All In: Comedy About Love

All In: Comedy About Loveis a show fromSimon Richwhich consists of live readings of previously writtenshort storiesfromThe New Yorker. The first production, directed byAlex Timbers, opened in previews on 11 December 2024 at theHudson Theaterin New York City onBroadway. The original Broadway cast includesJohn Mulaney,Renee Elise Goldsberry,Fred Armisen, andRichard Kindwith music byThe Magnetic Fields. The show was directed byAlex Timbersand produced byLorne Michaels.
The show consists of live-readings of seven ofSimon Rich's previously written short stories.
The original cast starredJohn Mulaney,Renee Elise Goldsberry,Fred Armisen, andRichard Kind.
The rotating cast lists as follows:
In September 2024 it was announced thatJohn Mulaneywould be starring in a comedic show entitledAll In: Comedy About Lovewritten bySimon Rich. The show would feature a rotating cast of four actors for 10 weeks with performances starting December 11, 2024. The original cast consisted of Mulaney,Renee Elise Goldsberry,Fred Armisen, andRichard Kind.Chloe Finemanwas added replacing Goldsberry as part of the original cast. On September 23, 2024 the rotating cast was announced as beingLin-Manuel Miranda,Nick Kroll,Andrew Rannells,Jimmy Fallon,Aidy Bryant,David Cross,Tim Meadows, andHank Azaria.On October 1, 2024Annaleigh Ashfordwas announced as joining the cast.
The show also included songs from theindie popbandThe Magnetic Fieldsfrom their album69 Love Songs.The show was described as featuring a series of humorous stories aboutdating, heartbreak,marriageand more, adapted from short stories by Rich that had previously appeared inThe New Yorker. The press release said, “Sometimes they will play pirates, sometimes they will play dogs, and there’s one where we make them talk in British accents. But even though the show’s kind of all over the place, it’s meant to tell one simple story: that the most important part of life is who we share it with".Alex Timberswas announced as the shows director withLorne Michaelsproducing.
Sara Holden ofVulturewrote of the shows marketing which confused audience members who expected a play with actors performing the short stories and not a live reading of the short stories. Holden explained, "It's not a good sign when your Broadway show has more than oneRedditthread asking if it's a scam...instead it's an expensive staged reading with a rotating cast of celebrities". She added, "The show's marketing team has been careful about their wording:All In, says its website, is "a series of hilarious short stories...readby some of the funniest people on the planet".Greg Evans ofDeadline Hollywooddescribed show was a "strange beast" onBroadwayand noted, "judging by some audience reviews on various websites, there is indeed confusion –All Inis a series of story readings, or performed readings rather" noting that the production consisted of the actors sitting in armchairs reading from scripts.
All Inreceived mixed reviews with critics with some critics praising its airy comedic quality and A-list cast while others criticized its slight material. Greg Evans ofDeadline Hollywoodwrote favorably to the production comparing it to that of a "perfect holidaysnickerdoodle, a light and tasty snack no less funny for its brevity and lack of splashy production values."Adam Feldman ofTime Outconcurred describing the show was a "live reading" and writing "[It] may not be a full dramatic meal, but it’s a tasty treat for the run-up to Valentine’s Day, sweet and tart as a candy heart". Feldman praised Mulaney and Kind as being "masterful" and compared the stories to that ofWoody Allen's work.
Elizabeth Vincentelli ofThe New York Timeswrote, "It all adds up to an pleasantly innocuous evening, but it's also hard not to think that we're watching a bunch ofFormula 1cars being throttled at 25 mph".In his mixed review Pete Hemstead ofTheatermaniawrote that despite the fact that he was "smiling throughout", "[It] feels like a joke that goes on for too long and it doesn’t have the knee-slapping payoff to make it worth 90 minutes of your time."Johnny Olenski ofThe New York Postwrote a negative review declaring the show "A waste of money" adding "Each cutesy bit is more self-satisfied and twee than the next. And the entire night has the low boil of a long-winded intro that builds to nothing".