True West Previews

[natashalost]

Posted: 12/25/18 at 9:15pm

True West begins previews at the American Airlines Theatre in 2 days, so I assume their invited dress should be very soon.


True West is written by Sam Shepard and directed by James MacDonald. Previews begin December 27 with opening night set for January 24, 2019.

SYNOPSIS: Holed up in their mothers California house, screenwriter Austin and lowlife Lee wrestle with big issuesand each other, leading to the airing of old resentments and some unexpected twists in the relationship.

CAST: Ethan Hawke (Lee), Paul F. Dano (Austin), Marylouise Burke (Mom), & Gary Wilmes (Saul Kimmer)

Updated On: 12/25/18 at 09:15 PM

[Danielle49]

Posted: 12/25/18 at 11:32pm

Ill be at the first preview! Ive never attended a first preview for a show before so Im very excited to be one of the first to see what theyve been cooking up

[natashalost]

Posted: 12/26/18 at 2:18am

Danielle49 said: "Ill be at the first preview! Ive never attended a first preview for a show before so Im very excited to be one of the first to see what theyve been cooking up"

Can’t wait to hear what you think!

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 12/26/18 at 10:50am

I'll be there tomorrow night, as well. I'm assuming that some of you guys got Access10 tickets, so if any regular posters would like to say hello in person, let me know!

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 12/27/18 at 11:20pm

This production of True West isnt exactly firing on all cylinders at the moment, but I think it has the potential to be a good revival in time.

I like Shepards plays, but they arent exactly plot heavy. When you have a play thats essentially two brothers sitting in a living room/kitchen discussing stories and screenplays for two hours, the two actors need to be totally keyed into the material and each other to create that crackle that will hold our attention.

Hawke is pretty much there- hes very much in touch with his character and the script at least. Dano has the trickier role and comes off flat in act one.

The play becomes increasingly surreal in act two, or should at least, but right now instead of descent into madness its more like, very naturalistic drama/light switch/crazy town. Dano could really have Austin start losing it a little more during Sauls second visit; to watch him jeopardize his career like that would put the audience on edge and set up the following scenes even better.

The final 10-15 minutes need some work. It just didnt gel and give the punch it could.

This may seem obvious, but if you dont already like the play, I dont think this revival is going to convert you. Its talky (though not a slog) and off-kilter and if you dont like that combo no amount of good acting and clever scene changes will alter your opinion.

[macnyc]

Posted: 12/27/18 at 11:55pm

Whizzer, I'm glad you posted. I just got home from the show, and I was trying to figure out how I felt about the play beyond a vague feeling of not liking it. My friend thought it was too long and repetitive, and I thought it was overwrought and repetitive. I think your comments are very astute! Also, did you have trouble hearing Marylouise Burke?

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 12/28/18 at 12:02am

True West is my favorite Sam Shepard play, so here's hoping the show can tighten up over previews.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 12/28/18 at 8:39am

Mac, I didnt have trouble hearing Burke, but maybe that was just the acoustics of my seat.

I dont think Shepard cant be done on Broadway, but there is absolutely no denying that the off-Broadway intimacy will only ever help his plays. These shows arent August: OC with a huge cast and three story house set.

My favorite Shepard play/production was the New Groups revival of A Lie of the Mind, incidentally directed by Ethan Hawke. Marin Ireland was frickin brilliant and the likes of Laurie Metcalf and Keith Carradine were in the supporting cast. Hawke clearly knows his way around a Shepard script and quite frankly should have just directed this production too.

MTCs recent Fool for Love would also have been better in a smaller space. Theres a claustrophobia and itching to escape that gets lost in a larger house. All night long we hear about Austin and Lee wanting to get away to the desert- this is a lot more intense when youre trying to break free from the Acorn rather than the American Airlines.

[LarryD2]

Posted: 12/28/18 at 9:06am

The only Broadway production of a Shepard play I've seen that truly worked was the previous revival of True West with John C. Reilly and Philip Seymour Hoffman, which was pitched perfectly for the intimate, weird design of Circle in the Square. The 2015 Fool for Love was designed for the tiny (150-seat) second stage at Williamstown, and it lost a lot of its power when moved into the substantially larger Friedman Theatre. Ditto the production of Buried Child that started at Steppenwolf and ended up at the Brooks Atkinson. The best productions of Shepard plays I've seen have all been Off-Broadway or in regional houses, which are usually the right size for his type of play.

I haven't seen this production yet, and I don't want to pre-judge it, but there are many elements that just read as wrong to me -- the size of the Airlines being one of them.

[tsondie21]

Posted: 12/29/18 at 9:04pm

Does anyone know if there is an in person rush for this? 

[LuPita2]

Posted: 12/29/18 at 9:17pm

Yes. There's a $47 in person rush when they open.  

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 12/30/18 at 9:06pm

I was at today's matinee and found the show quite engrossing. It looks like the team has already started working out many of the kinks from first preview.

