The Real Thing at American Airlines Theatre

The New York Times - Not Recommended

"...Do not be misled by the title. Authenticity is conspicuous only by its absence in the tinny revival of The Real Thing, which opened on Thursday night at the American Airlines Theater. Evidence of real feelings, real chemistry and real life in general is dishearteningly scarce in this interpretation of Tom Stoppard's 1982 comedy about one all-too-witty writer's emotional block. Despite a talented big-name cast, including the movie stars Ewan McGregor and Maggie Gyllenhaal in their Broadway debuts, this Roundabout Theater Company production is one of those unfortunate revivals that make you wonder if the play in question is worth revisiting."

Associated Press - Highly Recommended

"...Stoppard, as usual, keeps his audience perpetually on edge, unsure if we're watching a play-within-a-play or actual events unfolding, a blurring of art and life that's brilliantly mined. Repetition of scenes, positions and props nudge the echoes home. If this play is almost 30 years old, its age wasn't visible."

Hollywood Reporter - Recommended

"...Ewan McGregor makes an assured Broadway debut as Tom Stoppard's semi-autobiographical stand-in, an erudite playwright struggling to tame the slippery concept of love in his writing as well as his personal life in The Real Thing. Maggie Gyllenhaal also brings poise and sophistication to the actress who breaks up his marriage and becomes his second wife. But pretty much everything else in Sam Gold's hollow revival is a little off. That goes for a terribly miscast Cynthia Nixon, a too-literal design concept that's hard on the eyes, and sing-along scene changes that are as cloying as they are superfluous, serving mainly to yank us out of the play."

Entertainment Weekly - Recommended

"...McGregor is confident and sexy, using badinage as a bandage over wounds he'd rather not examine too closely. Nixon (who played Henry's teenage daughter in the Tony-winning 1984 Broadway production with Jeremy Irons and Glenn Close) is a worthy foil, wearing dowdy dresses and a look of wry resignation. Gyllenhaal, a pixie-cut dream girl, has a chillier but still effective presence. But director Sam Gold's fussy production blurs the distinction between scenes with a single drab set and cast-sung interludes of '60s pop. Not only is it harder to follow the tricky plot (and its plays-within-plays), but the songs suggest a kumbaya solidarity among the characters that undercuts the show's message about the challenges of forging connections."

Time Out New York - Highly Recommended

"...It's a strong ensemble, featuring a brief but memorable turn by Ronan Raftery as one of Annie's ardent admirers. McGregor makes his Broadway debut with assurance, charm and sparkle. And those juicy encomiums he delivers on intimacy and literature? He hits them, and how they fly."