More Theater Monday - Coney Island Nursery Rhyme

We were given complimentary tickets to Coney Island Nursery Rhyme for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own. 

What: Coney Island Nursery Rhyme 

 Where: The NuBox at John DeSotelle Studio 

              754 Ninth Ave.

              New York, NY

When: This event took place from July 12 - July 20, 2024

Coney Island Nursery Rhyme is a fictionalized version of the story of Martin A. Couney, who revolutionized neonatal care by promoting the use of incubators for premature babies even though he may or may not have been an actual doctor. He was definitely something of a showman as the babies in his care were put on display as part of a Coney Island sideshow.  The funds from this venture were put to good use, however as  Couney used them to hire nurses to care for the babies.

The show's plot revolves around the fictional case of one premature infant who surely would have died without Couney's intervention. However, surprisingly neither Couney nor the child's mother is the show's central character. A peripheral character with a tenuous connection to the mother is the central character. This seems like an odd choice despite the fact that this character, Ray Abbott,  is quite nicely played by Zachary Spiegel. His portrayal of a man caught between morality and legality is quite touching. Jessica Noboa's portrayal of the baby's mother is also quite touching. Phyllis Lindy as the baby's grandmother, a staunch supporter of the usual way of doing things and highly suspicious of Couney the interloper, is a force to be reckoned with. Mike Timoney's portrayal of Couney is rather laidback perhaps even too laidback, The cast is rounded out by Peter Marzilli as Lt. Peter  Petrovick and Judge Boothby as Dr. Charon Fielding.

The show and its subject are both quite fascinating. However, the ending is kind of abrupt. It definitely leaves you wanting to know more.

And that's our view. Tune in tomorrow for Tips for Tuesday.

Photo credits:

All Coney Island Nursery Rhyme production photos by Valerie Terranova

Images used in this post have been sent to us from publicists, artists, and/or  PR firms and are used by permission. If there is a problem with the rights to any image, please contact us  here , and we will look into the matter.