Amy Morton – Theatre Aficionado at Large

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” – First Preview

I’ve received press invites to many preview performances, but until Thursday night I had never been invited to cover a show’s first preview. The 50th anniversary revival of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has started performances at the Booth Theatre, an import from Steppenwolf starring Tracy Letts and Amy Morton. Even more surprising about this invite is that I received no press embargo. Well, with a play this solid and a production this fantastic, the October 13th opening is merely a formality. This new revival, gamely directed by Pam McKinnon, is a must-see.

Albee’s play is one of my favorites. I’ve read it many times (both the 1962 and 2005 editions). I love the “games” played, the logic and wordplay, as well as the iconic put-downs. I was bowled over by the 2005 revival starring Kathleen Turner and Tony-winner Bill Irwin (incidentally, the first time I ever saw a Broadway play for a second time) and one of my prized possessions is the 4-LP original Broadway cast album from Columbia (a collector’s item worth tracking down – Uta Hagen exceeds the hype). I even enjoy Mike Nichols’ iconic, if humorless film adaptation. I know Virginia Woolf? is 50 years old, but I don’t want to reveal any plot points just in case there’s someone reading this who hasn’t experienced it. In short: a professor’s wife invites a new, younger professor and his wife to their house after a faculty party for a small mixer. Booze and insults starts to flow, and things get unpleasant.

This Steppenwolf import is not your grandmother’s Virginia Woolf? Dynamics are significantly altered, characters fleshed out in ways that puts a different new spin on a classic. Even the familiar set is a now glorious disaster; a beautiful living room now marred by George and Martha’s mess: piles of books and papers strewn everywhere (including the fireplace), empty glasses, and bottles. Martha doesn’t take total command on her first entrance with “Jesus H. Christ” and George doesn’t seem quite so deferential.

In fact, Amy Morton takes Martha in a whole new direction. She doesn’t exude the larger than life gaucheness you expect of Martha. Instead, Morton enters looking very much the prim and proper professor’s wife in a conservative coat with her haired pulled back tightly. Once she lets down her hair, however, she is more than ready to hurl razor-sharp, ugly insults and “bite till there’s blood.” Yet Morton reveals many layers and facets of Martha that I hadn’t considered before. Her organic approach brings out Martha’s rage and disappointment in unexpected ways, even with her understated deliveries of certain scenes. Her final moments are utterly devastating.

Tracy Letts, probably better known these days for his award-winning writing than his acting, offers one of the most complicated and most dangerous interpretations of George. Typically played as a seemingly subservient foil to Martha’s domineering battle-ax, here he has more control than usual. The relationship between George and Martha has always been complicated, compelling and weird. With Letts’ tremendous performance, George not only dominates, but his relationship with Martha becomes as terrifying as a depraved codependency can be. His is a performance for the ages.

Madison Dirks plays Nick as less all-American and with more of an edge; his arrogance, ambition and condescension for George so naked that it’s easy to see why George goes out of his way to humiliate him. Even more impressive is Carrie Coon, offering one of the best interpretations of Honey I’ve seen. She enters, the epitome of primness and overly eager to impress, ultimately coming across as an embarrassment to her husband. As Honey gets drunker and drunker, Coon plays the scenes with a reckless, yet endearing abandon which makes Honey more empathetic and her breakdown over Nick revealing a personal secret all the more devastating.

Every time I experience Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (on stage, film or record), I am utterly spent by the end, as though I’ve actually stayed up until 5AM with these people. The play holds up remarkably well. It’s still unbearably hilarious and it ultimately still packs the sort of wallop that leaves an audience reeling. I can’t wait to experience it again.

Will Julia Roberts & Meryl Streep battle it out in “August: Osage County” film?

It’s been reported this evening by Deadline that the Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts are in talks for the film version of August: Osage County. I’ve heard rumors about this casting for months now, but this is the first time I’ve seen anything in print. The other rumor I heard was that Mike Nichols would direct, instead TV show runner and writer John Wells will helm the film, his second feature. (His first, The Company Men, hits the big screen on October 22).

Playwright Tracy Letts has adapted his own play for the screen and truthfully I’m quite curious to see how he has adapted the work. The play was first produced at Steppenwolf during the summer of 2007, starting something of a sensation in Chicago. It came to Broadway’s Imperial Theatre for a limited engagement that fall, quickly extending its engagement and transferring next door to the Music Box for an open-ended run. Most members of the original cast gathered for London and Australian engagements which quickly became must-see events.

