Friday, November 4, 2011

Other Desert Cities Opens on Broadway

Jon Robin Baitz's new play, Other Desert Cities, has opened on Broadway. The play has transferred from Lincoln Center's off-Broadway production at its Mitzi Newhouse Theatre.

Variety Magazine loved the physical production and the acting, but not so much the play itself. Judith Light, Rachel Griffiths, and Thomas Sadoski were all singled out for their performances, as was Joe Mantello's direction and John Lee Beatty's set design.

Both Variety and the New York Times have said that the production is better than it was when it appeared off-Broadway, even through the change of two of its actress (the roles now played by Judith Light and Rachel Griffiths were originally played by Linda Lavin and Elizabeth Marvel in performances that are being touted as much flashier than those that appear in the current incarnation). The production, according to the Times, "is now less of a showoff than it was, and its ensemble more of a piece. It has, in other words, settled comfortably into its own skin, which makes its characters’ discomfort all the more palpable." The Times basically singled out the same production factors as Variety, additionally noting the strength of David Zinn's costumes.

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