Girl From The North Country Reviews

Martha from Schenectady, New York

GREAT PLAY

This is simply a great play. The music, the acting and the different scenes are well done. It is easy to follow, there is nothing confusing and this play is not hard to follow. The actors are great, and professionals. Do not deter yourself from seeing this great piece of art. Those who gave it 1 star are jealous period.

Amy from Cleveland, OH

SOPHISTICATED, EXCELLENT THEATRE

Ignore the one star reviews. This touring show is very, very well done. People who expect all musicals to be “Hello Dolly” might be disappointed by “Girl From The North Country” (and I say that as a fan of “Hello Dolly”!). But this is a very grownup play with music. It has more in common with Greek tragedy than with most feel-good musicals. The Dylan songs aren’t *meant* to advance the plot—they keep the mood going and let you ponder all the feelings the characters are too emotionally inarticulate to express. The cast is dynamite. I was weeping by the end. Give it a chance. It’s thorny and different and wonderful.

Peej from Boston, Massachusetts

TOTALLY AWESOME!!!

I thought this show was totally awesome! I can't understand all of the low reviews. This is not a light-hearted musical, but that is not what I expected. This show has a great storyline with the Bob Dylan music enhancing it. All around great cast and strong performances. Stand outs were Jennifer Blood as Elizabeth Laine and Matt Manuel as Joe Scott

MAI from Chicago, Illinois

OPEN YOUR MIND TO “GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY”

“Girl From the North Country” is certainly melancholy & sad, but much more depressing are the reactions that I’m reading here. It’s as if this musical has to conform to more standard musicals because of a refusal to view it on any other terms or to recognize what it tries to accomplish. This is a mood piece, a musical tone poem, and its kaleidoscope of lonely, alienated characters face a time of misery. It has some of the greatness of “Our Town,” and its multitude of overlapping characters trying to survive in their own way reminded me of a Robert Altman movie. More important than the plight of each character is the summation of all of them — the mood that is cast through staging and these reworked, plaintive, stripped down Bob Dylan songs. This show aches…that doesn’t mean it’s a one-star show. Instead of harping on your disappointment with the “story,” perhaps you should ask a more important question borrowed from one of the great musical poets of our time: “How Does It Feel?”

Cristopher Lamplugh from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

POWERFULLY MOVING

An incredibly powerful and moving story. The vocals and acting were outstanding. Diyan’s songs are not the highlight. Rather the somber lyrics effectively reflect the mood and backdrop of the characters’ struggles. This play demands, and earns, your full attention from beginning to end.. well done

Mary Tiseo from Boston, Massachusetts

NEEDS WORK

The cast we saw last night were all excellent singers. Unfortunately some of the cast were very weak actors. Several leads couldn’t project the needed emotion to move from script to song. A couple were not able to project well and much of what they said was lost to the audience. It felt disappointing. I could see a great theater experience every so often, but then it fell well short of what was intended.

Sue from Kansas City, Missouri

GREAT SINGERS/POOR STORY LINE

This was a disappointment and I would have left at intermission, but I had carpooled. The voices were amazing, but the story line was convulted and hard to follow at times. This needs to be re-written with more UMPH! Again, the music/singers were great, sorry their talents were wasted on a poor story line.

Katianna D. from Chicago, Illinois

I HAD TO LEAVE EARLY

I've never left a show at intermission before, even shows I wasn't enjoying much in the past, but this show? All I can say is that it needs to be workshopped and advertised better - people who went were fans of musicals and fans of Bob Dylan - both were disappointed. Its an "alternative" take on the musical genre and formula, and it should have been advertised as such. Its was also a reimagining of his songs, which while were alright for someone not familiar with them like me, did not sit well with the rest. The poor plot and random songs besides the point, the worst part that made me leave was how little I knew, understood, or cared about the characters. This production is a HUGE fan of "telling instead of showing", so tragic backstories are just narrated to you and expect it to make me care or understand their behaviors and decisions - it didn't. The pacing was so fast it was like the characters weren't allowed to express proper emotion ... in summary? Not worth the time or money!!

