Scan barcode
aaronpic26's review against another edition
medium-paced
2.0
“I don’t think language is just music. I believe that language is the opposite of loneliness. And if everybody in the world spoke the same language, who would ever be lonely?”
this was just boring… like the first play was good but then all the rest of them were too long and had no point to them. there was no common connection between any of them and none of them served a purpose or had a plot to them. like if you want to have a bunch of “weird” one acts at least make them have a point or be interesting and not repeat the same joke over and over. there were some okay parts in it but i was just bored for most of the time. also fuck woody allen anyways.
this was just boring… like the first play was good but then all the rest of them were too long and had no point to them. there was no common connection between any of them and none of them served a purpose or had a plot to them. like if you want to have a bunch of “weird” one acts at least make them have a point or be interesting and not repeat the same joke over and over. there were some okay parts in it but i was just bored for most of the time. also fuck woody allen anyways.
blueranger9's review
5.0
David Ives is one of my favorite comedic playwrights ever. I was lucky I saw his plays performed at Penn when I visited Rachel. What a great read.
tscott907's review against another edition
3.25
A funny, if wildly uneven, collection of short plays. When Ives is good, he's good, but often the plays in this collection veer towards insane levels of self-indulgence rather than fleshing out their central concepts. Favorites include "The Philadelphia," "Variations on the Death of Trotsky," and "Ancient History."
joremmons's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
This is a witty collection of one-act plays, full of word-play and clever writing that keeps you on your toes. "Sure Thing" and "Variations on the Death of Trotsky" are some of my favorites.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing
jonh's review against another edition
2.0
Meh. When Ives is good, he's really good, but a lot of the time his dialogue is too clever by half. "Ancient History", in particular, comes to mind. The script goes to some really deep, thoughtful places, but inconsistencies in character keep it from arriving where it wants to go.
I liked these plays a LOT when I was younger and first introduced to theatre. As I get older, I feel their limitations: these plays feel like they're meant for a particular class of audience for a particular place and time with a particular understanding of the world. Clever, I guess, if you get it, but I would prefer a stronger commitment to the bizarre premises Ives sets up, and less emphasis on witty banter.
I liked these plays a LOT when I was younger and first introduced to theatre. As I get older, I feel their limitations: these plays feel like they're meant for a particular class of audience for a particular place and time with a particular understanding of the world. Clever, I guess, if you get it, but I would prefer a stronger commitment to the bizarre premises Ives sets up, and less emphasis on witty banter.
kaylynn's review against another edition
3.0
This is a collection of plays, and the ones that are good are great. However, a number of them are just mediocre. Ives also overuses the f-word. Variations on the Death of Trotsky and Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread were both excellent.
More...