Photo Coverage: Playwright John Guare Holds Press Conference at Barrington Stage Company
By: Stephen Sorokoff Jul. 16, 2015
Playwright John Guare recently met with the Press to discuss the Barrington Stage Company production of his adaptation of the classic American comedy HIS GIRL FRIDAY. Julianne Boyd, the artistic director of BSC will also be directing the production which will be on Barrington Stage's Boyd-Quinson Mainstage from Aug 6-30. Opening night is Wednesday, Aug 12. Director Julianne Boyd and actors Christopher Innvar and Jane Pfitsch joined Mr. Guare for the Press Conference in which they all took questions.
John Guare (Playwright) has written House of Blue Leaves (4 Tonys, Obie, Drama Critics Circle), Six Degrees of Separation (London's Olivier Award for Best Play, NY Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play, for which he also wrote the screenplay), Landscape of the Body, A Few Stout Individuals, A Free Man of Color (all published by Grove Press), Lydie Breeze, and Lake Hollywood, among others. He wrote the Oscar-nominated screenplay for Louis Malle's Atlantic City, won a Tony for his libretto to the musical Two Gentlemen of Verona, and was nominated for multiple Tony's for his play Four Baboons Adoring the Sun and his libretto to Sweet Smell of Success. His adaptation of His Girl Friday premiered at London's National Theater and his play Are You There, McPhee? premiered at the McCarter Theatre in 2012. He has won the PEN/Laura Pels Master Dramatist Award, the Gold Medal in Drama from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and an Obie Award for sustained excellence.
The production stars Christopher Innvar (BSC's Much Ado About Nothing, Private Lives) as Walter Burns, in her BSC debut Jane Pfitsch (Roundabout'sCabaret and Les Liasions Dangereuses) as Hildy Johnson and Mark H. Dold (BSC's Shining City, Breaking the Code) as Bruce Baldwin.
Guare sets his adaptation on the eve of World War II, August, 1939. On the world stage Hitler is about to invade Poland, but tonight tough-talking, ace word-slinger Hildy Johnson (Jane Pfitsch) has had enough of the Chicago newspaper racket. She's ready to throw it all away to catch the midnight train east, settle down with her fiancé Bruce Baldwin (Mark H. Dold) and become a lady of leisure. But that's before her former editor and ex-husband Walter Burns (Christopher Innvar) puts the kibosh on her plans, luring her back with the biggest breaking story of the year - no, it's not the threat of an impending war, but some poor dope who lost his job, went berserk, shot a cop and is waiting to swing; all this so the mayor can be re-elected.
The frenzied pace of Chicago's Criminal Courts press room comes to life with the support of Ben Caplan (Woodenshoes), Ethan Dubin (Sweeney), Brett Langdon (Wilson), James Riordan (McCue), Casey Shane (Endicott), Rocco Sisto (Sheriff), Anya Whelan Smith (Mollie Malloy), Jonathan Spivey(Bensinger), Gordon Stanley (Kruger), Christopher Tocco (Schwartz), Peggy Pharr Wilson (Mrs. Baldwin), and Robert Zukerman (Mayor).
Barrington Stage's production of His Girl Friday is designed by David Barber, with costume design by Sara Jean Tosetti, lighting design by Scott Pinkney and sound by Brad Berridge. Renee Lutz is production stage manager.
Article & Photos by: Stephen Sorokoff
Christopher Innvar & JuliAnne Boyd
John Guare, Jane Pfitsch, Christopher Innvar, JuliAnne Boyd
Christopher Innvar & JuliAnne Boyd
John Guare, His Girl Friday
Jane Pfitsch & Christopher Innvar
John Guare, JuliAnne Boyd, Jane Pfitsch, Mark H. Dold, Christopher Innvar
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