A powerfully poignant and often hilarious play, The Waverly Gallery is about the final years of a generous, chatty, and feisty grandmother's final battle against Alzheimer's disease. Gladys is an old-school lefty and social activist and longtime owner of a small art gallery in Greenwich Village. The play explores her fight to retain her independence and the subsequent effect of her decline on her family, especially her grandson. More than a memory play, The Waverly Gallery captures the humor and strength of a family in the face of crisis.
What a pleasure to see improv queen Elaine May, erstwhile half of a legendary comedy double-act with Mike Nichols, back on Broadway after 50-plus years at 86, her timing as sharply idiosyncratic as ever. Even for those of us who know her acerbic style only from recordings, movies and playwriting, there's a special satisfaction in watching this influential humorist perform. She's alternately funny, maddening and heartbreaking as a longtime Greenwich Village fixture whose mind is deteriorating faster than her body in Kenneth Lonergan's The Waverly Gallery.
Similar to Tennessee Williams' THE GLASS MENAGERIE, Lonergan's touching and humorous piece is a memory play, with the young Daniel occasionally narrating the story to the audience. For twenty-eight years the widowed Gladys has been running a small art gallery attached to a hotel across from Washington Square. It's never done great business, but the owner thought it attracted passers-by. Now he's decided to convert the place into a cafe and has given Gladys two months' notice.
2000 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2018 | Broadway |
Broadway Premiere Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2019 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Play | Elaine May |
2019 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | The Waverly Gallery |
2019 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Elaine May |
2019 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play | The Waverly Gallery |
2019 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Play | Elaine May |
2019 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Joan Allen |
2019 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | The Waverly Gallery |
2019 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Elaine May |
2019 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Play | Kenneth Lonergan |
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