Comedian Mike Birbiglia returns to Broadway for two months only with The Old Man and the Pool, following hit runs in California and Chicago. Get Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool tickets on New York Theatre Guide now.
The Old Man and the Pool is a play written and performed by Birbiglia, which he describes as a "coming-of-middle-age story." Birbiglia learns he's inherited his family's history of heart problems, and his doctor recommends plenty of healthy habits to help. Birbiglia unpacks why he's reluctant to do any of them — particularly swimming, thanks to a childhood encounter at a YMCA pool — and how that doesn't mesh well with his fear of death. But yes, The Old Man and the Pool is a comedy show, and though there are profound reflections on life and mortality, there's plenty of Birbiglia's signature comic storytelling about growing older, and perhaps wiser. Dad jokes and other clever punchlines also abound — even the title of the show is a riff on the classic Ernest Hemingway novel The Old Man and the Sea.
Who is Mike Birbiglia?
Mike Birbiglia is a comedian known for stage and screen specials like The New One and Sleepwalk With Me. Birbiglia's first, and most recent, Broadway show was The New One, about a different life milestone: becoming a father. That show premiered off Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theatre, a popular comedy venue in Greenwich Village, in 2018 and moved to Broadway's Cort (now James Earl Jones) Theatre later that year for a two-month stint. That show earned Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Solo Performance.
His last New York gig before The Old Man and the Pool on Broadway was behind the scenes, as presenter for fellow comedian Alex Edelman's hit show Just For Us off Broadway. Birbiglia himself has also performed other specials off Broadway including My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend, Thank God for Jokes and Sleepwalk with Me. My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend and Thank God for Jokes were filmed for Netflix, and My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend earned Birbiglia a Lucille Lortel Award. Sleepwalk With Me became an indie film which Birbiglia wrote, directed, and starred in.
Birbiglia also directed, wrote, and starred in the film Don't Think Twice, and he has appeared in films and TV shows like The Fault in Our Stars, Trainwreck, Orange is the New Black, and Billions.
How long is the Mike Birbiglia Broadway show?
Mike Birbiglia's The Old Man and the Pool runs 75 minutes with no intermission.
Get tickets to Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool in New York.
