Psst! Are you a theatre nerd?

No? Okay, me either. But hey- are you a theatre enjoyer that only gets into it every now and then, while still feeling largely out of your element when the theatre-types start going on and on about all the shows they’ve done, seen, and read?

Well fear not, friend. We have a place for you. A resource. A repository of reviews of big deal Broadway shows (the ones playing in the big cities like New York and Chicago).

Get on with the Show!

Okay, okay, I’m going.

Did They Like It? describe themselves thusly: the leading review aggregator for live theatre on and off Broadway.

If that’s enough for you to check them out, HERE is their website.

If you need a bit more data to be convinced, that’s why I’m here.

The key phrase above is “review aggregator;” the independent and diverse Critic Cohort on DTLI? grabs reviews from various critics, reads them in full, and categorizes a review as Thumbs Up (70% favorable), a On-the-Fence (less than 70% positive or negative), or a Thumbs Down (70% unfavorable). When all reviews for a certain production have been categorized, the real hard math starts.

And by real hard math, I mean it goes like this: A Thumbs Up is worth 3 points, On-the-Fence worth 2, and a Thumbs Down is 1. These are added and averaged, and depending on the average score, an overall rating is made.

I know, pictures help. Here.

The site has a number of productions featured under a banner that reads “They Liked These,” but if you want to browse all current productions, the layout is simple, yet intuitive.

Here’s just a snippet of what it looks like (along with a show synopsis to the right):

Clicking on any show will then bring you to a page where ALL of the reviews are listed, with a key line from each, and obviously the cute little hand indicating what the review measured out as. AND, you can link to read the full review yourself.

Additional information on when the show opened, where it’s playing, when each review was written, AND how to get tickets is all there.

It’s seriously super slick, and if you are planning on seeing a show, check it out and support them.