THE INHERITANCE to play the Barrymore this fall; Sept previews/Nov. opening

[jacobsnchz14]

‘The Inheritance’ announces Broadway run
https://broadway.news/2019/06/06/the-inheritance-announces-broadway-run/

[Jordan Catalano]

Starting previews 9/27 and opening 11/17 - That’s a VERY long preview period for a play.

[Huss417]

Jordan Catalano said: "Starting previews 9/27 and opening 11/17 - That’s a VERY long preview period for a play."

The two parts run close to 7 hours. I can see a longer preview period for this.

[n2nbaby]

Very excited for this.

[Jordan Catalano]

I’ve seen the show. I can’t imagine what they would need almost two months to work on during that preview period. I’m sure some tweeks will be needed here and there but it still strikes me as odd, especially for a play that’s already been published.

[quizking101]

I just finished reading this the other day and I was WRECKED. It is a beautiful play and deserves to become the next “Angels In America”

[Jordan Catalano]

Quizking, reading this play and seeing it are so totally different. If you were wrecked just reading it, you’re gonna need to prepare yourself for what it’s actually like on stage.

[LesWickedly]

Hopefully they have a name lined up. Opening this far in advance from the Tonys is worrying because with or without a name, this’ll be a hard sell. Thankfully it’s in a smaller theatre. Very excited for this.

[Sauja]

Seeing this in London was one of the great privileges of my theater-going life. We sort of all knew it was coming, but I'm ecstatic now that it's official.

[quizking101]

Jordan Catalano said: "I’ve seen the show. I can’t imagine what they would need almost two months to work on during that preview period. I’m sure some tweeks will be needed here and there but it still strikes me as odd, especially for a play that’s already been published. "

My guess is that they aren’t importing the whole London cast and so the new cast might need time to get into the rhythm of the piece and doing both plays in rep 

[nasty_khakis]

Agreed. Reading it after seeing it twice made me realize a lot of beautiful, touching, or funny moments were purely the staging and not written in the text. 

Two moths seems very strange. I heard a rumor on a West End board (not here) that Lopez wants to redo a LOT of Part 2. It seems crazy considering the universal critical raves and awards, but I believe Perestroika changed dramatically every time it was done before Broadway and it too got raves. Maybe it'll be a largely new cast and they want them to gel/bond? I can see Hickey, Soller, and Burnap being the only ones to transfer.

[Jordan Catalano]

a good example is the last scene in act one. I’m not going to describe how it is onstage, but it is so completely different than what’s in the text and I don’t think I’ve ever cried that hard in a theatre as I did in those few minutes.

[SonofRobbieJ]

PERESTROIKA has been changed since the Broadway productions.  It's much messier than MILLENNIUM APPROACHES (which is probably why I love it more). 

A month of previews for a new play seems about right.  And since this is a two-part play, I think they'd be crazy not to have a long preview period where both parts get equal time in front of audiences.  I certainly hope the American premiere of a deeply lauded new work by an American playwright that takes place in America will have an American cast. 

As a personal note, Matt Lopez and I worked together at a day job a million years ago and he is a complete and utter doll of a human.  I couldn't be happier for him. 

[IdinaBellFoster]

I just read all of this the other day and it wrecked me. I’m nervous about opening in the fall, but I hope it really takes off. It deserves to.

[Theatrefanboy1]

I’m curious who they will cast or if it’ll be a transfer of the west end cast

[GeorgeandDot]

I wonder if Vanessa Regrave will stay with the cast. I've heard she has a small, but extremely memorable part.

[Jordan Catalano]

GeorgeandDot said: "I wonder if Vanessa Regrave will stay with the cast. I've heard she has a small, but extremely memorable part."

Yeah, she’s only in one scene in the second part but it’s a heartbreaking and integral part of the story, as a whole. 

[nasty_khakis]

Jordan, I actually wonder how they'll handle that here (I'll put it in a spoiler)

 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

I believe a number of those men were unpaid, correct? Something to do with an LGBT group getting volunteers? I don't see that flying with American Equity, but I could be wrong)

I don't see Vanessa making the transfer. She was very frail and seemed to forget lines both times I saw it. Might have been an off week for her, though. I can see them getting a Rosemary Harris or with Elizabeth Ashley 

[Jordan Catalano]

As to your spoiler, I have no idea. That’s not even something I had heard.

And when I saw Redgrave, she was spot on, perfect. I know she had missed a number of performances because of an illness (I was really worried but ended up seeing her first show back) so that might have been what was going on.

[Sauja]

GeorgeandDot said: "I wonder if Vanessa Regrave will stay with the cast. I've heard she has a small, but extremely memorable part."

I founf Redgrave terrifically moving in a role that has exceptionally little stage time compared to the show's running time. She has 15 or so minutes, and together the plays are about six hours. But I don't see her transferring partly because watching her in London, it made sense to feel very forgiving with her Southern accent. Watching that performance in the States? I think I'd be taken out of the play more. I don't consider it a knock on her tremendous talent to say that a believable Southern accent just doesn't seem to be in her toolbox.

[nasty_khakis]

Sauja said: "GeorgeandDot said: "I wonder if Vanessa Regrave will stay with the cast. I've heard she has a small, but extremely memorable part."

I founf Redgrave terrifically moving in a role that has exceptionally little stage time compared to the show's running time. She has 15 or so minutes, and together the plays are about six hours. But I don't see her transferring partly because watching her in London, it made sense to feel very forgiving with her Southern accent. Watching that performance in the States? I think I'd be taken out of the play more. I don't consider it a knock on her tremendous talent to say that a believable Southern accent just doesn't seem to be in her toolbox."

100%. It wasn't very good but most in the UK aren't good (so I assume ours on broadway are just as bad we just cant tell). My friend and I also chuckled when another english actor said Film Forum as Fee-ulm.

Jordan I might not be entirely right. I'll have to find where I read that. 

 

 

[cardamon]

According to the schedule on their website, there are a lot more previews scheduled for Part 1 than for Part 2. Could it have something to do with the ending of P1? Seems strange.

[Jordan Catalano]

They’d better not touch the ending of part one.

[Wick3]

I'm very very happy this play is transferring to Broadway but I agree with others that opening in the fall may not be a good idea as it may close in the spring if the grosses are low. I saw the play in London last fall and I connected with this play more than I did with the recent revival of Angels in America (don't get me wrong I loved that revival too.)

I agree with others that casting will be key. For 7 hours and paying Broadway prices, I'd think people would want to see at least one actor who is well-known. 

 

[Jordan Catalano]

If Redgrave doesn’t transfer, my hope, prayer, wish, all of them is that they get someone like Angela Lansbury or even Julie Andrews. I know it’s silly but damn I want that.