The Rehearsal (TV series) explained

Genre:Comedy
Creator:Nathan Fielder
Starring:Nathan Fielder
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:1
Num Episodes:6
Runtime:27–44 minutes
Company:Blow Out Productions
Network:HBO

The Rehearsal is an American docu-comedy television series created, written, directed by and starring Nathan Fielder. It premiered on HBO on July 15, 2022 to critical acclaim. It was renewed for a second season in August 2022.

Premise

The Rehearsal features a character played by Nathan Fielder who helps ordinary people rehearse upcoming difficult conversations or life events through the use of sets and actors hired to recreate real situations. The situations can be trivial, like confessing to a lie about educational history, or more complex, like raising a child.[1] Fielder commissions extravagant sets with every detail recreated, and hires actors to inhabit these sets and practice different dialogue trees with his clients dozens of times to try to prepare them for every variable. Information used to train the actors and build the sets is often collected without the subjects' knowledge (this aspect, however, is often played with a comedic effect).[2]

Production

The premise for The Rehearsal developed from Fielder's series Nathan for You. In preparation for the earlier series, Fielder and his team role-played scenarios to predict how real people reacted to his ridiculous suggestions, an exercise that often proved inaccurate. Fielder was inspired by the futility of the human impulse to control one's own future, which he found "really funny."[3]

Some of the humor in The Rehearsal is derived from its extravagant sets. In the first episode, Fielder constructs a perfect duplicate of the bar in which the subject's difficult conversation is to take place. He also constructs a duplicate of the subject's house to practice their first conversation.[2]

On August 19, 2022, HBO renewed the series for a second season.[4]

Release

The series was first teased in 2019 as part of Fielder's deal with HBO.[5] The title The Rehearsal was revealed in June 2021.[6] In June 2022, a teaser was released,[7] and a poster showing a release date of July 15, 2022.[8]

Reception

Critical response

The series has received critical acclaim, with some praising it as one of the best new series of 2022. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 95% approval rating with an average rating of 9.4/10, based on 56 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "The Rehearsal gives Nathan Fielder carte blanche to take his absurdist comedy to the limit, which he pushes even further past with deadpan aplomb in what might be his most uncomfortably funny feat yet."[9] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 86 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[10]

The Rehearsal appeared in the top ten on numerous publications' "Best of 2022" lists, including first for Far Out, IndieWire, The Ringer, and ScreenCrush, among others.[11]

Analysis

In The New York Times Critic's Pick review, James Poniewozik wrote "the show has a philosophical core: Is it ever possible to truly understand another person?"[12] Voxs Alissa Wilkinson likewise called the show "an excellent reminder that we know much less about others than we think we do," and compared it to the writings of Leslie Jamison and Martin Buber.[13]

The show's blurring of simulation and reality have drawn comparisons to the Charlie Kaufman film Synecdoche, New York and the Tom McCarthy novel Remainder.[14] [15] The series has been described as a spiritual successor to Nathan For You, since both shows share a premise of Fielder helping average people in humorous ways. Vulture described Fielder's "willingness to screw with people" and put them in situations that might embarrass them or cause them to do things that are out of character being the core thread of his work.

Many critics viewed the show as a critique of the exploitive and disingenuous nature of reality television, with writer Israel Daramola of Los Angeles Review of Books calling it "a commentary on...the inherent phoniness of reality television as well as the faults and constrictions of acting as representation of real life."[16] The series' central idea of rehearsing and performing social interactions resonated with many autistic viewers, who viewed it as an analogy for masking.[17] [18] Variety writer Daniel D’Addario highlighted the series' ultimate message that "all of us are performing, all the time."[15]

