Instead of going to the theater, the theater will be coming to you through a public television broadcast from the “Live from Lincoln Center” series. On a date to be announced at a later time, the Broadway show The Nance will be presented.
The Nance closed its Broadway run earlier this week on August 11th. The show played 28 previews and 136 regular performances and received five Tony Award nominations, including a Best Actor in a Play Tony Nomination for its leading actor, Nathan Lane. The production won Tony Awards for Best Costume Design, Best Scenic Design and Best Sound Design. The cast also included Cady Huffman, Lewis J. Stadlen, Jenni Barber, Andrèa Burns, Geoffrey Allen Murphy and Jonny Orsini.
The play was about a group of players that appeared in a New York City burlesque show during the 1930s. Lane played Chauncey Miles who appeared in the show but had to keep his personal homosexual life quiet or risk being arrested. The opening scene of the show took place in an eating establishment which no longer exists, an automat. This particular automat was known to be a meeting place for gay men and was also a hangout for the police looking to make arrests. It is here that Chauncey meets a young man and enters into a long term relationship which was not his usual way to be. The relationship seems to run a parallel course to the demise of burlesque in NYC. As the changes take place, Chauncey is unable to deal well with them. The sad story of what takes place keeps the action moving to its final scene.
The show combined some humor from the stage acts being presented at the burlesque hall along with their musical numbers, but for the most part, it is a play. The sensitive subject matter leads to some very emotional scenes and some heartbreaking results. Many endings and changes are seen as the show concludes. The acting is superb and the storyline is well told. All in all, it is a marvelous play to see.
The taping of the play took place when three additional shows with live audiences were filmed a few days after the formal close on the 11th. The taped version will be shown on “Live at Lincoln Center” at a date to be announced, probably in 2014. This will be well worth watching as it documents a difficult time period in the history of theater, New York City, and for acceptance of those who are gay.
