Review Roundup: Richard III Goes to High School in TEENAGE DICK

Ma-Yi Theater Company, in association with The Public Theater, present the world premiere play by Mike Lew, now playing through Sunday, July 29, 2018. TEENAGE DICK, which follows Ma-Yi's phenomenal success with the critically acclaimed KPOP, winner of three 2018 Lucille Lortel Awards, is choreographed by Jennifer Weber (KPOP), directed by Tony Award nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel (Hand to God, Present Laughter), and stars Tiffany Villarin (House Rules) and Gregg Mozgala (Light Shining). It runs Off-Broadway at The Public Theater (425 Lafayette St).

TEENAGE DICK is a brilliantly hilarious take on Richard III, Shakespeare's classic tale of power and lust. TEENAGE DICK reimagines the most famous disabled character of all time as a 16-year-old outsider in the deepest winter of his discontent: his junior year at Roseland High. Picked on because of his cerebral palsy (as well as his sometimes creepy Shakespearean way of speaking), Richard is determined to have his revenge and make his name by becoming president of the senior class. But as he manipulates and crushes the obstacles to his electoral success, Richard finds himself faced with a decision he never expected would be his to make: is it better to be loved or feared?

Let's see what the critic had to say...

Jesse Green, New York Times: This material is still relatively new to the mainstream stage. But even in its more familiar mode, when the play merely translates "Richard III" into an unexpected milieu the way "Clueless" does with Jane Austen's "Emma,"it remains enjoyable. (Wilson Chin's classic high school set, dominated by a trophy case, sets exactly the right tone.) If you know your Shakespeare you'll have fun tracking the correspondence of names and plot points, and noticing the way the original monologues morph so effectively into sitcom-style asides.

Barbara Schuler, Newsday: Lew replaces the malevolent king with 16-year-old Richard Gloucester, who has cerebral palsy and wants to be president of the senior class. Starring an impressive Mozgala (who does, in fact, have cerebral palsy) as Richard, the play tinkers with lines from the source material ("My kingdom for some horsepower") along with other Shakespeare works, even "Hamilton" (talk less, shower more). But it would be a mistake to let such frivolity take away from the intensity of this play, as Richard seeks to get even with those who have bullied him so relentlessly. The bloodbath at the end is every bit as tragic and gruesome as in the original. Truthfully, it's far more frightening, as recent news events have made all too clear.

Raven Snook, TimeOut NY: Gregg Mozgala is a winner of a malcontent as the title character in Teenage Dick, Mike Lew's sharp modern-day reinvention of Shakespeare's Richard III. The actor, who also starred in last year's Cost of Living, has cerebral palsy, and his disability is used to devastating effect in this tragicomic tale of an alienated adolescent bent on using Machiavellian means to climb the social hierarchy of his suburban high school. A coproduction of Ma-Yi Theater Company and The Public Theater, the play more or less follows the Bard's main plot points as the long-bullied Richard campaigns to become senior class president by manipulating everyone in his path, including jerky jock Eddie (Alex Breaux, in his usual bro mode), devoutly religious Clarissa (Sasha Diamond), touchy-feely teacher Elizabeth (Marinda Anderson) and even his wary pal Buck (scene-stealer Shannon DeVido). Buck is also disabled-DeVido uses a wheelchair-but she is much better adjusted and challenges Richard's notions about what to expect from life in an ableist society.

Nicole Serratore, The Stage: Taking on Shakespeare's themes of revenge, betrayal, and self-destruction but modernising the plot and subject matter, Lew focuses on a young, desperate Richard with an increasingly overwrought perception of how the world sees him and his disability. Moritz von Stuelpnagel's production is clunky at times, and it still feels like the actors are finding their comedic rhythms. But Lew's sly commentary is sharp, balancing serious issues with nimble wit.

Photo Credit: Carol Rosegg

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