Hawke and Dano were excellent- believable as brothers and competitors. Burke is only in the last scene, but her final line is note perfect.

The ending is a bit fantastical/dreamlike considering what came before, but I thought Macdonald staged it well. His direction of this actually reminded me a lot of The Children.

One stage door note: both actors were out within 15 minutes and signed for everyone, but while Dano was slightly standoffish Hawke spoke with everyone and took innumerable selfies. I joked to my friend that Hawke would be in the line for 12 years like Boyhood, and he heard me and yelled "That's right!"

[Danielle49]

Posted: 1/1/19 at 1:30pm

Fordham2015 said: "while Dano was slightly standoffish Hawke spoke with everyone and took innumerable selfies. I joked to my friend that Hawke would be in the line for 12 years like Boyhood, and he heard me and yelled "That's right!""

Macdonald said in a promo video that while Dano and Hawke are both brilliant actors, they’re complete polar opposites as people. I find that fascinating, especially in how both actors might work and how it lends itself to the play. This stage door anecdote points to their personality differences as well. I know someone who had a college class with Dano and they said he was very, very quiet and to himself. Hawke strikes me as charismatic and chatty.

On a different note, I was at the first preview via Access10 and will be at the final performance via HIPTIX (both mezzanine), but I want to see it either just before opening or right after from a better seat. Has anyone sat in the boxes yet? I’m thinking I’ll do that instead of risking rush seating locations. If the boxes are terrible for this production, however, I’d rather splurge on orchestra.

Any help is appreciated!

[The Other One]

Posted: 1/1/19 at 3:24pm

Stay away from the boxes in this theatre.  The sight lines are horrible.  Otherwise, The American Airlines is one of my favorite theaters on Broadway.

I saw Long Day's Journey Into Night from the House Left boxes.  My neck still hurts.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 1/1/19 at 6:03pm

I saw the Hoffman-Reilly production (as Austin and Lee, respectively) which was fantastic. However, having gone on to play Austin myself, its definitely a tough role as hes not a particularly interesting character and mostly reacts to whatever Lee is doing for the entire first half of the play, which is mostly a setup for the second half. I also think it really has to be done in a tiny theater or at least thrust or in the round.

These two actors seem like theyd be good in these roles though.

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 1/1/19 at 6:36pm

Danielle49 said: "On a different note, I was at the first preview via Access10 and will be at the final performance via HIPTIX (both mezzanine),but I want to see it either just before opening or right after from a better seat. Has anyone sat in the boxes yet? I’m thinking I’ll do that instead of risking rush seating locations. If the boxes are terrible for this production, however, I’d rather splurge on orchestra.

Any help is appreciated!"

As I'm sure you know, most of the action takes place house left, around the table. Since the kitchen isn't used nearly as much, I'm assuming the house right boxes would offer a decent view.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 11:59pm

I enjoyed this a lot - though I do have some reservations. MacDonald's direction has some questionable moments, for sure, but his best contribution to this production was in allowing Ethan Hawke and Paul Dano to let loose and really make the roles their own. Ethan Hawke in particular is giving an extraordinary performance. He would be my pick for the Tony over both Cranston and Daniels. As Whizzer said, Dano has trouble in act one, but IMO he redeems himself a lot in act 2. And both actors play off of each other very well. Still, Hawke's is the stronger performance overall, I think. 

Watching these two intelligent actors have fun with a script like this was thrilling and hilarious. I laughed a lot throughout the evening. I definitely recommend this, but more for the acting than for the production. I didn't think the direction was bad, but the choices (particularly regarding the set, the scene changes, and the ending) felt a little off. 

[forgetmenotnyc]

Posted: 1/11/19 at 11:35am

Saw this last night & was disappointed. Physical prod. is effective & even though sitting all the way on the right I didn't find myself missing any stage action other than the inside of the fridge. I have not seen a prod. of this since John Malkovich & Gary Sinise. Kept seeing John doing it better in Ethan Hawke's portrayal of Lee. Paul Dano as Austin just comes off as Mike Nichols as a boy - way too young for the part - making the reality of their being brothers not believable. (I mean, I get that their characters have lived very different lifestyles - but Paul looks & moves too much like a boy in his 20s while Ethan seems to be a man in his 40's or older.) I didn't hate it but found my emotions more concentrated towards 'laughing at/with it rather than feeling horrified or moved. Didn't understand the late in the play's yellow lighting & other lighting which would shift from realistic to not. Lighting designer & Dir. needed to hash things out better? 

Updated On: 1/11/19 at 11:35 AM

[Mary Taylor3]

Posted: 1/12/19 at 8:32am

tsondie21 said: "Does anyone know if there is an in person rush for this?"

We tried to rush through the todaytix app with no luck. We went to the box office at noon yesterday and they kindly sold us 2 rush tickets for $40 each. The seats were in the last row (row f), but the theater is small, and we thought the seats were great. We had a great time!