Standing Up to Henry VIII, Langella Is A Man for All Seasons, Opening Oct. 7
By Kenneth Jones
07 Oct 2008
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A Man for All Seasons star Frank Langella
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| photo by Joan Marcus | Three-time Tony Award winner Frank Langella plays the statesman who stood up to King Henry VIII's notion to separate from the Catholic Church in the first Broadway revival of Robert Bolt's A Man for All Seasons, opening Oct. 7 after previews from Sept. 12.
The new Roundabout Theatre Company production at the American Airlines Theatre stars Langella (Frost/Nixon, Fortune's Fool, Seascape, Dracula) as Sir Thomas More, the anti-Protestant Lord Chancellor of England during the time when King Henry — desperate for a male heir — sought to extricate himself from Queen Catherine to marry Anne Boleyn. The action of the two-act play is 1529-1535.
What the Doug Hughes-directed production apparently seeks to do is draw parallels between a man who stood up against a single-minded administration 500 years ago, and the lack of such a man in modern U.S. times. A note in the Roundabout Playbill underlines this: "It should be remembered that A Man for All Seasons deals with 'an age less fastidious than our own. Imprisonment without trial, and even examination under torture, were common practice.'"
The production continues to Dec. 7.
According to Roundabout, A Man for All Seasons "is a timeless exploration of politics, religion and power. Robert Bolt's classic drama is based on the fascinating true story of English Chancellor Sir Thomas More and his moral objection to King Henry VIII's plan to leave the Catholic Church."
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Langella returns to Broadway following his Tony-winning role in Frost/Nixon in 2007. Hughes won a Best Direction Tony Award for Doubt.
A Man for All Seasons premiered on Broadway in 1961 and won the Tony Award for Best Play. In 1966 the play was made into a feature film and won six Academy Awards. This production marks the play's first Broadway revival.
The cast also includes Hannah Cabell (as Margaret More), Michael Esper (William Roper), Michael Gill (Duke of Norfolk), Zach Grenier (Thomas Cromwell), Dakin Matthews (Cardinal Wolsey), George Morfogen (Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop), Patrick Page (King Henry VIII), Maryann Plunkett (Alice More), Jeremy Strong (Richard Rich), Charles Borland (Jailor), Peter Bradbury (Steward), Patricia Hodges (Woman), Triney Sandoval (Thomas Chapuys) and Emily Dorsch, plus Curt Bouril, Alex Cole, Elizabeth Gilbert, Miguel Govea, Einar Gunn and Andy Lutz.
The production stage manager is James Fitzsimmons. The stage manager is Bryce McDonald.
The design team includes Santo Loquasto (sets), Catherine Zuber (costumes), David Lander (lights), David Van Tieghem (original music and sound) and Tom Watson (hair and wigs).
Tickets are available by calling Roundabout Ticket Services at (212) 719-1300, online at www.roundabouttheatre.org or at the American Airlines theatre box office, 227 West 42nd Street.
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Frank Langella and Zach Grenier in A Man for All Seasons
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| photo by Joan Marcus |
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