Oh, Mary! officially opened its Broadway transfer at the Lyceum Theatre July 11, and the reviews are rolling in. Previews began June 26 for the 12-week limited engagement, which continues through September 15.
Written by and starring Cole Escola, Oh, Mary! centers on famous First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. In Escola's demented take (or as press notes put it, "through the lens of an idiot"), Mary Todd becomes a madcap, cabaret-obsessed alcoholic.
Read the reviews below.
Broadway News (Brittani Samuel)
Chicago Tribune (Chris Jones)*
CitiTour NYC (Brian Scott Lipton)
Digital Journal (Markos Papadatos)
Entertainment Weekly (Christian Holub)
Hollywood Reporter (David Rooney)
New York Daily News (Chris Jones)*
New York Magazine/Vulture (Sara Holdren)*
New York Post (Johnny Oleksinski)
New York Stage Review (Bob Verini, Michael Sommers)
New York Theater (Jonathan Mandell)
New York Theatre Guide (Austin Fimmano)
The New York Times (Jesse Green)*
TheaterMania (Zachary Stewart)
Wall Street Journal (Charles Isherwood)*
*This review may require creating a free account or a paid subscription.
Playbill will continue to update this list as reviews come in.
The piece premiered at Off-Broadway's Lucille Lortel Theatre earlier this year in a run that was extended three times. The production earned two 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding New American Play and Lead Performer in an Off-Broadway play, both for Escola. The show also won the 2024 Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Play. Read reviews for the Off-Broadway run here.
The full Off-Broadway cast is back for the Broadway run, including Escola as Mary Todd Lincoln, Conrad Ricamora as Mary's Husband, James Scully as Mary's Teacher, Bianca Leigh as Mary's Chaperone, and Tony Macht as Mary's Husband's Assistant. Also transferring with the show are understudies Hannah Solow and Peter Smith.
READ: Camp and the Art of Being Cole Escola
Escola's screenwriting credits include At Home With Amy Sedaris and The Other Two, and they've appeared as an actor in Difficult People, Mozart in the Jungle, At Home With Amy Sedaris, and Big Mouth, among others. They released a comedy special on YouTube titled Help! I'm Stuck With Cole Escola in 2021, and an homage to '70s westerns Our Home Out West in November.
Sam Pinkleton is directing the Broadway run after staging the Off-Broadway premiere. His full creative team is back as well, including scenic designer dots, costume designer Holly Pierson, lighting designer Cha See, composer and co-sound designer Daniel Kluger, co-sound designer Drew Levy, wig designer Leah J. Loukas, and music arranger David Dabbon. Casting is by Henry Russell Bergstein. Bryan Bauer and Ryan Patrick Kane are production stage manager and assistant stage manager, respectively.
Oh, Mary! is produced by Kevin McCollum and Lucas McMahon and Mike Lavoie and Carlee Briglia, along with co-producers Bob Boyett, The Council, Jean Doumanian Productions, Nicole Eisenberg, Jay Marcus & George Strus, Irony Point, Richard Batchelder/Bradley Reynolds, Tyler Mount/Tommy Doyle, Nelson & Tao, Palomares & Rosenberg, and Showtown Productions.
Visit OhMaryPlay.com.
Cole Escola in Oh, Mary!
Cole Escola and Bianca Leigh in Oh, Mary!
Conrad Ricamora and Cole Escola in Oh, Mary!
Conrad Ricamora and Tony Macht in Oh, Mary!
Cole Escola and Conrad Ricamora in Oh, Mary!
Cole Escola and James Scully in Oh, Mary!
Conrad Ricamora, Cole Escola, and Bianca Leigh in Oh, Mary!
Tony Macht, Cole Escola, Conrad Ricamora, and Bianca Leigh in Oh, Mary!
