THE CITY OF CONVERSATION
A New Play by
Anthony Giardina
Directed by
Doug Hughes
Previews begin April 10
At the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater
(150 West 65th Street)
with
John Aylward, Phillip James Brannon, Kristen Bush, Beth Dixon, Barbara Garrick, Jan Maxwell,
Luke Niehaus, Kevin O'Rourke, Michael Simpson
Persuasion is a subtle art. When it takes the form of conversation, particularly as practiced by an intelligent and charming hostess, it is an art that can change minds, change hearts, maybe even change the course of a nation. This was certainly true a century ago when Henry James labeled Washington, DC 'the city of conversation.' In the home of Washington hostess Hester Ferris, conversation as a tool, both political and personal, is still alive and well in 1979 when author Anthony Giardina's new play begins.
Jan Maxwell plays the savvy, elegant, politically-connected Hester who has made persuasion her trade since the Kennedy administration. Her well-stuffed address book, her phone and her Georgetown dinner table are all she needs.
When the play begins, in the waning days of the Carter administration, Hester is planning a dinner party for a conservative Senator whose opinion she hopes to sway to a more liberal point of view on a specific bill. Her son arrives home unexpectedly from studying abroad, new girlfriend in tow, both now proudly Republican and ready to join the Reagan campaign. A rift between mother and son, begun that night, foretells a deeper falling out eight years later as the Bork nomination flails, and still echoes thirty years later on the eve of the Obama inauguration.
This world premiere production at the Mitzi E. Newhouse, will be directed by Doug Hughes (LCT's "The House in Town"; this season's "Outside Mullingar"; and Tony Award winner for "Doubt"), with sets by John Lee Beatty, costumes by Catherine Zuber, lights by Tyler Micoleau and original sound and music by Mark Bennett.
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