'The Monsters' Off-Broadway review — sibling rivalry enters the ring

Read our review of The Monsters off Broadway, a new play written and directed by Ngozi Anyanwu and presented by Manhattan Theatre Club at New York City Center.

Summary

• The Monsters follows the reunion of two estranged siblings by way of MMA fighting
• The show benefits from believable physicality and the chemistry between actors Aigner Mizzelle and Okieriete Onaodowan but falters story-wise toward the end
• The show is recommended for fans of MMA; family dramas; and the previous Broadway work of both actors

Playwright Ngozi Anyanwu is very precise with information. Her play The Monsters, which she also directs for Manhattan Theatre Club, carefully controls the flow of backstory, releasing trickles of context here and there as her characters decide whether to trust each other.

Several minutes of awkward banter pass before Lil (Aigner Mizzelle) reveals she is indeed Big's (Okieriete Onaodowan) little sister, long ago abandoned by a young man with nowhere to go and a burgeoning alcohol problem. Lil remains hurt and confused by Big’s betrayal, yet she is the one who harbors hopes of following in his career footsteps and seeks him out after a UFC match, perhaps too curious for her own good. Orphaned and broke, Big gave in to the image of gargantuan, racialized violence everyone has projected onto him since adolescence: “Everybody looking at me like I’m a monster,” he explains. Might as well give them a show.

It’s a convenient premise, one that would feel too on-the-nose in lesser hands: A man channels his rage and grief into the controlled and organized violence of mixed martial arts. Anyanwu’s brother was an MMA fighter, and the production employed MMA consultant Sijara Eubanks to craft believable movements even without the blood and guts of a UFC match. Mizelle and Onaodowan both put themselves through the physical ringer over the course of the show; it’s a feat for the actors and for choreographer Rickey Tripp, who uses deft movements to show the siblings’ progression from carefree childhood games to legitimate fighting.

The Monsters succeeds in its slow and steady gain of momentum as Big and Lil both work toward their next matches and try to repair their relationship. Childhood flashbacks show Mizzelle’s unbridled joy as a rambunctious sister who knows her big brother is putty in her hands, and the siblings' physical play is just as tightly choreographed as their fights. Mizzelle zooms across scenic designer Andrew Boyce’s stage like a puppy, daring you not to love her, before she passes out from exhaustion. Onaodowan subtly changes his voice as time goes on, showing how Big internalizes the call to toughen up. As adults, Lil and Big don’t have to explain the fracture in their relationship — we saw it develop like film before us.

In its final third, however, The Monsters exchanges honesty for treacly confessions and an ending wrapped in a bow of reconciliation. Another time jump leaves more questions than answers — it’s hard to watch Big protect Lil for an hour and then give up on her just as she descends into the addiction he understands all too well — and the recitation of a poem Big wrote as a teenager takes us out of the action of the present moment. The practiced chemistry between Mizzelle and Onaodowan carries the show, but Anyanwu has fallen into the trap of a playwright directing their own work: There is no other collaborator to pull back on certain beats, to make sure the work is balanced instead of indulgent. In this way, The Monsters would benefit from a sparring partner.

The Monsters summary

When Josephine, or Lil, begins following her brother Big’s UFC career, she’s not sure he wants to reconnect. It’s been 16 years since Big left her alone with her alcoholic mother, whose recent death has left Josephine feeling aimless and restless. Big soon allows his sister to become his training partner and a fighter in her own right, and their progression is interspersed with flashbacks to their childhood. Josephine’s ambitions, however, are anything but little and may damage both her body and her relationship with her brother.

What to expect at The Monsters

The Monsters runs approximately 95 minutes and is performed without an intermission. The production features a strobe lights sequence. The Monsters discusses alcohol and drug abuse, domestic violence, child abuse, racism, and homophobia.

The Monsters includes multiple physical brawls dramatized by fight director Gerry Rodriguez and MMA consultant Eubanks. Mizzelle and Onaodowan only pantomime being struck or punched, so audience members wary of seeing the actual violence of an MMA fight need not worry.

Scenic designer Boyce’s set is both training gym and arena, inviting audiences to watch The Monsters from three sides of the stage. Ushers may ask audience members in the front rows to check their coats to keep the aisles clear for the actors.

What audiences are saying about The Monsters

Viewers have shared their responses to The Monsters on various online platforms in the lead-up to its official Off-Broadway opening.

• Playwright and actor Ashley Graves wrote on Instagram, “love her work can’t wait to see it!”
• Time Out New York critic Adam Feldman recommends The Monsters after its 2025 world premiere at Two River Theater in New Jersey.
• On Facebook, user Marian Daiman praised the “stellar work by terrific actors and director, not to forget an MMA consultant!”

Read more audience reviews of The Monsters on Show-Score.

Who should see The Monsters

• If you enjoyed Douglas Lyons’s Chicken and Biscuits on Broadway, you won’t want to miss cast member Aigner Mizzelle’s turn as the eager-to-please Lil.
• MMA followers can rest assured that The Monsters stays true to form and welcomes fans to Manhattan Theatre Club’s arena. Anyanwu’s brother was a fighter, and MMA consultant Sijara Eubanks is a former UFC number one.
• Fans of Okieriete Onaodowan’s turn in Hamilton and other musicals will enjoy his more somber turn as the grumbly “teddy bear” Big.

Learn more about The Monsters off Broadway

Though it falters in its final act, Anyanwu’s The Monsters is a showcase of Mizzelle and Onaodowan’s range and talent. The intimate relationship they build as siblings forced into a father-daughter dynamic explodes when they become coach and athlete, mentor and mentee. Mizzelle in particular anchors the production with equal parts heart and guts.

Learn more and get The Monsters tickets on New York Theatre Guide. The Monsters is at New York City Center through March 15.

Photo credit: The Monsters off Broadway. (Photos by T. Charles Erickson)