Martin Sheen is ready to share a few Love Letters on The Great White Way…
The 73-year-old half-Spanish American actor and West Wing alum has signed on to take part in the star-fueled revival of playwright A.R. Gurney’s play Love Letters.
The play centers on two characters, Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd III. The couple sit side by side at tables and read the notes, letters and cards – in which over nearly 50 years, they discuss their hopes and ambitions, dreams and disappointments, victories and defeats – that have passed between them throughout their separated lives.
The play, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, will return to Broadway beginning September 13 at the Nederlander Theatre.
Martin Sheen will be paired with Anjelica Huston for their three-week run of performances. The other pairings include Brian Dennehy and Mia Farrow, Brian Dennehy and Carol Burnett, Alan Alda and Candice Bergen, and Stacy Keach and Diana Rigg.
Two-time Tony Award winner Gregory Mosher will direct the production.
Here’s the schedule so far:
Saturday, September 13, 2014, through Friday, October 10, 2014: Brian Dennehy & Mia Farrow
Saturday, October 11, 2014, through Friday, November 7, 2014: Carol Burnett & Brian Dennehy
Saturday, November 8, 2014 through Friday, December 5, 2014: Alan Alda & Candice Bergen
Saturday, December 6, 2014, through Friday, January 9, 2015: Stacy Keach & Diana Rigg
Saturday, January 10, 2015, through Sunday, February 1, 2015: Anjelica Huston & Martin Sheen
The first reading of Love Letters took place at the New York Public Library, performed by Gurney and Holland Taylor. The original full production was directed by John Tillinger and opened November 3, 1988, at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut starring Joanna Gleason and John Rubinstein, followed by a New York production opening March 27, 1989, at off-Broadway’s Promenade Theatre starring Kathleen Turner and John Rubinstein. On October 31, 1989, Love Letters opened at Broadway’s Edison Theatre starring Colleen Dewhurst and Jason Robards, where it ran for 96 performances.