The Adding Machine Off-Broadway Reviews

In the final scene of the play, Mr. Zero learns, to his consternation, that reincarnation is nothing but a series of repetitions. Life is reproduced almost like a series of carbon copies, with departed souls rinsed, recycled, and repurposed. Charles ...

In the final scene of the play, Mr. Zero learns, to his consternation, that reincarnation is nothing but a series of repetitions. Life is reproduced almost like a series of carbon copies, with departed souls rinsed, recycled, and repurposed. Charles indicates that there’s always some unseen force above thumbing the scales, and even eternity can be a slog. Some audiences might find The Adding Machine one too, given how central despair and regret is to the play. But if they clock in with full knowledge of what’s in store, perhaps they will find a play worth reckoning with.

With a less gifted cast, “The Adding Machine” could be a real trial to sit through. The first act is a series of monologues, some of which are delivered directly to the audience. As Mrs. Zero, Jennifer Tilly gets the first long speech as she sits...

With a less gifted cast, “The Adding Machine” could be a real trial to sit through. The first act is a series of monologues, some of which are delivered directly to the audience. As Mrs. Zero, Jennifer Tilly gets the first long speech as she sits in bed next to a catatonic husband who has bored her into distraction, and overeating, for years. This scene and the one on Death Row where Mrs. Zero brings her husband his favorite dish of ham and eggs are comic gems. Tilly has arrived at that wonderful Shelley Winters stage of her career, and she should be getting some of those roles that Jennifer Coolidge continues to gobble up.

Some may argue that The Adding Machine works fine and needs no retooling, but Bradshaw’s reasonably faithful adaptation will be more economical for theaters to produce than the rarely staged original play. In accordance with the stylized nature of ...

Some may argue that The Adding Machine works fine and needs no retooling, but Bradshaw’s reasonably faithful adaptation will be more economical for theaters to produce than the rarely staged original play. In accordance with the stylized nature of expressionist theater, director Scott Elliott cultivates a cool, slightly bizarre quality to his well-acted, seamlessly staged production.

While audience’s may struggle to connect with Zero’s depressingly circular journey, Director Scott Elliott’s production soups up the material with remarkable visual flair. Derek McLane’s evocative and versatile set, with a back wall of shelve...

While audience’s may struggle to connect with Zero’s depressingly circular journey, Director Scott Elliott’s production soups up the material with remarkable visual flair. Derek McLane’s evocative and versatile set, with a back wall of shelves holding antique desk lamps and office machines, yields multiple surprises as wooden filing cabinets open to reveal bedrooms and coffins and other locales. Jeff Croiter’s striking lighting and Stan Mathabanes sometimes jolting sound contribute to the overall tone of the piece, by turns discomfiting and provocative. There is a great deal of skill invested to refresh this century-old cautionary tale, but The Adding Machine doesn’t quite add up.

The theme of corporate greed obsessing over cheap, efficient robot labor, and the toll it takes on human employees, is well-explored and strikingly modern, despite the play being over a hundred years old. But in many other ways, the play shows its ag...

The theme of corporate greed obsessing over cheap, efficient robot labor, and the toll it takes on human employees, is well-explored and strikingly modern, despite the play being over a hundred years old. But in many other ways, the play shows its age. It’s expressionist, so it features characters who represent archetypes instead of individuals, stilted and stylized dialogue, philosophical ramblings, and endless monologues. All this can get quite grating over time. Thomas Bradshaw has revised Rice's script, but he has left too much intact to appeal to a current audience, including violently offensive language that doesn’t particularly serve the plot.

At least this confounding slog of a production looks great at the New Group's new home at the Theater at St. Clement's. Scenic designer Derek McLane's infinite back wall of shelves feels appropriately like a prison, and Jeff Croiter's lighting design...

At least this confounding slog of a production looks great at the New Group's new home at the Theater at St. Clement's. Scenic designer Derek McLane's infinite back wall of shelves feels appropriately like a prison, and Jeff Croiter's lighting design smartly employs moments of jolting brightness amid the dark. But unfortunately, given the talent involved, this Adding Machine falls short of the sum of its parts.