"Despite the wearying efforts of a likable cast headed by Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, the passage of 54 years is more than enough to reveal the triptych of one-act plays as uninhabitable in 2022...You could, I suppose, investigate 'Plaza Suite' as a catalog of male failings in midcentury America...In any case, that’s not what the current production is offering. Rather, it seems to hope we will look forgivingly enough on our benighted past to excuse it with a 'that’s how things were' shrug and laugh."
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"4/5 stars...The show packs moments that are gleefully LOL, is deeper than you might expect, and the real-life married stars co-piloting this vintage vehicle are in fine form...In his Broadway debut as a director, Tony-winning actor John Benjamin Hickey displays a deft hand and sure instincts. He keeps the pacing brisk, while his smart tweak to the end of Act 2 is a playful and up-to-date improvement to the original script. Strong work by the cast...is matched by the production team."
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"In all three plays, Hickey and his actors have found many little moments for physical comedy...but these jolts are rarely enough to create a sustained energy. The same is true for the evening as a whole. I know you can’t wander around rewriting Simon, but maybe they could have just … skipped the middle one-act? That one’s a cold cocktail frankfurter, I’ll tell you that...In 'Plaza Suite,' I found that fragile funny-sad balance tipped too far toward melancholy, possibly because Broderick’s left-of-center delivery makes so much room for it."
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"Although Mr. Broderick and Ms. Parker labor mightily to reanimate Simon’s 1968 comedy, their staunch but sometimes strained efforts, and the play’s undeniable fustiness—especially with regard to the relationships between men and women at its center—result in a production that tends to sag between the volleys of wisecracks that suffuse early Simon plays."
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"Directed by John Benjamin Hickey with a clear reverence for Simon and the theatrical era in which his 1968 comedy titillated matinee audiences, this new 'Plaza Suite' feels mostly like an exercise in nostalgia – for a couple we’ve watched grow up, for a Broadway that demands little, and for the late playwright whose contributions to popular culture go far beyond this mid-level effort...John Lee Beatty has designed an absolutely gorgeous recreation of that hotel of dreams, and costume designer Jane Greenwood outfits the cast in lovely and, when necessary, witty, period attire."
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"The real-life married couple bring a serious commitment to the spirit of the work, allowing their own personas to throw some metatextual sparks without overtaking the spirit of Simon. As directed by John Benjamin Hickey, Parker and Broderick provoke, alienate and woo one another, and provide a strong argument for a playwright whose work seems next-to-impossible to subvert...The three pieces vary in tone, but throughout, the two stars share not merely an unmistakable chemistry but a shared willingness to dig into the work on its own terms. They almost entirely resist looking at 'Plaza Suite' through a 2022 lens."
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"Alas, the stars’ efforts, while certainly appealing, don’t make the material any less obsolete, a throwback to the bougie boulevard comedies that were once a Broadway staple. The observations on marriage and relationships occasionally generate a chuckle, but more often seem stale and the sexual politics retrograde, something that John Benjamin Hickey’s serviceable direction can’t disguise...Parker ultimately walks away with the show; she doesn’t lose the mannerisms that have become essential parts of her screen persona, but she molds them into three distinct characters, finding obvious enjoyment in reconnecting with her stage roots."
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"Matthew Broderick is at peak Broderick. Theater people will understand this is not good news. It means that he’s delivering yet another bland, mousy smudge of a performance, squeaking his lines, looking like someone poured pudding in his loafers...Faced with this acting void, a.k.a. her husband, Parker gamely attempts pluck and passion as a series of unfulfilled wives and mothers...For both actors, 'Plaza Suite' ought to be a wonderful workout, a chance to show off versatility while nailing Simon’s well-crafted yuks. Instead, it feels like community theater for rich people."
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