Kim from NW Indiana

DO NOT RECOMMEND

I’ve only seen two plays or musicals that I would never see again, and this is one of them. It was more a play that had music as the songs were more like the character’s inner thoughts. It was very dark (literally and metaphorically) with singers/actors frequently facing away from the audience. Many people around me left. There were so many side stories wound through that it made it difficult to get emotionally connected to the majority of them. The gentlemen near me confirmed that the general feeling around the bars at intermission was confusion. Many people left at intermission- one couple in front of me left after maybe 30 minutes. The singers were very talented but the plot was convoluted.

Mike from Chicago, Illinois

WORST SHOW I’VE SEEN IN YEARS

I’ll give 2 stars to the cast just for making it through this long, messy show night after night. I could barely handle 2.5 hours of it. Too many story lines trampling over each other at full blast. In the end I felt nothing for any of the characters other than relief when they were put out of their misery as the house lights came up at the end.

Debbie Durante from Cohasset

BLEAK

Very disappointing. Vocals excellent but nothing engaging with the story’s presentation. Poor acting, terrible, distracting choreography, too many characters, subplots etc etc. As a therapist I was looking to be entertained not further depressed by gloominess. the whole play was performed in the dark .I appreciate realism but the presentation was the worse I’ve ever seen.

Jane from Boston , ma

MOST DEPRESSING PLAY I’VE EVER SEEN

Plot was so horrible I wanted to leave at intermission. You walk out feeling horrible. All the couples hated each other, family members hate eachother, realistic nasty fight scenes, references to rape, everyone is homeless, no love, no hope, families scattered every chara ending was lonely, unloved, unsettled, hopeless. Sent the message life is a useless empty hole. As I sit here today still shaken by it I wish I never saw it. Who the flip would waste such great singers on such an awful premise? During the depression folks wanted hopefully stories to uplift. This story strangles your soul.

Josephine from Boston, Massachusetts

TALENTED SINGERS HORRIBLE DEPRESSING PLAY

First - actors & actresses A+. only reason for any stars. The play experience F- which should tell you how bad the story was — it wasn’t just depressing, it was disturbing. If you have children with issues I want to warn you — Alcoholic son the father struggles to help , he loses him in the end. another father murders his handicapped son , son had attacked and nearly murdered him. All husbands and wives not only hate each other but have awful nasty hurtful realistic fights. Rape is used as a lazy plot point grotesquely unrealistic. Families break apart and lose one another in the end. All the characters are angry, lonely , depressed, homeless - their fates go from bad to worse. Heard a couple “what-the-f-bombs” as we walked out. In a time so many audience members probably have family members with addiction issues , the fate of the sons was deeply disturbing. One of our party almost left at intermission. wish they did. It only got worse. We all left deeply shaken.

Laura from Cincinnati, Ohio

TALENTED CAST. AWFUL MUSICAL

I left at the intermission — which I have never done in decades of attending performances. The cast was very talented and the vocal performances were incredible. However, the songs seemed apropos of nothing and the plot was way too convoluted for the audience to really care about anyone. In the end, I left because I actually felt bad that that talented cast was “forced” to be in that horrible musical. And, I was hardly alone. The exodus was very visible. I would recommend that you not go.

Sue isidwacyz from Cleveland, Ohio

IF YOU LIKE A TRAGEDY WITHOUT REDEEMING CHARACTERS

This was a depressing play mixed with unfamiliar Bob Dylan music. I left the theater feeling angry. I’ve seen hundreds of productions and I rate Girl from the North Country as the worst show I’ve seen anywhere.

Thomas Franco from Cleveland, Ohio

IT COULDN’T BE MORE DEPRESSING

Just plain misery: A story of misery without a hero. Maybe you can appreciate the b-side Bob Dylan music, but I doubt you’ve ever heard these songs before.

Carol Reid from Cleveland, Ohio

GOOD SINGING - CONFUSING PLAY

Wouldn't exactly call this a musical but rather a depressing drama with a few songs thrown in. The only redeeming quality was the lovely vocals when they did sing. As for the play, it was very hard to follow; too many stories/dialongs going on. We left at intermission; something I've never done in 50+ years of theater going. Very disappointing.

