Time To Stand Still AgainOne month from today, the Tony-nominated play
Time Stands Still begins performances for its second time this year on Broadway, this time at the
Cort Theatre.
As regular readers will recall, I was among those who
offered thumbs up to Donald Margulies' superb and gut-wrenching new play during its acclaimed
run at the not-for-profit
Manhattan Theatre Club's
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. Since MTC's season still had one more
play left in its Broadway season for subscribers,
Time Stands Still came and went much too quickly.
But the play's indelible mark left by its excellent cast was so profound that one of those rarest of rare announcements would be made about an already closed Broadway show. On May 12,
it was announced that the entire production would get a second lease on life through a return engagement at the mid-sized commercial Cort Theatre. (For those curious, the return engagement is
not Tony eligible.)
Three of the four original Broadway principals --
Laura Linney,
Brian d'Arcy James and
Eric Begosian -- are returning to the production. However, since
Alicia Silverstone's schedule does not permit, she will be replaced by film actress
Christina Ricci, making her Broadway debut.
The
Time Stands Still Web site
describes the show as follows:
Time Stands Still follows Sarah and James, a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent trying to find happiness in a world that seems to have gone crazy. Theirs is a partnership based on telling the toughest stories and together, making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life...and everything changes -- in a flash.
Don't miss this rare second chance to see one of the most exceptional American plays in years!
Indeed, if you missed your opportunity to see this show earlier this year, now's a second chance that doesn't occur very often. I
highly recommend seeing
Time Stands Still. Its first act will leave you speechless.
Time Stands Still resumes performances at the Cort on September 23 with a second opening night slated for October 7. The limited engagement is currently scheduled through January 23, 2011.
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: Brian d'Arcy James, Broadway, Christina Ricci, Daniel Sullivan, Donald Margulies, Eric Begosian, Laura Linney, Play, Return Engagement, Time Stands Still
Send In The ReplacementsThe week immediately following the
Tony Awards often tends to be one of transitions. Often, nominated shows and/or original cast members take their final bows.
This year is no different as the just crowned Tony-winning Best Actress in a Musical
Catherine Zeta-Jones and her Tony-nominated co-star
Angela Lansbury offer their final performances in
A Little Night Music this Sunday. (Leave it to my dear friend
SarahB for snaring coveted house tickets to be a part of it all.)
While
A Little Night Music had previously
posted its closing notice when its producers seemed to have long given up on finding suitable replacements, along came a new buzz of rumors that the ultimate dream pairing in Great White Way replacements were actually in negotiations: Broadway legends
Bernadette Peters and
Elaine Stritch.
Some (including me) were even swooning at the idea that they could be lured into taking over the juicy roles of Desiree and Madame Armfeldt. In particular, many were thinking Ms. Peters could finally provide the nuanced performance we'd been waiting for (click
here for my SOB Review to see what I thought of the Tony winner she's replacing).
Then on June 7, theatre lovers rejoiced at
the news. While the show would remain dark for three weeks commencing immediately after this Sunday's final performances by Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury, the musical would resume on July 13 with Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch. The dynamic duo are contracted through this November; however, tickets are now on sale through the first full week of 2011.
In addition to
A Little Night Music, what other major shows are bringing in replacements?
Here are a few of them:
Race - Ethel Barrymore Theatre
(
SOB Review: *1/2 out of ****)
On Tuesday,
Eddie Izzard,
Dennis Haysbert and
Afton C. Williamson joined the cast of this
David Mamet play as replacements for
James Spader,
David Alan Grier and
Kerry Washington, respectively.
Even though I wasn't a very big fan of this work, I thought Spader and Grier acquitted themselves very well, thus I find the casting of Izzard and Haysbert (in his Broadway debut) rather intriguing. But the one problemetic original cast member,
Richard Thomas, somehow remains in the cast.
