Liberal firebrand Michael Moore is making his Broadway debut. His one-man show, "The Terms of My Surrender," opened at the Belasco Theatre on Thursday night. NY1's Roma Torre filed the following review.
I bet the last place you'd expect to find eye candy on Broadway is Michael Moore's one-man show "The Terms of My Surrender." But it's there, all right, and quite a pleasant surprise. But far more satisfying is the mind candy that Moore treats us to. Of course, it's red meat for a blue state, but no matter your political persuasion, there's no denying that the guy can hold a stage.
It's two intermission-less hours consisting, predictably, of Trump-bashing, but there's lots of amusing biographical anecdotes as well. Some of them are extremely moving, while others are insightful, and all of them are delivered by a masterful storyteller who manages to entertain and instruct simultaneously.
The show, which Moore wrote and is tightly directed by Michael Mayer, is also very funny. Moore's gift for satire is on full display in a segment where he reads from the TSA list of banned items from airplanes, such as dynamite, meat cleavers, and hand grenades. No joke, really!
Moore's overriding theme is that one person can make a difference, and given his determination to make Trump a one-term president, he lobs motivational grenades at the audience in an effort to persuade them that they possess the power, like a swarm of bees, to affect great change.
The physical production, with scenic design by David Rockwell and Andrew Lazarow's projections, adds just enough visuals to enhance the material without overpowering the message.
The bottom line: Moore is down these days, but given what he sees as America's growing liberal bent, don't count him out just yet. And despite the title of his show, surrendering is not an option.
Another surprise is reading in the Playbill that Moore, long regarded as Public Enemy Number One by the National Rifle Association (NRA), is actually a card-carrying NRA member who won their Marksman Award years ago. It's no wonder he hit the target with this one, even if he is preaching to the choir.