Kathryn from Buffalo, New York

GIRL FROM THE NIETH

Great voices. Disjointed plot. Would not recommend

RE from Buffalo, New York

UNDERWHELMING

Left at intermission . Confusing storyline and underwhelming music .

Disappointed from Nashville, Tennessee

CONFUSING, DEPRESSING

The story is confusing, Dylan’s songs are almost unrecognizable and it felt dark and depressing. We left at intermission.

Matt from Chicago, Illinois

GIANT SNOOZE

Just an awful play/musical all around. It's disjointed, and somehow both too complicated and too simplistic at the same time. 8 or so story lines are introduced in the first act, and maybe 1 or 2 actually pay off in any sort of a satisfactory manner by the end. The plot is convoluted but ultimately understandable - but it's not worth understanding. Moving in and out of songs was clumsy, and the songs for the most part were dull. It's not that I don't understand what they were trying to do (this isn't a musical where the songs express what's happening or what a character is thinking - the songs are of a certain mood/evocative of feelings and give space to reflect on what's going on for the characters), it was just done in the most boring way possible. Also, this got advertised as "the Bob Dylan musical" - do not go see this if you're expecting to hear Dylan songs. The reinterpretations butcher most of them beyond recognition.

Alan from Chicago, Illinois

HORRIBLE MUSICAL, DECENT VOCALS.

I’ve seen a plethora of musicals and this is the first I’ve left at intermission. Some of vocals were fairly good but that’s the only good quality.

Randy from Chicago, Illinois

UNENGAGING DARK AND DREARY TRAGEDY WITHOUT A HERO.

Convinced my group of 4 to stay for second act but it just did not get any better. Lots of empty seats after intermission. Some good vocal talent singing poorly redone Dylan songs by characters you could not feel less invested in. Dark and dreary set probably appropriate for depression era Duluth but just so sad and hopeless.

Mary from Chicago, Illinois

EVEN THE DEPRESSION WASN'T THIS DEPRESSING

One-dimensional. My parents were Depression babies & told many stories of folks sticking together, strength & community. None of that was portrayed. Singers were wonderful, but every song sounded the same, one choral dirge after the next. I feel Dylan fans will be mystified why songs were Jimmied into the script. Skip it.

Maria from Chicago, Illinois

BORING

No substance whatsoever. Caught myself dozing off several times. I wish I could get my 2 1/2 hours back.

Fred Fedukis from Chicago, Illinois

INSULT TO DYLAN SONGS, HIGH-SCHOOL LEVEL PLAY

My wife bought me tickets to this show because I am a Dylan fan who grew up in NYC and loves theater. Also, we had driven through Hwy 61 this past summer, and were Dylan primed. I was afraid it was going to be another Billy Joel Getting Out cover band show, and I wish I had been right. What a disappointing mess. Unrecognizable Dylan songs and an incoherent story that needs to be read about to understand. I can't imagine this high-school level play could make it on Broadway, at least the NYC one. Painful to sit through. The only other Dylan experience at least as bad was Dylan himself at Rivinia reimagining his own songs to incomprehension. Can we at least get Dylan songs that sound like the ones on the albums I love? It's like that Star Trek episode where no one knows what the aliens are saying, and then it turns out to be the Declaration of Independence with jumbled syntaxes. Like that.

Critic KD from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

PAINFUL

Would have left at intermission but stayed because it simply had to get better. It did not. So average, poor story, random songs, random characters - cared about no one. Uninspired music - did not add but detracted from Bob Dylan’s music and lyrics.

Adam from Boston, Massachusetts

CONFUSING, DEPRESSING, POORLY DONE

Confusing, meandering story; with Bob Dylan songs seemingly thrown in at random. Could have been an amazing show, but recommend avoiding.

Linda Arturovna from Boston, Massachusetts

F-- SAVE YOUR MONEY AND YOUR TIME

This was jaw-droppingly dreadful. I think Chat GPT wrote it. Made no bloody sense. Contrived and clichéd characters and storylines that were confusing, juvenile. Characters you did not care about. Dylan's songs were just dumped in. The only good thing about this catastrophe was the singing and music. I felt sorry for the actors.

Chuck from Boston, Massachusetts

AWFUL AWFUL

Girl from North Country - PU skip it.

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