Race is now scheduled to close August 21, 2010.
next to normal - Booth Theatre
(
SOB Review: ***1/2 out of ****)
The big news over the last couple weeks for
next to normal should have been that
Alice Ripley was
leaving the show for which she earned her 2009 Tony Award to tour with the production nationally
and that real husband-and-wife actors
Jason Danieley and
Marin Mazzie will take over the roles of this show's couple beginning July 19.
Instead, a flipplant
Facebook remark by Ripley rippled like an electroshock wave through the gay community. Ripley has since apologized.
When Mazzie and Danieley succeed Ripley and
Brian d'Arcy James, it will be first time this married duo will ever have been in a Broadway show together. As for the once "
criminally underused" d'Arcy James, he not only created
next to normal's Dan Goodman Off-Broadway and came "
full circle" in returning to the role as a Broadway replacement himself for
J. Robert Spencer, but now he is departing to perform once again in the next show on my list.
next to normal remains an open-ended run (meaning no closing date has been posted).
Time Stands Still - Cort Theatre
(
SOB Review: ***1/2 out of ****)
On May 12, one of those rarest of
rare announcements was made about a Broadway show that's already closed.
Time Stands Still, which had enjoyed an acclaimed
run at the non-profit
Manhattan Theatre Club's
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre earlier this year, will enjoy a return engagement at the Great White Way's
Cort Theatre, the mid-sized commercial house currently home to
Fences.
Because time doesn't stand still, only three of the four original Broadway principals --
Laura Linney, Brian d'Arcy James and
Eric Begosian -- will return to the production. But the fourth,
Alicia Silverstone (who had also been in the
world premiere mounting of the play on the West Coast) will not be joining them. She will be replaced by film actress
Christina Ricci in her Broadway debut.
Time Stands Still resumes performances at the Cort on September 23 with a second opening night slated for October 7. The limited engagement is currently scheduled through January 23, 2011.
Currently, of those four shows, I already have tickets to see
A Little Night Music and am contemplating a revisit to
Time Stands Still. How about you? Will any of these new names lure you back to see what these replacements can do?
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: A Little Night Music, Bernadette Peters, Broadway, Christina Ricci, Dennis Haysbert, Eddie Izzard, Elaine Stritch, Jason Danieley, Marin Mazzie, Next To Normal, Race, Replacements, Time Stands Still
Time Hardly Stands Still For Alicia SilverstoneAlicia Silverstone, the Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated actress known primarily for her film work ("
Clueless"), recently concluded her much-praised sophomore effort on Broadway as part of the acclaimed production of
Time Stands Still. It was such a marked departure from her 2002 performance in
The Graduate -- which, for the record, I actually enjoyed -- that there's even talk in some circles about Ms. Silverstone's chances for a Tony nomination, although we never broached that possibility with her.
Last Friday, I joined with fellow theatre bloggers Patrick Lee (
Just Shows To Go You) and Kevin Daly (
Theatre Aficionado At Large) by way of the
Independent Theater Bloggers Association (ITBA) in a half hour telephone conversation with Ms. Silverstone. I asked her, "What did you take away from your Broadway debut that has informed your stage work since?"
Alicia Silverstone replied:
I had only done one play before that (Carol's Eve, 1993).
(In The Graduate) I learned a lot from Kathleen Turner, who is awesome. She came to see me in Time Stands Still and was so proud of me.
She took me under her wing and treated me with so much respect from the moment we started working on The Graduate. I remember when we were in Baltimore, before we came to Broadway, and after the first night she said to me, “That was really good, darling, but tomorrow maybe you will have your voice down about four notches.” I was screaming. I guess I was so excited and nervous that my voice got very high.
After originating the role of
Time Stands Still's Mandy Bloom last year at Los Angeles'
Geffen Playhouse, Ms. Silverstone was the only prinicipal to stay with the play through Broadway. Nevertheless, she said of the latter experience, "I came humbly to the rehearsal room. It was so electrifying that I didn't want to leave (even) to go to the bathroom.
Laura Linney became like a big sister to me."
