StreamingMeryl Streep and Kevin Kline Star in Dear Elizabeth June 17The Spotlight on Plays virtual reading series concludes with this work by Sarah Ruhl.
By
Dan Meyer
June 17, 2021
Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline
Broadway’s Best Shows’ Spotlight on Plays series concludes June 17 with a virtual reading of Sarah Ruhl’s Dear Elizabeth, starring Oscar winners Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline. The presentation begins at 8 PM ET with stage directions voiced by Polly Noonan.
Kate Whoriskey (Ruined) directs Ruhl’s play based on the compiled letters between poets Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Bishop. Dear Elizabeth maps the relationship of these two poets from first meeting to an abbreviated affair—and the turmoil of their lives in between.
The reading is produced by Good Productions/Patty Baker, Rebecca Gold, Jayne Baron Sherman, Iris Smith, Louise Gund, Willette Klausner, Judith Manocherian, Alix Ritchie, Jenna Segal, and The Shubert Organization. Associate producers are Rose Caiola, Barbara Freitag, and Gabrielle Palitz.
Spotlight on Plays is created by Jeffrey Richards with Jacob Soroken Porter and Jim Glaub. All proceeds from the readings benefit The Actors Fund.
This isn't the first time three-time Tony winner Kline and Tony nominee Streep have worked together—they starred in Sophie's Choice (which earned Streep her second Oscar) and Ricki and The Flash on screen. On stage, they starred in the Shakespeare in the Park productions of The Seagull, Mother Courage and Her Children, and more.
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Photos: From Meryl Streep to James Earl Jones to Anne Hathaway: Look Through the History of Shakespeare in the Park
Photos: From Meryl Streep to James Earl Jones to Anne Hathaway: Look Through the History of Shakespeare in the Park
77 PHOTOS
Delacorte Theater during construction.
Courtesy of The Public Theater
The line for Shakespeare in the Park
Joe Papp
George C. Scott in The Merchant of Venice
Richard Jordan and Kathleen Widdoes in The Tempest : 1962
Frank Silvera in King Lear: 1962
James Earl Jones in The Merchant of Venice: 1962
Colleen Dewhurst and Michael Higgins in Antony and Cleopatra: 1963
Julienne Marie and James Earl Jones in Othello: 1964
Charlotte Rae and Martin Sheen in Romeo and Juliet: 1968
Sam Waterston in Henry IV: Part II: 1968
Jose Perez, Jerry Stiller, Raul Julia, and Clifton Davis in Two Gentlemen of Verona: 1971
The Broadway alum's golden vocals brought Old Deuteronomy from Cats and the Lion from The Wiz to life, along with Oogie Boogie in The Nightmare Before Christmas.
When the play premiered in London in 1912, it was considered controversial, but was praised for its depiction of two young people seeking pleasure before marriage.
Surrounded by period-accurate, 19th-century holiday decorations lit via candlelight, the 70-minute production is based on Dickens' own script of the classic.
Audra McDonald, Julian Ovenden, Marisha Wallace, and Patrick Wilson are among the 2023 concert's starry line-up celebrating the Oklahoma! and South Pacific creators.
The 2021 West End production was filmed with four different casts, including Omari Douglas, Russell Tovey, Sheila Atim, Zoë Wanamaker, Chris O'Dowd, and more.
Audra McDonald, Julian Ovenden, Marisha Wallace, and Patrick Wilson are among the 2023 concert's starry line-up celebrating the Oklahoma! and South Pacific creators.
Celebrating the iconic musical theatre writing duo's 80th anniversary, My Favorite Things is screening in U.K. movie theatres and will broadcast in the U.S. on PBS.
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