It’s no secret that I’m not the biggest Streep fan – not that I don’t think she’s a good actress, I just don’t think she’s the greatest. However, as much as I was hoping for someone more interesting (or perhaps even Southern) in this part, I’m certain she will deliver a professional performance that is sure to add another Oscar nomination to her belt. While Barbara Fordham is the lead in the sense of the story’s arc and character development (it is ultimately her story), Violet gets all the memorable one-liners and is ultimately a terrifying and antagonizing presence. The role’s originator Deanna Dunagan swept the NY theatre awards while starring in the Broadway run and her replacements Estelle Parsons and Phylicia Rashad received rave reviews.

However, it’s the casting of Barbara Fordham that has me scratching my head. Roberts is an established movie star with the requisite charm, but I’ve always found her range to be limited. I could be wrong and she might work in the part, but I have serious doubts. I was admittedly blown away by the powerhouse performance Amy Morton gave in the original stage production and would have, in an ideal world, liked seeing her take on the role for the screen adaptation. But in lieu of Morton, I can’t help think that Laura Linney would ultimately be the best choice. Julia seems more ideal for Karen or Ivy. However, for the sheer resemblance factor I’d put Jennifer Ehle and Natasha McElhone opposite Streep. No word on any other casting.

I am, and have been, curious as to how this play would open up on the big screen. The play runs three and a half hours, with a large cast of characters (and some emotional pyrotechnics) but the action is limite to the Weston house, which is itself a character. Many of the family skeletons come dancing out of the shadowed cobwebs in a situation that is even explicitly described as “fraught” by the character Mattie Fae. It will be interesting to see whether or not the film will successfully open up on film.

Perhaps I’ve been spoiled: I was there on Broadway for the show’s opening night. I can’t imagine a better experience for this work than live onstage, fueling the audience with the hilarious and heartbreaking antics of the extended Weston clan. Seeing the show seven times in NY, I heard reactions to scenes that I haven’t heard at other musicals, let alone plays. Morton herself likened the experience to being at a hockey game. Then again, the perfect solution would have been taping that original cast (especially the definitive Dennis Letts as Beverly) for airing on PBS or Showtime.

Again, this is only word that they are in negotiations. It doesn’t necessarily mean either one is definitely taking on the project (though they’d be fools to pass up on these great roles). Personally, I would just prefer a more interesting lineup.

And then it’s gone…

Most of you are well aware of my complete and total admiration for the Broadway production of August: Osage County, from my overwhelming adrenaline-fueled experience of its opening night onward. By the end of today’s closing performance at the Music Box, I had seen the play a total of seven times. Twice with Deanna Dunagan, twice with Estelle Parsons and twice with Phylicia Rashad (oh, and once with understudy Susanne Marley for good luck). The play never lost its spark or its edge with the departure of original cast members, remaining a strong vibrant piece of theatre that made an indelible mark on the Broadway scene 648 times, the longest-running play in seven years.

Today marked a final pilgrimage to a piece of theatre I respect and love wholeheartedly for its ambitious size and length, for its seamless and intelligent staging and above all else for its superlative acting. So I arrived at the Music Box Theatre expecting another mammoth three and a half hour catharsis. I didn’t expect to be taken completely by surprise.

At 1:45, I arrived at the Music Box Theatre to pick up my ticket at the box office. Turning away from the ticket window, I was organizing myself when I saw that a name was up on the understudy board. Curious, I walked over and I read “MATTIE FAE AIKEN – RONDI REED.” I read it a second time, and as that piece of info registered in my head, I proceeded to drop my ticket, my cell phone and my ipod. It took me about five minutes to recover, at which time I posted on twitter, facebook, text message and All That Chat. I just couldn’t contain my unbridled enthusiasm at this little tidbit.

Rondi Reed, a thirty year veteran of the Steppenwolf Ensemble, originated the part of Mattie Fae at Steppenwolf and transferred to Broadway, playing the role for six months and picking up the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress along the way. She was also part of the original London cast at the National Theatre this past November. Reed is currently back in NY playing Madame Morrible in the Broadway production of Wicked. For the last several months, Broadway legend Elizabeth Ashley had been playing the part, and I had seen her in the role only three weeks ago. It was an unexpected and unusual turn of events as actors who have departed the company rarely reappear for the final performance of the show.

