The Father
One hour and 30 minutes, with no intermission
The Father - 2016 Broadway History , Info & More
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (Broadway)
261 W. 47th St. New York, NY 10036
The Father is the acclaimed new play by Florian Zeller, in a translation by two-time Tony winner Christopher Hampton, directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes.
The Father offers a fascinating look inside the mind of Andre (Frank Langella), a retired dancer living with his adult daughter Anne and her husband. Or is he a retired engineer receiving a visit from Anne who has moved away with her boyfriend? Why do strangers keep turning up in his room? And where has he left his watch?
The Father - 2016 - Broadway Cast
PREVIEW The Father - 2016 - Broadway
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FEATURED REVIEWS FOR The Father
The Father review – Frank Langella devastates in study of dementia
8 / 10
Parts of the play can feel somewhat too pat, as though Zeller is amusing himself in finding out how many ways he can alter reality using the familiar mechanisms of the stage - an audience's trust of exposition, the faith in representational setting, the tendency to identify a particular character with a single actor. But he dismisses most of this cleverness in an ending that is both sentimental and searing and will probably devastate anyone who has seen a close friend or relative suffer from dementia. The final scene is a terrible and tragic reversion, in which a man of articulacy and power is reduced to a kind of infantilism, left with with no language but a cry.
'The Father' on Broadway is a sour look at an aging man
7 / 10
Once it becomes apparent what Zeller is up to, 'The Father' has nowhere to go - it merely marks time until André completes his dreary spiral into despair and complete confusion. The ever-amazing Langella keeps this watchable for as long as possible, giving us an André who is alternately charming and irksome, pitiable and pathetic. But by the time this poor man is getting slapped around (or is he?) by a man who may or may not be his son-in-law, 'The Father' has turned repetitive and sour. What's the point of this hall-of-mirrors, other than to reflect back the ugliness of humanity?
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The Father History
Other Productions of The Father
| 1912 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1928 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1949 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1962 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1981 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 1996 | Broadway |
Broadway |
| 2016 | Broadway |
Manhattan Theatre Club Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2016 | Off-Broadway |
Theatre for a New Audience Repertory Off-Broadway |
The Father - 2016 Broadway Awards and Nominations
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Play | Frank Langella |
| 2016 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play | Florian Zeller |
| 2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Play | Frank Langella |
| 2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Play | Florian Zeller |
| 2016 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play | Frank Langella |
| 2016 | Tony Awards | Best Play | Florian Zeller |
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