5 Tony Award nominations, including Best Play and Best Director
2 Drama League nominations, including Outstanding Production of a Play
Top 10 of 2015, AMNY
Top 10 of 2015, Wall Street Journal
Top 10 of 2015, Forbes
Top 10 of 2015, NJ.com

CRITIC’S PICK! “Darkly delightful... inspires goose bumps... flat-out hilarious... Mr. Askins black comedy about the divided human soul, stands out as a misfit both merry and scary... explosively funny... a true tour de force... under the finely honed direction of Moritz von Stuelpnagel... You can enjoy “Hand to God” merely as a festival of filthy hilarity, but as I watched the play for the third time, I found myself peering more closely into its psychological depths, and finding in it a weird mirror of our unsettling times.”

“Takes you by surprise over and over again... It is, at first blush, a raucously foul-mouthed little farce... But scratch the surface and youll find a dead-serious black comedy... Moritz von Stuelpnagel has directed “Hand to God” with ultra-precise comic aplomb. Every joke explodes at the right split-millisecond... staggeringly funny and promising without limit!”

CRITIC’S PICK! FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS! “Praise be to the angels! The freshest and funniest Broadway comedy in years, a welcome breath of foul air... Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, the production maintains a fine balance of satire and humanity... You may even feel a little exorcised. It entertains the devil out of you.”

CRITICS PICK! “The best play of the season... expertly directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel... Unerring perfection! The truth is, that the Hand to God assault on religion as irrevocable healer both tickles the ribs and gives them a powerful punch. ”

“Everyone will laugh their heads off for Hand to God, the funniest new play on Broadway... The entire cast lend their characters an authenticity, which clashes nicely with the surreality of a satanic puppet... Director Moritz von Stuelpnagel leans into the stealthy duality in Askins script to hilarious result... A truly enjoyable night out with an adult comedy the likes of which exists nowhere else on Broadway.”

“Gleefully subversive and downright audacious... director Moritz von Stuelpnagels aggressively punk production comes off even stronger now and its exciting to see such a "downtown" show transfer to the Main Stem so smoothly... Though uproariously funny at times, the serious-minded production will have the more squeamish playgoers averting their eyes at the bloody and desperate climax”

“Has audiences howling... Robert Askins furiously funny comedy... choreographed with wonderful abandon by helmer Stuelpnagel... is as touching as it is screamingly funny!”

“So ridiculously raunchy, irreverent and funny its bound to leave you sore from laughing... It cant be outdone — and shouldnt be missed! All involved deserve a big hand!”

“A dark, irreverent and smart comedy... makes Broadway a more exciting place... Yet despite how silly it gets, "Hand to God" is also a seriously disturbing portrait of an emotionally scarred mother and son who have spent so long suppressing their rage that it comes out in unpredictable and inappropriate ways.”

“Moritz von Stuelpnagel directs with a flair for allowing the plays little absurdities to reveal themselves naturally and a skill with onstage physicality, which involves some S&M, an ear lobe removal and a bloody finale with a hammer.”

"Ribald and wickedly funny... Every scene builds to a comic boil, each one crossing some line of good taste we didnt know existed in puppet behavior. Much of the exhilaration in Moritz von Stuelpnagels production comes from Boyers brilliantly schizoid performance"

“Arresting, funny and thoroughly disconcerting... highly original and laudably fearless and politically incorrect piece... directed with real punch by Moritz von Stuelpnagel... Stuelpnagels cast certainly goes everywhere this piece asks it to go, but the actors also convey a sense of ordinary folks struggling with the chaos that life can suddenly inflict on us all, whether its in the form of troubled teenagers or bereavement or unfulfilled desire. That compassion is what takes "Hand to God" beyond the usual condescension you find on Broadway toward Texans or people of faith in general... The crises here are vivid and disturbing enough to make "Hand to God" a truly unsettling experience”

“There are many reasons to celebrate the arrival on Broadway of Robert Askins Hand To God. It wraps its seriousness in a veneer of XXX-rated irreverence. I dont know which I want to do more: Sing Hallelujah — or wash its dirty little mouth out with soap. Its sexy in ways that veer from frat-boy to sophisticated. Its blasphemous in word but its moral code is ferociously Old Testament... long may it run! Much credit must also go to director Moritz von Stuelpnagel for finding grace notes of subtlety in an unsubtle work, making Hand To God more than just a raunchy joke.”

“A gleefully heathen comedy... scabrously funny that steadily darkens into suspense and Grand Guignol horror... The show also brings a welcome breath of fresh air via a director, Moritz von Stuelpnagel, new to the commercial theater mainstream... Director von Stuelpnagel and his terrific cast tackle this darkly funny material with a shrewd balance of heightened reality, warped sitcom and underlying pathos, landing all the jokes while never denying the genuine sorrow and anger driving both Jason and Margery to such erratic behavior... The five actors couldnt be better.”

“A bracingly modern look at the nature of faith... “Hand to God” will floor you... leaves audiences gasping for breath... well-staged theatrical magic!”

CRITICS PICK! “Funny as hell! Staged with unflagging energy by Moritz von Stuelpnagel... Underneath the wildness is a scalpel-sharp show about the ways people cope with their troubles... hilarious and scary!”

"A savage, often hilarious, and profoundly irreligious satire... At the seeming end, a sort of glooming peace is achieved."

CRITICS PICK! "Broadways unlikeliest new must-see play... intelligent, blood-dark comedy — disturbing as often as it is funny, vile as often as it is violent, and, to my mind, better for both... as the dark comedy more nearly approaches its darkness in Act Two, with the consequences of human outrageousness brought to the foreground, the tale becomes more emotional, and at times even heartbreaking. It’s a credit to the director, Moritz von Stuelpnagel, that this shift is accomplished without the accompanying sound of grinding gears."

CRITICS PICK! "An outrageous black comedy... this marvelously unsettling play has more to offer than just raunch. If you read between the plays wonderfully frazzled lines, it becomes rather intense study of demonic influence and addiction... The whole cast is tremendously game under Moritz von Stuelpnagels direction... dont be surprised if some of the shows many laughs catch in your throat!"

"Under the direction again of Moritz von Stuelpnagel, "Hand to God" seemed to me better than it was off-Broadway — faster, rowdier and more assured... A very clever, extremely entertaining show."

"A rare truly communal dramatic experience, with the power to make an audience collectively shake with laughter, gasp in shock and rise to a giddy ovation... the gleefully profane piece has already proven itself as a hit, and it lives up to its reputation... Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel with a pitch-perfect knack for balancing over-the-top comedy with sincerity... brilliantly conceived and executed... carefully calibrated and thoughtful, making heartfelt points about morality and responsibility without settling for the sentimental ending it could... a delirious pleasure to watch!"

"Once you have wiped away the tears of laughter, images and concepts remain with you... a state-of-society satire with real bite in more than one of its tales... outrageously funny... Stuelpnagel directs with clarity and toxic verve... This is a major new work... prepare for one of the best new American plays in many a Broadway season."

"Director Moritz von Stuelpnagel scales up the production from its downtown digs, keeping the action moving swiftly around its rotating set and amping up the laughs for a larger crowd, while also firmly grounding the plays human (non-puppet) drama."

"Seriously funny and funnily serious! Sinister and shocking, this is not for the faint of heart!"