OUR TOWN revival starring Dustin Hoffman; Bartlett Sher directs- Page 2

[troynow]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 8:16pm

Still think Broadway isn’t RACIST?

Here is an announcement of shows I want to see:
A Strange Loop
BLUE
Black Orpheus

Put some BIPOC people onstage and backstage. And above the freaking title.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 8:50pm

Rudin wants a star to sell tickets? Get Meryl! 

[WayTooBroadway]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:01pm

Yes to Viola Davis! My initial thought before I clicked this thread.

https://twitter.com/casey_mink/status/1278087504852287489

"Us: We'd love to see work written and directed by women and people of color, starring diverse casts!

Broadway: Omgomg I have just the thing"

[Dollypop]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:04pm

Or James Franco

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:08pm

Gender-bending or "diversifying" wouldn't be a bad risk for Rudin to take at all far into the future, especially with the role of the Stage Manager. Options abound for stars to play this role!

This could be interesting as the months pass, especially if (yes, if) B'way ends up reopening Spring 2021 like the insiders hope. Let the coronavirus and its local/medical experts decide whether this revival even happens or not.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:20pm

Dollypop said: "Or James Franco"

I can’t tell if this is a joke or not but Franco also has similar allegations against him. And did his run on Broadway in Of Mice and Men sell well?

[dramamama611]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:24pm

Jarethan said: "I was unable to see the Cromer production. What was the coup de theatre??"

It was simply stunning. I'd always "appreciated" Our Town, but thought it was rather mundane. I cant even tell you why I chose to buy a ticket...probably the hype here. But it is one of my most beloved theatrical experiences - maybe in my top 5. I openly sobbed during the final act. Could not stop.

[Kad]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:28pm

Ditch Sherr. Get Robert O’Hara.

Ditch Hoffman. Get literally anybody else, who doesn’t have a history of sexual abuse.

Don’t give us a totally safe and respectable production of this play if you’re going to be producing it, especially if it’s the first thing you’re producing after this year.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:29pm

I would love to see this recast with Donald Trump. First socially-distanced rehearsal: 1/21/21

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:54pm

[Georgeanddot2]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 9:57pm

I love Hoffman as an actor, but I loathe what he's done as a person. A part of me is happy to see him especially considering his age. This will probably be the last time we have the opportunity to see him live, but it's unfortunately tarnished by his despicable actions and unapologetic attitude. I wish I could be more excited by this.

Wish we were getting the Cromer production for a limited run at Circle in the Square with a bit of stunt casting thrown into the mix. (Perfect role for Saoirse Ronan).

Hoffman will sell tickets with the blue haired crowd that'll fall asleep ten minutes in.

[Damiensta]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 10:01pm

I really thought after allegations that he would be retired . Specially since he hasn’t done anything since they came out. Rudin clearly doesn’t care about allegations per his prior casting in other productions.
I still remember the Bacon smell from the Cromer production. It was perfection.

On other note, has the stage manager ever been played by a woman?

And I’m sure if they announce full white cast it will have bad press too

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 10:02pm

Helen Hunt played it in the Cromer version.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 10:22pm

TotallyEffed said: "I can’t tell if this is a joke or not but Franco also has similar allegations against him. And did his run on Broadway inOf Mice and Men sell well?"

Not that I want to see him in this, but the revival of Of Mice and Men did do relatively well. Their lowest week they still cleared 80% of their gross potential (bringing in just over $750,000) and their capacity never dipped below 92%.

[SoCalDirector]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:07pm

I saw the Cromer production in Santa Monica. The best part of it was sitting next to Helen Hunt who played the stage manager. There were some great moments. Especially the reveal when Emily goes back was brilliant. I did not love Emily and George getting married in blue jeans. The production just looked flat. And my least favorite part was since they didn’t have an ensemble to play the smaller roles so they gave audience members lines to read and they were god awful.

They definitely should re-examine all the possibilities. A good number of years ago South Coast Repertory came out with a concept of Our Town being everyone’s town. They had an extremely diverse cast and I went in looking for a wonderful production. It was not. They had an African-American woman playing the stage manager which I thought was a great idea. However she forgot her lines and looked at the audience and said “I’m sorry.”. This production was in theory color blind because the families were diverse ethnicities. I would prefer more of a color conscious casting like in the recent Romeo and Juliet with Orlando bloom and Condola Rashad.  Don’t cast Emily and George with actors in their 30s. Get some young 20 somethings years. It starts off they’re in high school. And they’re young married’s. So the majority of the play they are quite young. It is a beautiful script but the actors have to bring it.

Updated On: 6/30/20 at 11:07 PM

[Zion24]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:16pm

in other words, the producers are betting that the cancellation of Hoffman two years ago isnt going to dissuade ticket buyers, even as it riles up twitterers and message boarders.

i think its a pretty safe bet- see, for example, the fact that the MJ Musical is actually going to be a thing. if that project is going fwd, really hard to see someone like Hoffman being problematic at the box office. 

[toottoot]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:17pm

RW3 said: "Scott Rudin wouldn't be able to read the room if his life depended on it."

Truer words... 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:21pm

If they are going to bring back “Our Town”, which I believe is the greatest play ever written, I would love it to be this new take on it with a huge star. You can take risks with a show like this when you have that bankable name that will sell the seats, no matter what. And while yeah I love seeing it done the “normal” way, there is something thrilling about seeing it through a new lens.

[toottoot]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:26pm

Wealthy white man with troublesome reputation produces the 1000th revival of dead white man's Play, directed by white man, starring problematic white man, set to open during [insert date when nobody knows we'll be able to do anything but continually suffer through a pandemic], tickets to go on sale soon to pad the pockets of said wealthy white man. 

[Damiensta]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:32pm

Jordan Catalano said: "Helen Hunt played it in the Cromer version."

Oh, wow, how did I miss that. I saw it with Michael Shannon.

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/30/20 at 11:37pm

Helen was so wonderful. Just a truly incredible evening.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 7/1/20 at 2:12am

I love Sher, but there is just no way he can make this interesting. I thought Mockingbird (My all time favorite book having been from the South) was really poorly designed and executed. So I don't think he's going to make this very groundbreaking or eventful or interesting. 

 

I'd love to see O'hara do this. Or Chavkin 

[fitzdavid2]

Posted: 7/1/20 at 7:21am

I liked "Mockingbird" quite a bit and thought Sher's staging was effective and moving.  He also did a brilliant "Joe Turner's Come and Gone", and I would think this would have been an opportunity to cast a major black latino, or asian artist  in the role of the stage manager to give it a new vibrancy.  That would be more reflective of American today, rather than a step back in time.  If you're going to do it older (Newman was 77, Hoffman will be 84), why not think Morgan Freeman or Samuel Jackson, both wonderful stage actors.  Or if you go younger why not a John Leguizamo or a Constance Wu.  Ultimately, I wouldn't be surprised if this didn't happen with Hoffman...

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 7/1/20 at 7:29am

I love Bartlett Sher, but I found Mockingbird to be one of his weaker jobs. Not a fan of Our Town as a play or of Dustin Hofmann, so I can't say I'm too excited for this.

[kennedy_rose]

Posted: 7/1/20 at 7:46am

Dollypop said: "Or James Franco"

Great...another predator.