A Woman of No Importance Reviews

Josh from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

WE REALLY ENJOYED IT

My wife and I traveled in from out of town to see the play. We were both acquainted with Oscar Wilde, but not with this particular play. It is true that the theater was cold. I’m a big hearty guy who hunts, and I almost never get cold. But I kept on both my wool vest and wool coat to maintain comfort. At the end, the audience members around us were mad; they really disliked this play. But we enjoyed it a lot. The acting was excellent, the sets were very good to excellent. The story line is fantastic, because it captures that period before women got the vote and while aristocracy controlled everything, even when they made mistakes. Plays like this exact one helped change public views and bring about larger shifts in law and custom. So it was a meaningful play done well by the actors. What else do people want out of a play?

Jonathan bart from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

MOST OF THE PEOPLE HERE WANT A MUSICAL

I love drama and comedy plays much more than musicals. I generally make a trip to Niagara to see the Shaw Festival and to Stratford to see the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, and have seen plenty of Wilde, Coward, Maugham and others of this genre. One thing I will say right off the bat is that with a play like this--READ IT BEFORE COMING TO SEE IT. Those who go without any idea what it is about (Victorian gender roles and their injustices) lose much of what they are coming to see. This is an 1895 play--treat it with some intellectual curiosity. Oscar Wilde is one of our greatest humor playwrights---read it and then appreciate the performance. That being said, the version I saw up in Canada was much better. Here, hiring an attractive student with very little experience as the crucial character who beats the sexist English culture was a mistake. Lord Illingworth, the rakish villain, was great. But he needs more actors of his caliber. C+.

Linda H from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

NOT REALLY “A COMEDY”

Conversation between characters was flat with an occasional humorous remark. The last act seemed like a play in itself, not really connected to first two. Twenty minutes longer than listed running time and theatre was half empty by the time it ended.

Henry from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE WAS BAD

So bad that we walked out at intermission At first we could not hear well and specially the fake accents. Couldn’t get into it. The sound system was terrible. Many people were sleeping. Many people around us had the same opinion.

from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

TERRIBLE

The sound system was terrible, i couldnt hear them, the fake accents were really bad. People around me were sleeping. i left at intermission.

from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE

I must say, it was disappointing. I was expecting more of a witty, British comedy. It was hard to hear, hard to follow, and hard to stay awake.

Elayne from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

BORING

Too much conversation, much of which didnt make sense... half the audience left at intermission. People next to us were sleeping. Rachel, the main character in the second act was excellent, but first act didnt really connect to the second act.

Moyer from Warminster, Pennsylvania

REALLY AWFUL

If I could give it no stars I would. Couldn’t hear and what we could hear was downright boring. Not funny at all. We left half way through. We have season tickets to Walnut - have had them for years- and this was just a really disappointing pick for their season. We have never walked out on a show before and never had so much difficult before hearing the dialogue. Felt it was a waste of time.

Jennifer Desiato from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

SO DISAPPOINTING

I was certain I was having a stroke because I could not understand a word that was being said. Perhaps my hearing failed my body the second this show started. Or maybe the sound was muffled because I was so cold I had my coat zipped up to my ears. What ever the reason, I had to leave at intermission. I figured at least I could get a hour back of my life. This was a terrible show, the worst I have seen at this theatre.

Israel & Michele Colon from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

CHATTY AND FLAT

We sat in the first row of the balcony and it was impossible to hear. We left at the intermission along with many others. The next week we returned to Walnut's Studio 3 for "Thurgood" which was a delight. What a contrast!

Patrick from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

BORING

I've seen every WST production for the last ten years or so. This was by far my least favorite. I seriously considered walking out at intermission along with many others who did. To say that it was boring is an understatement. The other reviewers who complain about the poor sound design are absolutely corret - the dialogue was very difficult to hear, make even more so by British accents. The set design seemed like a high school play. Such a disappointment and I don't understand why some of the professional reviewers said otherwise in the press.

Kelly from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A WOMAN OF NOT IMPORTANCE WAS TERRIBLE

I've seen every WST production for years. This one was easily my least favorite. Sound quality was terrible and the play was downright boring. A few witty remarks here and there but for the most part it just felt long and pointless. Many people left at intermission and people around us were all complaining loudly. I have already told friends and family to skip this one.

KK from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A SHOW OF NO IMPORTANCE

I love theater and am a Walnut Street Subscriber but this show was BAD.. the dialogue droned on & on with not enough emphasis on the comedy. As many others commented, We couldn’t hear the actors without straining g (and our group all have excellent hearing), the theater was also exceptionally warm on our recent Sat evening performance which led to lots of sleepers in the seats, including my husband. We decided to leave at intermission and were not shocked to see groups of others walking out with us. Very unfortunate and a waste of an expensive evening in the city.

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