Kudos to Zoetic Theater’s audacity to take on The Inheritance, Part One, a work of great scale and density. A three-and-a-half-hour drama about being gay in Manhattan is not an easy sell. But it’s precisely that ambition that makes this production of The Inheritance, Part One feel exciting and necessary, even when it isn’t always fresh.
The idea of committing to a three-and-a-half-hour play about multiple generations of gay men living in Manhattan, staged at a regional theater, felt like a big ask. Three acts. Two ten-minute intermissions. This is four hours of your life. Yet what unfolds is bold, ambitious, grounded, occasionally transcendental, and often simply wonderful storytelling.
The play weaves together crisscrossing generations, parallel narratives, and overlapping lives in a way that feels intimate, personal, and deeply engaging. When it works, and it often does, it feels timeless, emotionally rigorous, and genuinely compelling.
Among the highlights of Part One is Anthony Michael Martinez’s portrayal of Toby Darling, a thirty-something writer who describes himself as a kind of gay J.D. Salinger, complete with a self-aware, gay Holden Caulfield stand-in. Martinez commands the room with a nuance that is both cocky and vulnerable, giving Toby a depth that slowly reveals itself. It’s a performance that anchors the play.
Another standout is Alex Weisman as Eric Glass. On the surface, Eric appears fragile, almost transparent — as his name suggests — but he’s anything but shallow. Weisman plays him with warmth, vulnerability, and surprising confidence. His timing is excellent, and his character becomes even more essential as the play progresses.
At its core, The Inheritance asks two major questions. What does it mean to be a gay man in America? And what does it mean to be human?
When the play leans into the second question it explores love, loss, loneliness, and connection. And the play feels alive, original, and emotionally resonant. When it leans too hard into the first question, it feels slightly dated in 2026, weighed down by familiar tropes and ideas that no longer feel urgent in the same way.
The title itself points to the play’s central metaphor, inheritance. What do we receive from those who came before us? Property. Money. Influence. Trauma. Political struggle. The fight for rights. This idea blankets the play, sometimes elegantly, sometimes heavily.
Directed with clarity and confidence by Stuart Meltzer, this production showcases the strength of the Zoetic Stage ensemble. With twelve male actors bouncing off each other like pinballs, the staging is dynamic and alive. Meltzer and his real-life partner, playwright and actor Michael McKeever, continue to prove why Zoetic remains one of the most vital companies in the region.
There is a lot to track. It’s epic. Be on the lookout for emotional triangles, offstage histories, layered storytelling. If you lose focus, the final act can feel confusing and exhausting. But if you stay with it, the writing is strong enough to reward your attention.
The Inheritance, Part One originally premiered in London in 2018, went on to Broadway, and won major awards, including the Tony for Best Play. Now, seeing it staged locally at this scale is both impressive and encouraging. It’s not perfect. It’s long and demanding. At times, it feels overstuffed.
But it’s also brave, thoughtful, and deeply human.
For a regional theater to kick off the year with something this ambitious says a lot. And most of it says the right things.
For more info and tickets click here.
The Inheritance, Part One is playing at the Arsht Center until Jan 25.
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