Overview
- The New Group opened Gordon Greenberg’s adaptation of Patrick Hamilton’s Rope on Nov. 3, 2026, and the production runs at the Theater at St. Clement’s through Dec. 6 with a cast led by Cameron Monaghan and Corey Fogelmanis.
- Greenberg relocates the story to 1957 New York and makes previously implied elements explicit by framing the killers as gay and Jewish figures, shifting the play toward an identity-driven character study.
- Critics across early reviews praised the production’s technical work and performances, with repeated notice of strong set, costume, lighting and sound design and a standout turn from Monaghan.
- Reviewers also faulted the script’s structural choices—extended flashbacks, direct-to-audience monologues and fourth-wall breaks—for explaining motive and emotion so fully that the original thriller’s sustained suspense erodes.
- The adaptation draws openly on the Leopold-and-Loeb case and Nietzschean ideas for its themes, and at least one reviewer noted the staging comes as The New Group raises funds to renovate the Theater at St. Clement’s, a factor critics say may have influenced programming choices.