Customer Reviews

Almost, Maine - Acting Edition

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

So, it seems that John Cariani is one of the funniest, entertaining and endearing playwrights on the planet. Every word, every absurd twist of this comedy is so pure, so heartfelt, that reading it was like reconnecting with an old friend.
It is beautifully written. So sweet and romantic, it is guaranteed to melt even the iciest of hearts. I fell in love with it after the second scene, "Her Heart," when my jaw dropped and my eyes welled with tears. It is so unique that the closest comparison I can come up with is perhaps a frost-bitten version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." It has all of the magic and fantasy of Shakespeare's romp, but it's fresh and delightful setting in the Great Northern state makes it one-of-a-kind and surprising more romantic.
The scenic demands are terrifically flexible, making it perfect for either a black box with a couple of benches or a lush production. The very natural and effective dialogue makes it so completely modern, without placing it in any one time period. In five or ten years, the messages and humor will still play to audiences without seeming dated, jaded or political.
After reading it, I knew my theater had to perform it! Our actors fell in love with the characters. Our audiences fell in love with the material. Even in the heat of July in the great state of Tennessee with a broken air-conditioner, our actors sweating profusely while wearing winter coats and our audiences fanning like crazy...the audience STILL doubled each weekend from the previous weekend, ending in sold out houses!
A fantastic read, but also an amazing piece to perform. One more word of advice: if you are producing it...TRUST the playwright, his detailed notes are more than suggestions, they are a blueprint. This man knows comedy. It was so much fun to see how, by following his advice and not playing it like a sit-com or being heavy handed with a directorial re-imagining, scenes like "They Fell" and "Seeing The Thing" played so honestly and realistically, making it an even more rewarding and surprising experience for audiences. Thank you, Mr. Cariani!

This is a delightful two act, eight scene play. It is set on a winter's night in Almost, Maine. Each scene is acted by a different couple. Basically, the play is romantic comedy that explores the foibles of being in and out of love.

Most of the scenes are successful, though a couple do fall short. But, every scene does have good moments and there is a lot of laughter through the play.

Al in all, if you are looking at producing a romantic comedy, this would be a good choice. Enjoy!

Set in the unincorporated town of Almost, Maine, the town's residents fall into and out of love -- at the same moment -- under the magic of the Northern Lights. John Cariani has created a place you will want to visit over and over again. My theater company, Tennessee Women's Theater Project ([...]), produced this show several seasons ago -- it was one of our best attended shows ever. Beat it to death -- make it overly cutesy or play heavy-handed saccharine romances -- and it will fall apart before your eyes. But, treat it tenderly and this play's magic will reveal itself to you and your audiences.

I, and our audiences, LOVED this show!

P.S. The strongest language is "jeezum crow!")

I ordered this play sight unseen on the recommendation of a playwright friend of mine as I was struggling to write a play with multiple scene structure. This play was beautifully written and though I bought it to study the structure, I forgot about that as the characters drew me into the story as a good play should. I read it and then read it again. I often go to my shelf to re-read it for inspiration in the subtle theatricality and simplicity of it. I hope to see this play performed someday soon.
I did get my play written and I owe the inspiration of weaving multiple stories together to this play.
I would highly recommend reading and seeing this play. The writer has made his characters real, relatable, and the every day life they live compelling.

This is a cute play. I saw it performed and am now working on a scene from this play for an acting class.

I like this play. It is cute and it is sincere. I feel like putting it on takes a lot of effort to avoid making it cheesy. But overall, it's a heartwarming group of love stories.

My wife, who's a manging director of a middle size theatre, and I saw this play and fell in love with it. Very enjoyable.

This is a really cute play. My college put it on and it's really easy to do whether you have 2 characters or 24. Set can also be as simple as you want it.
We put it on for Valentines Day and the audience thought it was great.

This is a great read, and an even better potential production. I'm directing it at my high school with six very talented actors. The students flocked to auditions to try to be a part of this magical show.

I love reading plays. I just finished 17 in the last 3 weeks alone. I almost never do not finish a play once I start. I was so disappointed with the poor dialogue and amateurish writing that I did not finish reading this play. The only good news is that the experience made me head to the library to read more before buying them.