"For all its harrowing power, 'Eclipsed,' shines with a compassion that makes us see beyond the suffering to the indomitable humanity of its characters. And although the events it depicts happened more than a decade ago, the play resonates powerfully today...Ms. Gurira’s play, directed with clarity and force by Liesl Tommy, reminds us of something profoundly important, and perhaps too easily forgotten amid our own country’s continuing racial troubles: African lives matter."
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"In its Broadway incarnation, these women remain powerfully specific, and their relationships have warmth and texture...'Eclipsed' is consistently insightful about the ways in which the oppressed become inured to or reliant upon their oppression, even to the point of reproducing it; motherhood, biological or situational, is another of the play's major themes, and its exploration goes in surprising directions...It may be hard to watch at times, but you leave with your eyes wider open."
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"A moving and must-see production...What’s most noticeably different is happening right at the center of the show: Nyong’o has managed to burrow further into her portrayal of the Girl...Her star power is not to be ignored. It doesn’t just make a production like this possible; it makes it legible, to the back of the theater and, more importantly, to the back of our souls. It asks, on behalf of women like this, a world away, 'Shouldn’t you know me?'”
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"Liesl Tommy’s production has lost nothing by being moved to a larger house. The play remains a staggeringly potent, perfectly performed snapshot of five African women who are fighting for their lives amid the roiling chaos of an unimaginably bloody war of all against all. 'Eclipsed' feels less like a play than a fictionalized documentary—but one of genius, a deceptively bald piece of storytelling...This is great theater. I doubt you’ll see anything more exciting on Broadway this season."
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"'Eclipsed' is a major achievement—a scorching work about women and war whose humor burnishes rather than undermines its seriousness of purpose. It features ferociously committed ensemble performances staged with power and finesse by Liesl Tommy...'Eclipsed' offers resolution but no hope...We can do little more than bear witness—something this miraculous play helps boldly to accomplish."
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"Liesl Tommy’s taut staging provides an excellent showcase for the play. The cast is uniformly very good and while performances have deepened and feel more lived-in uptown, there are still few moments—light and serious—when individuals tilt toward being overly showy, as though they’re performing. Despite that, the play is unsettling and eye-opening."
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"One wondered whether that connection would be broken when the show moved to a much larger Broadway theater. Not to worry...The show hits the sweet spot for the serious New York theater crowd — the ideal audience for this intense drama — that often feels overlooked and underserved on Broadway...Playwright Danai Gurira delivers politics with passion in this searing drama...Superbly directed by Liesl Tommy and powerfully acted by a strong ensemble."
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"As intense as the show is, it’s also leavened by raucous humor — a running joke about Bill Clinton keeps getting better and better. In the end, hope wins out over despair. If this is what happens when Broadway tells the stories of women, we can only wish for more."
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