Mark Brokaw (Reckless) directs the presentation of W. Somerset Maugham's classic that opens June 16 for a limited engagement through Aug. 7.
Set in a 1920's London drawing room, The Constant Wife follows the marriage of a top surgeon and his wife. The comedy of manners delivers a twist after a seemingly secret affair between the husband and his wife's friend is revealed.
Burton plays Constance Middleton opposite Cumpsty (Democracy) as John Middleton, Dossett (Gypsy) as Bernard Kersal and Redgrave as Mrs. Culver in a cast that also includes Enid Graham (Dinner at Eight) as Martha, Kathryn Meisle (Tartuffe) as Marie-Louis, Denis Holmes (Major Barbara) as Bentley, John Ellison Conlee (The Full Monty) as Mortimer Durham and Kathleen McNenny (After The Fall) as Barbara Fawcett.
The design team for The Constant Wife features Alan Moyer (sets), Michael Krass (costumes), Mary Louise Geiger (lights) and David van Tieghem (sound) — who also provides original compositions.
Burton was last seen on Broadway in 2002 in Hedda Gabler and The Elephant Man — each earning her a Tony Award nomination. She also appeared in Three Sisters in the West End in 2003 and in the films "Unfaithful" and "Stay." Other credits include The Beauty Queen of Leenane, An American Daughter, Jake's Women, Some Americans Abroad, Alice in Wonderland, Present Laughter, London Suite and upcoming "Empire Falls" on HBO, "Shall Not Want" with Maggie Gyllenhall and a recurring role on ABC's "Grey's Anatomy." A member of one of five generations of actors in her family, Redgrave is known for her Tony Award-nominated one-woman show, Shakespeare for My Father. Other credits included Talking Heads, The Exonerated, The Mandrake Root, Black Comedy, Aren't We All, Moon Over Buffalo and another Tony nominated turn in Mrs. Warren's Profession. She was nominated for an Academy Award for the film "Gods and Monsters," her second nod after her title role in "Georgy Girl."
Director Brokaw staged the Manhattan Theatre Club and Second Stage co-production of Reckless on Broadway with Mary-Louise Parker. He has also recently staged Afterbirth: Kathy & Mo’s Greatest Hits and reteamed with How I Learned to Drive playwright Paula Vogel on the recent Off-Broadway stagings of The Baltimore Waltz and The Long Christmas Ride Home. Other credits include This Is Our Youth, The Dying Gaul, Lobby Hero, As Bees In Honey Drown in New York and A Little Night Music (Sondheim Celebration/ Kennedy Center) and the world premiere of the musical Marty starring John C. Reilly.
Maugham's The Constant Wife was originally presented on Broadway in 1929 with Ethel Barrymore playing the titular role under the direction of John Gielgud. The work has since been thrice revived on the Broadway boards, the most recent in 1975 starring Ingrid Bergman in the lead — also directed by Gielgud. Joanne Woodward (for the Westport County Playhouse) and Edward Hall (for London's West End) and have also staged the work in recent years.
Tickets are available through Roundabout Ticket Services at (212) 719-1300. For more information, visit www.roundabouttheatre.org.
