Orson’s Shadow is opening on Thursday, March 14th and runs through the end of the month at the Theater for the New City. Whether you’re familiar with Orson Welles, Sir Laurence Olivier, and Vivian Leigh or not, this promises to be riveting and thoroughly enjoyable. Austin Pendleton’s acclaimed play returns to New York City to celebrate its 25th year in a revised version directed by the author.
Ryan Tremont as Laurence Olivier, Natalie Menna as Vivian Leigh. Photo by Jonathan Slaff.
The story:
In 1960, Orson Welles directs Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright in Eugene Ionesco’s RHINOCEROS. Sparks fly as egos bruise and clash, secrets are revealed, and legends collide. Orson’s Shadow is based on true events and is set in the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, then at the Royal Court Theatre. Olivier is fresh from a successful run of a theatrical portrayal and is about to undertake its film adaptation; He and Plowright are also embroiled in a romantic liaison just as his tumultuous marriage to Vivien Leigh is ending. Influential critic Kenneth Tynan becomes involved in the conflicts between Welles, Olivier, and Leigh.
The play delves into the merits of stage versus screen, the internal struggle that theatrical performers experience when taking a leap to films, and how the studio system frustrates individual artists. It also lays bare the characters’ theatrical egos and how they live more vibrantly on stage than in real life, each feeling insecure as they grasp for power.
Orson’s Shadow received critical praise during its first production at Steppenwolf in 2000 and its New York debut at Barrow Street Theater in 2005. Since that time, Mr. Pendleton has worked on the play, making revisions and further developing the script.
The Superb Cast:
Brad Fryman as Orson Welles
Patrick Hamilton as Kenneth Tynan
Luke Hofmaier as Sean
Natalie Menna as Vivien Leigh
Kim Taff as Joan Plowright
Ryan Tramont as Laurence Olivier
The Production Team
Co-Director: David Schweizer
Stage Manager: Jose Ruiz
Company Manager/ Assistant Director: Mark Karafin
Lighting Design: Alexander Bartenieff
Sound Design: Nick Moore
Costume Design: Billy Little
Playwright / Director
Austin Pendleton is an actor, a director, a playwright and a teacher of acting at HB Studio in New York, where he studied with Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof. He is a member of the Ensemble in Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theater and has appeared in several hundred movies and on TV in such shows as “Homicide,” “Oz” and “Law and Order.” He has directed Tony-nominated shows on Broadway (“Spoils of War,” “The Little Foxes”) and directed extensively at other theaters, notably the Williamstown Theatre Festival, where he apprenticed and got his start under the guidance of its Artistic Director, Nikos Psacharopoulos.
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The details:
By: Austin Pendleton
Directed By: Austin Pendleton
Runs: March 14 – 31st
WED at 7:30 / THU, FRI, SAT at 8 PM / SUN at 3 PM
Tickets: $25, Students & Seniors $15
Run Time: 2 hours with one 15-minute Intermission
Theater for the New City / Johnson Theater
155 First Avenue
(between 9th and 10th Streets)
New York, NY 10003
Buy tickets HERE.
Don’t miss this one!