Telling us, "Theatre people are the best," it's no wonder this actress with an infectiously sunny disposition is already contemplating her next stage outing. Although currently filming "
Butter" with
Hugh Jackman,
Rob Corddry and
Jennifer Garner, Ms. Silverstone somewhat wistfully told us her dream would be to do a production of
Romeo And Juliet. But she said that after seeing
Janet McTeer perform in
A Doll's House, she'd really love a chance to tackle the role of Norma Helmer.
Just don't expect her to do a musical any time soon; she says, "I'm not a trained singer. I'm interested in it but I've never practiced singing."
To read another take on our interview, please visit
Just Shows To Go 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: A Doll's House, Alicia Silverstone, Broadway, Hugh Jackman, Interview, Janet McTeer, Kathleen Turner, Laura Linney, Play, The Graduate, Time Stands Still
Time Stands Still (The SOB Review) - Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City, New York
***1/2 (out of ****)
All is fair in love and war, so the saying goes. And when the two converge, it’s a common assumption that the bonds forged are for life. They may be among the most impenetrable.
In
Donald Margulies' superb and gut-wrenching new play
Time Stands Still, the playwright thoughtfully examines the ravages of conflict and the impact of finding love among the ruins.
Sarah (
Laura Linney in a remarkably shattering performance) is an injured photojournalist returning home from the war in Iraq to a life and boyfriend James (an excellent
Brian d'Arcy James) that have become utterly disconnected. She even has difficulty reconnecting with her editor Richard (a fantastic
Eric Begosian), especially now that he's seeing Mandy (
Alicia Silverstone, a stunning revelation here), a blonde beauty half his age, and at first glance with an IQ to match.
But it's Mandy who challenges Sarah's ethics for not stepping in and helping those dying subjects of her war photography, placing our photojournalist on the defensive. Sarah soon finds the need to defend herself on yet another front, which threatens to completely undermine her relationship with James.
Margulies' first act is beyond extraordinary. It's particularly brilliant for its seamless blend of how life goes on in the United States in spite of our wars abroad along with the realities and cost of those military endeavors. The ultimate impact on Sarah and James is both harrowing and heartbreaking.
If the second act isn't quite the equal of the first, it's because Margulies initiates it by trying to infuse self-deprecating humor at his very own work, essentially telling the audience with a big wink and inappropriate smile that we shouldn't take plays like this too seriously. While it weakens the overall impact of the play,
Time Stands Still thankfully marches on with director
Daniel Sullivan ensuring it regains its powerful foothold yet again.
With exceptional cast, timely themes and thoughtful balance of love in time of war,
Time Stands Still ranks as one of Broadway's best new plays this season.
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: Alicia Silverstone, Brian d'Arcy James, Broadway, Donald Margulies, Eric Begosian, Laura Linney, Play, The SOB Review, Time Stands Still
Time Marches On BroadwayTalk about not standing still in efforts toward gaining a Broadway berth.
Not even a year after its
world premiere at Los Angeles'
Geffen Playhouse,
Donald Margulies'
Time Stands Still opens Thursday evening at
Manhattan Theatre Club's
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
As on the Left Coast, this
Time Stands Still is once again helmed by Tony Award-winning director
Daniel Sullivan and features
Alicia Silverstone. But this incarnation of Margulies' play replaces
Anna Gunn,
David Harbour and
Robin Thomas with
Laura Linney,
Brian d'Arcy James and
Eric Bogosian, respectively.
Manhattan Theatre Club describes
Time Stands Still as follows:
James and Sarah, a journalist and a photographer, have been together for nine years and share a passion for documenting the realities of war. But when injuries force them to return home to New York, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life. This timely and intelligent play marks the fourth collaboration for Pulitzer Prize winner Donald Margulies and Tony Award-winning director Daniel Sullivan.
The play enjoyed some raves during its earlier California engagement. Will
Time Stands Still stand tall among Broadway critics? I'll be providing my own SOB Review shortly.
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: Alicia Silverstone, Brian d'Arcy James, Broadway, Donald Margulies, Eric Begosian, Laura Linney, Play, Time Stands Still
