''That Face'' is a two-
act play
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framework, a Java framework
* Pla ...
written by
Polly Stenham
Polly Stenham (born 16 July 1986) is an English playwright known for her play ''That Face'', which she wrote when she was 19 years old.
Background
Stenham was born and raised in London. She attributes her love of theatre to her father as he to ...
. It premiered at the
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, Englan ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
on 26 April 2007, directed by
Jeremy Herrin
Jeremy Herrin is an English theatre director. He is the artistic director of Headlong Theatre.
Career
Having trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, Herrin was an assistant director ...
. The play was revived at the
Duke of York's Theatre
The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by th ...
in the
West End in 2008, opening on 1 May. It made its
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
premiere in May 2010, at the
Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has gr ...
, running through until 27 June.
Plot
Mia is at boarding school and has access to her mother's drugs. She gets into trouble for drugging a fellow student and this causes her father to be brought back to England from Hong Kong. Henry, her brother, has dropped out of school and has to stay at home and look after his alcoholic mother. Martha, their fading glamorous mother, controls their lives whilst her own sick mind and world crumble around her.
Original West End production
When ''That Face'' premiered on the
West End, the cast was as follows:
Lindsay Duncan
Lindsay Vere Duncan (born 7 November 1950) is a Scottish actress. On stage, she has won two Olivier Awards (for ''Les Liaisons Dangereuses'' and ''Private Lives'') and a Tony Award (for ''Private Lives''). She has starred in several plays by H ...
,
Hannah Murray
Tegan Lauren-Hannah Murray (born 1 July 1989) is an English people, English actress. She played Cassie in ''Skins (British TV series), Skins'' (2007–2008, 2013) and Gilly (A Song of Ice and Fire), Gilly in the HBO fantasy series ''Game of Thr ...
,
Matt Smith
Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as the Eleventh Doctor, eleventh incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the BBC series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Daemon Targarye ...
,
Catherine Steadman
Catherine Steadman is a British actress and author.
Career
Steadman trained at the Oxford School of Drama and made her screen debut playing Julia Bertram in ''Mansfield Park''. Since then she has appeared in television series such as ''The Tudo ...
and
Julian Wadham
Julian Neil Rohan Wadham (born 7 August 1958) is an English actor of stage, film and television. He was educated at Ampleforth College and the Central School of Speech and Drama, third son of Rohan Nicholas Wadham DFC and Juliana Wadham, née ...
.
[Official Website](_blank)
/ref> Prior to the West End transfer, Felicity Jones
Felicity Rose Hadley Jones (born 17 October 1983) is a British actress. She started her professional acting career as a child, appearing in '' The Treasure Seekers'' (1996) at age 12. She went on to play Ethel Hallow for one series of the tele ...
played the Hannah Murray
Tegan Lauren-Hannah Murray (born 1 July 1989) is an English people, English actress. She played Cassie in ''Skins (British TV series), Skins'' (2007–2008, 2013) and Gilly (A Song of Ice and Fire), Gilly in the HBO fantasy series ''Game of Thr ...
role.
2010 New York production
The Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has gr ...
mounted the play on its Stage I in May 2010, with Cristin Milioti
Cristin Milioti (born August 16, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for playing Tracy McConnell in the CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother'' from 2013 to 2014, and for her work in theater productions such as ''That Face'', ''Stunning'', a ...
and Christopher Abbott
Christopher Jacob Abbott (born February 1, 1986) is an American actor. Abbott made his feature film debut in ''Martha Marcy May Marlene'' (2011). Abbott's other notable films include '' Hello I Must Be Going'' (2012) '' The Sleepwalker'' (2014) ...
portraying the siblings, and Laila Robins
Laila Robins is an American stage, film and television actress. She has appeared in films including ''Planes, Trains and Automobiles'' (1987), ''An Innocent Man'' (1989), ''Live Nude Girls'' (1995), ''True Crime'' (1999), ''She's Lost Control'' ( ...
as the mother.
Landor Theatre
''That Face'' received its first London revival at The Landor Theatre from 12 November to 1 December 2013, starring Caroline Wildi as Martha, Rory Fleck-Byrne
Rory Fleck Byrne (born 1988) is an Irish actor and composer, known for ''Vampire Academy'', ''Harlots'', '' The Foreigner'' and '' This Is Going to Hurt''.
Early life
Rory Fleck Byrne was born in England but moved to Ireland when he was nine y ...
as Henry, Stephanie Hyam
Stephanie Hyam is a British actress and artist, notable for stage work including ''The James Plays'' (2014, Edinburgh International Festival and Royal National Theatre) and film and TV appearances including ''Their Finest'' (2017), ''Doctor Who'' ...
as Mia and Georgina Leonidas
Georgina Leonidas (born 28 February 1990) is a British actress best known for playing Molly in ''The Basil Brush Show'', and Katie Bell in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' and ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2''.
Early ...
as Izzy.
Critical reaction
''That Face'' was received positively by critics, who particularly praised the new writer and the performances from the actors. Charles Spencer of ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' said it was "a blazing, no-holds barred production… Fresh, passionate and blackly comic – exhilarating... Lindsay Duncan’s superb performance...Matt Smith is outstanding.". ''The Daily Express'' mentioned that "Polly Stenham
Polly Stenham (born 16 July 1986) is an English playwright known for her play ''That Face'', which she wrote when she was 19 years old.
Background
Stenham was born and raised in London. She attributes her love of theatre to her father as he to ...
is a modern successor to Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...
or Edward Albee
Edward Franklin Albee III ( ; March 12, 1928 – September 16, 2016) was an American playwright known for works such as ''The Zoo Story'' (1958), '' The Sandbox'' (1959), ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' (1962), '' A Delicate Balance'' (1966) ...
... Intensely moving, skillfully crafted piece." ''The Daily Express'', ''The Evening Standard'', ''The Guardian'', ''The Times'', ''Time Out'', ''Metro'', ''Radio 4'' and ''The Sunday Times'' also reviewed it very positively. In late 2009, the play was named at no. 9 in The Times Top Twenty Plays of the Decade. It also received three Olivier Award nominations (one in 2008, before the transfer, then nods for Best New Play and Best Actress in a Play in 2009).[ ]
References
;Footnotes
{{Reflist
;Sources
*Benedict, David (25 April 2007).
That Face
. ''Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''. Retrieved on 19 April 2008.
*Wolf, Matt (9 May 2007).
In London, Two Small Shows Attract Full Houses
. ''International Herald Tribune
The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France for international English-speaking readers. It had the aim of becoming "the world's first global newspaper" and could fairly be said ...
''. Retrieved on 19 April 2008.
English plays
2008 plays
West End plays