We take a look at how critics across the pond have been reacting to the Olivier Award winning musical…
Josh at the Movies.com: “Still, the show finds its footing—and a careful balance between comedy and sadness—much more delicately in act II. At least twice in the show, a butterfly effect leading to a momentous and often horrific occurrence builds musically to a satisfying crescendo.”
The New York Times: “Unfortunately, I don’t think all the time in the world would change “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” into my kind of show. For one thing, the two hour and 45 minute British production, remade at the Public Theater with a U.S. cast, hits one musical idea — a folksy Celtic reel — and then never veers. This starts out joyfully, but it palls. Man is born as an old guy? Folksy Celtic reel. Man enters World War II? Folksy Celtic reel.”
ExeuntNYC: “Benjamin Button is tightly focused on the idea that time is passing, that we only have one life. It wouldn’t be a waste to spend part of it at this musical.”
The Wall Street Journal: “F. Scott Fitzgerald’s story of a man aging in reverse becomes a moving and melodic work for the stage in a production now at New York’s Public Theater.”
Theatermania.com: “Luckily, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is no Pinterest board. It’s one of the most alive musicals you’re likely to see this season with words and melodies that feel drawn from the wisdom and heartbeat of the ages.”
The New York Post: “Durand and Kimmel are sublimely romantic in the second part, and not in that prescribed musical-theater way. Maybe it’s because these are not your typical romantic leads. What they’re doing is grounded and palpable.”
1 Minute Critic.com: “At its heart, though, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button delivers a love story for the ages, even if the musical is still growing into it.”
New York Theatre Guide: “Stuffed with repeating references to time and the tides, there’s an undeniable folktale quality to the way Compton has chosen to retell this story. But despite the mythological premise, the stakes of Benjamin’s story are tenderly provincial.”
Vulture.com: “f you have a strong stomach for schmaltz, or you’re able to focus your attention on individual trees in its sugarplum forest, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button does indeed contain moments of beauty and delight. A hovering buoy fills with light to become the moon; the cast lays into their fiddles and whistles and conjures up the pleasure of a traditional pub session; Durand, caught in blue sidelight and gently swaying his raised arms, becomes a man drowning in the very sea he wanted to see just a little of. That’s simple, sincere theatrical magic. If only Benjamin Button’s creators had trusted its lessons: that a lot of sweet needs at least a touch of bitter, that charm doesn’t always have to smile, and that more is sometimes the enemy of enough.”
New York Stage Review: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button admittedly feels twee at times. But like the best fables, it has a lot to say about the human condition. And by the time it’s over, you’ll feel a little bit younger.”
New York Theater.me: “In this musical about a man who is born old and grows younger with each passing year, a company of 15 actor-musicians seemed to be having a stomping good time playing the lively Celtic-flavored folk-rock score and singing the clever lyrics – but in an accent coached to be a challenge for Americans to decipher.”
To find out more, visit: https://publictheater.org/productions/season/2627/the-curious-case-of-benjamin-button/