Holed up in a seedy motel on the edge of the Mojave Desert, two former lovers unpack the deep secrets and dark desires of their tangled relationship, passionately tearing each other apart. Beaten down by ill-fated love and a ruthless struggle for identity, can they ultimately live with, or without, each other? Led by director Daniel Aukin (Back Back Back at MTC; 4,000 Miles), Tony Award winner Nina Arianda (Venus in Fur at MTC, Born Yesterday)and Sam Rockwell (A Behanding in Spokane, The Way Way Back) bring an explosive intensity to Sam Shepard's (Buried Child, True West) landmark myth of the new Wild West.
Imagine the cartoon character Olive Oyl as a baritone in a red tube dress and you've got Arianda's May. Arianda may be the first actor to feature both arms and legs akimbo, and when she's not working those long limbs, she's running around on the set's motel-room bed like a 3-year-old without her Ritalin. Since May doesn't get to speak every line of dialogue, Arianda spends the rest of her time on stage messing with her hair, braiding her hair, or pinning up her hair -- anything to keep our attention...With Arianda offstage, it's possible to notice Rockwell and Pelphrey, and to see that they're embodying their respective characters with understated grace.
And for 75 minutes, director Daniel Aukin and his flawless cast, led by a riveting Nina Arianda and a fiercely unsettling Sam Rockwell, deliver, never allowing themselves or the audience an uncharged moment...The arrival of a gentleman caller named Martin -- an awkward but patient fellow, imbued with a strange grace by a wonderful Tom Pelphrey -- spurs the possessive Eddie to reveal that he and May share DNA...By this point, Arianda, who takes a short while to completely settle into her role -- her twangy accent seems to come and go -- has dug in with full force, and the results are devastating. The actress...has never had trouble holding a stage, or dominating one. Here, she reveals the desperation and shame of a woman who wants to exert her independence but cannot, and her final resignation is harrowing. Rockwell deftly mines the vulnerability and humor behind the menace Eddie shows us initially.
| 1983 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
| 2015 | Broadway |
Manhattan Theatre Club Broadway Revival Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Nina Arianda |
| 2016 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Sam Rockwell |
| 2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play (Broadway or off-Broadway) | Fool for Love |
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