New in 2018 Ed and his three adult sons ring in Christmas by contemplating the value of straight white men in a society driven by conversations of identity and privilege in this new drama.
The Broadway production of Straight White Men closed September 9, 2018. For current Broadway show listings and tickets, please click here.
From the producers: It’s Christmas Eve, and Ed has gathered his three adult sons to celebrate with matching pajamas, trash-talking, and Chinese takeout. But when a question they can’t answer interrupts their holiday cheer, they are forced to confront their own identities. Obie Award-winning playwright Young Jean Lee takes a hilariously ruthless look at the classic American father-son drama.This is one white Christmas like you’ve never seen before.
Author Young Jean Lee's plays include "Untitled Feminist Show," "We're Gonna Die," "Lear", "The Appeal" and "Songs of the Dragons Flying to Heaven." Lee is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, two OBIE Awards and a Prize in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. "Straight White Men" received its world premiere in April 2014 at Columbus, Ohio’s Wexner Center for the Arts. A New York premiere followed later that year at Off-Broadway’s Public Theater. This production will mark the first time a play written by an Asian woman has been produced on Broadway.
"Straight White Men" features film actor Armie Hammer ("The Social Network," "Call Me By Your Name"), Emmy nominee Josh Charles (TV's "The Good Wife"), author, actor, and trans pioneer Kate Bornstein, and stage and screen actors Ty Defoe and Stephen Payne ("August: Osage County," "Superior Donuts"). Tony winner Anna D. Shapiro ("August: Osage County," "This Is Our Youth") directs.
What's Second Stage? Second Stage is a long-running producing organization with a recently redesigned Off-Broadway theater in the heart of the midtown theater district, and a smaller space (the company's original home) on the Upper West Side. Established as a 'Second Stage' for shows that didn't find an audience the first time around, the company now combines revivals with new work, and several of its shows have recently made the jump to larger houses across the street. The fare is sometimes a bit racy, but often very approachable...call it quirkiness with an edge. More here.
A powerful social commentary...with the help of a star-studded male ensemble making impressive Broadway debuts, the play examines toxic masculinity and white male privilege while making you disappointed that modern men still haven't harnessed their strength in a positive movement the way women have with feminism. Overall the cast delivers magnetic and profound performances, sandwiching harsh truths between jokes and even some adorable dance moves.
Hollywood Reporter
"Straight White Men" is great fun for much of its running time, but the play falters when it attempts to explore more serious terrain. The work's ambiguity, deliberate or otherwise, ultimately proves frustrating, especially in its unresolved conclusion. Nonetheless, the evening succeeds to a large degree thanks to the sharply funny comic writing, the impeccable direction by Shapiro and the superb performances of an ensemble who display tremendous chemistry together.