Accolades

AwardYearCategoryRecipientResult
Cinema Eye Honors2022Heterodox AwardNathan Fielder[19]
Independent Spirit Awards2023Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary SeriesNathan Fielder, Dave Paige, Dan McManus, Christie Smith, Carrie Kemper, and Eric Notarnicola[20]
Gotham Independent Film Awards2022Breakthrough Nonfiction SeriesNathan Fielder, Dave Paige, Dan McManus, and Christie Smith[21]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: July 18, 2022 . The Rehearsal is the most uncomfortable show ever made . July 25, 2022 . The Independent . Amanda . Whiting . en . July 25, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220725035828/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/the-rehearsal-hbo-nathan-fielder-b2123524.html . live .
  2. News: VanArendonk . Kathryn . Nathan Fielder's Dazzling, Horrifying Trial Run of Reality . en-us . Vulture . July 15, 2022 . July 25, 2022 . July 25, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220725035810/https://www.vulture.com/article/nathan-fielder-the-rehearsal-hbo-comedy-review.html . live .
  3. Web site: Nathan Fielder Is Out of His Mind (and Inside Yours) . Shapiro . Lila . July 5, 2022 . Vulture . July 17, 2022 . July 16, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220716161545/https://www.vulture.com/article/nathan-fielder-rehearsal-profile.html . live .
  4. Web site: Nathan Fielder's 'The Rehearsal' Renewed At HBO For Season 2. Deadline Hollywood. Peter. White. August 19, 2022. August 19, 2022. August 19, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220819170358/https://deadline.com/2022/08/nathan-fielders-the-rehearsal-renewed-at-hbo-for-season-2-1235096273/. live.
  5. Web site: Nathan Fielder Sets HBO Overall Deal, Docu-Series and Comedy Pilot (EXCLUSIVE) . . Joe . Otterson . August 12, 2019 . July 12, 2022 . March 7, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210307034650/https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/nathan-fielder-sets-hbo-overall-deal-docu-series-and-comedy-pilot-exclusive-1203299428/ . live .
  6. Web site: Nathan Fielder is starring in an awkward new show for HBO . . Tatiana . Tenreyro . June 25, 2021 . July 12, 2022 . July 7, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220707191034/https://www.avclub.com/nathan-fielder-is-starring-in-an-awkward-new-show-for-h-1847175893 . live .
  7. Web site: Nathan Fielder drops a teaser for his mysterious HBO show The Rehearsal . . Matt . Schimkowitz . June 15, 2022 . July 12, 2022 . July 7, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220707191031/https://www.avclub.com/nathan-fielder-the-rehearsal-teaser-hbo-nathan-for-you-1849065654 . live .
  8. Web site: 'The Rehearsal': Nathan Fielder's HBO Max Series Gets Release Date . . Kristen . Lopez . June 18, 2022 . July 12, 2022 . July 18, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220718215813/https://www.indiewire.com/2022/06/hbo-nathan-fielder-tv-return-the-rehearsal-july-release-1234734991/ . live .
  9. the_rehearsal_2022 . The Rehearsal . tv . 1. January 1, 2023.
  10. the-rehearsal . The Rehearsal . tv . 1. January 1, 2023.
  11. Web site: Dietz . Jason . December 5, 2022 . Best of 2022: Television Critic Top Ten Lists . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20221216161548/https://www.metacritic.com/feature/tv-critics-pick-10-best-tv-shows-of-2022 . December 16, 2022 . March 7, 2023 . Metacritic.
  12. News: Poniewozik . James . July 14, 2022 . Review: In 'The Rehearsal,' All the World Is Staged . . July 16, 2022 . 0362-4331 . July 16, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220716004934/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/14/arts/television/review-the-rehearsal-nathan-fielder.html . live.
  13. News: Wilkinson . Alissa . August 20, 2022 . What Nathan Fielder's The Rehearsal says about us . . December 29, 2023.
  14. News: Nayman . Adam . In 'The Rehearsal,' Nathan Fielder's surreal comic genius takes a metaphysical turn . August 21, 2022 . . July 9, 2022 . August 21, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220821190036/https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/television/analysis/2022/07/09/in-the-rehearsal-nathan-fielders-surreal-comic-genius-takes-a-metaphysical-turn.html . live.
  15. Web site: Nathan Fielder's HBO Series 'The Rehearsal' Makes Uncomfortable Art From Mockery: TV Review . July 11, 2022 . July 25, 2022 . . Daniel . D'Addario . en-US . July 24, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220724044844/https://variety.com/2022/tv/reviews/nathan-fielder-the-rehearsal-review-hbo-1235310807/ . live.
  16. News: Daramola . Israel . October 14, 2022 . When Reality Isn't: On Nathan Fielder's "The Rehearsal" . . December 29, 2023.
  17. News: Malone . Emerson . August 24, 2022 . It Makes Sense That "The Rehearsal" Resonates With Autistic Viewers . . December 29, 2023.
  18. News: Rosenberg . Sam . August 30, 2022 . How Nathan Fielder's The Rehearsal Affirms My Experience with Autism . . December 29, 2023.
  19. Web site: 'Fire of Love' and 'The Territory' Lead 2023 Cinema Eye Honors Nonfiction Film Nominees . . Marcus . Jones . November 10, 2022. January 1, 2023. November 10, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221110202337/https://www.indiewire.com/2022/11/2023-cinema-eye-honors-nominees-documentary-feature-1234780961/. live.
  20. Web site: Petski . Denise . Hipes . Patrick . Film Independent Spirit Awards TV Nominations: 'Abbott Elementary', 'Pachinko', 'The Bear' 'Severance', More . . January 1, 2023 . December 13, 2022 . January 28, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230128085033/https://deadline.com/2022/12/2023-spirit-awards-tv-nominations-list-film-independent-1235197133/ . live.
  21. Web site: 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Tops Gotham Awards; Full Winners List . . Hilary . Lewis . November 28, 2022. January 1, 2023. November 29, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221129002441/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/2022-gotham-awards-winners-full-list-1235270305/. live.

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