Just before the house lights went down, the Stage Manager appeared onstage to make an announcement. She welcomed us to the theatre and production and disclaimed: “Unfortunately I’m sorry to tell you one of our cast members, Liz Ashley called us this morning and told us she was sick and unable to do today’s performance. But luckily for you, filling in for her today will be Rondi Reed (ROAR FROM CROWD… when the din died down she resumed) who played the role in the original company and won the Tony award for her performance.” She then took a moment to talk on behalf of the company about how grateful they were for the long and successful run, before the obligatory comment about cell phones, etc. Then we were off…

The performance was explosive. Phylicia Rashad became the one and only Violet I’ve ever seen earn entrance applause during the Prologue. The audience was even more enthusiastic when the lights came up on Rondi Reed, who was decked out in the revised costume designed for Liz Ashley, a loose fitting blouse that favored blue, and the open toe matching shoes as well. (One thing I’ve loved about this show is how they have managed to find variations in the costume design to fit each actor’s interpretation).

Reed, coming in at a moment’s notice had instant rapport with each and every actor and whose mere presence and voice took me back an entire year to the last time I saw her onstage. Her definitive delivery of so many of her lines brought me right back: “This situation is fraught” Just….show a little class…” “I’m having a cocktail!” “You have to tell us something!” and the deathless “That’s my casserole!!” All delivered with the same nuance and humor that earned this brilliant actress her Tony. I never thought I would see Rondi in this part again, which only heightened the experience for fans who were making one last visit. (To think that I saw Rondi Reed and Phylicia Rashad play off of each other as sisters for the one and only time during the run!)

Amy Morton was yet another to receive entrance applause. As I’ve often stated, Morton’s performance is one of the best I have ever seen in my life, a marriage between actor and role that is pure, unadulterated alchemy. Mariann Mayberry as Karen broke the collective heart of the audience. Even the more troublesome performance of Sally Murphy showed signs of considerable restraint, that is until the infamous “Eat the fish, bitch!” scene in the third act. It was at this point that Murphy dipped back into her bag of histrionic tricks, jumping an octave and screaming so unintelligibly that some vital lines were lost to the ages.

One of the most memorable scenes of the entire play is the notorious dinner scene at the end of the second act. Lasting twenty minutes, the family sits wearily and on edge as a drug-addled yet surprisingly lucid Violet eviscerates and excoriates every single person at the table (with the noted exception of her sister). Violet is driving at exposing truths among the family members, without a care as to the impact of her own words. Choices and spontaneity provided me with some unexpected moments: for example, I laughed to the point of tears at Rashad’s delivery of “Who ARRRRRRE you?” to Brian Kerwin’s Steve. The situation boils until Amy’s Barbara physically attacks Violet to take away her bottle of pills. The energy level at the moment was pitch perfect, with Barbara’s “I’M RUNNING THINGS NOW!!!” a total war cry at Violet and one that sent the audience into a cheering frenzy at the act-ending blackout.

Phylicia found such freshness in her approach that made for an even stronger performance than the one I had seen a mere three weeks ago. Violet Weston was beautifully served by Phylicia Rashad; the only tragedy here is that the show closed before most of you had the chance to witness her genius performance.

Ever the pro, Rondi Reed had to hustle out of the Music Box (where on the street she was met with an appreciative roar) in order to make it to the Gershwin Theatre. While Reed had called out for the matinee performance of Wicked, she was insistent on playing the Actor’s Fund show that evening. So after making her way through a complex three and a half hour drama, she had less than an hour to get costumed as Madame Morrible for the evening’s performance. I must tip my hat to such utter professionalism and energy. Reed is a one-of-a-kind actress and an absolute treasure to the NY theatre community. Also, if I’m not mistaken I think she is the only actor to ever appear in a Broadway play and musical on the same day.

The performance was overall rock solid; I could hear people crying during the final moments as the stage lights dimmed on Phylicia…wandering the house calling out the names of the family members who’d all abandoned her. By the time the lights were up for the curtain call, the house was already on its feet, cheering this brilliant ensemble for their fine work as well as saluting this captivating piece of theatre. Mariann started taking pictures from onstage, the actors left and house lights came up. Yet the audience didn’t budge. They sustained the applause and kept the momentum of their cheers up to warrant a second curtain call, something that didn’t even happen on opening night.

