What Are We Supposed to Make of These Lukewarm Reviews for Stranger Things: The First Shadow?

Photo: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman

by Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder

I don’t usually get too caught up in the reviews. A strong audience reaction can carry a show far past the critics’ opening night takes, and there are plenty of examples of that happening—Beetlejuice, The Prom, even Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark (yes, really—it ran over 1,000 performances despite the headlines). But when a production arrives on Broadway already armed with a giant IP, a reported $20+ million budget, and some of the most jaw-dropping tech ever seen onstage, I’ll admit—I’m curious when the critical consensus is just... lukewarm.

Stranger Things: The First Shadow, the stage prequel to Netflix’s mega-hit series, has finally made its way across the pond after opening to largely positive reviews in London. And yet now, on Broadway, the reception is chillier. Not cold, exactly—but let’s call it what it is: lukecold.

The tech? Universally praised. Everyone seems to agree the effects are dazzling—there are even comparisons to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which felt like the last time a Broadway show truly made people gasp like that. But beyond the Demogorgons and dimension-hopping visuals, the actual storytelling seems to be landing with far less impact.

So what do we do with that? What do we make of a show that looks like a billion dollars but leaves many critics shrugging?

Is it possible The First Shadow suffers from the same problem as a lot of prequels: that we already know where the story is going. Or maybe it’s just that the expectations were too high. When something is this expensive and this branded, we brace for a blockbuster. So when we get a... pretty good play with cool effects, it feels underwhelming—even if it’s actually solid theater.

There’s also the question of audience—was this ever for traditional theatergoers? Or is it a tourist trap (and I say that with love) for superfans of the series? And honestly, is that such a bad thing?

Part of me thinks this is another turning point in Broadway’s long and complicated relationship with brand-driven entertainment. We’ve always had commercial theater. And we've certainly had spectacle. But more and more, the stages in NYC are becoming a testing ground for the extended universes of our favorite screen franchises. Some people find that disheartening. I think it’s fascinating.

Because if Broadway is going to survive the next few decades, it probably won’t be by clinging to the traditional playbook. And whether or not The First Shadow is a storytelling triumph, it is a proof of concept: that with enough investment, stagecraft can match (and even surpass) cinema in terms of what we see—if not always in what we feel.

So no, I’m not writing it off. I’m still curious. Curious how it evolves. Curious if the fans love it enough to ignore the critics. Curious if it signals a new era of Broadway as a narrative extension platform instead of just a place for revivals and adaptations.