Kevin Kline will be making a rare appearance on Broadway this spring at the St. James Theatre in Noël Coward’s “Present Laughter.”
Kline, long considered America’s greatest stage actor who doesn’t work enough, is a fan of the 1939 comedy and has been nursing plans for a revival for several years. The production, scheduled to slip in just before the Tony cutoff date at the end of April, will be directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, who staged the saucy Broadway comedy “Hand to God.”
“Present Laughter” is a lightly autobiographical play about a successful writer of stage comedies who’s facing a midlife crisis. He’s juggling a couple of women who are in love with him, an estranged wife, a long-suffering secretary and a troubled young male playwright who wants to become his confidant.
Coward toured England, starring in the play in 1942. It debuted on Broadway in 1946 with Clifton Webb in the leading role. George C. Scott starred in a celebrated revival in 1982, which featured a young and unknown Nathan Lane as the striving playwright. Frank Langella revived it in 1996, in a sexually charged production notable for the fact that the young people in the cast appeared naked onstage.
Kline has not been on Broadway since 2007 when he starred in “Cyrano de Bergerac.” His nickname in the business is “Kevin De-Kline” because he turns down so many offers. But he’s probably still a box office draw due to his turns in such popular movies as “Sophie’s Choice,” “The Big Chill,” “A Fish Called Wanda,” “In & Out” and “Dave.”
It’s nice he’s returning to the St. James. As a young actor, he gave one of his most acclaimed performances there, playing a vain matinee idol in Cy Coleman’s musical “On the 20th Century.” His comic turn won him the first of his two Tony Awards in 1978.
“Present Laughter,” which will be produced by Jujamcyn Theaters, is a bit of a stopgap for the St. James. Jujamcyn, which owns the theater, is planning a major renovation after the play’s limited run ends. The back wall will be blown out, so the stage can be expanded to accommodate Disney’s multimillion-dollar musical “Frozen,” which will open on Broadway in the spring of 2018.
Looks like producer Garth Drabinsky, who did jail time in Canada for his part in the collapse of the fraudulent theater company Livent, has found backers for his new musical — “Madame Sousatzka.”
Richard Stursberg, who once headed up CBC/Radio Canada, is leading a group of investors backing the show, set to open in the spring at the Elgin Theater in Toronto. If the reviews are good, a plan is in place to bring the show, which has a score by Richard Maltby Jr. and David Shire, to Broadway next fall.
I’m told that “Madame Sousatzka” will be billed as a “Garth Drabinksy Production” — even on Broadway.
Alas, Drabinsky, a k a Prisoner 24601, won’t be able to attend the New York opening. He’s still under indictment in the United States for fraud, and if he sets one foot over the borderline, he’ll be clapped in irons.
Reps for Drabinsky and “Madame Sousatzka” declined to comment.