Annette Bening and Tracy Letts to star in ALL MY SONS on Broadway- Page 2

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 8:29pm

Jack O'Brien has proved to be nothing but a disgrace as a director when it comes to working with classic properties. The fact that Roundabout chose him as a replacement baffles me.

[carolinaguy]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 8:34pm

Hard pass because of the director change. I just stopped cutting myself over that Carousel travesty.

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 8:57pm

RIP. This just fell off my list. The absolute WORST director.

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 9:08pm

GeorgeandDot said: "RIP. This just fell off my list. The absolute WORST director."

I thought O'Brien's use of colorblind casting in Carousel was effective, but that was likely more a function of Henry, Mendez and Thompson's talent than his direction. Either way, still seeing this for Bening and Letts, two of my favorites.

[A Director]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 9:41pm

carolinaguy said: "Hard pass because of the director change. I just stopped cutting myself over that Carousel travesty."

Cutting isn't something to joke about!  If you are a cutter, please seek help!

 

 

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 10:24pm

Attempting to diversify super-white oldies like the works of Arthur Miller is often problematic, but making Ann and George black actually is a very interesting artistic choice that might have helped this dinosaur work in New York in 2019. It would have totally worked with the text.

According to the Washington Post, they still want to cast POC in other roles. So are they now going to make Dr. Bayless black instead, just to punch their diversity card? That wouldn’t make any sense historically with a realism-based play set in the 1940’s. Mosher’s idea was actually both diverse AND artistically sound. Too bad.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 10:56pm

InTheBathroom1 said: "Why are producers still letting him direct things?"

I guess they either pay more attention to his more successful outings, like working with him in the creative process, or both.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 11:20pm

For those of you hating on O'Brien, I'm just curious: are you basing your dislike for him on anything other than Carousel? He's been directing for years, but I never heard much complaining about him before Carousel. granted, if you look at his credits, there's a lot of inconsistency in quality, but that's just it: inconsistency. Sometimes he's bad, but other times he's done perfectly solid work. More respected directors have had worse track records than him. 

My concerns are less with O'Brien, and more with Roundabout. For their play revivals, they always seem to pick the wrong director for the job. Not BAD directors, just mismatched ones, who end up doing mediocre work. If this revival ends up being awful, I'm more inclined to blame Rounadbout than him, because while O'Brien is inconsistent, Roundabout's play revivals have just been an unbroken stream of duds for years. 

But of course, I'll see it anyway, for the same reason I always come crawling back to them: the cast and the material. 

[LightsOut90]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 11:37pm

a bijillion other options for replacements and they go with Jack O'Brien who is clearly available on such short notice because people werent pounding his door down after distroying Carousel.

I know someone who was under consideration for Ann and then this happened, and let me just say it makes me so furious that she wont get the chance to play this role because she would have been brilliant and a fresh new face on the broadway boards. 

[wolfwriter]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 11:47pm

Was really looking forward to this, but the only worse news I can think of, would have been John Doyle, who would probably have made Annette Bening play the tuba. Maybe time to sell my tickets.

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 11:48pm

My problem with O'Brien is that he's recently directed two of the worst Broadway productions that I have ever seen in my many years of theatre going (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Carousel). His other works certainly haven't been great either, aside for a couple of good productions. Statistically, at this point it's more likely that a Jack O'Brien production will stink to high heaven rather than be successful.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 12/18/18 at 11:54pm

JBroadway:  
Before Carousel, the feeling was that O'Brien hadn't done anything GREAT since Coast of Utopia (2008). In the past 10 years, he's had 3 flop musicals (Charlie, Catch Me, Carousel), some real bad plays (Dead Accounts, Only A Play), misguided Shakespeare (Macbeth), and serviceable but imperfect projects (Sound of Music tour, The Nance, Front Page, Impressionism). His 3 Tonys from the early 2000s feel like a lifetime ago.

Obviously, Bening and Letts get approval over the director, and schedules had to align, but I wish Roundabout could have found someone even slightly more interesting/diverse/young, instead of a 79-year-old director for a 71-year-old play.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 12:15am

JBroadway said: "For those of you hating on O'Brien, I'm just curious: are you basing your dislike for him on anything other than Carousel? He's been directing for years, but I never heard much complaining about him beforeCarousel. granted, if you look at his credits, there's a lot of inconsistency in quality, but that's just it: inconsistency. Sometimes he's bad, but other times he's done perfectly solid work. More respected directors have had worse track records than him.

My concerns are less with O'Brien, and more with Roundabout. For their play revivals, they always seem to pick the wrong director for the job. Not BAD directors, just mismatched ones, who end up doing mediocre work. If this revival ends up being awful, I'm more inclined to blame Rounadbout than him, because while O'Brien is inconsistent, Roundabout's play revivals have just been an unbroken stream ofduds for years.

But of course, I'll see it anyway, for the same reason I always come crawling back to them: the cast and the material."

 

So true, Unfortunately, Sam Gold, Joe Mantello, David CrOmer and Daniel Sullivan are busy and Jack was of course just hanging around and available. He's actually better directing plays but still not a fan!

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 12:35am

Honestly I’d rather Benning direct it herself while blindfolded.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 10:58am

Honestly, I'd rather see Rebecca Miller take a stab at directing it. Even though she's the "problem" here, she's directed/written films, and working on the play in such an intimate capacity could help shift her views.

