Producer Jeffrey Finn announced today that the Broadway production of OLEANNA, the provocative drama by Pulitzer Prize winner David Mamet, will be presenting a special offer to theater patrons at the Friday, November 27 matinee at 2PM. In connection with Nextbook Press, the first 200 ticket holders that day to enter The Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street) will be given a complimentary copy of The Wicked Son, playwright David Mamet's most recent paperback release.
Starring Bill Pullman (in his Broadway return) and Julia Stiles (in her Broadway debut) and directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes (Doubt), OLEANNA is a gripping account of a power struggle between a male university professor and one of his female students. The Broadway production is playing now through January 3, 2010.
From the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, filmmaker, essayist and novelist, The Wicked Son is a scathing look at one of the most destructive and tenacious forces in contemporary life. As might be expected from this fiercely provocative writer, David Mamet's interest in anti-Semitism is not limited to the modern face of an ancient hatred, but encompasses as well the ways in which many Jews have internalized that hatred. Using the metaphor of the Wicked Son at the Passover seder - the child who asks, "What does this story mean to you?" - Mamet confronts what he sees as an insidious predilection among some Jews to seek truth and meaning anywhere - in other religions, in political movements, in mindless entertainment - but in Judaism itself. At the same time, he explores the ways that Jews have long been and still remain wicked sons in the eyes of the world. Written with the searing honesty and verbal brilliance that is the hallmark of Mamet's work, The Wicked Son is a powerfully thought-provoking book. The New York Times Book Review says, "Like everything Mamet does, The Wicked Son is blunt and bracing, honest and provocative, original and gutsy." The Wicked Son is available in paperback from Nextbook Press.
The New York Times called OLEANNA, "Timeless and infernally ingenious" and "The ultimate he-said, she-said drama." USA Today heralded it as "A gripping new production. OLEANNA has lost none of its provocative power and is bound to inspire animated conversations long after the curtain falls." NY-1 News praised, "Two powerful performances in this powerful, provocative production." The Wall Street Journal proclaimed, "Doug Hughes has directed with an enthralling combination of force and subtlety. It packs a knock-down punch!" The Associated Press declared, "Get ready to be infuriated again. OLEANNA is incendiary and inflammatory, bruising and fascinating. David Mamet's linguistic pyrotechnics build to an explosive climax!" The Hollywood Reporter called it, "Dynamite Theater" and Back Stage pronounced it "The most intense show on Broadway!"
Stars Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles have both been hailed by critics for their performances. The Wall Street Journal declared, "What is most impressive about this revival, is that the actors give both characters their due. Mr. Pullman is so tightly wound that he all but quivers, while Ms. Stiles appears to have strolled directly into the theater from the nearest classroom." Pullman has been praised as "Excellent" (New York Times), "Terrific" (NY-1 News), "Transfixing" (Variety), "Virtuosic" (Newsday) and "Expert" (Bloomberg News) and Stiles has been lauded as "Raw and Intense" (New York Post), "Riveting" (USA Today), "Terrific" (Wall Street Journal), "Luminous" (New York Times) and "Compelling" (Newsday). Back Stage calls their work, "A pair of powerhouse performances!"
Critics also keep coming back to three powerful words to describe the production: "EXPLOSIVE" (Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Bloomberg News, MTV, Backstage); "PROVOCATIVE" (USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, Hollywood Reporter, NY-1 News, Crain's New York, AM-New York, Back Stage); and "INCENDIARY" (Wall Street Journal, Variety, Associated Press, Hollywood Reporter).
OLEANNA is produced by Jeffrey Finn, Arlene Scanlan, Jed Bernstein, Ken Davenport, Carla Emil, Ergo Entertainment, Harbor Entertainment, Elie Hirschfeld, Rachel Hirschfeld, HOP Theatricals, Brian Fenty/Martha H. Jones and Center Theatre Group.
