More Theater Monday - Girl, Interrupted

We were given complimentary tickets to Girl, Interrupted for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.

What: Girl, Interrupted

Where: Public Theater

             425 Lafayette St.

             New York, NY

Who: Recommended for Ages 17 and Up Due to Subject Matter

When: Through July 12, 2026

Girl, Interrupted is more akin to the original 1993 memoir of the same name by Susanna Kaysen than the 1999 film based on it, even the author of the book was said to be displeased with the film version. Still, there are differences in plot and character between the book and the play. However, in both cases, the story revolves around a young woman, Susanna, who is confined to a mental hospital for a time following a suicide attempt.

The show explores not only the treatment of mental illness, but the way young women are much more likely to be diagnosed and hospitalized for the same than men. Even though the show is set in the late 1960s, in some ways, things haven't changed all that much, even though long-term mental institutions have gone out of favor. Women are still much more likely to get diagnosed with and hospitalized for mental illness, whether it is deserved or not. For instance, there is a character in the show (and the book) who is clearly being sexually abused by her father, and rather than being in a continuous cycle of drugs and hospitalization, the root cause should have been dealt with by keeping her away from her father and putting her in therapy.

In general, the characters and performances are both extremely touching and sometimes even heartbreaking. Although there are moments of lightness within the show, it is overall dark and permeated by a kind of sadness. It might also be triggering to some people not only because of its overarching theme of mental illness, but also because it deals with such things as self-harm, attempted suicide, actual suicide (although this occurs offstage), and more. These things also make the show extremely unsuitable for children.

 

The show is described as a play with music. However, it is full of thoughtful, original plot and character-based songs. Thus, to call it a play with music rather than a musical is kind of slight to the composer, Aimee Mann. After all, musicals neither have to be light and happy nor full of joyful, energetic dance numbers. The propensity to categorize productions as "a show with music" rather than an actual musical is really reaching ridiculous proportions these days.

This is not always an easy show to watch. However, it remains extremely relevant. Thus, both the issues that it raises and the cast's performances make it worth seeing.

And that's our view. For more about Girl, Interrupted or to purchase tickets, visit publictheater.org/productions/season/2526/girl-interrupted

Tune in tomorrow for Tips for Tuesday.

Photo credits:

All Girl, Interrupted production photos by Joan Marcus.

Images used in this post were sent by publicists, artists, and/or  PR firms and are used by permission.  Any Concerns regarding image usage can be addressed here