THE GLASS MENAGERIE Opens at the CTG/Mark Taper Forum, 9/12

A fresh interpretation of Tennessee Williams' haunting memory play "The Glass Menagerie" opens at the Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum at the Los Angeles Music Center on Sunday, September 12 at 7 p.m. Previews are currently underway and performances continue through October 17, 2010.

Directed by Gordon Edelstein, artistic director of the Long Wharf Theatre where this critically acclaimed production opened in May 2009, "The Glass Menagerie" is the compelling saga of the Wingfield family in the 1940s, struggling with illusion and reality.

The narrator is Tom, the son, who works in a shoe factory and is torn between his role as the family breadwinner and his desire to lead a life of his own. The story unfolds of his mother, Amanda, a former Southern belle and relentless romantic trying to maintain her dignity and her control in the gloom of their St. Louis tenement; of Laura, his frail sister who has retreated to an imaginary world caring for her collection of glass animals; and the visit of Jim, the Gentleman Caller, who changes the family forever.

Judith Ivey, who plays the iconic Amanda Wingfield, is joined by Patch Darragh as Tom, Keira Keeley as Laura and Ben McKenzie as Jim O'Connor, the Gentleman Caller. Ivey, Darragh and Keeley return to the roles they played at the Long Wharf Theatre and in the subsequent Roundabout presentation; McKenzie, who is best known for his roles on "Southland" and "The O.C.," and in the films "Johnny Got His Gun" and "Junebug," joins the company for this CTG run.

The scenic designer is Michael Yeargan, the costume designer is Martin Pakledinaz, the lighting designer is Jennifer Tipton and the sound designer is David Budries. Casting is by James Calleri with additional casting by Erika Sellin and Carrie Gardner. The production stage manager is Robyn Henry.

Charles Isherwood of The New York Times said, "Directed with clarity and sensitivity by Gordon Edelstein, and featuring a benchmark performance by Judith Ivey as the matriarch Amanda Wingfield, the production is suffused with emotion from its first moments to its last, turbulent with the confusions of hope and love and regret and fear that fill any family living room in a time of crisis and stress." Isherwood said Ivey ". . . imbues the role with a perfectly judged mixture of chiffon and steel." Frank Rizzo of Variety said, "Ivey's Amanda is rightfully annoying, unnerving and desperate. But she also brings a Southern warmth, humor and practicality to the role, making this Amanda grounded in her own way even as she mixes delusions with dreams."

Stage and screen star Judith Ivey has received two Tony Awards for performances in "Steaming" and "Hurlyburly," and an Obie Award for "The Moonshot Tape," among many other awards. She was recently honored with the Texas Medal of Arts for Theatre. She has starred in four television series including "Designing Women," and has appeared in numerous films including "The Devil's Advocate," "Washington Square," "Brighton Beach Memoirs" and "Compromising Positions."

"The Glass Menagerie" was the first play to establish Tennessee Williams as a major playwright and a Broadway success. He received two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama, four Drama Critic Circle Awards, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom before his death in 1983. His classic works also include "The Rose Tattoo," "The Night of the Iguana," "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "A Streetcar Named Desire."

Tickets for "The Glass Menagerie" are available by calling CTG Audience Services at (213) 628-2772 or online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org or in person at the CTG box office located at the Ahmanson Theatre at the Music Center.

Photo Credit: Craig Schwartz

 

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