My Eyes Went Dark NYC Reviews and Tickets

"The staging...effectively guides the play through hopscotching shifts in setting and time. Too often, however, the script jumps face first into scenes, then flounders as the exposition-laden dialogue tries to pick up the slack...Ms. Jayasundera moves deftly from role to role...Mr. Conlon’s Koslov is an unfinished sketch, barely shaded beyond his revenge...The peak emotional moments verge on the melodramatic...'My Eyes Went Dark' at once presents us with too little and broadcasts too much."
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“Wilkinson's precise ear for dialogue makes his succession of brief scenes convincing, and ‘My Eyes Went Dark’ has power as a high-intensity acting showcase. But there's too little analysis of the mechanisms of revenge and forgiveness. Instead, the play offers intense, histrionic moments that we thrill to as voyeurs, not as thinkers. Actual grief and actual murder are repurposed for our dark entertainment, and there's something ugly in that."
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"The two-hander features the extraordinary acting talents of Declan Conlon and Thusitha Jayasundera. Conlon's portrayal of Nikolai Koslov is an evocative, heartrending performance. Jayasundera plays multiple roles that fill out the entire story...'My Eyes Went Dark' is a very timely piece of theater that examines a tragedy from a rarely seen perspective. It is an intriguing play that will surely captivate metro area audiences."
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"Conlon is especially brilliant at signaling submerged emotions, a skill that proves invaluable here...Given the fragmented nature of Matthew Wilkinson's script, the narrative is occasionally a little confusing...Still, under Wilkinson's direction, there are many passages of unsparing power, and Conlon and Jayasundera hold the play together through a potent combination of talent and nerve."
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“Performed in a small, intimate space with only a pair of chairs onstage, the play's potency is not borne solely by the Lear-like power of Conlon's performance. He is equaled by co-star Jayasundera, an accomplished actress who portrays multiple other characters who cross Koslov's path…These two finely wrought performances are honed to a sharp edge by the playwright, who also directs…A most unsettling evening that raises at least as many questions as it addresses.”
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“Written and directed with thoughtful precision by Matthew Wilkinson...The production is a performance tour de force around which soul tragedy, self-betrayal and vengeance combine to break open an enlightened revelation by the play’s conclusion…Wilkinson’s work and this production are an intriguing mental exercise…The play’s power and dynamism are trenchant. This is an exceptional achievement in a production that is stylized and expressionistic.”
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"Mr. Conlon’s Koslov doesn’t quite ever succeed in making us feel much real sorrow. His emotive range tends to be professionally efficient, but veers dangerously towards the melodramatic…Mr. Wilkinson, as the director, shares some of the responsibility for this shortcoming. More dauntingly, the action takes place over a broad range of locales...and at a pace much more suited to film or television than to the stage...Jayasundera, however, acquits herself remarkably well."
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"This beautifully told tale of utter grief and sadness is slowly parceled out to us over the 90 minutes we spend with these two souls that inhabit this perfectly crafted small space. Declan Conlon and Thusitha Jayasundera, the two very fine actors that have gifted us with their presence and talent, make it feel huge though...Although Wilkinson’s deep and layered drama has moments of disconnect, the play and the performances overcome those unfocused scenes as a whole."
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