Playwright Tracy Letts’ “August: Osage County” was the darling of Broadway, garnering five Tony Awards during its run, plus the Pulitzer Prize. Now this acclaimed comedy/drama, with a screenplay written by Letts, has arrived on the silver screen. Meryl Streep stars as the totally messed-up matriarch of a family so dysfunctional your family will look positively marvelous, despite their flaws.
Playwright Tracy Letts’ “August: Osage County” was the darling of Broadway, garnering five Tony Awards during its run, plus the Pulitzer Prize. Now this acclaimed comedy/drama, with a screenplay written by Letts, has arrived on the silver screen. Meryl Streep stars as the totally messed-up matriarch of a family so dysfunctional your family will look positively marvelous, despite their flaws.
The father of the clan (Sam Shepard) is missing and his sudden disappearance brings the daughters back home in an effort to locate dad as well as provide moral support for their very difficult, drug-addled mother. You soon realize why two daughters have flown far from the nest, leaving their middle sister behind to cope with their parents. Julia Roberts portrays the eldest daughter, who along with Streep, has been nominated for a Golden Globe.
Add Streep’s younger sister, her husband (beautifully portrayed by Chris Cooper) and their sweet, but slow witted son to the mix along with Robert’s husband, daughter and Roberts’ baby sister (Juliet Lewis), who has arrived with her fiancé. He, like this family, comes with a lot of baggage.
As the film opens we see the parched landscapes of Osage County as it, like this family, sizzles in the hot, humid heat of August. On stage the action basically took place within the confines of the family’s house and yard, providing a sense of claustrophobia each family member experiences when they are in close proximity with one another. The stage version also allowed the audience to see the action in totality as it happens, rather than in tight close-ups. Seeing mom self-destruct from a distance was more enjoyable for me personally than constantly having a close up of a snarling, controlling Streep blown up on screen.
While the story deals with impending tragedy and the dark secrets of a talented but truly unhinged family, it is also darkly humorous. Perhaps the most telling and discomfortingly hilarious portion of both the film and play, takes place at the dinner table when the entire clashing clan sits down to one of the most unpleasant meals imaginable. Being a part of this dinner gathering is enough to give anyone severe heartburn.
While the scene is squirm inducing, it’s also terribly funny with the accent on terrible. It works on screen, but was even better on stage where you could experience everyone’s discomfort en mass, without cuts and close ups, which distract from the totality of this gut-wrenchingly funny experience.
While there is anger and unhappiness at the core of this family‘s dynamics, Letts also reveals many loving memories that have kept them together despite their pain. “August: Osage County” is rated R for language, sexual references and drug use.
**
Attention ballet lovers, mark your calendars for the upcoming, but very brief engagement of the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s production of “Giselle” coming to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for four performances only, Friday, Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 1 at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 2 at 2 p.m.
The dynamic dancers of this acclaimed company will perform their creative, lyrical version of “Giselle,” which was first performed in Paris in 1841. The ballet, a dynamic and beautiful tale, is about the power of forgiveness and redemption, love and betrayal. It will be performed by 34 talented dancers of the Royal New Zealand Ballet Company, when they present of one of the oldest living ballets in the international repertory for Los Angeles‘ audiences.
***
Christopher Plummer, winner of both the Tony and Oscar, will be at the Ahmanson Theatre for 16 performances only (Jan. 19 to Feb. 9). The show, “Christopher Plummer: A Word or Two” is a one-man tour de force written, arranged and performed by the gifted actor.
The show, described as “both strikingly intimate and dignified,” will be a lovely evening of interesting tales. For tickets go to CenterTheatreGroup.org/AWord or call 213-972-4400.
