Metamorphoses (play) - Sample Production History

Sample Production History

-Times and dates retrieved from the beginning of the script-

World premiere production:

Produced by Lookingglass Theatre Co., based in Chicago. It opened on October 25, 1998 at the Ivanhoe Theater.

Second Stage Theatre production:

The play's off Broadway debut was on October 9, 2001 in New York City. This production was in rehearsal during the attacks on the World Trade Towers on September 11. With the towers still smoldering downtown, the productions emotional response seemed greater from the audience.

Broadway production:

The play's Broadway debut was on March 4, 2002 at the Circle in the Square theater in New York City. Unlike previous productions, the Circle in the Square Theater uses a 3/4 thrust stage, meaning that the audience is on three sides of the playing area. It resonated a similar structure to the Greek and Roman amphitheaters and the audience was aware that other audience members could see them, "appropriate for a show that stresses the value of shared cultural myths and the emotions they summon." Although the play kept many of the Off-Broadway aspects of the show, it subdued the incest scene between Myrrha and King Cinyras for the Broadway production. The Off Broadway scene had the pair "writhing and splashing" enthusiastically in a much more intense and disturbing fashion, while on Broadway they gently rolled in the water, suggesting a more seemly interaction. The performance style was commented by one reviewer as falling into an American jokiness form that had a youthful charm and a high energy for wisecracks as a way of deflecting and delay the emotionally heavy scene, which tended to resonate better. It closed on February 16, 2003, running for a total of 400 performances. This production was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play in 2002, competing against Suzan-Lori Parks' Topdog/Underdog and Edward Albee's The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?, which ended up taking the award.