Jace Alexander
Jason "Jace" Alexander (born April 7, 1964) is an American former television director, actor, and convicted sex offender from New York City. In 2015, Alexander was arrested for the downloading and file sharing of child pornography, and later pl ...
(Gilley), and
Mercedes Ruehl
Mercedes J. Ruehl (; born February 28, 1948) is an American screen, stage, and television actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, two Obie Awards, an ...
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
s for Best Play, Best Lighting Design, and Best Actor (Judd Hirsch).
A revival opened at the Booth Theatre on July 25, 2002, where it ran for 53 performances and 15 previews. Again directed by Sullivan, Hirsch reprised his role and was joined by Ben Vereen.
Prior to the Broadway 2002 production, the play had engagements at three regional venues: the Coconut Grove Playhouse. Miami in January 2002; Ford's Theater, Washington, DC in February 2002; and the Paper Mill Playhouse, New Jersey in February and March 2002. The play, directed by Sullivan starred Hirsch and Ben Vereen.
Plot
Inspired by two elderly men Gardner met in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
's
Central Park
Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...
, the play focuses on Nat Moyer, a feisty
Jew
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...
, and Midge Carter, a cantankerous
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
, who spend their days sitting on a bench. They both mask the realities of aging, sharing tall tales that Nat spins. The play touches on several issues, including society's treatment of the aging, the difficulties dealing with adult children who think they know what's best for their parents, and the dangers that lurk in urban areas.
Its title comes from an old
vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...
joke, a variation of which evolved into dialogue between the two
protagonists
A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...
:
*Nat: Hey, Rappaport! I haven't seen you in ages. How have you been?
*Midge: I'm not Rappaport.
*Nat: Rappaport, what happened to you? You used to be a short fat guy, and now you're a tall skinny guy.
*Midge: I'm not Rappaport.
*Nat: Rappaport, you used to be a young guy with a beard, and now you're an old guy with a mustache.
*Midge: I'm not Rappaport.
*Nat: Rappaport, how has this happened? You used to be a cowardly little white guy, and now you're a big imposing black guy.
*Midge: I'm not Rappaport.
*Nat: And you changed your name, too!
Film adaptation
The 1996 film version, written and directed by Gardner, starred
Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau (; born Walter John Matthow; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, comedian and film director.
He is best known for his film roles in '' A Face in the Crowd'' (1957), '' King Creole'' (1958) and as a coach of a ...
Amy Irving
Amy Davis Irving (born September 10, 1953) is an American actress and singer, who worked in film, stage, and television. Her accolades include an Obie Award, and nominations for two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award.
Born in Palo Alto, C ...
Peter Friedman
Peter Friedman (born April 24, 1949) is an American stage, film, and television actor.
Life and career
Born in New York City, Friedman graduated from Hofstra UniversityRon Rifkin.
Adaptations
In 1986 at the Apollo Theatre London, the part of Nat was played by
Paul Scofield
David Paul Scofield (21 January 1922 – 19 March 2008) was a British actor. During a six-decade career, Scofield achieved the US Triple Crown of Acting, winning an Academy Award, Emmy, and Tony for his work. He won the three awards in a se ...
.
In 2012, a theatre group in Germany had come under fire for allowing a white actor to paint his face and take the part of the black character Midge Carter on stage.
In 2014, a Spanish speaking adaptation, Parque Lezama, premiered at the Teatro Liceo, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was directed by Academy Award winner Juan José Campanella, and starred Eduardo Blanco (as Antonio/Midge) and Luis Brandoni (as León/Nat).Parque Lezama y el despertar de la risa 9-14-2016, ''Diario Registrado''
Awards and nominations
Source: PlaybillVault
* 1986
Tony Award for Best Play
The Tony Award for Best Play (formally, the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award given to the best new (non-musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Tony Award voters. There was no award in the Tonys' first ye ...
—winner
* 1986 Tony Award, Actor in a Play (Hirsch) -- winner
* 1986 Tony Award, Lighting Design (Play or Musical) (Pat Collins) -- winner
* 1986 Outer Critics Circle Award, John Gassner Award (Gardner) -- winner
*1986 Outer Critics Circle Award, Outstanding Actor in a Play (Hirsch) -- winner
*1986 Outer Critics Circle Award, Outstanding New Broadway Play—winner