The Cottage - Review Thread
The Cottage - Review Thread
bigbelterbaby
Broadway Star Joined: 7/5/10
#1The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 5:44am
The Cottage opens tonight, Monday July 24th at the Helen Hayes Theater!
Post reviews here!
Making his Broadway directorial debut, Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) stages The Cottage by Sandy Rustin, Starring Tony nominee Laura Bell Bundy in her first Broadway bow since Legally Blonde in 2008, along with Eric McCormack (Will & Grace), Tony nominee Lilli Cooper (Tootsie), in his Broadway debut Alex Moffat (SNL), Dana Steingold (Beetlejuice) and Broadway vet Nehal Joshi.
Hesione Hushabye thinks it tastes like ashes.
BETTY22
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/29/13
#2The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 4:26pm
What time does The New York Times post its review?
#3The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 6:11pm
REALLY hoping Laura Bell Bundy gets across the board raves for what really is a truly incredible comedic performance.
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#4The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:02pm
NYT/Green is negative:
Review: The Cocktail Wit Is Watered Down in a Rickety New ‘Cottage’
Jason Alexander directs a Broadway farce that aims for the high style of Noël Coward but falls on its face instead.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/24/theater/the-cottage-review-broadway.html
"Despite the cast’s mostly elegant work — Bundy and the self-mocking McCormack consistently hit their marks — the script and what feels like Alexander’s desperation to keep things aloft inevitably let them down. I am not, for instance, aware of a scene in Coward involving 30 seconds of earsplitting flatulence. Nor do the stinger chords that announce each new character’s entrance inspire confidence in the production’s genre discipline."
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#5The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:03pm
Theatrely is positive:
THE COTTAGE, A Charming Broadway Comedy — Review
https://www.theatrely.com/post/the-cottage-a-charming-broadway-comedy-review
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#6The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:04pm
Entertainment Weekly gives it an A:
The Cottage review: Jason Alexander's Broadway directorial debut is a knock-knock-knockout
Eric McCormack, Laura Bell Bundy, Alex Moffat, and more bring the drama to the pastoral English countryside in Broadway's newest screwball comedy.
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#7The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:05pm
NY Daily News/Chicago Tribune is mostly positive:
BROADWAY REVIEW: Directed by Jason Alexander (‘Seinfeld&rsquo
, ‘The Cottage’ is a freewheeling farce though it may not be for everyone
https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/broadway/ny-broadway-the-cottage-review-jason-alexander-20230725-edww5hgiqvctjpb4egwhzidgze-story.html
"And if you are in the mood for matchstick penis jokes, more gag props than a Coney Island funhouse and a ensemble of cheerfully over-the-top players contorting body and soul to squeeze every last laugh out of Sandy Rustin’s ridiculous yarn, then the director Jason Alexander just rescued you from the sweaty streets outside and poured some buck’s fizz into your prosaic existence."
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#8The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:05pm
Theatremania is positive:
Review: The Cottage Is a Welcome Retreat From the Summer Heat
Sandy Rustin’s Noël Coward-inspired comedy makes its Broadway debut at the Hayes Theater.
https://www.theatermania.com/news/review-the-cottage-is-a-welcome-retreat-from-the-summer-heat_1709694/
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#9The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:06pm
NY Post
2 stars from Oleksinki
‘The Cottage’ review: Tired new Broadway farce is forced
https://nypost.com/2023/07/24/the-cottage-review-tired-new-broadway-farce-is-forced/
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#10The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:08pm
The Wrap is very negative:
‘The Cottage’ Broadway Review: Jason Alexander Directs Eric McCormack in a Most Foul Comedy
Sandy Rustin’s new play begins to smell bad even before one character breaks wind for two minutes, maybe three
https://www.thewrap.com/the-cottage-broadway-review-jason-alexander-eric-mccormack/
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#11The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:10pm
Daily Beast is mixed-to-negative:
Review: ‘The Cottage’ on Broadway Needs Renovation
Good farce relies on secrets being kept, and complications, lies, and absurdity being added to the mix until the center cannot hold. “The Cottage” on Broadway lacks much of this.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/review-the-cottage-on-broadway-needs-renovation
"The Cottage is not a dud; its momentary outbreaks of hilarity thankfully break up stretches of conversation about characters’ tangled pasts, and restatements of the comic setups in front of us. But, as wittily complicated as those summaries can sound, we’ve already got it. It’s been unpacked for us in the moment, over and over again. If The Cottage isn’t a farce, what is it? This critic couldn’t tell you, and—as presented—the production doesn’t seem to know the answer either."
