Rob Ashford Is Directing Upcoming CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF REVIVAL

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

According to Playbill.com, no official word on Johansson's casting but I imagine it's a done deal:

Tony Award winner Rob Ashford will direct a Broadway revival of Tennessee Williams' Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, which will be produced by Tony Award winner Stuart Thompson, according to an Equity casting notice.
Playbill.com Link

[The Josh]

So is everyone going to dance the whole time?

[SonofRobbieJ]

Imagine the athletic choreographical possibilities for the no-neck monsters' rendition of Skinamarinky Dinky Dink.

[wonkit]

April 1st already??

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

SonofRobbieJ, I laughed so hard at your post.
At first Ashford seemed like a terrible idea, but didn't his production of A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE in the U.K get good reviews? Rachel Weisz won an Olivier for her turn as Blanche, so that makes me a little bit more hopeful about what kind of performance he could get from Scarlett Johansson

[Jonwo]

Rob Ashford did A Streetcar Named Desire at the Donmar Warehouse which got good reviews so he's a capable play director but I think it's a bit soon to have yet another revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, the last one was only four years ago.

[SonofRobbieJ]

I was just being snarky. I'd be interested in seeing what he could bring to it. Was there discussion about who would play Big Daddy in this?

[Kad]

Has John Goodman played the role yet?

[SonofRobbieJ]

THAT'S who we were talking about on this board. Didn't he do the role in LA to lukewarm reviews?

[egghumor]

How about Lea DeLaria?

[Princeton Returns]

Streetcar at the Donmar is still one of the best things I have ever seen on stage. Rachael Weisz was mesmerising. The guy can direct plays no question

[humbugfoto]

I've lost track of what will be available when - what theater is this likely to go into?

[jeffmiele]

It'll probably go into the Cort after Grace

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Goodman seems almost too much on an obvious choice. I'd love to see what someone like Frank Langella could do with the role, alas he's a very different type of actor from those who have played the role before.

[dexter3]

Yeah, I'll second the sentiment: We don't need another revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Great play: too long. Let's put some newer and more adventurous work on stage...

[aaronb]

I feel like this play gets revived way too often.

[MrMidwest]

Big Daddy: Christopher Plummer, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson
Big Mama: Jane Fonda, Julie Andrews, Swoosie Kurtz, Ann-Margret, Susan Sarandon, Barbara Hershey, Jessica Lange, Kathleen Turner

[jv92]

Isn't this the third revival in ten years? I mean, aside from Ashford directing it, which doesn't seem promising, isn't there another Tennessee Williams play they could do?

[EricMontreal22]

Yeah, the Sweet Bird revival that was meant to happen and now is opening regionally has me much more interested. Still, the past couple of Cat revivals haven't gotten it right (IMHO), and I like the casting.

As for Ashford, since lately he's been obsessed with early 60s "Hullaballoo" style dancing (witness Promises, Promises being set back a few years, How to Succeed, even the wildly bizarre use of that style of dancing on the Kennedy Honours), I say he set Cat forward 5 or so years to the beginning of the 60s, and do clever transitions and commentary with a group of jazz dancers--adding pop and pizazz to punctuate key moments. Maybe they could even be all black, to play out the subtext of it being set on an old plantation--like the ghosts of slaves past (although they'd still have to do early 60s style dancing). I know Cocteau in his infamous first production of Streetcar in Paris already had black "jungle" dancers at the edge of the set to serve a similar function, but it's been so long, such a brilliant idea really deserves re-visiting!

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Let's not forget Debbie Allen actually had a saxophone player (was it the saxophone?) during the transitions in the last Broadway revival :-P
I loved watching Anika Noni Rose's Maggie but I think it'd be unfair not to revive the play in 2012 with someone like Scarlett Johansson just because we had a crappy revival a few years ago. I'm so into this revival, I just hope they don't ruin the show by casting someone as bland as Chris Pine as Brick, Terrence Howard was already ridiculously blind.

[best12bars]

Cat On a Hot Tin Roof (play) = Gypsy (musical) for way too many revivals.

And in Streetcar and Guys and Dolls, and we're all set!

If we must, we must. I think I love the idea of Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer as Big Mama and Big Daddy if they're up for eight shows a week together (those are heavy-duty parts).

If you want to skew a little younger and use another "recognizable pair," how about Mandy Patinkin and Patti LuPone?

[random person 112]

best12, Andrews is wrong for Big Mama in every conceivable way. Big mama is supposed to be a large woman, she even has a physical comedy bit about how large she is. She's the picture of crude new money, Andrews is pure class and dignity. Plus i don't think she can ditch her English accent to save her life.

[MrMidwest]

Kathy Bates would be a fab Big Mama. Also, Margo Martindale and Miriam Margolyes.

[random person 112]

Margo was in the 03 revival, and was according to some of the reviews, one of the best things about it. I think Bates is a great if obvious choice, Kathleen Turner is possible, i myself would be interested to see Rondi Reed or Delta Burke have a crack at it.

[best12bars]

You do realize the original Big Mama was Mildred Dunnock, right?

Big, indeed. She probably weighed 90 pounds wet.

By comparison, Julie Andrews is a linebacker.

You can argue Julie is not right for the part if you want, but don't use size as your argument. You're way off there.

[best12bars]

Here's the original "Big Mama" around the time she created the part, too.



EDIT: By the way, Mildred Dunnock was neither fat, nor coarse, nor crude.

She was fine-boned, willowy, thin, refined, genteel, and perhaps a bit mousey, with a great deal of strength underneath. Did you ever consider those lines she says in "Cat" to be filled with irony when spoken by the right actress?