Cole Escola's wildly irreverent new comedy Oh, Mary! officially opened Off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre February 8, and the reviews are in. See what critics are saying below.
The limited run began January 26 and will continue through March 24.
Also in the cast are Conrad Ricamora as Mary's Husband, James Scully as Mary's Teacher, Bianca Leigh as Mary's Chaperone, and Tony Macht as Mary's Husband's Assistant. Hannah Solow and Peter Smith round out the company.
Escola, press notes state, stars as "a miserable, suffocated Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Unrequited yearning, alcoholism, and suppressed desires abound in this one-act play that finally examines the forgotten life and dreams of Mrs. Lincoln through the lens of an idiot (Cole Escola)."
Read the reviews below.
CitiTour NYC (Brian Scott Lipton)
The Front Row Center (David Walters)
New York Magazine/Vulture (Jackson McHenry)*
New York Post (Johnny Oleksinski)
New York Stage Review (Steven Suskin, David Finkle)
New York Theatre Guide (Amelia Merrill)
The New York Times (Joshua Barone)*
Talkin' Broadway (Howard Miller)
TheaterMania (Zachary Stewart)
*This review may require creating a free account or a paid subscription.
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
Escola's screenwriting credits include At Home With Amy Sedaris and The Other Two, and they've appeared as an actor in Difficult People, Mozart in the Jungle, At Home With Amy Sedaris, and Big Mouth, among others. They released a comedy special on YouTube titled Help! I'm Stuck With Cole Escola in 2021, and an homage to '70s westerns Our Home Out West in November.
Sam Pinkleton is directing the production, which features scenic design by dots, costume design by Holly Pierson, lighting design by Cha See, sound design by Daniel Kluger and Drew Levy, wig design by Leah J. Loukas, original music by Kluger, and arrangements by David Dabbon. Bryan Bauer is production stage manager, and Ryan Kane is the assistant stage manager. Casting is by Henry Russell Bergstein. Gowns for Escola are by Astor Yang.
Oh, Mary! is produced by Kevin McCollum and Lucas McMahon and Mike Lavoie and Carlee Briglia by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
Visit OhMaryPlay.com.