Waiting outside of the theatre was our beloved SarahB, who had been allowed in to see the final fifteen minutes. As I pulled myself together from the performance, none other than Tracy Letts walked by, with whom we spoke briefly and who signed our Playbills. I haven’t gone to the stage door in three years and though I considered it, I opted not to today. With a closing performance, it’s a crowded and hurried affair. But I did get a great picture courtesy of Sarah standing next to one of the billboards:

Sarah and I headed over to Angus, where we spent four hours knocking back concoctions and laughing about the good times we’d had while having many more. We had a blast with our congenial bartender and one of the waitresses, Sarah Fishbeck, with whom I attended college. The banter inevitably led to a discussion of all the shows that are coming up this season. Soon most of the theatres around Shubert Alley will be housing new shows. Finian’s Rainbow at the St. James, Memphis at the Shubert, Jude Law in Hamlet at the Broadhurst and Tracy Letts’ second Broadway play, Superior Donuts will settle into the Music Box this fall; the first play of the new season.

As always, the story goes on…

And Then You’re Gone…And Then You’re Gone…

It was announced late this afternoon that the smash hit play August: Osage County will be closing on June 28 at the Music Box Theatre after 18 previews and 648 performances. The play won five Tonys including Best Play and the coveted Pulitzer Prize for Drama and is one of my most treasured theatrical experiences of all time.

The closing announcement comes as a bit of a surprise, especially since new star Phylicia Rashad has received so many raves for her performance as Violet. The play, which imported from Steppenwolf in fall 2007, was originally to be a sixteen week limited engagement at the Imperial Theatre, but proved to be such a huge success that it transferred next door to the Music Box for an open ended run in April ’08. For a three act play without any stars and a running time of three hours and twenty minutes, this run is quite a feat.

I’ve had a special affinity for the writing of Tracy Letts, the direction of Anna D. Shapiro and the acting of the ensemble, from Deanna Dunagan and Rondi Reed to Elizabeth Ashley and Rashad, all the while in utter awe of Amy Morton. It has been a show and a production that will stay with me always, with so many moments of sheer tragedy and sheer comedy forever etched on my mind.

Those of you who never got to NY for the play, never fear: Broadway replacement Estelle Parsons will be headlining the national tour starting this August. Plus, Hollywood is working on a film adaptation (though I still think the original production should have been filmed for PBS). For fans of Steppenwolf and Letts, there are reasons to celebrate as they are bringing his latest play Superior Donuts to NY this fall.

I have been blessed to have been there for August on its opening night at the Imperial on December 4, 2007, so it feel right that I’ll be there at the final performance. So as John Cullum and Kimberley Guerrero take their seats in Beverly’s den on June 28, I will experience the show for the seventh and last time in this incarnation, a beautiful and cathartic bookend.

A play like this comes along so rarely. Plus, there are some great discounts if you want to rush to see it before it goes! I hope to see you there…

She’s Mean, She’s a Mess and Now She’s Phylicia

“Some people get antagonized by the truth.”

That is one of the many truth-bombs dropped at a fateful, disastrous dinner at the Weston house by matriarch Violet. You see, Violet is angry. She has cancer of the mouth, a volatile marriage, residual issues that stem from her problems with her mother, and a penchant for painkillers – any and all. Well the truth is, the play is still one of the most galvanizing theatrical experiences on Broadway, whose volatility remains unmatched by anything that has opened since.

August: Osage County, last year’s enormous Pulitzer and Tony-winning success is still playing at the Music Box Theatre and a new mama has joined the company. To put it mildly, she will cut you. Tony-winner Phylicia Rashad seemed an unlikely choice to fill shoes occupied by Tony-winner Deanna Dunagan and her stellar replacement Estelle Parsons. There were people who felt that there were too many racial undertones in the character for an actress of color to play the part. However, to those naysayers, I offer a polite “phooey.” (Spoiler alert pending in the next paragraph).

From the moment Rashad stumbles down the stairs in a drug-addled stupor and viciously turns on John Cullum, any and all preconceived ideas about her casting are erased from memory. (*Spoiler alert* For the first time, I thought “So this is why he killed himself” *End Spoiler*). This play does offer the character the opportunity to voice some politically incorrect comments about “Indians,” but color is innocuous here. Phylicia Rashad is once again playing an earth mother, but an earth mother who has experienced torment and disappointment in her life and is unafraid to express it or take out her rage on her family. Fact of the matter: the actress is nothing short of revelatory.

