"Almost an Evening" was entertaining due to Ethan Coen's always original dark humor however, what makes this play even better is the quality of the cast. The casting power of the Coens--no doubt afforded to them by their recent Oscar success--is a Hollywood stratagem you best take advantage of.

Among my favorites were Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham (Scarface and Amadeus), Mark Linn Baker (Cousin Larry!) and Mary McCann (Little Children).

Other highlights include brilliant post modern twists that confirms Coen never forgets his audience and even flatters them at times by dissolving the fourth wall completely. And for a very large cherry on top--I got to see a three-hundred-pound man naked and shaking! An eye full that my life was desperately missing.

Good first act with a healthy and Cohenian sense of humour. Second act was a little disapointing, though the actors were good. Third act is a blast. I couldn't stop laughing, even when people seemed not to get it. The actors were simply amazing. No words to define the third act.

While it started out a little slow, it managed to snowball into something greater and greater with each new act. The final act, "The Debate," was my personal favorite. Every actor did an incredible job and even though they all played multiple characters, they each brought such energy to the roles that you believed that they were different people every time they appeared. A very good production. The only disappointment was the first act, and even that was better than most.

The casting director did a great job with this - I thought each actor was terrific. Each of the pieces were well written for the most part though sometimes lacking in originality I thought. For instance, the scenes with the couples were a bit cliche (ie, the woman nagging the man about misunderstanding her...the older woman kind of balanced it out...but still...) Overall a really good production, I would recommend it.

Absurd with moments of lucidity, Ethan Coen's play brought me back to me first "Rosencranz & Gildenstern Are Dead" sighting. The script was disappointing from this Coen fan, but the acting compensated. The end scene was more along the lines of what I had hoped for: humor in the banality of daily life (in this case, a dinner conversation). Surprise highlight for me: learning that Mark Lynn-Baker (aka Cousin Larry from Perf Strangers) is actually an excellent actor. All in all, def worth a trip to the theater!

That was certainly an interesting experience, and one I won't soon forget. Ethan Coen's theater debut is thought-provoking set of plays with a healthy dose of humor. For me, "Four Benches" never quite coalesced. "Waiting" is very reminiscent of a Beckett play and overall, it worked. But my favorite by far is "Debate," where two gods battle it out on a podium and then the play gets discussed afterward by a couple of theater-goers and the actor who played the angry god and his girlfriend. It was very funny, terrifically acted and had the perfect touch of wry meta-commentary on the merits of the debate, and was a perfect end to the show.

As Ethan Coen's first foray into theatre, this selection of three short plays are very impressive.

The ephemeral dark qualities of the substantial body of film work that he and his brother Joel are better known for, are to be found here on stage. Here is the lightness of touch and wry humour of their older work like "Fargo" or "O Brother Where Art Thou" without the bleakness of, "No Country for Old Men" -despite this being the one garnering multiple Oscars.

The themes that run throughout all three skits are the proximity of Death, Judgement and Hell

"Waiting" - an inter dimensional waiting room with comic overtones, but with unfolding consequences for the main protagonist. "Four Benches" is a discourse between an English secret service man and Death in a sauna. "Debate" has the two versions of the Christian deity, from both Old and New Testament, in an increasingly acrimonious debate, for the benefit of an effete bourgeois theatre audience. It ends self consciously with 'after the theatre' discussions in a restaurant.

Of all three I prefer the first with black comedy that could easily be straight from the pen of Beckett, and haltingly funny Pinteresque dialogue.

The overall effect is a light smorgasbord of ironic fun hovering above Dante's circles of Hell. Probably best to be taken at the start of evening of entertainment, and possibly the beginning of an illustrious second career for Ethan Coen.

I have always been a huge fan of the Coen Brothers, so there is no way I would miss Ethan Coen's Off-Broadway debut. It is a series of three short plays with dark and off beat humor that entices the audience and leaves you wanting more.

My personal favorite was the first one, Waiting. Joey Slotnick, the protagonist is extremely organic and relatable throughout.

I highly recommend going to see this play. It is intelligent and witty, and a wonderful and entertaining way to spend an evening.