Present Laughter Revival
Closing: July 02, 2017Present Laughter - 2017 Broadway History , Info & More
St. James Theatre (Broadway)
246 West 44th St. New York, NY
Noel Coward's totally-irresistible comedy, Present Laughter, follows a self-obsessed actor (is there any other kind?) in the midst of a mid-life crisis. Freely indulging his considerable appetite for wine, women and sleeping late (not necessarily in that order), the theatre's favorite leading man suddenly finds himself caught between fawning ingenues, crazed playwrights, secret trysts and unexpected twists.
Present Laughter first premiered on Broadway at the Plymouth Theatre in 1946, following an immensely successful wartime tour starring Coward himself. One of his most produced and beloved works, Present Laughter has come to define Coward's singular comedic voice for generations of theatergoers. In addition to Coward, some of the world's most accomplished stage actors, including the likes of Albert Finney, Peter O'Toole, and Ian McKellen, have played the lead role.
Present Laughter - 2017 - Broadway Cast
FEATURED REVIEWS FOR Present Laughter
'Present Laughter': Theater Review
9 / 10
Talk about a match made in heaven. Kevin Kline was born to do Noel Coward, and his casting as Garry Essendine, the 1930s stage star and aging playboy at the center of his own eternal melodrama in Present Laughter, yields a performance of unimpeachable skill, made all the more delectable by its lightness of touch. Matching witty verbal jousts with florid gesticulation, and head-to-toe body language that constitutes its own uniquely refined brand of physical comedy, Kline etches a character pulled between conceited selfishness and encroaching melancholy, a coddled man-child helpless without a captive audience.
Droll Kevin Kline In Noël Coward’s ‘Present Laughter’, Plus Harvey Fierstein & John Leguizamo – Broadway Review
7 / 10
All of which is to say that Moritz von Stuelpnagel's revival is fleet, funny, deliciously cast and over the top when it should be - and occasionally when it needn't be, sweating just a bit too hard to earn the audience's whoops of pleasure. Fortunately, Coward and Kline are too dynamic a duo to suffer any damage from such picked nits.
Category
Present Laughter History
Other Productions of Present Laughter
| 1946 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1958 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1982 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1996 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 2010 | Broadway |
Roundabout Revival Broadway |
| 2017 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Production Broadway |
| 2019 | West End |
Old Vic Revival Production West End |
Present Laughter - 2017 Broadway Awards and Nominations
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Leading Actor in a Play | Kevin Kline |
| 2017 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Play | Kevin Kline |
| 2017 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design for a Play | Susan Hilferty |
| 2017 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Wig and Hair | Josh Marquette |
| 2017 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Kate Burton |
| 2017 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Kevin Kline |
| 2017 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play | Present Laughter |
| 2017 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Play | Kevin Kline |
| 2017 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Costume Design (Play or Musical) | Susan Hilferty |
| 2017 | Theatre World Awards | Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway Debut Performance | Cobie Smulders |
| 2017 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Play | Susan Hilferty |
| 2017 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play | Kevin Kline |
| 2017 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Play | Present Laughter |
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