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#12The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:12pm
Vulture is mostly negative:
The Cottage Needs More Doors to Slam
https://www.vulture.com/2023/07/theater-review-cottage-broadway-farce.html
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#13The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:13pm
4 Stars/Recommended from TimeOut
https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/the-cottage-broadway-comedy-review
"While the architecture of the plot is solid, what really keeps The Cottage up is the comedic industry of its cast. Directed by Jason Alexander, a seasoned hand at classic timing, the actress leap gamely into their funny business. McCormack’s vain Beau is smoothly caddish and twittish; Moffat, leading with his chin, has some inspired physical horseplay, and Steingold packs a lot of power into her small frame. And Bundy, who looks smashing in Sydney Maresca’s costumes, holds the play’s center together with considerable appeal. It’s sex, sure, but more than that: It’s charm."
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#14The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:15pm
NY Stage Review:
The Cottage: A Midsummer Night’s Frolic By Melissa Rose Bernardo
★★★★☆ Can you see some of the jokes coming a mile away with your eyes closed? Sure. But you’ll still laugh.
The Cottage: A New Sex Farce That Already Feels Dated By Frank Scheck
★★★☆☆ Eric McCormack, Laura Bell Bundy, Lilli Cooper and Alex Moffat are among the stars of Sandy Rustin's Noel Coward-inspired sex farce.
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#15The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:16pm
Broadway News:
Review: Spending an eventful, but hackneyed evening at ‘The Cottage’
Sandy Rustin’s version of a drawing room farce falls short of both feminism and comedy.
https://www.broadwaynews.com/review-spending-an-eventful-but-hackneyed-evening-at-the-cottage/
#16The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:31pm
DTLI Consensus: Despite its hardworking cast, The Cottage does not quite feel at home on Broadway, looming in the shadow of better-staged farces.
5 positive, 5 negative (including the NYT), 2 mixed.
https://didtheylikeit.com/shows/the-cottage/
Oh look, a bibu!
bigbelterbaby
Broadway Star Joined: 7/5/10
#17The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:57pm
Some good notices for Bundy, several mention Dana Steingold as the standout. Some really like Moffats physical comedy.
Bundy gets the final bow and is treated as the lead but seems like they bill it as an ensemble so maybe for the Tony’s they would all be up for featured.
The set design and costumes are also getting great reviews.
Hesione Hushabye thinks it tastes like ashes.
Updated On: 7/24/23 at 09:57 PM
#18The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 9:59pm
Sounds like Noel Coward would have run for the hills rather than be associated with something like this crude attempt at humor.
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#19The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/24/23 at 11:27pm
Variety:
‘The Cottage’ Review: Sex Farce Directed by Jason Alexander Delivers Limp, Familiar Comedy
https://variety.com/2023/legit/reviews/the-cottage-review-broadway-1235678930/
"The production, under Alexander’s direction, works feverishly to mine laughs from repeated sight gags (like cigarettes outlandishly hidden in the decor) and from performances turned up to 11 that have nowhere to go. McCormack, who makes a believable-enough gigolo, is both underused and overshadowed. Bundy is as nimble and confident as an Old Hollywood star, swathed in blonde finger-waves and ludicrously glamorous night clothes (costumes are by Sydney Maresca). And Moffat, a “Saturday Night Live” alum, is an especially adept and precise physical comedian in what is essentially a drawn-out, after-midnight sketch."
BETTY22
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/29/13
#20The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/25/23 at 7:33am
OUCH. I just read The NY Times.
What can a show do to survive this?
hearthemsing22
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/14/20
#21The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/25/23 at 8:49am
BETTY22 said: "OUCH. I just read The NY Times.
What can a show do to survive this?"
Ultimately it's the ticket sales that do the talking after the reviews come out, so we'll see. It is also only a limited run. I don't really see it closing early.
two ladies tickets
Featured Actor Joined: 5/21/10
#22The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/25/23 at 2:44pm
I'm noticing in the opening night photos that all of the male members of the cast, including the understudies, are sporting a mustache. Is this part of the plot of the show? Facial hair was quite uncommon in that time, although some men did have it. I'm hoping that it has something to do with the plot and it's just not laziness on the part of the design. I'll be seeing the show next week, so perhaps it will make more sense then?
#23The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/25/23 at 3:21pm
Bernadette is truly ageless
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#24The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/29/23 at 9:28am
Does anyone have experience with the TodayTix rush? Is this a hard one to get if you're on at 9AM on the dot? Also, do they offer in person rush? Any seating reports for rush? Thanks!
"There’s nothing quite like the power and the passion of Broadway music. "
mshalo18
Featured Actor Joined: 10/29/22
#25The Cottage - Review Thread
Posted: 7/29/23 at 10:41am
bwayphreak234 said: "Does anyone have experience with the TodayTix rush? Is this a hard one to get if you're on at 9AM on the dot? Also, do they offer in person rush? Any seating reports for rush? Thanks!"
I'm going this afternoon- will try to see what's going on.
Videos