From the Artistic Director: Old Times

The first ever Broadway revival of Harold Pinter'sOld Times, directed by Douglas Hodge begins previews September 17 at the American Airlines Theatre to kick off our 50th Anniversary season.

Doing the work of Harold Pinter in this celebratory season is incredibly meaningful for me. When I first became the Artistic Director of Roundabout, I knew that I wanted to expand on the definition of "classics" that we'd been following. I've always been happy doing work from Shaw, Ibsen, Chekhov, and their peers, but as time went on, I saw a need to bring more modern classics into our repertoire. The first name I thought of was Harold Pinter, and I feel so privileged to have worked with this great man late in his career. I found Harold himself to be much like his plays - surprising, a bit scary, and completely inspiring.

What appeals to me in Pinter's work is the way that it refuses to be pinned down. Not only does each actor, director, and designer develop a new interpretation, but each individual audience member brings a unique perspective to the table. Much like a piece of dance, whatever you take away from the experience is right, in that it reflects what the play said specifically to you. I think people can feel intimidated by Pinter because they think they'll have the "wrong" answer to the meaning of the play. But there's truly no such thing. In the world of Pinter, the landscape is always shifting, memory can't be trusted, passion can flare to violence at any moment, and "wrong" and "right" are simply irrelevant.

We are incredibly lucky to have Douglas Hodge directing this revival, which marks the play's first return to a Broadway stage since its premiere in 1971. After performing with the playwright himself in a production of Pinter's No Man's Land, Doug went on to perform in and direct several more of his plays, getting to know the man behind the icon along the way. Now, Doug has said that he feels Harold at his shoulder, thrilled in the knowledge that one of his greatest plays will be seen by a new audience.

And the importance of that new audience cannot be underestimated. Pinter's distinct writing style was part of the movement in the 1950s that ushered in a new phase in theatre history, blowing out the doors and windows of the classic drawing rooms. And as Doug has quite wisely expressed, we'll only open ourselves up to finding the next Harold Pinter if more theatregoers have the chance to see this kind of work for themselves and feel the sense of rebellion that vibrates within it. We don't yet know what the next era of playwriting will bring, but we can certainly inspire creative minds by showing them what a bit of revolution brought to the stage nearly half a century ago.

I couldn't be happier to have Old Times launching our 50th Anniversary season at Roundabout, and I hope that you will share your thoughts on this production by emailing me atartisticoffice@roundabouttheatre.org. I can't tell you how greatly I value your feedback each season. Please keep it coming.

I look forward to seeing you at the theatre!

Sincerely,

Todd Haimes
Artistic Director