Fans of the late Williams have three New York City opportunities to sample his plays this spring: In addition to Iguana, there is a current Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (opening March 6 at the Broadhurst after previews from Feb. 12) and an Off-Off-Broadway revival of The Eccentricities of a Nightingale by TACT/The Actors Company Theatre (April 27-May 24).
Terry Schreiber directs the Mexican-set Night of the Iguana, about the Reverend T. Lawrence Shannon, who "confronts the demons of frantic sexuality, religious guilt and emotional confusion as he learns from both the earthly simplicity of Maxine Faulk and the cool serenity of Hannah Jelkes."
Performances play The Gloria Maddox Theater at T. Schreiber Studio, 151 West 26th Street, 7th Floor. Opening is Feb. 29.
The cast includes Peter Aguero (as Jake Latta), Bruce Colbert (as Herr Fahrenkopf), Ian Campbell Dunn (as Hank), Loren Dunn (as Wolfgang), Denise Fiore (as Hannah Jelkes), Peter Judd (as Nonno), Alecia Medley (as Charlotte Goodall), Armando Merlo (as Pancho), Pat Patterson (as Miss Fellowes), Derek Roché (as The Reverend T. Lawrence Shannon), Janet Saia (as Maxine Faulk) and Jenny Strassburg (as Hilda).
The play is set in the summer of 1940 in the Costa Verde Hotel in Puerto Barrio on the West Coast of Mexico. The production features scenic design by George Allison, costume design by Karen Ann Ledger, lighting design by Andrea Buccanfusoso and sound design by Christopher Rummel. Eliza Jane Bowman is the stage manager.
Schreiber has been teaching and directing for over 30 years. On Broadway he directed the Tony Award-nominated play K2, The Trip Back Down starring John Cullum, and Devour the Snow. Off-Broadway, his directing credits include Desire Under the Elms at The Roundabout Theatre with Kathy Baker and Feedlot at Circle Repertory with Jeff Daniels. He has directed at The Guthrie Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Hartman Theatre Co., Pittsburgh Public Theater, Studio Arena Stage and George Street Playhouse.
Williams is perhaps best known for The Glass Menagerie and A Streetcar Named Desire. Streetcar and Cat won him the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Night of the Iguana premiered on Broadway in 1961. It was nominated for a 1962 Tony Award as Best Play. Margaret Leighton won the 1962 Best Actress (Play) Tony for her performance as Hannah Jelkes.
The Night of the Iguana has had three Broadway revivals: in 1976 (starring Richard Chamberlain, Dorothy McGuire and Sylvia Miles, Circle in the Square), 1988 (directed by Theodore Mann and featuring Jane Alexander and Maria Tucci, Circle in the Square) and 1996 (directed by Robert Falls and featuring Cherry Jones, William Petersen and Marsha Mason, Roundabout Theatre Company).
The Night of the Iguana will play the following regular schedule through March 30: Thursdays at 8 PM, Fridays at 8 PM, Saturdays at 8 PM Sundays at 3 PM.
A suggested donation of $20 (senior $15; general student $17) is requested. Advance tickets can be purchased by calling (212) 352-3101, or by visiting tschreiber.org. Tickets may also be purchased in person one hour prior to the show.