And if she needed help, she could consult her "retired" husband, Sir Daniel Day-Lewis, who's probably making shoes somewhere in Ireland.

[haterobics]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 11:07am

ColorTheHours048 said: "Curious to see if the Miller estate will have to further explain their reasoning for not wanting Mosher to cast African-American actors as Ann and George. Clearly, he highlighted the casting in his pitch as a comment on Joe’s scapegoating of Ann and George’s father, but... why the hell not? It’s a perfectly valid interpretation of the text."

She did issue a statement, but the Washington Post did not reprint it in full:

The article said: "For her part, Miller said in a separate statement that the issue was never about using actors of color, but that she was worried Mosher’s concept was “not fully thought out.”

“I am very excited to open my father’s work up to diverse casting,” she said. “Hence, an African American Loman family in [director] Marianne Elliott’s upcoming ‘Death of a Salesman’ in London, and [director] Rachel Chavkin’s upcoming multiracial ‘[The] American Clock.’ ”"

[LarryD2]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 11:19am

Obviously, Bening and Letts get approval over the director

What would make this seem "obvious" to you? I have worked in the industry for many years and can only think of a handful of instances where actors had control/approval over creative personnel, and those were cases in which the actor was a genuine powerhouse and the production was being built around them. Bening and Letts, good as they may be, don't rise to that level.

Updated On: 12/19/18 at 11:19 AM

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 11:58am

LarryD2 said: "Obviously, Bening and Lettsget approval over the director

What would make this seem "obvious" to you? I have worked in the industry for many years and can only think of a handful of instances where actors had control/approval over creative personnel, and those where cases in which the actor was a genuine powerhouse and the production was being built around them. Bening and Letts, good as they may be, don't rise to that level."


Because Bening and Letts signed on to a production directed by one person, and now it's being directed by another.

I don't know the particulars of this production, and typically a director would be hired before the cast, but Roundabout isn't going to risk losing the 2 stars if they're unhappy with the new director. Annette Bening is a legendary actress who has waited 30+ years to return to Broadway, and Letts is a respected actor. Bening very well could have been cast prior to Mosher's involvement; she might even have casting approval.

[LarryD2]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 12:06pm

SomethingPeculiar said: "LarryD2 said: "Obviously, Bening and Lettsget approval over the director

What would make this seem "obvious" to you? I have worked in the industry for many years and can only think of a handful of instances where actors had control/approval over creative personnel, and those where cases in which the actor was a genuine powerhouse and the production was being built around them. Bening and Letts, good as they may be, don't rise to that level."


Because Bening and Letts signed on to a production directed by one person, and now it's being directed by another.

I don't know the particulars of this production, and typically a director would be hiredbefore the cast, butRoundabout isn't going to risk losing the 2 stars if they're unhappy with the new director.Annette Bening is a legendary actress who has waited 30+ years to return to Broadway, and Letts is a respected actor. Bening very well could have been cast prior to Mosher's involvement; she might even have casting approval."

Bening is a respected actor but nowhere near the level where she would have make-or-break approval over production personnel. Ditto Letts.

[JSquared2]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 12:45pm

I can guarantee you that Bening (an A List star) has director approval.  If she did not approve O'Brien, she would be leaving the production due to a "scheduling conflict".

 

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 1:20pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "What is the reason for this revival? Why not have them star in a new play, rather than one of the dustiest chestnuts of American theatre?"

Like the recently and gloriously revived THE LITTLE FOXES, ALL MY SONS is an American tragedy about immorality rationalized by greed.

Why would anyone need any better reason than that for a 2019 revival? 

Updated On: 12/19/18 at 01:20 PM

[Joviedamian]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 2:12pm

Jack O'Brien has directed ALL MY SONS before and did the PBS adaption of it with some high profile stars including Joan Allen. So it seems like a good fit for him to do it.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 3:34pm

Yeah I'm not sure how this became a "sh*t on Jack O'Brien" thread. He hasn't had many successes in the past decade, but overall he has had a very long and distinguished career in the theatre. Also, although All My Sons is not a particularly great play, it's generally well-written, takes place entirely in the back yard of a house, and the two leads are being played by fantastic actors. I'm not really sure how any director could screw this up too badly.

I'm just disappointed that the one time in recent Broadway history when someone had a non-traditional casting idea that actually WORKED for an old, dusty, super-white play, they got shot down by the playwright's daughter. Lame.

[carolinaguy]

Posted: 12/19/18 at 7:01pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "Also, althoughAll My Sonsis not a particularly great play, it's generally well-written, takes place entirely in the back yard of a house, and the two leads are being played by fantastic actors. I'm not really sure how any director could screw this up too badly."

Well, The Front Page is generally well-written, is basically one set, and the recent revival cast was sensational. Yet O’Brien still put forth what I found to be a flat, leaden production. So this is very disappointing news. 

Updated On: 12/19/18 at 07:01 PM

[woeisme3]

Posted: 2/5/19 at 11:25am

Ben Walker! At least if the direction is bad, we’ll have a good cast.

http://www.playbill.com/article/benjamin-walker-joins-annette-bening-and-tracy-letts-in-all-my-sons-broadway-revival