Winner of the 2022 Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Play, Joshua Harmon’s Prayer for the French Republic bursts onto Broadway after MTC’s highly acclaimed extended, sold-out Off-Broadway run. In 1944, a Jewish couple in Paris desperately awaits news of their missing family. More than 70 years later, the couple’s great-grandchildren find themselves facing the same question as their ancestors: "Are we safe?" This celebrated work by the author of Bad Jews and Significant Other is about history, home and the effects of an ancient hatred. The New York Times calls it "thought-provoking, heart-wrenching and wickedly funny." Directing is David Cromer, a Tony Award® winner for The Band's Visit.
With the inestimable assistance of Kata’s then-and-now set, Amith Chandrashaker’s lighting design, Daniel Kluger’s music and sound design and Sarah Laux’s spot-on costumes – to say nothing of Cromer’s direction, which easily matches his Tony-winning work on The Band’s Visit, Edwards and his castmates bring two distinct, if not always so dissimilar, eras to life, and they tell a sweeping story while conveying genuine intimacy. Prayer for the French Republic asks big questions – of history, of family, of identity – and, all but miraculously, answers their call.
Off Broadway, Patrick was played by the canny and empathetic actor Richard Topol. Currently, the part belongs to Anthony Edwards (of TV’s E.R.), who has a wry, befuddled quality that works in group scenes, but leaves him unfocused in monologues directed to the audience. Still, if Prayer’s frame has grown wobbly, the central story remains vibrant and confidently driven by three outstanding women from the original cast: the fierce-willed Aidem; Francis Benhamou as Marcelle’s brilliant but bipolar daughter, Elodie; and Molly Ranson as college-age Molly, an American cousin many times removed who’s spending a gap year France—while getting drawn into Benhamou drama.
| 2022 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
| 2024 | Broadway |
Manhattan Theatre Club Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance | Betsy Aidem |
| 2024 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Play | Prayer for the French Republic |
| 2024 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Play | Amith Chandrashaker |
| 2024 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Betsy Aidem |
| 2024 | Tony Awards | Best Play | Joshua Harmon |
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