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Full guide →When to go. Head straight out at curtain call. Two-show days are the worst bet at both performances — the cast rests through the matinee and is spent by the evening. A Sunday matinee is the best single bet, because it is a one-show day. In bad weather the barricades sometimes never go up at all.
Who comes out. Anywhere from nobody to most of the cast. Nobody can tell you in advance which three — not us, not the theatre. Treat any list that claims otherwise with suspicion.
What to bring. Tonight’s Playbill and a fine-tip Sharpie, held open to the page you want signed. Ask before you photograph anyone, and keep the pavement clear — it is a working door, not a red carpet.
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The Lowdown
Polly wants a cracker? Please. Alex wants a research grant. Beyond Words is a new play by Laura Maria Censabella about Irene, a Harvard researcher who teaches an African Grey parrot named Alex to communicate and solve problems at roughly the level of a five-year-old, while her male colleagues roll their eyes.
Over thirty years, their research partnership turns into a love story, just not the kind anyone expected. The play is inspired by the real Dr. Irene Pepperberg and her famous parrot, whose talents made headlines around the world.
Colette Robert directs. It plays Ensemble Studio Theatre's second-floor theater on West 52nd Street in Hell's Kitchen, a cozy house with a long record of launching new plays.
First preview is February 8, 2027, opening night is February 18, and the run closes March 7. Smart birds, smart women and probably a few tears: we're in.
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Our verdict
Our full verdict on Beyond Words is coming soon. Reader lottery reports below have the on-the-ground intel in the meantime.
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Won a seat to Beyond Words for the price of a deli lunch? Struck out a dozen times trying? Either way, the next New Yorker hitting refresh on the lottery wants to hear about it. Be the first on the board.
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