A Roundabout Theatre Company Production
Previews started June 30, 2000
Opened July 27, 2000
Closed October 8, 2000
32 previews and 85 regular performances
| PRODUCTION TEAM | CAST | SYNOPSIS |
| MORE INFO | MERCHANDISE | REVIEWS |
| PBS TELECAST |
PRODUCTION TEAM
Moss Hart & George S. Kaufman (Book)
Jerry Zaks (Director)
Tony Walton (Set Design)
William Ivey Long (Costumes)
Paul Gallo (Lighting)
Peter Fitzgerald (Sound)
Paul Huntley (Wigs)
CAST
Michael Bakkensen (Prisoner, Expressman, Deputy)
Terry Beaver (Mr. Stanley)
Julie Boyd (Sarah)
Ian Blackman (Prisoner,
Expressman, Mr. Wescott, Police Officer)
Stephen DeRosa (Professor Metz)
William Duell (The Doctor)
Kit Flanagan (Mrs. Dexter)
Mary Catherine Garrison (June Stanley)
Julie Halston (Mrs. McCutheon )
Jeffrey Hayenga (John)
Harriet Harris (Maggie Cutler)
Hans Hoffman (Prison Guard, Radio Technician, Deputy)
Ruby Holbrook (Harriet Stanley)
Byron Jennings (Beverly Carlton)
Nathan Lane (Sheridan Whiteside)
Zach Shaffer (Richard Stanley)
Ryan Shively (Sandy)
Jean Smart (Lorraine Sheldon)
Lewis J. Stadlen (Banjo)
Linda Stephens (Mrs. Stanley)
Hank Stratton (Bert Jefferson)
Andre Thompson (Prison, Radio Technician, Expressman)
Mary Catherine Wright (Miss Preen)
Robert Ari - Standby for Sheridan Whiteside
A cranky critic lands on the doorstep of a Ohio family at Christmastime. He injures his leg and cannot leave the premises. The family, frightened by threats of a lawsuit, tries to accommodate the man and his whims while he turns the household upside down.
The original play opened on October 16, 1939 at The Music Box Theatre. It was revived in 1980. There was also a 1942 movie starring Monty Woolley, Bette Davis and Ann Sheridan .
The Roundabout group is presenting this show in its original 3-act format, with two intermissions as the inaugural presentation for the new (formerly Selwyn Theatre) American Airlines Theatre. The show runs 2 hours and 45 minutes.
A reading for this show was first held in 1997 with Nathan Lane, Christine Baranski (originally scheduled to co-star in this production), Helen Hunt, and Hank Azaria.
Call 212-719-1300 for ticket information.
Opening night photos on Playbill:
- Nathan and the cast taking bows
- Individual pictures of Nathan and Jean Smart
- Lewis J. Stadlen and Jerry Zaks
- Lauren Bacall congratulating Nathan
- Rob Marshall, Lea Thompson, and John Lithgow
Dinner Still Served by Michael Riedel, NY Post.
Lane Answers Broadway's Call in USA Today.
PBS has announced a live broadcast of the show live on October 7.
The Roundabout Theatre "Dinner" Page
Man Who Came to Dinner page at TheatreMania.com
July 27 NY Times feature about the AA Theatre
July 16 New York Times feature on Jerry Zaks, including his work on Dinner and two pictures with Nathan
Playbill interview with Jean Smart
Bergen Record interview with Jean Smart
Playbill's report on the American Airlines Theatre.
Virtual Tour of the American Airlines Theatre
Broadway.com's tour of the AA.
" Sheridan Whiteside is not exactly Woollcott and Banjo is not exactly Harpo [Marx] ..." but the resemblance is uncanny and the true relationship of Woollcott and Marx is very interesting. Read this article by Ned Stuckey-French, written for Culturefront.
DVD from Image Entertainment released on March 18, 2003
Window card at Triton Gallery
REVIEWS
John Simon, New York Magazine
"In 'The Man Who Came to Dinner,' Nathan Lane hits his old stride"
Michael Feingold, The Village Voice
"This is extremely good work by an artist who has been miscast."Reuters/Variety
Lane, an actor who makes virtually every role he plays seem like a role he was born to play, is the splendidly seething, delightfully acerbic center of Jerry Zaks' splashy production ...
Linda Winer, Newsday
"Lane, a theatrical one-man band of mean- spirited, lovable comedy, finds his own maliciously endearing way with the character based on critic Alexander Woollcott"
David Hinckley, NY Daily News
" 'Man,' What a Treat 'Dinner' Revival Is! "
Donald Lyons, NY Post
"Lane is splendid as a younger-than-usual Whiteside, a gleam of irony in his calculating eyes as he imposes his will on all."
Ben Brantley, New York Times
"Looking like a cuddly, Mattel-made Sigmund Freud doll in his professorial beard, Mr. Lane never really raises the hackles, even when shooting off the annihilating invective in which his character specializes.
USA Today
Nathan Lane serves a superb Dinner
Thomas Burke, Talkin' Broadway
"To watch actors the caliber of Lane and Harris navigate and negotiate the treacherous dialogue and situations with such self-assurance and calm mastery of their craft is the unexpected delight of the evening."
Michael Kuchwara, Associated Press
"done up with slick-backed hair and a close-fitting beard, [Lane] gets the job done, thanks to a natural comic timing that can make frustration seem very funny indeed
On October 7, the evening performance of The Man Who Came to Dinner will be telecast live on most PBS stations in the U.S. Some stations will show it on tape at a later date. Please check this list of stations airing the show.
This is the premiere production in the "Stage on Screen" series from Thirteen/WNET New which will follow with past public television presentations of theatrical works such as "NET Playhouse," "Theater in America" and "Great Performances."
Playbill Online report about the PBS show ratings
Internet Movie Database listing.
Comments or corrections, please contact
webmaster@nathanlane.com
