Review Roundup: TRU Starring Jesse Tyler Ferguson Off-Broadway

Tru, starring Tony Award winner & five-time Emmy-nominee Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Truman Capote, is now officially open Off-Broadway. The production will ru to May 3, 2026. Tony, Emmy, and Olivier Award winner Rob Ashford directs this first New York revival of Jay Presson Allen’s play at House of the Redeemer, a historic Upper East Side mansion first owned by a great-granddaughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt. 

It's December 1975 and Truman Capote is alone in his New York apartment, reeling from a crisis that cost him the elite social circle he adored. Drawn entirely from Capote’s own words, this one-man play is an unflinching portrait of an artist at his breaking point, confronting the consequences of his most scandalous work. Performed in House of the Redeemer’s hyper-intimate Library, this strictly limited engagement offers an immersive theatrical experience brought to life for an audience of only 99 patrons nightly. See what the critics are saying...

Robert Hofler, The Wrap: Spending an afternoon with this Capote is something you wouldn’t wish on his worst enemies — Jacqueline Susann and David Reuben, included. When Capote shakes his bottle of Tuinals, he gives us false hope that he’ll swallow its contents right there and then.

Frank Scheck, New York Stage Review: The play’s depiction of Capote doesn’t dig particularly deep, not offering much to those unfamiliar with the author’s literary output other than a colorful portrait of an eccentric figure in tragic decline. But it remains an engaging theatrical experience thanks to the vivid writing, much of it taken directly from Capote himself, and for the opportunity it provides for its performer. Ferguson makes the most of it, delivering a wonderfully entertaining portrayal that benefits greatly from the close proximity of the audience numbering less than a hundred. Restlessly wandering around the large room and often addressing people directly, the actor makes you feel as if you’re a treasured houseguest, even if he does take care to remove a supposedly valuable knickknack that might prove too tempting.

David Finkle, New York Stage Review: To describe Capote as self-involved is a laughable understatement. But thank the entertainment gods for that. He’s at his funniest throughout, and certainly when a Christmas gift of poinsettias is delivered, he’s an irate hoot. Miffed at the sender’s clichéd inspiration he utters: “I’m giving stuff from Tiffany’s, and I’m getting poinsettias.”

Gillian Russo, New York Theatre Guide: The actor finely transforms into the writer, imitating his high-pitched voice and wardrobe like that of a mob boss on vacation (costumes are by Sam Spector). But about halfway through, Tru's momentum plateaus despite Allen's attempts to dive into the darker side of Capote's psyche. He meanders into so many different areas of his life and career with no apparent logic — sometimes he's talking to us, sometimes to himself or the phone or the biographer as though we're suddenly not there — without ever reaching a dramatic peak. A scene in which a telephone operator recognizes Capote's voice and chats with him, momentarily freeing him and us from his own head, comes closest.

Average Rating: 57.5%