Patti LuPone Will Return to Broadway in THE ROOMMATE Opposite Mia Farrow

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:36am

Mia Farrow!!!

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:38am

THE QUEEN DIVA IS BACK!!!!!! OMG! OMG! OMG!

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:38am

So she only gave up her equity card for year? 😂

[Kad]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:40am

To be clear: you do not need to be a member of Equity to work on an Equity contract. She will still have dues deducted from her pay and will even have benefit payments made. 

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:41am

I love Mia. This sounds great. I won’t go unless my ticket is free. I just can’t support LuPone after giving up her Equity card, walking away from the dues that help so many get healthcare and more. The arrogance of it all - and so insulting to so many performers who have supported her for so long. It just rubbed me the completely wrong way, and I think her coming back and now paying dues when convenient for her is just another slap in the face of the union. 

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:52am

I’m not the world’s biggest Patti fan, but I’ve always been entertained by her and her frankness as an individual. However, this just smacks of hypocrisy.

First, she’s giving up her Equity card and never coming back to Broadway because the audiences are dumb, according to her. Then, she says maybe she’ll do a play off-Broadway at NYTW where audiences actually appreciate the work. Now, she’s coming back to Broadway (albeit, in a play, but still: Broadway).

She just seems to say things as they pop into her head without the actual conviction she says them with. Entertaining, for sure, but come on.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:53am

Holy sh*t.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 9:59am

Or, this more or less sounds like she needs a Broadway paycheck.

[BJR]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:04am

The only part of this that makes me nervous is O'Brien at the helm.

I was hopeful her recent comments about her frustrations with Bway would precede her in appearing in an Off Bway play by an exciting new playwright and directed by somebody new and exciting. Thought that could be a fun Act 3 to her career.

Did anyone see the play in its regional runs?

Otherwise, her and Mia Farrow? Yes, please!

[Melissa25]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:07am

Loving all the girl power on Broadway these days.  And a play for non-ingenues!!!

[bigbelterbaby]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:15am

Very exciting but hopefully this is better than The Anarchist. Crazy that Debra Winger made her Broadway debut in that stinker. Has anyone seen this play regionally? I’m from Iowa so it being set in Iowa already peaked me interest, I guess Jen Silverman went to University of Iowa. 
 

..

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:21am

Honestly, Mia Farrow on Broadway is the more exciting part for me.

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:21am

This is a swell showcase for two actresses but it's mostly a nothing of a play. The production at Steppenwolf was really enjoyable but I can't say I've thought about it for a moment since. Also. This play is written for women in their mid-50s, this casting changes the meaning significantly.

[Tag]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:24am

I thought this was a late April fools' joke.

I hope the members picket.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:28am

Patti is a walking contradiction at this point and will say anything to get a rise out of people.

The pair of them together sounds great on paper but the play sounds thin. Patti –– like Audra –– doesn't sell to the masses when she isn't singing, so that's a lot of burden on Farrow. We shall see!

Updated On: 4/11/24 at 10:28 AM

[tyleramullen]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:28am

Probably the most exciting part of this (for me) is that it marks the playwright's Broadway debut! I've been a fan of their work for a long time and would definitely recommend looking into their other work (COLLECTIVE RAGE, THE MOORS, WITCH) if you're so inclined. 

(Disclaimer -- I also work for Concord [Samuel French]. BUT I'd be hyping this playwright even if that weren't the case.)

((Also excited for Queens LuPone and Farrow together.))

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:32am

Between the two, I think Mia Farrow is a bigger name in terms of selling tickets. 

Wait this is at the Booth theater starting August?!? Hopefully OH MARY is still in the talks to be in the Booth this summer?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:36am

The set for “Oh, Mary” can be put together in an hour so if they wanted to, I see no reason that couldn’t start previews almost immediately after Akimbo vacates and play for 10 weeks. 

[Jonathan Cohen]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 10:40am

iluvtheatertrash said: "I love Mia. This sounds great. I won’t go unless my ticket is free. I just can’t support LuPone after giving up her Equity card, walking away from the dues that help so many get healthcare and more. The arrogance of it all - and so insulting to so many performers who have supported her for so long. It just rubbed me the completely wrong way, and I think her coming back and now paying dues when convenient for her is just another slap in the face of the union."

I won't see this show unless I can get into it for free seems like the sort of principled half measure Patti LuPone would go for. I'm fed up with Equity and am done with Broadway! Unless... 

(I do understand your frustration with LuPone.)

[Sally Durant Plummer]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 11:47am

Always a blessing to have LuPone on Broadway. Great news!

[binau]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 12:00pm

Mmm. Not sure why all the Patti hate. We are literally talking top tier greatest Broadway actor of all time status alongside people like Lansbury and Bernadette. I guess people seem to have an issue with her arrogance or feeling like she is beyond ‘paying her dues’ but at this point I think her arrogance is warranted and she is beyond the literal paying of her dues. This is not just some equity actor - this is Patti LuPone. She can do what she wants! And it’s part of her personality now. It’s the stritch succession. 

[Jonathan Cohen]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 12:20pm

binau said: "Mmm. Not sure why all the Patti hate. We are literally talking top tier greatest Broadway actor of all time status alongside people like Lansbury and Bernadette. I guess people seem to have an issue with her arrogance or feeling like she is beyond ‘paying her dues’ but at this point I think her arrogance is warranted and she is beyond the literal paying of her dues. This is not just some equity actor - this is Patti LuPone. She can do what she wants! And it’s part of her personality now. It’s the stritch succession."

You can call out of LuPone for her weird union dispute and still appreciate her as a great performer. Two things can be true at once. 

For example, I'm genuinely excited to see Mia Farrow on Broadway, but am a little disappointed a LuPone play called The Roommate doesn't costar Aubrey Plaza.    

[JasonC3]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 12:35pm

binau said: "Mmm. Not sure why all the Patti hate. We are literally talking top tier greatest Broadway actor of all time status alongside people like Lansbury and Bernadette. I guess people seem to have an issue with her arrogance or feeling like she is beyond ‘paying her dues’ but at this point I think her arrogance is warranted and she is beyond the literal paying of her dues. This is not just some equity actor - this is Patti LuPone. She can do what she wants! And it’s part of her personality now. It’s the stritch succession."

Even if her arrogance is warranted (on principle, this seems like a slippery slope to me) as you suggest and "she can do what she wants!" doesn't necessarily mean it is appealing or will be perceived in a favorable light.  Basic humility always has some value.

I'm glad she'll be on stage again, but this is a very slight play.

Updated On: 4/11/24 at 12:35 PM

[Tsao5]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 12:40pm

C'mon people. She never gave up her equity card. I'm hoping there is a special "take as many pictures of Patti as you want during a performance" night. Don't tell Madame LuPone and let the fur fly!

[Synecdoche2]

Posted: 4/11/24 at 12:43pm

Really, this play? It's paper thin, and mostly undramatic.