The New York Times - Recommended
"...Three decades later, Crystal too is in his 70s, and in the new musical comedy "Mr. Saturday Night," which opened on Wednesday night, he slips much more naturally into Buddy's skin. As a piece of theater, the show is a bit of a mess; the jokes, even some of the hoary ones, work better than the storytelling, and the acting styles are all over the place. Still, it makes for a diverting evening - because it will almost surely make you laugh, and because of how acutely tuned into the audience Crystal is."
NY Daily News - Somewhat Recommended
"...As directed by John Rando, "Mr. Saturday Night" feels more like a play with music: its focus is on the price paid to be funny, a fee not just exacted from the comedian, but also a family. In an ideal world, all of the comedic energy in those routines would flow directly into the songs, making them an organic part of the comedy-pain axis on which this show turns as it probes Buddy's shifting but perpetually destructive psyche."
New York Theater - Recommended
"...There's something engaging about each of these three basic layers of "Mr. Saturday Night," although Crystal's comedy far more so than the story or the music. But they exist uneasily together, and wind up undermining one another, not least because the running time of about 170 minutes (including intermission) - way longer than the movie - is too long for a light, sentimental comedy that gets its juice from quick-hit Borscht Belt humor."
Variety - Highly Recommended
"...The end result is certainly the funniest show on Broadway in years, if not the most likable. Look for a healthy run, at least with headliner Crystal, who last packed houses with his autobiographical show "700 Sundays." And with composer Jason Robert Brown and lyricist Amanda Green supplying one of the most appealing and disarming scores in some time, what's not to like?"
New York Post - Recommended
"...Over at the Nederlander Theatre is Billy Crystal's joke-stuffed new musical "Mr. Saturday Night," which opened Wednesday and puts the followspot on old-school yuks. Hearty laughs. The glorious punchlines that have eluded most new musicals are here knocked outta the park by a master."
Entertainment Weekly - Somewhat Recommended
"...There's a moment during Mr. Saturday Night - the Broadway show based on the 1992 Billy Crystal movie of the same name - when you realize that you know exactly what type of show you're seeing."
Washington Post - Recommended
"...The gist of "Mr. Saturday Night" is patterned on the movie of the same name (with David Paymer reprising his role as Buddy's older, unappreciated brother, Stan). Crystal has teamed up again with his co-screenwriters on that film, Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel, for a decidedly warmer version of the story. It's 1994, decades after the peak of Buddy's fame as the host of a prime-time Saturday night variety show on CBS, a run that came to an ignominious end after Buddy's on-air breakdown. With Buddy's long-suffering wife Elaine (the indispensable Randy Graff) loyally waiting at home, Buddy trundles off to perform bottom-draw bookings at places such as the Walter P. Saperstein Retirement Center, where his audience, apparently, is only semiconscious. All in anticipation, of course, of a return to glory."
Time Out New York - Recommended
"...Billy Crystal talks loudly and carries a big shtick in Mr. Saturday Night, and we wouldn't have it any other way. In this musical adaptation of his 1992 film, Crystal stars as a dried-up nightclub comic named Buddy Young Jr.-an ironic name, since he's far from young, and he's never been anybody's buddy. He's a tough cut of brisket, and decades after a career-ending tirade on live TV in the 1950s, he's been reduced to grouchy gigs on the Jewish retirement-home circuit. ("Don't get me started!" is his starting line.) But when his face mistakenly pops up in an awards-show In Memoriam sequence, Young gets a chance to revive his career from the dead. Can he seize it? Or will he be his own schlemiel yet again?"
The Wrap - Not Recommended
"...I admit it. I saw Jackie Mason in his "Much Ado About Everything." The lead theater critic lied and said he was sick, so I was given the assignment to review the 2000 one-man show on Broadway. I can write this with confidence because Mason is no longer with us, but I'd sit through "Jackie Mason: Much Ado About Everything" before doing the same with "Mr. Saturday Night," which opened Wednesday at the Nederlander Theatre."
Deadline - Somewhat Recommended
"...You might feel like you've already seen Mr. Saturday Night the musical even if you've never seen Mr. Saturday Night the movie, and whether you find that comforting - Billy Crystal certainly is one of the most likable presences in all of show business - or disappointing might depend entirely on your taste for well-delivered Borsht Belt comedy."