Rashad marks the fourth Violet I’ve seen. I took in Dunagan twice, her opening night and final performance; Parsons I saw twice and on one occasion earlier this year saw the capable understudy Susanne Marley, whose performance is molded on Dunagan’s. Each actress has brought something different to the part. Dunagan was selfish, clingy and ultimately childish under a bitingly caustic veneer. Parsons was stronger with a passive aggressive approach to her attacks, with a final breakdown of considerable pathos.

Now revitalizing the production at the Music Box (the understudy performance was strong, but not the special event the show is intended to be), is Rashad, also the first actor in the production to receive above the title billing. The last time I saw her onstage was in the 2008 revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. While enjoyable, her performance was more caricature than character and in that I found my worries regarding August.

Let it be said, there is nothing to fear here. Rashad’s Violet is angry, but she is also no nonsense, with eyes of frigid sobriety defying her lucid state of mind. Rashad brings great emotional wealth to the character in the first act, where I heard and understood lines for the first time. There are times when you might even feel sorry for her. Then you get to the climactic second act, where she proceeds to eviscerate everyone in sight. It is here that Violet’s rage comes to a boiling point. She may be loaded on her painkillers, but her character knows exactly what she’s doing. She is simultaneously taking out her aggression on those people readily available while masochistically setting herself up for a violent confrontation.

I was seated on the left center aisle for this entire scene and had a beautifully uncompromising view of Rashad’s face for the duration of the twenty minute scene. The actress spoke volumes with her steely eyes, and in her anger she was unpredictable and at times downright frightening. A sideways glance from her Violet is enough to wither anyone into cowering silence, with one notable exception. (More on her later). Hers is a performance to be reckoned with, and has brought a new invigorating dynamic to the cast, keeping the entire ensemble on their toes. You couldn’t ask for better theatre.

Elizabeth Ashley has put away her walker from Dividing the Estate and donned a gaudy wig to play Violet’s sister, Mattie Fae. Larger than life, Ashley’s Mattie Fae is closer in form to originator Rondi Reed’s characterization and is a vast improvement on previous replacement Molly Regan. She brings gauche earthiness and Southern sensibility to the part and as a result, Mattie is once again a colorful, crowd pleasing favorite. Though her performance is brushed with broader strokes than her predecessors, she still garners the audience’s sympathy in her grounded last scene.

John Cullum offers the best portrayal of Beverly Weston since the late Dennis Letts, with a folk-like whimsy undercut by resigned melancholy. Anne Berkowitz is Jean and is the most true to life teen I’ve seen in the role. Brian Kerwin is the only original cast member to stay with the production all the way through, playing Steve with the same combination of cockiness and sleaze.

Lots of original cast members have returned. Kimberley Guerrero is still playing Johnna, the Native American hired by Beverly to look after Violet and is a quiet source of comfort and solace for the family. Mariann Mayberry and Sally Murphy also returned as Violet’s two other daughters. Mayberry is still hilarious and devastating as the insecure youngest Karen, though she’s given up her bit with the olives. When she defiantly tells Barbara she’s going to Belize, it is nothing short of heartbreaking.

Murphy; however, needs to be reigned in. Her performance as Ivy has gone so wildly over the top that she switches between two levels: calm deadpan and incoherent high-pitched screeching. Whenever her emotions are vaulted, her voice jumps an octave and lines are lost. It’s glaringly inappropriate especially when juxtaposed with the more nuanced work of her scene partners.

Also returning to the cast is Amy Morton, whose titanic performance as eldest daughter Barbara, clearly her mother’s daughter is once again the emotional anchor of the piece. Finding herself in a failing marriage, handling her rebellious teen daughter while unsuccessfully trying to hold her family together, Morton is still giving the production’s most profound characterization. From her entrance to her exit, Morton is a fully-dimensional force of nature, ready to attack both her unfaithful husband and mother, but also herself. When Morton goes head to head with Rashad, it is as close to onstage fireworks as one is likely to find. (The only other onstage confrontation that comes close are the leading ladies of Mary Stuart). Her second act curtain line is still a shocking, earth shattering war cry that must be experienced live to be fully appreciated.

