Up On The Marquee: ORPHANS

ORPHANS will begin performances on March 19 and open on April 7 2013 at the Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street), marking the first Broadway staging of the play. Alec Baldwin and Shia LaBeouf star in Lyle Kessler's play, directed by Daniel Sullivan and produced by Frederick Zollo and Robert Cole. Tom Sturridge will also be making his Broadway debut in Orphans. See Orphans' Broadway marquee below!

In the play, two orphaned brothers are living in a decrepit North Philadelphia row house. Treat, the eldest, (LaBeouf), supports his damaged younger sibling Philip (Sturridge) by petty thievery, and makes the house a virtual prison for the seemingly simple-minded Phillip. One night he kidnaps a rich older man, Harold (Baldwin), who turns out to have his own motives and becomes the father figure the boys have always yearned for.

ORPHANS premiered in 1983 at The Matrix Theatre in Los Angeles where it won the Drama-Logue Award. Following its 1985 engagement at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre, the play had a successful run at New York's Westside Arts Theatre and was subsequently produced in London. A film version was also produced.

For more about the production, go to www.orphansonbroadway.com.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

Broadway theatre marquee unveiling for ORPHANS, starring Alec Baldwin

Broadway theatre marquee unveiling for ORPHANS, starring Alec Baldwin