TheaterMania - Highly Recommended
"...There's a lot to be said for knowing your audience in an industry as volatile as commercial theater, and in that regard, Mr. Saturday Night delivered on all fronts. It's just too bad they didn't sell pastramis on rye at intermission."
TheaterScene.net - Recommended
"...Mr. Crystal recreates his film role of Buddy here with his sterling characterization of a frustrated almost-made-it performer having deepened over 30 years. Crystal has been a major entertainment fixture in all media since the 1970's. His superior comic timing, singing skills, dramatic depth and engaging persona remain impeccable; this enjoyable star stage turn will enchant his admirers."
NY Theatre Guide - Recommended
"...Based on a 1992 big-screen box-office dud that Crystal co-wrote, directed, and starred in, the fitfully amusing story spins around Buddy Young Jr., a has-been comic who lost his lucrative network gig but has never shed his self-sabotaging ways. Then, by fluke, he gets a second chance for professional and personal growth."
Stage Buddy - Somewhat Recommended
"...No stranger to the Broadway stage, Crystal won a Tony award for his one-man show "700 Sundays" in 2004. Although he's "Mr.Saturday Night" in this show, the audience that would best appreciate this musical goes for the early bird specials and retires to bed early. Maybe it should be called Mr. Saturday Afternoon?"
Theater Pizzazz - Highly Recommended
"...I grew up going to Catskill hotels in the summers (even meeting comedian Jack Carter, mentioned in the show, when I was 12), waited tables there when I was in college, and went back one last time in the early 70s when I spent a weekend with my family at Brown's. The comic was Jan Murray-I don't remember if he's cited in the script-but he told the same kinds of jokes as Buddy Young, many about bodily functions. I was in my early 30s, and I probably didn't even realize yet what prostate problems were, but I laughed so hard the tears ran down my leg. Ba-da-boom. Mr. Saturday Night brought it all back, and then some."
StageZine - Recommended
"...Mr. Saturday Night brings back the old-fashioned musical, and I say this in the best sense of the word. The show is structured and framed with a wonderful book that is tailor-made for its leading man/star. It has a pleasant score that can be heard and understood without the overuse of amplified miking and digital backtracking. Here we have simple songs that are sung and not shouted, all to be enjoyed to propel the narrative. A simple show that uses the strengths of its star, in this case Billy Crystal recreating the role of Buddy Young, Jr. from the 1992 movie of the same name."
The Observer - Somewhat Recommended
"...Mr. Saturday Night, the new Broadway musical starring Billy Crystal based on the 1992 movie that marked his screen directorial debut, is a waiting game. You wait for a reason why a beloved comic would spend 30 years obsessed with improving a mediocre idea. You wait for a fresh joke, a hint of originality, or a song that might not remind you of a dozen songs you've heard before. You wait for a flash of the special talent that has made Billy Crystal a comic legend. You wait for a scene or a sequence to deter you from checking your watch to see how long you've been sitting there. You wait for something to happen. You wait."
Broadway News - Not Recommended
"...But there is precious little pulse throughout "Mr. Saturday Night," a double shot at redemption for both Buddy and his marquee creator. When Buddy mistakenly shows up in the Emmys' In Memoriam segment, he decides to make another go as a funnyman, wrestling with pride, self-doubt and an industry that's moved on. Crystal's return to playing the part of Buddy, from the 1992 flop film he also co-wrote and directed, likewise seems to be a personal creative mission."
Theatrely - Somewhat Recommended
"...This new musical isn’t perfect; the first act runs far too long, and some plotlines aren’t sufficiently developed. But you’re there for Crystal and he delivers. His singing voice is as full of character as his comic delivery — imagine a male Carol Channing — and the winning team around him makes this Saturday Night a delightful evening out."
New York Stage Review - Recommended
"...If you like Billy Crystal as well as a Mount Everest of one-liners, you'll love Mr. Saturday Night. It's the new tuner run up from the comedian's 1992 hit movie by the film's screenwriters Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandell and Crystal himself, with Jason Robert Brown adding music and Amanda Green adding lyrics."