BY TRAV S.D. | Any time I read raves about a show, or hear buzz that it is sensational, or that you can’t get a ticket for love or money, my natural inclination is to be skeptical to the point of intransigence. If everybody loves it, I feel almost duty-bound to hate it. And everybody loves Oh, Mary! Since it opened at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher St.) back in January, it’s all anyone in the theatre community has talked about. Since it moved to Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre (149 W. 45th St.) a month ago, the chatter has gone national. People were so excited to be there at the matinee I attended this past weekend, they were tripping as they scrambled toward their seats. Not the mushroom kind, the “me faw down” kind. How good could it be?

It could be that good. In fact, it is my sad duty to inform you that Oh, Mary! is quite possibly the best time I have ever had at the theatre. I didn’t even fight it. It’s a non-stop blizzard of laughs from the very first line until the curtain call. I find it inconceivable that any amount of build-up could ruin it for you, could make you feel let down once you see it. I even stood for the standing ovation, something I almost never do. And I intend to hang on to my copy of the program and the ticket, something I haven’t done since I was a teenager.

In the unlikely event that you haven’t heard the premise, non-binary performer Cole Escola (Difficult People, At Home with Amy Sedaris) wrote and stars in this campy take on Mary Todd Lincoln during the final days of her husband’s Presidency. The fact that it sounds the farthest thing from hysterical is the point. Lincoln (played here by Conrad Ricamora) is kind of the ultimate American Sacred Cow. As depicted in this play, let’s just say I won’t hesitate to recommend the show to Log Cabin Republicans. He’s also the villain of the piece, a controlling, stifling husband whose role as President (and the war over which he is presiding) are really interfering with Mary’s dreams of becoming a cabaret star.

It’s basically the same plot machine as I Love Lucy or Judy Garland in an MGM musical. But with maximum irreverence. Escola’s depiction of the First Lady builds on the most widely known fact about her, that she was a depressed alcoholic, and expands upon that, making her a complete horror: selfish, cruel, foul-mouthed, ignorant—the most entertaining anti-hero since Milton’s Satan. The supporting cast includes the divine Downtown star Bianca Leigh as Mary’s chaperone, James Scully as a theoretically surprising tutor (only surprising to those bad at comedy math), and Tony Macht, who unexpectedly gets a chance to shine big in the play’s closing moments.

There are ghosts here. What would a play set in 1865 be without Spirits from the Great Beyond? Burlesque came to the U.S. a mere three years after the Lincoln assassination, in the form of Lydia Thompsons’ British Blondes. Spoofs were the meat and drink of Broadway in the early 20th century productions of Weber and Fields. And the show avoidably makes me think of the drag-stravaganzas of the late, much missed Everett Quinton, and his partner and mentor Charles Ludlam, of the Ridiculous Theatrical Company. Escola’s Mary is a worthy heir apparent to Ludlam’s Camille, Galas, and Irma Vep. Only the fact that Escola was born six months before Ludlam passed prevents me from suspecting that some kind of transmigration of souls had occurred.

Played in a single 90-minute act, Oh, Mary! moves with the speed and deliberateness of a steam train, with gags every two seconds, and (well-earned) applause on every blackout. The good news is that the run has been extended to November 10. Run now and get your tickets—but don’t trip on the way to your seat!

“Oh, Mary!” is at the Lyceum Theatre (149 W. 45th St.) through November 10. The current performance schedule is: Mon.-Wed. at 7:30pm, Thurs. at 5pm & 8:30pm, Fri. at 7:30pm, Sat. at 5pm & 8:30pm. Beginning September 16, the schedule changes to: Mon., Wed. & Fri. at 7:30pm, Thurs. & Sat. at 5pm & 8:30pm, Sun. at 5pm. General tickets begin at $49 and are available on Telecharge, in person at the Lyceum Box Office, or by phone at 212-239-6200. The Digital Ticket Lottery opens at 12am one day before the performance; winners are drawn the same day at 10am & 3pm. Winners may buy up to 2 tickets at $47 each. Visit OhMaryPlay.com/lottery to enter. In-Person Rush: available at the Lyceum Theatre Box Office for $43, available day-of when the box office opens. Rush ends 30 minutes before curtain. One person may buy up to 2 tickets. For more information about tickets the play, and the minds behind this production, visit OhMaryPlay.com.

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Note: This editorial content was made possible, in part, by a 2024 pledge of financial support from Chelsea Market.

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