figure out what it wants to be about. It's also about 1:50 without an intermission.

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