About the Show

Director Richard Jones returns to the Armory with this rarely-performed 1937 moral drama in a new adaptation by Pulitzer Prize finalist and Obie Award-winning playwright Christopher Shinn.

From the show:

Ödön von Horváth’s play is an intriguing hybrid of theatrical genres: part moral fable, part sociopolitical commentary, part noirish thriller. A dutiful train station master, performed by Emmy® Award-winning actor Luke Kirby (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Deuce, and Slings & Arrows) is momentarily distracted and a tragic train crash results. This adaptation is a fresh take on who should bear responsibility for certain actions, a theme that resonates in today’s societal climate.

Having dazzled Armory audiences and critics alike with his mesmerizing revival of The Hairy Ape in 2017, visionary director Richard Jones returns to take on this gripping play in a new adaptation by Pulitzer Prize finalist and Obie Award®-winning playwright Christopher Shinn. Judgment Day dramatically plays on the interior of the Wade Thompson Drill Hall—reminiscent of the original Grand Central Depot and the great train stations of Europe—as an immersive environment in which the characters become overcome by the burden of guilt.

Critic Reviews (12)

"An Allegory of Blame, Goes Big: At the Park Avenue Armory, Odon von Horvath’s 1937 drama gets a rare and physically overwhelming staging."
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"At the Armory, 'Judgment Day' Shows Its Cast No Mercy"
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"A small play in an oversize production that dilutes any ripple effect the fable might have in 2019. One could imagine it being just as effective at Classic Stage Company or the BAM Harvey."
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"A Life Derails in Judgment Day: Christopher Shinn adapts Ödön von Horváth's rarely performed 1937 drama for Park Avenue Armory."
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"A Chilling Revival of Ödön von Horváth's 1937 Social Commentary 'JUDGMENT DAY'"
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"If the setting of 'Judgment Day' feels slightly unusual, its tone is strikingly similar to the work of such vintage directors as Fritz Lang, Robert Siodmak, and Billy Wilder, all of them Germans who fled the Nazi regime to become masters of the Hollywood film noir."
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4/5 Stars. "When ostensible autocratic leaders appear to be emerging in growing numbers today, it seems as if von Horváth's work has a potent relevance to a swelling contemporary plight."
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5/5 Stars. "Approached with imagination, skill and a clear sense of purpose, director Richard Jones' production is riveting, thought-provoking and ravishing."
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Trailer

Creative team