The Tablet's Samuel Freedman On THE NEIL SIMON PLAYS

THE Neil Simon PLAYS are the first Broadway revivals of two of Neil Simon's beloved Eugene Morris Jerome plays, Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound, directed by David Cromer. Brighton Beach Memoirs opened Sunday, October 25th at the Nederlander Theatre (208 West 41st Street). Broadway Bound joins Brighton Beach Memoirs in repertory on November 18th, with an official opening night set for Thursday, December 10th.

Samuel Freedman writes in Tablet Magazine today, about how the Pulitzer Prize-winning Simon grew into great writer by facing his personal demons and focusing those emotions to his work for the stage. To read Freedman's essay, click here.

Brighton Beach Memoirs began previews on October 2 and opened Sunday, October 25. Broadway Bound begins previews on Wednesday, November 18 and opens Thursday, December 10. Starting on November 18, the two plays will be performed in repertory on a varied schedule at the Nederlander Theatre (208 West 41st Street).

Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound were two of the longest running Broadway plays of the 1980s. The works ushered in a new era of appreciation for Neil Simon, with praise for the playwright's hilarious and poignant account of his adolescence, early career and family life in New York in the 1930s and 1940s.

Brighton Beach Memoirs originally opened on March 27, 1983 at the Alvin Theatre and played for 1,299 performances. (During the run of Brighton Beach Memoirs, the Alvin Theatre was renamed The Neil Simon Theatre). Broadway Bound opened on December 4, 1986 at the Broadhurst Theatre, where it played for 756 performances.

Brighton Beach Memoirs stars Laurie Metcalf (Kate Jerome) and Dennis Boutsikaris (Jack Jerome) with Santino Fontana (Stanley Jerome), Jessica Hecht (Blanche), Gracie Bea Lawrence (Laurie), Noah Robbins (Eugene Jerome) and Alexandra Socha (Nora).

Broadway Bound stars Laurie Metcalf (Kate Jerome) and Dennis Boutsikaris (Jack Jerome) with Santino Fontana (Stanley Jerome), Jessica Hecht (Blanche), Josh Grisetti (Eugene Jerome) and Allan Miller (Ben).

Brighton Beach Memoirs centers on young Jewish teen Eugene Morris Jerome and his extended family living in a crowded home in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn in the late 1930s: his overworked father, Jack; overbearing mother, Kate; his older brother Stanley; Kate's widowed sister Blanche and her daughters, Nora and Laurie. As Eugene spends his time daydreaming about a baseball career, he must also cope with his family's troubles, his awkward discovery of the opposite sex and his developing identity as a writer.

In Broadway Bound, it's the late 1940s and Eugene and Stanley have started their careers as professional comedy writers. But when the brothers use their home life in Brighton Beach as inspiration for a radio comedy skit, the Jerome family may never be the same.

Scenic design is by John Lee Beatty, costume design is by Jane Greenwood, lighting design is by Brian MacDevitt and sound design is by Josh Schmidt and Fitz Patton. Hair and wig design is by Tom Watson.

THE Neil Simon PLAYS are produced by Ira Pittelman, Max Cooper, Jeffrey Sine, Scott Delman, Ruth Hendel, Roy Furman, Ben Sprecher/Wendy Federman, Scott Landis and Emanuel Azenberg.

THE Neil Simon PLAYS will be performed in repertory on a varied schedule. Tickets are available at www.TicketMaster.com or 212-307-4100.