Aunt May makes special appearance.

These photos just in from Rosemary Harris' special appearance at the Bristol Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. The Hospital graciously sponsored our recent production of Oscar and the Pink Lady. Our "Pink Lady" best known to children as "Aunt May" from the Spiderman movies, met some of the kids at the hospital. Here's a look at her extraordinary visit.

Lots O' Press!

Well the reviews are in for Oscar and the Pink Lady. In case you still haven't seen Rosemary Harris' inspiring performance. Here's a few more reasons...

Anita Gates of the NY Times writes: "Here is the grand lady of the stage, costumed as a hospital volunteer of an advanced age and a certain style...and she still radiates an effortless grandeur....Rosemary Harris is absolutely charming, and so the evening is, too." Read the full review

Peter Filichia of the Star Ledger writes "Harris' portrayal of a 10-year old is consistently smart. She offers the squinty and scrunched-up face of a lad who's trying to understand his fate. She's so accomplished there that an audience could easily overlook her other achievement in making a fully developed "Granny Pink." There she offers a soft Irish brogue and an arms-clasped around-her-waist stance that shows Oscar she's taking him seriously....the opportunity to see Rosemary Harris must be seized."

Simon Salzman for US1 and Curtain up says "Rosemary Harris is Luminous and Enchanting...To say that the dual role-playing is simply a tour-de-force for the celebrated actress is to diminish the play's earnest if heavy-handed mission: to question and celebrate the value and delicacy of life from a perspective of youth and old age."

There's also a fantastic read about David Saint's 10th Anniversary, covered by the Princeton Packet. "It’s shaping up to be a bravo kind of year for Mr. Saint during his 10th season as artistic director of the playhouse in New Brunswick. It opened with Jack Klugman and Paul Dooley, along with record-breaking attendance numbers at the theater, in Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys. An acclaimed production of John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt followed, and now Ms. Harris is finishing her run in Oscar and the Pink Lady. Next up is the 2007 play The Scene (written by Theresa Rebeck, a hot playwright in the wake of Mauritius’ Broadway run), then the world premiere of Elaine May’s Roger is Dead, starring Marlo Thomas."

posted by Scott Goldman, Executive Assistant

Cuddly makes his Debut!

I love previews at George Street Playhouse mainly because of the discussions with the audience afterwards. In most cases, Artistic Director David Saint is joined on stage by the director and occasionally members of the cast. Last week was a little different when Frank Dunlop the director of Oscar and the Pink Lady and Rosemary Harris, the show's star, surprised everyone (including David), for the talkback. All three nights, Ms. Harris took questions from the audience and also spoke briefly about her distinguished career in theatre and film.

The discussion took a personal twist, when she mentioned that the bear used in the show, was actually from her childhood! As she told it, Ms. Harris was sent to boarding school when she was a girl, and was incredibly homesick. "Cuddly," as she named the bear, comforted her for almost a year. She has since lent him to her sister and her three kids. "Cuddly" has withstood the test of time, though he's lost some of his padding, and is worn after years of use. Oscar...marks Cuddly's stage debut!

"Cuddly" photo by T. Charles Erickson. - posted by Scott Goldman, Executive Assistant

Keeping up with GSP!

So much has happened since our last post....let's get up to speed

This past Sunday, Rosemary Harris had her final dress rehearsal for Oscar and the Pink Lady. What a treat it is to see this amazing actress fluidly move to play so many characters. In attendance were the tech staff (who have been working so hard to put this show up with just TWO WEEKS!), select members of the staff, and Ms. Harris' husband John Ehle (their daughter is Tony Award Winner Jennifer Ehle from The Coast of Utopia). As the director Frank Dunlop noted, it was the first time they were going to attempt running the show without stopping. Much has changed since their run in San Diego. The show was formerly in the round, keeping Ms. Harris moving all the time. Now at GSP, she's tailored her movement and facial expressions, making it all the more nuanced. Midway through the transformation has completely taken hold, and she comes so believable as a 10 year old boy it's truly astonishing. At the final moment of the show, there was barely a dry eye in the house.

There's an elegant simplicity to the show that is just so moving, it's hard to explain, so you'll just have to get out here and see it!

Meanwhile, the fun at GSP never stops. We're just one week away from beginning rehearsals on The Scene, Theresa Rebeck's funny, sexy, racy comedy about trying to make it big. Hopefully, I can convince a member of the cast to join in the blogging fun.

BUT WAIT! There's more! David Saint, our fearless Artistic Director has just begun attending auditions for Roger is Dead our final show of the season starring Marlo Thomas, written and directed by Elaine May.

Somewhere in between all this, our touring company read a new piece in development for next season about the dangers of cyber bullying, and the staff has begun to read scripts under consideration for next season. NEXT SEASON already can you imagine?!

Well, that's all the news for now...stay tuned.

posted by Scott Goldman, Executive Assistant

"Aunt May," "That Girl" and Elaine May!

Lots of exciting news is happening here at George Street. You only have 19 shopping days left! Why not buy that special someone a gift card or tickets to George Street! Two new shows have been announced this week. The first will open in January, Oscar and the Pink Lady stars the great stage and screen star Rosemary Harris, best known as Peter Parker's Aunt May in the recent Spiderman movies. The second announcement is that Marlo Thomas from TV's "That Girl" will star in a new comedy, Roger is Dead, by Elaine May (Oscar Nominated for the original The Heartbreak Kid and writer of Primary Colors). I'm actually one of the few people around here who have never seen That Girl on TV , but I did grow up on the cartoon series Free to Be...You and Me. Fortunately, both are now on DVD and I have this clip from the show. It's clear even here, what a comic actress Ms. Thomas is.



posted by Scott Goldman, Executive Assistant