THE ADDING MACHINE AT THE NEW GROUP
Contributor - Jack Bartholet | Head of Events & Experiences • 4/16/26
A piece written over one hundred years ago, revised for today, scored to Radiohead — and landing squarely in the middle of a conversation we are all already having.
There are certain nights in New York when you leave the theater and carry something out with you — not the memory of a performance, but a feeling that refuses to settle. The Adding Machine, currently in revival by The New Group at their new home, The Theater at St. Clement's, is that kind of evening. Something landed. And it stayed.
Originally written in 1923 by Elmer L. Rice, the play tracks Mr. Zero — a loyal office worker discarded after decades of service, replaced without ceremony by a machine. What begins as biting satire quickly deepens into something more unsettling: a meditation on automation, alienation, and the quiet erosion of self. That premise alone would have justified a revival. But this production has no interest in nostalgia.
With revisions by playwright Thomas Bradshaw and direction by Scott Elliott, the material has been stripped of reverence and sharpened into something pointed. Bradshaw — known for writing that is intellectually confrontational and unsparing — reframes Rice's text not as a period curiosity but as a diagnosis. The result meets this particular moment head-on.
THE CAST:
You feel the production's ambition immediately in the performances. Led by Daphne Rubin-Vega (almost unrecognizable), and joined by the hilarious Jennifer Tilly, joyful Sarita Choudhury, and Michael Cyril Creighton, the ensemble moves between absurdist comedy and something more unnerving with striking precision. The tone never fully settles — it oscillates, unsettles, provokes. Laughter arrives, but not always comfortably. That tension is by design, and the cast holds it throughout.
THE SCORE:
Perhaps the most unexpected and inspired choice in this production is its score: the music of Radiohead. It is a pairing that should feel incongruous — a 1923 expressionist play underscored by one of the most influential rock catalogues of the last three decades — and yet it feels inevitable. The music doesn't illustrate the play so much as it deepens it, adding a layer of contemporary unease that no period score could have achieved.
WHY NOW:
What strikes most is how contemporary the play feels. A story about being replaced by a machine is no longer allegorical — it is ambient. It sits in the background of nearly every industry, including our own. The urgency in the room on opening night was not manufactured. The audience recognized something. That recognition is exactly what great theater is for.
THE SPACE:
This production also marks a meaningful institutional moment. The New Group has formally established its long-term home at St. Clement's — a signal of renewed commitment to artist-driven, risk-forward work. The space supports the material: intimate, slightly raw, close enough to the stage that passive observation becomes impossible. You are implicated. Jeff Croiter's lighting design extends that intimacy further, guiding the eye through the world of the play with real beauty. Proximity, here, is not incidental — it is the point.
Four Hundred recommendation: Best paired as a curated evening in Hell's Kitchen.
This is not a Broadway spectacle — it is a sharper, more particular experience, and it rewards the right framing. I suggest positioning it as a performance followed by sips and a considered dinner nearby at Same Same Wine Bar, where the conversation the play begins can continue. The show gives you material to work with. Engagement is limited through May 17, with strong interest following opening night.
This is also a useful reminder of what New York theater does best: not scale or spectacle, but immediacy. The kind of work that changes the air in a room. Four Hundred members who respond to culture that is intellectually alive, aesthetically rigorous, and genuinely of the moment will find this one resonates — long after the music fades.
Contributor — Jack Bartholet | Head of Events & Experiences
Jack effortlessly transitions from the entertainment industry to the world of luxury hospitality and travel, bringing a rich background of collaboration with celebrated artists and extensive personal travel experiences. When not consulting, he can be seen onstage with cabaret and theatre performances. Jack's enduring passion centers on fostering a sense of belonging for LGBTQ travelers wherever their journey takes them.
