'We'll See' Off-Broadway review — the Apple family returns for the midterms

Read our review of We'll See off Broadway, writer/director Richard Nelson's latest work in a series of political-themed plays about the fictional Apple family.

Summary

• We'll See is a play set at the dinner table of the fictional Apple family as they discuss the 2026 midterm elections
• The show is Richard Nelson's latest in a series in which the Apples discuss current political events
• The show is recommended for fans of the play series and its actors, who have been with their characters for over 15 years throughout multiple Apple family plays

The hottest accessory at the opening night of We’ll See at the Public Theater was an “I Voted” sticker. Playwright/director Richard Nelson has once again penned a real-time election night play, inviting press to watch fictional people fret over the midterms in place of actually fretting over the midterms as they were unfolding on November 3. Like the audience, the Apple family has turned their phones to airplane mode and forbidden each other from speaking the name of the president like he’s Voldemort.

We’ll See is the first time we’ve seen the reunited Apple family since the 2020 virtual play What Do We Need To Talk About? Nelson has written about the Apples, along with other fictional families in upstate Rhinebeck, New York, since 2010, squishing them all around a dinner table to talk about politics, relationships, and jobs. The company of We’ll See has been with their characters for over 15 years, aging and changing alongside them. It is a rare, or perhaps singular, opportunity for actors, and that alone makes the production a worthwhile experiment in drama.

Nelson’s series of Apple family plays, called the Rhinebeck Panorama, is often described as Chekhovian, with melancholic characters lamenting the state of a changing, perhaps crumbling society. Why, then, do the stakes of We’ll See feel so much lower? At the end of the night, regardless of election results, it does not feel like anything is going to happen to the Apples.

Sure, the cost of living in Rhinebeck has gone up, but Barbara (Maryann Plunkett) and Marian (Laila Robins) have solved problems of both money and loneliness by moving in together. Richard (Jay O. Sanders) can still fly business class to Europe as he pleases. The group is genuinely concerned about ICE activity and threats against the ESL students Barbara volunteers with, but beyond that tutoring, there’s nothing they can do about it, right? They certainly don’t seem to have any ideas.

Jane (Sally Murphy), the youngest Apple sibling, confesses that she did not vote and is no longer a registered Democrat because she feels the party has abandoned her, but she does not elaborate on why, and no one asks. All she offers is that she misses the good old days when Rhinebeck’s town supervisor was just the town supervisor, not a Democratic or Republican one. It’s a juvenile argument — and though Jane is the youngest, she is not young — against which no one pushes. They dutifully admonish Jane for not voting and move on.

Despite the threats to democracy the siblings sigh over, there is no sense of urgency in We’ll See. They share feel-good stories to cheer each other up, which becomes a neat contest of who’s a better person and neighbor. It’s all fine and dandy and maybe relatable (many of us chase the dopamine hit of random acts of kindness, both given and received), but it does not make for compelling drama.

Nelson’s Rhinebeck plays are naturalistic, mimicking everyday life with all its mundanity and an actual meal around scenic designer Jason Ardizzone-West’s table. But Nelson injects more realism when the going gets political, and the discussions do not feel grounded. It is as if he wrote an initial draft of the Apple family’s journey, then went back and inserted requisite political dialogue. The only exception is Barbara’s outburst at one of her high school students, which forced her into an unplanned retirement. The story carefully braids Barbara’s experiences as a political citizen and as a teacher and is the most engaging plot of the night.

Nelson recently told the Guardian that We’ll See is not a play that asks “What’s going to happen?,” but one that makes the audience ask “What’s happened?” The question at the heart of We’ll See may be closer to “Why should we care?” Characters talking about politics does not political theatre make. Perhaps going to the theatre counted as political engagement when the Apple family emerged in 2010, but like voting, it's no longer enough.

We’ll See summary

As the polls close in the 2026 midterms, sisters Barbara and Marian Apple host their youngest sister, Jane; brother, Richard; and Richard's partner, Yvonne, for dinner. Jane told her partner, Tim, that she was only leaving Brooklyn for the day to go vote in Rhinebeck, but she plans to escape the overcrowded apartment of Tim’s daughter and her friends. Over pasta and banana bread, the family discusses their changing lives and a changing Rhinebeck.

What to expect at We’ll See

We’ll See runs approximately 1 hour and 50 minutes and is performed without an intermission.

The play includes discussions of xenophobia, racism, dementia, suicide, cancer, weight loss, and death. The Public notes that the cast of We’ll See performs their dialogue “at natural speaking volumes” to preserve the “conversational” tone of the play, but free assisted listening devices are available.

Audiences sit on all four sides of the Public's Barbaralee Theater, looking down at the Apple family’s table. Audience members can see one another for much of the show, adding to the intimacy of the piece.

What audiences are saying about We’ll See

We’ll See has a 72% audience approval rating on the review aggregator Show-Score. Theatregoers have largely praised the performances while sharing mixed responses to the play's writing and pace.

• "If you've seen one of the previous Apple Family plays you know what to expect. Sweet, warm, tender, honest, biting, and sometimes angry conversations about life in America today. A snapshot of one moment in time." - Show-Score user JoeyFranko
• "Enticing theme and good discussions around current issues, not unlike real life conversations among friends or family. Top-notch acting kept my attention on an otherwise too long show where we're basically watching people sitting around the dinner table. No real tension or impactful moments." - Show-Score user Show Addict
• "Not spectacle or conflict, but simple interaction among familiar people trying to make sense of the world through everyday connection. Nelson's plays are a joy ... and also very much an acquired taste. He has an extraordinary ability to illuminate the ordinary in ways that feel meaningful and relevant." - Show-Score user Moose Murders

Read more audience reviews of We’ll See on Show-Score.

Who should see We’ll See

• We’ll See once again features real-life couple Maryann Plunkett and Jay O. Sanders as brother and sister Richard and Barbara, and fans will want to see them at work. While starring in multiple Nelson Rhinebeck plays over the years, Sanders has also earned praise for his performances in Primary Trust and Girl from the North Country, while Plunkett was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance in the Broadway adaptation of The Notebook.
• If you’ve enjoyed any other installment in the Rhinebeck Panorama, you will inevitably appreciate We’ll See. The play is a once-in-a-generation chance to watch actors work with characters they’ve known and lived in for 16 years.

Learn more about We’ll See off Broadway

Near the end of We’ll See, Jane details how she tried to assuage her son’s fears by reminding him of previous generations' problems: two World Wars, the Great Depression, and the Spanish flu. The litany is not dissimilar from her son’s current reality, yet she surmises that he “didn’t want to hear it.” This disconnect between Jane and her son mirrors that of Nelson and the 2026 audience. We don’t need to hear about who had it worse — we need to speak about what we’re going to do now.

Learn more and get We’ll See tickets on New York Theatre Guide. We’ll See is at The Public Theater through November 22.

Photo credit: We'll See off Broadway. (Photos by Joan Marcus)