The Steppenwolf Theatre's production of Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is headed to Broadway with original stars Tracy Letts and Amy Morton. Directed by Pam MacKinnon, the play will open on October 13, 2012, exactly 50 years to the date after its original Broadway opening in 1962. The revival will play at a yet-to-be-determined Shubert Theatre. Carrie Coon and Madison Dirks will reprise their roles as Honey and Nick, respectively.
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? follows the dysfunctional relationship between George (Letts) and Martha (Morton), a New England college professor and his wife, who invite a young couple over for a late night drink. The young couple soon finds themselves caught in the crossfires of a savage marital war.
The play first opened on Broadway on October 13, 1962, starring Uta Hagen and Arthur Hill. The original production received five Tony Awards, including Best Play and wins for Hagen and Hill, and ran for 664 performances. The show was first revived in 1976 starring Colleen Dewhurst and Ben Gazzara. A 2005 revival earned a Tony for star Bill Irwin as well as nominations for Kathleen Turner, David Harbour and Mireille Enos. A 1966 movie adaptation starred Oscar winner Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.
Tracy Letts received a Tony and Pulitzer Prize for writing the play August: Osage County. His other plays include Superior Donuts, Bug, Killer Joe and Man From Nebraska. He has appeared onstage in the Steppenwolf productions of American Buffalo, Betrayal, The Pillowman, Last of the Boys, The Dresser, The Dazzle, Glengarry Glen Ross and Three Days of Rain.
Morton is a Tony nominee for August: Osage County. She also appeared on Broadway in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Her other stage credits include Betrayal, Last of the Boys, The Well-Appointed Room, The Royal Family and Cherry Orchard.
Woolf marks the Broadway debut for Coon. Her regional credits include Blackbird, Anna Christie, Magnolia and Bronte.
Dirks will make his Broadway debut in Woolf. His other stage credits include The Chosen, Gary, A Man For All Seasons and Hillbilly Antigone.
The production first ran at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company from December 13, 2010, to February 13, 2011. A run at Washington DC's Arena Stage followed, closing on April 10.
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? will be presented on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Susan Quint Gallin and Mary Lu Roffe in association with Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Richards and Frankel previously teamed up with Steppenwolf to present Letts’ August: Osage County and Superior Donuts on Broadway. They are also producing Steppenwolf’s production of the Pulitzer finalist Detroit by Lisa D’Amour, set to open on Broadway this fall.