Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Opinionist: <em>The Pee-wee Herman Show</em>
By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 21, 2010
Modified Nov 21, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
View all 5
By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 21, 2010
Modified Nov 21, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The gang's all here, more or less. From a distance, Paul Reubens looks exactly the same as when many of us first encountered him on his hit Reagan-era Saturday morning kids' show. His fantasy kitsch cabin has been rendered in exacting detail, and puppet master Basil Twist has anthropomorphized all the old objects marvelously. Lynne Marie Stewart is back as Miss Yvonne, and though Laurence Fishburne couldn't be coaxed onstage as Cowboy Curtis, the actors who played Mailman Mike and Jambi the Genie in the original live show are on the scene. The antics are manic, the colors are primary, and many of the best old bits from the hit series have been meticulously recycled. And yet, and yet... the packed playhouse still feels sort of empty. I know you are but what am I?
When I told a friend I was off to finally see "Pee-wee" earlier this week, he rolled his eyes and said, "Better hope you like Pee-wee!" And I do like Pee-wee! The Herman phenomenon—which had its roots in a late-night LA cabaret show in 1981 and Tim Burton's 1985 feature film debut, Pee-wee's Big Adventure—was a breath of fresh, weird air into the mid-80s mainstream media phantasmagoria. The sui generis Pee-wee was, you may recall, all the rage, popping up on Letterman, SNL, the cover of Rolling Stone, and rap songs. And his kids' show was a unique blend of edgy comedy, sophisticated satire, and upbeat absurdity. But I know what my friend meant—a little Pee-wee goes a long way, and what was subtly subversive on national television feels a little flat in the big (frigid!) Stephen Sondheim Theatre.
It's all staged with great energy and professionalism, but Reubens seems to be going through the motions just a little bit, and in certain moments the audience of obsessed fans radiates more electricity than the star. All the old goofy gags are duly dispensed one by one, like candy down a conveyor belt, and the nostalgia-starved crowd gobbles them up with glee. It seems a particularly American thing to pay big bucks to indulge in nostalgia for a TV show/movie franchise, but the crowd gets what they paid for. In other words, if you love Pee-wee, you'll love this. But I merely like Pee-wee, and looking back at some of the TV show's best moments may remind you that you can just as easily enjoy the long-lost TV highlights of your youth on DVD. For me, it's still just an ad-pimping TV show, not some revelatory Proustian madeleine. As Peter De Vries once observed, nostalgia just isn't what it used to be.
Tagged
broadway
opinionist
pee wee herman
pee wee herman show
pee wee's playhouse
review
theater
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Ever wish you could get paid to walk through a stranger’s house? ‘The Scout’ is for you.
A new film focuses on the strange career of a location scout in New York City.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Sep 26, 2026
There are 100s of places to visit during Open House New York. Here's 5 of our favorites.
See the entire lineup for the weekend when the city opens its doors.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Arts & Entertainment
There are 100s of places to visit during Open House New York. Here's 5 of our favorites.
See the entire lineup for the weekend when the city opens its doors.
By
Hannah Frishberg
A massive MTA archive ended up in a Virginia warehouse. A Brooklyn man brought it home.
By
Hannah Frishberg
How a Harry Styles pop-up in the East Village led to a nearby bookstore owner's arrest
By
Sonia Rao
NYC’s creative workers are increasingly self-employed, report says
By
Hannah Frishberg
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .