Desire Under the Elms Sets Dates at Broadway's St. James Theatre
The Broadway-bound revival of Eugene O'Neill's Desire Under the Elms has found a home and set dates. The production, which stars Brian Dennehy, Carla Gugino and Pablo Schreiber, is currently playing Chicago’s Goodman Theater, helmed by its artistic director, Robert Falls. It will play the St. James Theatre on Broadway beginning on April 14, with opening night set for April 27.
Written in 1924 and inspired by Greek tragedy, Desire Under the Elms tells the story of widower Ephraim Cabot Dennehy, who returns to the family farm with a young wife, Abbie Gugino; Abbie falls madly in love with Ephraim's son, Eben Schreiber, with tragic consequences.
Dennehy won the Best Actor Tony Awards for Falls' productions of Long Day's Journey into Night and Death of a Salesman. At the Goodman, he has starred in acclaimed productions of Hughie, A Touch of the Poet, The Iceman Cometh and Galileo, among many others.
Schreiber received a 2006 Tony nomination for the Broadway revival of Awake and Sing! and had been announced as a cast member of the upcoming Broadway transfer of Neil LaBute's Reasons to be Pretty. Other recent off-Broadway credits include Dying City and Mr. Marmalade.
Falls directed Dennehy in his Tony Award-winning performances in Death of a Salesman and Long Day's Journey into Night, and they have worked together many times at the Goodman. Desire Under the Elms is the centerpiece of this season's O'Neill festival at the Goodman.
Desire Under the Elms will open during a very busy time for the Great White Way. From April 19 to April 30, Broadway will see openings for Mary Stuart, The Norman Conquests, Accent on Youth, The Philanthropist, 9 to 5 and Waiting for Godot. The cut-off date for Tony eligibility is April 30.
Desire Under the Elms is expected to play a 13-week engagement on Broadway. It ends its run at the Goodman on March 1.
