Whom Would You Cast In August: Osage County Film?
It's already been over two years since
Variety first confirmed that Letts was revisiting his work by writing the screenplay.
Fantasy casting for the big screen version of the work began more than a half year earlier.
As for me, if
Deanna Dunagan and
Amy Morton aren't going to be cast, I can think of no other actress more capable of delivering Violet than Meryl Streep, who is perhaps
the greatest living actress on the planet. Julia Roberts may be the world's biggest movie star, but I'm not entirely convinced she has the chops to take on Barbara. If she is cast, I hope to be proven wrong.
Additionally, I'm still holding out hope that the film version, to be directed by
John Wells, will include at least a couple of the original cast members from
Steppenwolf. My top choice?
Rondi Reed to recreate her Tony-winning turn as Aunt Mattie Fae Aiken.
It's your turn to weigh in on whom you'd cast. Whom do you believe should round out this dysfunctional family in a movie theater near you? (My friend Kevin Daly of
Theatre Aficionado At Large has already weighed in
here.)
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post. Labels: Amy Morton, August Osage County, Casting, Chris Jones, Deanna Dunagan, Fantasy Casting, Film, Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Rondi Reed, Steppenwolf, Tracy Letts
Theatre's Biggest News Of The Day Comes From Other Desert Cities
Perhaps the biggest theatrical news from yesterday didn't come from Broadway. But it was pretty darn close. And it was for a play that was originally planned for a Broadway berth.
Yesterday, The New York Times' Patrick Healy broke the news that Lincoln Center Theater's upcoming production of Jon Robin Baitz's Other Desert Cities would star one of this Theatre Season's most impressive casts since, well, that other Lincoln Center Theatre production: Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown.
According to Lincoln Center's news release:
Stockard Channing, Stacy Keach, Linda Lavin (and) Elizabeth Marvel will be featured in the cast of its upcoming production of Other Desert Cities, a new play by Jon Robin Baitz, directed by Joe Mantello, beginning performances Thursday, December 16 at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater (150 W. 65 Street.). Opening night is Thursday, January 13 at 6:45pm.
In Other Desert Cities, Brooke Wyeth (to be played by Elizabeth Marvel), a once promising novelist, returns home after a six year absence to celebrate Christmas in Palm Springs with her parents (Stockard Channing and Stacy Keach), former members of the Reagan inner-circle, her brother, and her aunt (Linda Lavin). When Brooke announces that she is about to publish a memoir focusing on an explosive chapter in the family’s history, the holiday reunion is thrown into turmoil and the Wyeths are both bound together and torn apart as they struggle to come to terms with their past.
Sounds pretty intriguing to me.
Expect this to be a much sought after ticket, especially given its opening date set amidst so many Broadway and Off-Broadway show closures about the same time.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post. Labels: Casting, Elizabeth Marvel, First Word On New Show, Jon Robin Baitz, Linda Lavin, Off-Broadway, Other Desert Cities, Stacy Keach, Stockard Channing
Chairy Up! Pee-Wee Herman Play To Be Housed On Broadway
Yesterday, casting was announced for the upcoming
Pee-Wee Herman Show starring
Paul Reubens in the title role.
Directed by
Alex Timbers and written by Reubens and
Bill Steinkellner,
The Pee-Wee Herman Show comes to Broadway's newly renamed
Stephen Sondheim Theatre for a very limited engagement that begins previews October 26 opens November 11 and closes on January 2, 2011.
If you're as big a fan of his long-gone television show as I am, you'll be thrilled to know that Reubens has reteamed with such "
Pee-Wee's Playhouse" stalwarts as
Lynne Marie Stewart (Miss Yvonne),
John Paragon (Jambi the genie) and
John Moody (Mailman Mike).
Sadly, neither
Laurence Fishburne nor
S. Epatha Merkerson will reprise their turns as as
Cowboy Curtis and
Reba, respectively. But
Phil LaMarr will be on hand to take on Curtis in Fishburne's absence. Other casting includes
Jesse Garcia (as Sergio the Handyman),
Josh Meyers,
Drew Powell and
Lance Roberts.
Reubens' celebrated West Coast helped pave the way for this Great White Way run, and it provides the actor with a high-profile opportunity to finally put his career-threatening
scandal forever behind him.
Looking forward to catching his comedic genius at play? I know I am, but what are
you?
This is
Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: Broadway, Casting, First Word On New Show, John Moody, John Paragon, Lynne Marie Stewart, Paul Reubens, Revue, The Pee-Wee Herman Show
Frances McDormand And Good PeopleEarlier this afternoon, the
Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) announced that Academy Award-winning actress
Frances McDormand would headline its world premiere engagement of
David Lindsay-Abaire's previously announced
Good People on Broadway in early 2011.
MTC
describes Good People as follows:
Welcome to Southie, a Boston neighborhood where a night on the town means a few rounds of bingo… where this month’s paycheck covers last month’s bills… and where Margie Walsh has just been let go from yet another job. Facing eviction and scrambling to catch a break, Margie thinks an old fling who's made it out of Southie might be her ticket to a fresh new start. But is this apparently self-made man secure enough to face his humble beginnings? Margie is about to risk what little she has left to find out.
Now before you brush McDormand's casting as just another play for Hollywood stars, this will mark her fourth time on Broadway. Long before she became a film star, she appeared in the 1984 revival of
Awake And Sing and earned a Tony nod for her 1988 portrayal of Stella in
A Streetcar Named Desire.
While
I wasn't particularly enamored with her last appearance on Broadway in 2008's
The Country Girl, I first caught McDormand on stage 18 years ago and was swept away. In 1992, McDormand was starring alongside
Jane Alexander and
Madeline Kahn in
Wendy Wasserstein's extraordinary play
The Sisters Rosensweig at
Lincoln Center (this was prior to its Broadway transfer when
Christine Estabrook would replace McDormand).
At the time, I had a friend who was a stage manager at Lincoln Center and he arranged for us to go back stage and meet the cast. While Alexander wasn't available, we were thrilled to meet and chat at length with the truly gorgeous Madeline Kahn and her co-star McDormand, who was quite unassuming and approachable. Both were genuinely gracious with their time.
Good people who left an impression on me. Let's hope
Good People can similarly impress.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: Broadway, Casting, David Lindsay-Abaire, Frances McDormand, Good People, Jane Alexander, Madeline Kahn, Play, The Sisters Rosensweig
