Written by David Mamet
Directed by Robert Falls
Synopsis: The play follows three small-time crooks who wax philosophically about society while conspiring to steal the coin. Volcanic and motor mouthed Teach (Leguizamo) schemes and spars with fatherly, street-smart junk shop owner Donny (Cedric the Entertainer) enlisting Bobby (Osment), a slow-witted and desperate young delinquent, to carry out their misbegotten robbery.
NEW YORK TIMES:
"Ssssssssst. That whooshing noise coming from the Belasco Theater is the sound of the air being let out of David Mamet’s dialogue. Robert Falls’s deflated revival of Mr. Mamet’s “American Buffalo”...evokes the woeful image of a souped-up sports car’s flat tire, built for speed but going nowhere. "
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK POST:
""American Buffalo" has all the profanity and none of the poetry. As directed by the usually estimable Robert Falls, with John Leguizamo, Cedric the Entertainer and Haley Joel Osment, it's flatter than a cow plop. "
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS:
"Despite a starry cast of John Leguizamo, Haley Joel Osment and Cedric the Entertainer, who's miscast, the tepid two-hour two-act, directed by Robert Falls, makes the story seem very slight, with all the danger and combustibility of a book of soggy matches. "
Read the whole review HERE.
THEATERMANIA:
"... an effective if not explosive revival.... "
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VARIETY:
"When "American Buffalo" is done right, the profane poetry of David Mamet's dialogue can be bracing and the sad desperation of its three minor-league crooks -- playing at being players -- has a poignant sting. But in the three decades since the play was first seen, the influence of its speech patterns has become increasingly pervasive in films, cable TV and imitative theater, while humanized hoodlums have turned up everywhere. Maybe that's why this starry revival sits so flatly on its impressive set. Or maybe it's the lack of a connective thread among its performers. Either way, something isn't working. "
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NEWSDAY:
"Do we need another "American Buffalo" in a season bereft of new plays? Of course not. Is it good to have it back? Sure."
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NY1:
"The story of three small-time hoods plotting a heist seems to go in circles. As a character study, Mamet certainly "got" the swagger, the dynamic and of course the expletive laden dialogue of these low-life losers, but as entertainment, it comes off as rather tedious. "
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BACKSTAGE:
"Director Robert Falls provides a solid, straightforward framework for Mamet's deceptively simple story. Unfortunately, his actors are not as perfectly balanced as the material. "
Read the whole review HERE.
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