Morton’s is the sort of performance that comes along so rarely. So palpably honest, the line between acting and reality become forever blurred. Actors of the Golden Age rave about their memories of Laurette Taylor in The Glass Menagerie; I offer Amy Morton in August: Osage County.

Rashad is contracted through August 23. Unfortunately, it looks as if she can’t extend due to her commitment to the London engagement of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof this fall. First timers will be floored by the experience as the staging is still taut and high octane; repeat viewers (this was my sixth time seeing the play, remember) will be more than pleased at the shape the play is in. The cast still functions as an organic ensemble, with the relationships between the veterans and newcomer Rashad so functionally dysfunctional, you’d think she originated the part.

The play is still one of the most hilarious and one of the most gutwrenching dramatic experiences onstage in NY. Chances are I will most likely return a seventh time. Rashad and Morton are worth it.

Quote of the Day: Amy Morton Edition

Morton is back on Broadway as the definitive Barbara Fordham in August: Osage County, the role she originated at Steppenwolf, in NY and in London. She was interviewed by the NY Times this past week. Here are some highlights:

Amy on the three Violets:

“Deanna was much more of a Texas flower, very feminine, very needy on stage, in that way that Violet is. Estelle wasn’t as much. She was a little tougher and a little more blunt. But what’s great is it still really worked. Phylicia and I are still kind of working it out. I got to tell you, when she gets mean, it’s scary. I mean, she lays us low at that dinner table.”

On different reactions between NY and London audiences:

“The end of the second act when I scream at my mother, it was a much quieter reaction. At first we thought, did we shock them? But there was much more of a collective holding of breath and not letting it out. In New York sometimes the end of the second act feels like a hockey game.”

Amy Morton, Amy Morton, Amy Morton

Amy Morton, the Tony-nominated powerhouse who gave what I think was the greatest performance of any I saw last season, returns to the Broadway company of August: Osage County on May 26. Phylicia Rashad will be donning the teal pajamas of Violet Weston on that same day. Morton left the NY production in October 12, taking a well-deserved rest before shipping off to London for the National Theatre production that opened in November.

Quote of the Day: August in London

“Vulnerable, angry and thoroughly transfixing, [Amy] Morton has forged one of the great theatrical performances of the modern era. Like the rest of this remarkable show, it stares out from the stage with surety and terror.”

– Chris Jones, in his review of the London transfer of August: Osage County in the Chicago Tribune’s Theatre Loop

“You know you’re in for a lively evening when a play about a family reunion includes a fight director among the team. And how satisfying that he’s called Chuck, too.”

– Christopher Hart in the Sunday Times

“Maybe Letts invites comparisons, a tad too obviously, with other canonical greats: Eugene O’Neill, Tennessee Williams, Edward Albee. But what’s really joyous is his emergent Chekhovian talent for weaving a broad tapestry, depicting a whole extended household. He combines that with pin-sharp detailing which rings painfully true. Amy Morton’s Barbara is unforgettable, howling with grief, then distractedly brushing her hair.”

– Kate Bassett in the Independent

“Watching manipulative, mischievous Dunagan, or bruised, angry Morton or brassy Rondi Reed or any of Anna Shapiro’s terrific ensemble, you ruefully ask an obvious question. Could a British cast bring such commitment and conviction to this subversive take on Oklahoma!? Surely not.”

– Benedict Nightingale in the Times

It’s Official…

The majority of the original cast of August: Osage County will be reprising their roles for the original London company at the National Theatre later this fall. We first got wind of this about three months ago during Tony time. Michael McGuire, who assumed the role of Beverly Weston from the late Dennis Letts will reprise his performance as well as Molly Ranson, who replaced Madeleine Martin, who had to honor her contract for Californication, as Jean. Frances Guinan will not be in the ensemble as he is already slated to be in The Seafarer at Steppenwolfe this December. Paul Vincent O’Connor will assume the role of Uncle Charlie. They have yet to cast the role of Steve Heidelbrecht, currently played by Brian Kerwin at the Music Box in NY.

However, if you didn’t get a chance to see Deanna Dunagan, Rondi Reed and Jeff Perry all play opposite the magnanimous Amy Morton, here is the opportunity for you. August will run at the National from November 21 to January 21, 2009.

Anybody want to fly (me) out to London…? ;